Singapore’s July chems output down 2.4%, overall output falls 8.4%

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Singapore’s overall chemicals output fell by 2.4% year on year in July, slowing down from the 11.7% decline in June, weighed by a drop in output from the specialties and petroleum segments, official data showed on Wednesday.

The petrochemicals segment grew by 11.5% year on year in July, but the rest of the chemical segments recorded declines, the Economic Development Board (EDB) said in a statement.

The other chemicals segment fell by 15.2% year on year in July, while the specialties and petroleum segments contracted by 16.0% each, “on the back of plant maintenance shutdowns and lower export orders amid the coronavirus outbreak”, the EDB said.

In the first seven months of this year, output of the chemicals cluster fell by 5.0% year on year.

Singapore’s overall industrial production fell by 8.4% year on year in July, accelerating from the 6.5% drop in June.

Excluding the biomedical cluster, Singapore’s manufacturing output was down by 5.2% year on year.

Singapore’s petrochemical exports fell by 26.8% year on year in July but overall non-oil domestic exports (NODX) rose on stronger shipments of electronic products and pharmaceuticals.

The year-on-year fall in petrochemical exports in July marked the 23rd straight month of contraction.

Photo: Singapore port (Wallace Woon/EPA/Shutterstock)