Singapore SMEs slightly more optimistic: index

Singapore

THE sentiment of Singapore small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) has improved slightly despite the continuing dour outlook for sales and profits.

The SBF-DP SME Index on Thursday showed a rise by 0.6 point to 50.4, which suggests they are expecting some growth in the next six months.

The improvement in sentiment follows last quarter's score of 49.8, which was the first time the index had ever fallen below 50. A score below 50 indicates a state of pessimism.

More than 3,600 SMEs were surveyed in January and February 2017 on their outlook and sentiment. The survey is jointly published by the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) a…