Singapore’s GDP grows 7.2% after a year of recession
Bangkok, Jan 3 (EFE).- Singapore’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew 7.2 percent in 2021, after a recession a year ago due to the coronavirus pandemic, the government data showed on Monday.
The economy expanded by 5.9 percent in the last quarter of 2021, signaling a moderation in the growth compared to the 7.1 percent in the July-September quarter, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.
The city-state suffered a pandemic-induced 5.4 percent contraction in 2020 after adding four negative quarters in a row.
It came out of recession in the first quarter of 2021 by registering a growth of 1.5 percent.
The government had projected a 7 percent growth for 2021.
Singapore relaxed restrictions on international flights in October last year after shutting borders for about 20 months.
The government hopes for a full recovery in 2022 as it has achieved a 90 percent vaccination rate and is planning booster inoculation.
“The year ahead will be a time of transition,” Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in his New Year’s message.
“We will progressively phase out emergency support measures as businesses revive, though a few sectors will take longer.”
However, the highly contagious omicron variant has posed a threat.
Singapore has registered 155 new Omicron cases, of which 27 are local transmissions. EFE
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