The Singapore economy expanded by 14.7 percent last year, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), adding that a 15 percent growth forecast was expected for the year.
Advance estimates showed that the economy grew 12.5 percent in Q4 last year, rebounding from a 10.5 percent growth in Q3. This was attributed to the 28.2 percent expansion in the manufacturing sector, which saw a robust rebound in pharmaceutical output.
According to the International Monetary Fund, Singapore’s economic growth for 2010 would be the fastest in the world behind Qatar’s.
In contrast, the construction sector fell 1.2 percent in Q4, reversing the 7.1 percent growth in Q3. Overall, construction shrank 18.5 percent, mainly attributed to a decline in activities in the private sector.
MTI said it will release the preliminary GDP estimates for Q4 and for the whole of 2010 in February, including sources of growth, performance by sectors, productivity, inflation and employment.