Private-sector economists have maintained their growth forecast for the Singapore economy at 3.2%, based on the latest quarterly survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). This forecast falls within the Singapore Government’s estimates of 2.5% and 3.5% for the full-year Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Official data released in August showed the GDP for 2Q 2018 performing slightly better than expected at 3.9% compared to one year ago. There are some bright spots in the economy – manufacturing is expected to grow at 7.6% after a good performance of 10.2% growth in 2Q 2018. In the accommodation and food services sector, the growth is expected to be 2.9%. The sectors that economists maintained or downgraded their 2018 forecast included finance and insurance, construction, wholesale and retail trade, as well as non-oil domestic exports. Economists expect the unemployment rate to be at 2.1%, maintaining their forecast from the previous survey. Economists are slightly less optimistic about the property market because of the cooling measures announced in July 2018. Just 26% of the economists surveyed felt that there would be growth in the sector, compared to 47% in the previous survey. Looking ahead to 2019, the economists surveyed maintained their expectations for overall GDP growth to ease to 2.7%.
