Economists cut S’pore’s economic growth, inflation forecast for the year: Survey

SINGAPORE — Private sector economists have lowered their forecasts for the Republic’s economic growth and inflation outlook this year.

In the latest quarterly survey conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the economists expect the economy to grow by 2.8 per cent this year, down from the previous forecast of 3.1 per cent.

Out of the five sectors that contribute to gross domestic product (GDP), the economists cut their forecasts for four: Manufacturing, construction, wholesale & retail trade as well as accommodation & food services. Only the finance and insurance sector was expected to do better compared to the previous survey conducted in December.

For the first quarter of this year, the economists expect GDP to grow by 2 per cent, down from the earlier forecast of 2.5 per cent.

The survey, which polled 26 economists and analysts who closely monitor the Singapore economy, also showed lower expectations for inflation this year, reducing the forecast for the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-all items inflation to 0.1 per cent, down from 1.1 per cent in the previous survey. MAS core inflation, which excludes the costs of accommodation and private transport, is expected to rise by 1 per cent for this year, compared to 1.9 per cent in the previous survey.