Data Updates: Singapore's economy grows 5.7% in Q4 2025, beating forecasts

Source:

https://www.asiaone.com/singapore/singapores-economy-grows-57-q4-2025-beating-forecasts

ChatGPT:

Singapore’s economy expanded by a robust 5.7 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2025, beating market expectations and marking its fastest quarterly growth for the year, according to advance estimates released by the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Jan 2. This was also stronger than the 5.0 per cent growth recorded in the same period a year earlier. For the full year, gross domestic product grew by 4.8 per cent, exceeding both the 4.4 per cent expansion in 2024 and the official forecast of “around 4 per cent” that had been upgraded in November.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had earlier disclosed the full-year growth figure in his New Year’s Day message, describing the performance as “stronger-than-expected growth”. However, he cautioned that maintaining such momentum would be difficult, citing persistent global challenges including fractured trade relations and geopolitical tensions that are likely to remain long-term features of the global landscape.

Looking ahead, MTI expects Singapore’s economy to grow between one and three per cent in 2026. The ministry warned that slowing growth in major economies could moderate export demand across Southeast Asia, posing headwinds for trade-dependent economies like Singapore.

The manufacturing sector was a key driver of the strong fourth-quarter performance, surging 15 per cent year-on-year, a sharp acceleration from the 4.9 per cent growth recorded in the previous quarter. This was largely driven by significant output expansions in the biomedical manufacturing and electronics clusters. Pharmaceutical production underpinned biomedical growth, while electronics benefited from sustained global demand for AI-related semiconductors, servers and related equipment.

The construction sector also expanded, growing 4.2 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter, though this represented a moderation from the 5.1 per cent growth seen previously. Meanwhile, all services-producing sectors recorded growth, with wholesale trade supported by strong sales of electronic components, telecommunications equipment and computer hardware amid the ongoing artificial intelligence boom.

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Huat Huat Singapore!