The Singapore economy may have outperformed official forecasts and market expectations in 2024, but economists see a more challenging outlook for growth in 2025.
The cautious stance comes as advance estimates from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Jan 2 show the economy expanded 4.3 per cent year on year in the fourth quarter of 2024.
While lower than the 5.4 per cent growth in the previous quarter, the figure beat the 3.8 per cent growth forecast by economists in a Bloomberg poll.
On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted basis, the economy expanded 0.1 per cent, down from the 3.2 per cent growth in the third quarter of 2024.
For full-year 2024, the economy grew 4 per cent, MTI said, reiterating the figure announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in his Dec 31 New Year message.
This was the highest growth since 2021 and comes after 2023's 1.1 per cent increase. It also beat MTI's forecast of around 3.5 per cent made in November.
MTI did not give a new forecast for 2025 growth but said in November that it sees growth slowing to a range of 1 per cent to 3 per cent. It flagged downside risk from a further escalation of geopolitical conflicts and higher uncertainty over US trade policies under the incoming Trump administration.
This story is from the January 03, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the January 03, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Striking scenes and staging in A Brooding Beast In The Corner
In a time of increasing awareness about humans' impact on the world and where climate change has led to greater urgency to address some of that impact, Arts Fission starts the year off with a frank, gritty look at the topic.
8 Tips From A Regretful Investor On What Not To Do
Stakes are high when you invest your retirement savings. It pays to be extra cautious.
Hatton in top 10 after a 'dream' Dubai title
Englishman Tyrrell Hatton eked past New Zealand's Daniel Hillier to win the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour by a single shot on Jan 19 at the Emirates Golf Club.
France in 'great shape' for Six Nations, says upbeat Dupont
France captain Antoine Dupont said Toulouse's thrashing of Leicester Tigers in the Champions Cup was the perfect warmup for the Six Nations.
Buy before you fly
Changi Airport is pulling out all the stops to get travellers to spend at the transport hub, with new boutiques and a revamped shopping campaign
Two fairy-tale figures exit, but leave lessons
Fairy tales aren't just feel-good tales, in sport they leave behind lessons. From Tien and Monfils came the same audacious one: Don't believe 19 is too young and 38 too old
Benefits of common decongestant found in many medications outweigh risks: HSA
The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) said the benefits of pseudoephedrine, a decongestant found in 31 medications here, outweigh the risks it poses, in response to reports overseas of adverse effects.
Learning Differences ● Drama Programmes Can Help Children With Dyslexia Develop Essential Skills
The Opinion piece on the transformative power of drama, especially in empowering children with dyslexia and other learning differences, resonated with me (No drama? We could do with some in our schools, Jan 11).
S'pore-listed firms have more diverse boards now than 5 years ago: Study
Progress made in percentage of women members, but not in cultural diversity
TV host sorry for Djokovic 'banter'
Australian broadcaster Tony Jones has apologised to Novak Djokovic and his fans for comments he made on TV on Jan 17 that the 10-time Australian Open champion considered \"insulting and offensive\".