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SINGAPORE’S factory output rose 10.6 per cent year on year in December, with all clusters recording growth, based on data released by the Economic Development Board on Friday (Jan 24).

This outpaced economists’ forecasts of a 6.2 per cent expansion, in a poll by Bloomberg. However, December’s prints came in slightly below November’s revised growth of 10.8 per cent.

Excluding the volatile biomedical sector, December’s industrial production similarly grew 10.6 per cent from the year before, though it moderated from November’s revised growth of 16 per cent.

Output in the key electronics sector rose 14.3 per cent year on year in December, down from 31.3 per cent in November.

Within the sector, some segments expanded: infocomms and consumer electronics grew 41.2 per cent; computer peripherals and data storage rose by 27.1 per cent, and semiconductors, by 11.4 per cent. However, the other electronic modules and components segment contracted by 9.2 per cent.

Year on year in 2024, the electronics cluster posted an 8.4 per cent rise in output.

All other clusters also registered year-on-year growth:  

• Transport engineering (16 per cent)

• Biomedical manufacturing (9.4 per cent)

• Precision engineering (3.9 per cent)

• General manufacturing (3.7 per cent)

• Chemicals (3.1 per cent)

However, on a seasonally adjusted, month-on-month basis, manufacturing output fell 0.7 per cent in December. Excluding biomedical manufacturing, output dropped 5.3 per cent.