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Foreign media reported on Wednesday that the economy of Singapore, a major exporting nation, shrank 11.5 percent during the first quarter of this year, shocking other export-driven countries, including Korea.
The Financial Times reported that exports were declining rapidly in Singapore, one of the world's most open economies. The FT added that the latest statistics were particularly worrying because Singapore serves as Asia's leading economic indicator.
Singapore's 11.5 percent economic contraction in the first quarter marks a sharp decline from a 4.2-percent contraction during the fourth quarter of 2008. Exports amount to around double its gross domestic product (GDP), demonstrating how dependent the country is on other countries. Exports began dropping in October last year and the entire economy started to contract at the beginning of this year, when exports fell between 20 to 30 percent. As a result, the Singaporean government lowered its economic performance forecast to a 6-to-9-percent contraction.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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