January NODX falls 10.1% in its worst showing in over two years

Singapore

SINGAPORE'S trade sector began this year on a weak note, with non-oil domestic exports (NODX) for January sliding a worse-than-expected 10.1 per cent from a year ago, as both electronics and non-electronics shipments shrank.

Economists polled by Bloomberg expected a 3.5 per cent drop; analysts surveyed by Reuters expected a 1.6 per cent decline, given the high base effect of January 2018 when exports rose 13 per cent.

The drop last month was the biggest since October 2016's 12 per cent slump, and comes after a 8.5 per cent fall in December last year and a 2.8 per cent decline in November.

Selena Ling, OCBC head of treasury research and strategy, noted that January's figures "continued to disappoint", …