SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore downgraded its 2020 gross domestic product forecast for the third time on Tuesday, the trade ministry said, as the bellwether economy braces for its deepest ever recession.
The city-state lowered its GDP forecast to a contraction range of -7% to -4% from the prior range of -1% to -4%.
Singapore’s economy shrank 0.7% year-on-year in the first quarter and 4.7% on a quarter-on-quarter, a less severe decline than advance estimates, although officials and analysts warned of more pain ahead.
“There continues to be a significant degree of uncertainty over the length and severity of the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as the trajectory of the economic recovery,” said Gabriel Lim, permanent secretary at the ministry of trade and industry.
Following the news, the central bank chief economist Ed Robinson said monetary policy remains unchanged and will next be reviewed in October, as planned.
Singapore also downgraded its 2020 forecast for non-oil domestic exports to -4.0% to -1.0%, from -0.5% to 1.5% previously.
Exports have been a rare bright spot for the economy in recent months mainly due to a surge in demand for pharmaceuticals.
Analysts expect the trade-reliant economy to see a deeper contraction in the second quarter due to a two-month lockdown, dubbed a “circuit breaker” by authorities, in which most workplaces closed to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The city-state has among the highest number of infections in Asia and has said that easing of the lockdown from next month will only be done gradually.
“The downward revision…implies a significant deterioration in the second-quarter momentum due to the circuit breaker period as well as a weak recovery trajectory,” said Selena Ling, OCBC Bank’s head of treasury research and strategy.
The government first flagged the possibility of recession in February when it cut its 2020 GDP forecast to -0.5% to 1.5%, from 0.5% to 2.5% previously.
Singapore’s finance minister is set to deliver the latest in a string of multi-billion-dollar economic packages to offset the hit to businesses and households from the pandemic later on Tuesday.
(Reporting by John Geddie, Aradhana Aravindan and Fathin Ungku; Editing by Sam Holmes)
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
