SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Singapore’s petrochemical shipments in October declined by 19.2% year on year to Singapore dollar (S$) 1.26bn ($926m), while its overall non-oil domestic exports (NODX) declined 12.3%, official data showed on Monday.

The fall in petrochemical shipments was steeper than the 10.6% recorded in September, according to Enterprise Singapore.

October NODX fell to S$14.3bn, with contractions recorded in nine of its top 10 export destinations. Shipments to Taiwan was the only exception, which increased 7.0% for the month.

Shipments to Japan slumped 39.5%, registering sharpest decline among the Singapore's top markets in October, followed by Indonesia (-15.5) and EU 28 (-13.2%).

Singapore, which is an export-reliant economy, has been hurting from the 16-month trade war between the US and China.

Its October NODX to China and the US registered year-on-year declines of 5.5% and 10.5%, respectively.

Singapore's factories have registered six consecutive months of contraction since May, with purchasing managers’ index (PMI) readings of below 50.

In October, its PMI reading was 49.6, up from 49.5 in September, based on data from the Singapore Institute of Purchase & Materials Management (SIPMM).

The economy avoided a technical recession as it bounced back to a quarter-on-quarter growth mode in three months to September 2019. It posted a 0.6% quarter-on-quarter GDP growth for the period, after a 2.7% contraction in the second quarter.

($1 = S$1.36)

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