China’s slowdown really hit home last month, with Singapore’s shipments to the country taking the biggest hammering in seven years.
Non-oil domestic exports (Nodx) to China plunged 25.2 per cent last month over January last year, in the wake of falling demand and a shift towards domestic production on the mainland.
The dismal numbers on China were the low point of a bleak picture last month, with overall Nodx down 9.9 per cent year on year.
China led the decline, while shipments to Taiwan plunged 26.5 per cent and those to South Korea were down 14.8 per cent.
“The impact from the slowdown in China could be more broad- based than what many had expected,” said DBS economist Irvin Seah, noting that China is the largest import partner for Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.