| NEWS ARCHIVES |
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| Private economists upbeat about Singapore's growth |
| 10 Mar 2010 |
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Private sector economists expect the Singapore economy to grow by 6.5 per cent this year.
That’s the median forecast of a poll of 20 economists and analysts surveyed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
The 6.5 percent prediction is at the top end of the government's official forecast of between 4.5 and 6.5 percent expansion.
It’s also one percentage point higher than the previous survey.
In addition, the economists have upgraded their forecast for sectors including the manufacturing, construction as well as hotels & restaurants industries
But the economists have downgraded their expectations for financial services.
The sector is now expected to expand by 5.8 percent compared to the previous figure of 6.5 percent.
For the current quarter, MAS says the economists expect the economy to expand by 9.5 percent.
And for 2011, the forecast is for 5.5 percent growth.
As for the strength of the Singapore dollar, the analysts are of the view that the local currency will rise to 1.35 against the US dollar by year’s end |