Decline in Singapore exports slows with 9.3% drop in April

Analysts say electronics rebound lends hope shipments will improve in latter half of 2024

- Angela Tan

Singapore's key exports are on a slow and fragile recovery, as April's data shows, with most economists hopeful that shipments will improve in the second half of the year.

Non-oil domestic exports (Nodx) fell for a third consecutive month in April but by a milder 9.3 per cent from a year earlier, easing from a revised 20.8 per cent contraction in March.

Trade agency Enterprise Singapore said on May 17 the decline was from a high base as the April 2023 exports figure of $15.4 billion was greater than the monthly average of $14.4 billion for the year.

Notably, electronics exports returned to growth, lending some cheer that underlying end-demand fundamentals remain intact even as volatile pharmaceuticals shipments continued to shrink.

However, Maybank economist Brian Lee noted that while electronics Nodx resumed growth, the key semiconductor segment - which makes up about half of the electronics exports - continued to contract.

April's Nodx performance was also slightly worse than predicted with economists polled by Bloomberg tipping an 8.9 per cent contraction. On a seasonally adjusted basis, which removes the effects of seasonal variations in the numbers, Nodx grew 7.6 per cent in April from March to reach $14 billion. This was less though than a 9.2 per cent growth expected in the Bloomberg forecast.

Pharmaceuticals exports extended their decline, tumbling 73.3 per cent to $843.8 million in April following a drop of 70.3 per cent in March.