Tourists visit Singapore's Marina Bay area on May 22, 2025. Singapore's economy expanded 3.9 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, easing from 5.0 percent growth in the previous quarter, official data showed on Thursday. (Photo by Then Chih Wey/Xinhua)
SINGAPORE, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's economy expanded 3.9 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, easing from 5.0 percent growth in the previous quarter, official data showed on Thursday.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry maintained its full-year 2025 growth forecast at between 0.0 and 2.0 percent, citing persistent global uncertainties despite some easing in trade tensions.
Growth in the January-March period was driven mainly by the wholesale trade, manufacturing, and finance and insurance sectors. The ministry noted that manufacturing and wholesale trade were likely buoyed by front-loading activity ahead of anticipated U.S. tariff increases.
In contrast, the accommodation and food and beverage services sectors contracted, with the accommodation sector weighed down by weaker performance in the higher value-added hotel segments.
On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted basis, the economy shrank 0.6 percent, reversing a 0.5 percent expansion in the fourth quarter of 2024.
The ministry downgraded its 2025 GDP forecast in April from a previous range of 1.0 to 3.0 percent, citing a "significant deterioration" in external demand amid heightened global trade tensions following U.S. tariffs.
The ministry said recent steps by major economies to de-escalate tensions had slightly improved Singapore's external demand outlook since April. However, it warned that "the global economic outlook remains clouded by significant uncertainty, with the risks tilted to the downside." ■
This photo taken on May 22, 2025 shows the skyline in Singapore. Singapore's economy expanded 3.9 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, easing from 5.0 percent growth in the previous quarter, official data showed on Thursday. (Photo by Then Chih Wey/Xinhua)
A woman walks in the rain in Singapore's financial and business district Raffles Place on May 22, 2025. Singapore's economy expanded 3.9 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, easing from 5.0 percent growth in the previous quarter, official data showed on Thursday. (Photo by Then Chih Wey/Xinhua)