NODX contraction eases in September with 1.2% dip

[SINGAPORE] Non-oil domestic exports (NODX) fell year-on-year for an eighth consecutive month in September, though the contraction was narrower than market forecasts, as higher non-electronic exports such as ships and petrochemicals helped offset weaker electronics ones.

Latest trade figures released by trade promotion agency IE Singapore yesterday revealed that NODX eased from a 6.8 per cent year-on-year decline in August to a 1.2 per cent dip last month. Expectations were for a 2.8 per cent drop, leading at least one economist to see NODX picking up gradually.

"NODX remains weak, but the contraction has eased," observed Chua Hak Bin of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.