Singapore (AFP) – Singapore’s exports slid again in August, according to official figures released on Wednesday, as shipments to its biggest markets — the US and China — continued to decline. Relations between the world’s two largest economies have been strained by trade tensions that prompted them to impose tit-for-tat tariffs, disrupting global supply chains.
As Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, Singapore relies heavily on trade, making it particularly vulnerable to global slowdowns, even though it currently faces only a 10 percent baseline tariff from US President Donald Trump’s measures. According to the government’s Enterprise Singapore body, the country’s non-oil domestic exports shrank by 11.3 percent in August 2025, a sharper decline compared to the revised 4.7 percent fall in July 2025.
Exports to the United States plummeted nearly 29 percent in August, following a significant 42.8 percent decrease in July, with notable declines in both electronic and non-electronic shipments. Specific sectors saw stark drops, such as food preparations like sauces, which fell by 97.1 percent. Shipments of specialized machinery plunged by 71.3 percent, and disk media products experienced a decline of 60 percent.
Exports to China also contracted, shrinking by 21.5 percent, which was steeper than the 12.3 percent decrease recorded in July. Shipments of specialized machinery fell by nearly 42 percent, while integrated circuits saw a decline of 36.8 percent. Additionally, exports to China of non-monetary gold, used for industrial purposes, plummeted by 96.1 percent.
The decline in Singapore’s August exports reflects a variety of factors, particularly the disruption to world trade and export supply chains caused by the steep new US tariff measures. Rajiv Biswas, chief executive of risk analytics firm Asia Pacific Economics, noted that China’s softer economic growth and weaker retail sales in the third quarter of this year were influencing its imports from Singapore.
Last month, Singapore raised its economic growth forecast for 2025 to between 1.5 and 2.5 percent, up from a previous estimate of zero to 2.0 percent. However, the outlook for the remainder of the year remains clouded by global uncertainty, partly due to the ongoing US tariffs.
© 2024 AFP
