Singapore economy expands for 2nd straight quarter

SINGAPORE – Singapore's economy expanded for a second straight quarter as the manufacturing and service sectors led the city-state out of recession.

Gross domestic product grew an annualized, seasonally adjusted 14.2 percent in the third quarter following a jump of 21.7 percent the previous quarter, the Trade and Industry Ministry said Thursday. The government in October initially reported third quarter growth of 14.9 percent.

The economy also expanded from a year earlier for the first time since the third quarter of 2008. GDP was up 0.6 percent from the July-September quarter of 2008.

The ministry said it expects the economy to grow between 3 percent and 5 percent next year. It maintained its forecast for the economy to shrink between 2.0 percent and 2.5 percent this year.

Singapore relies on trade, finance and tourism to sustain one of Asia's highest living standards. Manufacturing soared an annualized 26.6 percent in the third quarter while services grew 10.8 percent.

However, the economy showed signs of sluggishness in October, when exports fell a seasonally adjusted 12.6 percent from the previous month and dropped 6.1 percent from a year earlier.