Singapore's manufacturing sinks to August low after buoyant months

SINGAPORE's manufacturing decline hit a new low in August with exports down by 11 per cent and non-oil exports down 9.1 per cent to SG$14.7 billion (US$12 billion) from July's SG$15.2 billion with further deterioration expected until year-end.

The decline was forecast much lower at 3.3 per cent after an uptick in the market in July of 5.7 per cent and positive figures in May and June, cited a report from Singapore's Procurement Asia.

Local manufacturing contracted by 0.7 per cent according to the Singapore Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) in a reading of 49.1, a reading below 50 is a sign of economic decline.

According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, the country's manufacturing decline was attributed to a decrease in new orders and reduced inventories of finished goods and imports.