Singapore economy slips into recession
Posted by Bao Viet Nam on October 11, 2008
Hanoi (VNA) – Singapore has become the first Asian economy to fall into a technical recession, as the statistics released by the country’s Ministry of Trade and Industry showed its economy has declined for a second straight quarter.
On a seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter annualised basis, the country’s real GDP declined by 6.3 percent in the third quarter after contracting 5.7 percent in the previous quarter, the ministry said.
The Ministry also revised downwards Singapore’s full-year growth forecast to around 3.0 percent, citing a slowdown in the global economy and key domestic sectors.
In a move to confront the downturn, the Monetary Authority of Singapore – its de facto central bank — said it was easing monetary policy for the first time in more than four years, according to news reports.
However, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was quoted as saying on October 10 that Singapore’s growth is already slowing, but its financial system “is sound”, and its economy “remains competitive”.-
