Singapore: Singapore`s annual exports in March grew the most in three years, handily beating expectations on surging sales to the United States and Europe, backing this week`s decision by the central bank to hold off from further easing.
Non-oil domestic exports (NODX) jumped 18.5 percent in March from a year earlier, trade agency International Enterprise Singapore said on Friday in a statement. It marked the highest annual exports growth since February 2012.
The result compared with a 0.7 percent contraction forecast in a Reuters poll, and a 9.7 percent drop in February, and suggested global demand may be on the mend.
Non-oil exports to the European Union soared 56.2 percent on-year thanks to rises in pharmaceuticals and personal computers. Sales to the United States gained 19.0 percent, from a 7.5 percent growth in February.
Annual shipments to China rose 1.1 percent in March, compared to a 22.7 contraction in February.
"We haven`t seen this kind of eye-popping numbers for a while," said Selena Ling, an economist at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp.
"We have to see whether it`s sustainable. The global picture hasn`t changed that much. Maybe this is a little bit off payback from the Chinese New Year."
Data last week showed China`s overall imports fell 12.7 percent from a year earlier, indicating tepid domestic demand in Asia`s economic powerhouse - Singapore`s top export market.
China`s economy continued to lose momentum, with growth at its slowest pace in six years in the first quarter.
The data backs the Monetary Authority of Singapore`s (MAS) decision to hold policy steady this week. Among other things, the MAS expressed confidence in advanced economies in moving to an on-hold stance after January`s surprise easing.
Exports of electronics in March rose 10.4 percent from a year earlier, after decreasing 12.5 percent in February.
The sector is a key driver of Singapore exports, but it has been underperforming regional competitors such as South Korea and Taiwan due to stiff competition and a lack of popular high-tech products including smartphones.
Shipments of PCs more than doubled in March from a year earlier, while annual sales of pharmaceuticals` exports jumped 65.9 percent last month after a 22.4 percent drop in February.