Economy - overview Singapore, a highly developed and successful free-market economy, enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and one of the highest per capita GDPs in the world. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in electronics and manufacturing, and was hard hit in 2001 by the global recession and the slump in the technology sector. In 2001, GDP contracted by 2.2%. The economy is expected to recover in 2002 in response to improvements in the US economy, and GDP growth for 2002 is projected to be 3% to 4%. In the longer term the government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the external business cycle than the current export-led model, but is unlikely to abandon efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub.

GDP purchasing power parity - $106.3 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate -2.2% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $24,700 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: NEGL%
industry: 33%
services: 67% (2001 est.)

Population below poverty line NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.5% (2001 est.)

Labor force 2.19 million (2000)

Labor force - by occupation financial, business, and other services 35%, manufacturing 21%, construction 13%, transportation and communication 9%, other 22%

Unemployment rate 4.7% (2001 est.)

Budget
revenues: $27.9 billion
expenditures: $19.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.4 billion (FY00/01 est.)

Industries electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, entrepot trade, biotechnology

Industrial production growth rate -17.5% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production 27.9 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2000)
nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption 25.947 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2000)

Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables; poultry, eggs, fish, ornamental fish

Exports $122 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)

Exports - commodities machinery and equipment (including electronics), consumer goods, chemicals, mineral fuels

Exports - partners Malaysia 18%, US 17%, Hong Kong 8%, Japan 7.5%, Taiwan 6%, Thailand 4.3%, China 4%, South Korea 3.6%, Germany 3%, Netherlands 3% (2000)

Imports $116 billion (2001 est.)

Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs

Imports - partners Japan 17%, Malaysia 17%, US 15%, China 5%, Taiwan 4.4%, Thailand 4.3%, South Korea 3.6%, Saudi Arabia 3% (2000)

Debt - external $8.3 billion (2001 est.)

Economic aid - recipient $NA

Currency Singapore dollar (SGD)

Currency code SGD

Exchange rates Singapore dollars per US dollar - 1.8388 (January 2002), 1.7917 (2001), 1.7240 (2000), 1.6950 (1999), 1.6736 (1998), 1.4848 (1997)

Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March

NOTE: The information regarding Singapore on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Singapore Economy 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Singapore Economy 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.