The ministry said in the Economic Survey of Singapore 2020 that Singapore's external demand outlook remains largely similar compared to three months ago when the Economic Survey of Singapore Third Quarter 2020 was published.
It said the further progress in COVID-19 vaccine development and deployment likely enables advanced economies like the United States and Eurozone to reach population immunity by the second half of this year, which should in turn spur their economic recoveries. On the other hand, the growth prospects for regional economies such as Malaysia and Indonesia have weakened due to the recent resurgence in infections, which has necessitated the re-imposition of lockdowns and restrictions.
At the same time, uncertainties and risks in the global economy remain, the ministry added.
Domestically, Singapore's COVID-19 situation remains under control and its vaccination programme is underway. However, the pace of border re-opening has slowed amid the global surge in COVID-19 cases and the emergence of more contagious strains of the virus.
"Against this external and domestic backdrop, the Singapore economy is expected to see a gradual recovery over the course of the year, although the outlook remains uneven across sectors," the MTI said.
The ministry also noted that the Singapore economy contracted by 2.4 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2020, an improvement from a 5.8-percent contraction in the preceding quarter. On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted basis, the economy expanded by 3.8 percent.
As for the whole year of 2020, the economy contracted by 5.4 percent, compared to a 1.3-percent growth in 2019. In a breakdown, the manufacturing sector expanded by 7.3 percent, a turnaround from the 1.5 percent contraction in 2019; the construction sector shrank by 35.9 percent, a sharp retraction from a 1.6-percent growth in 2019; and the services producing industries contracted by 6.9 percent, reversing a 2-percent growth in 2019.
