October 20, 2003 – Singapore’s non-oil exports were up 25.9% in September, well above analysts’ estimates, with high-tech goods showing their best performance in a year, according to local newswires.

Total trade of non-oil exports grew 17% in September to $24.2 billion. The 15.3% growth in electronics was due to primarily to semiconductors and disk drives (up 49.5% and 31.3%, respectively), despite a decline in PCs and telecom equipment.

“The numbers are stronger than anybody expected,” said Nizam Idris, deputy head of research at IDEAglobal, adding that electronics growth is typically more stable than the biomedical and pharmaceutical sectors.

Idris predicted that if the electronics sector can maintain the current growth trend, it could be in position for 5-5.5% growth next year, compared with 1.2% growth in 3Q03.