Manufacturing output in November rose 14.7% over November last year

(I) Total Manufacturing Performance

1. Manufacturing output in November rose 14.7% over November last year. Excluding biomedical manufacturing, manufacturing output was 7.0% higher than November 2005. The three-month moving average index for November grew 7.7% for total manufacturing output. Seasonally adjusted, the month-on-month index for November increased 13.2% from October. For the first eleven months of 2006, cumulative total manufacturing output increased 12.2% compared to the same period in 2005.

(II) Performance by cluster

2. The biomedical manufacturing and transport engineering clusters led the growth in November. Biomedical manufacturing enjoyed year-on-year growth of 45.9% in November. Output of pharmaceuticals and medical technology products increased 46.1% and 44.6% respectively. Cumulative output in the first eleven months of 2006 grew 22.9% for the whole cluster when compared to the same period last year.

3. The transport engineering cluster expanded in all its segments in November. Output rose 23.5% over November 2005. The marine & offshore engineering segment grew 25.7% as shipyards continued to build ships which were at their final stages of construction. Substantial ship repair was also completed. Similarly, oil rig fabricators continued with current rig projects. The production of oil field equipment was propelled by demand from the Middle East, China and South-East Asia. The aerospace segment expanded by 18.4% as increased travel within Asia Pacific stimulated demand for commercial aircraft repairs. The land transport segment also grew substantially by 50.9% with higher production of land vehicle parts. Cumulatively, output of the transport engineering cluster grew 32.7% in the first eleven months of this year compared to the same period last year.

4. November’s output for the precision engineering cluster was higher than November 2005 by 9.8%. This came from strong growth of 20.4% in the machinery & systems segment. Production increases were for lifting & hoisting machinery, industrial process control machinery, metal working machinery, machine tools and refrigerating machinery. The precision modules & components segment grew 3.8% arising from higher output of precision springs, die castings, wires, cables, connectors, metal stampings and electroplating services. For the first eleven months of this year, the cluster grew its output by 10.7% compared to the same period in 2005.

5. The chemicals cluster recorded a year-on-year growth of 3.9% in November. All segments achieved positive growth. The production of petrochemicals and specialty chemicals increased by 3.6% and 6.4% respectively. Most petrochemical plants were operating this November compared to maintenance shutdowns last November. The petroleum segment also grew by 1.0%. Cumulatively, the chemicals cluster’s output for the first eleven months of 2006 increased 2.0% compared to the same period last year.

6. The electronics cluster contracted by 2.1% year-on-year in November due to lower output in the data storage and infocomms & consumer electronics segment. The production of hard disk drives was lower by 21.5% in November leading to a cumulative decline of 27.8% for the eleven months of this year. Relocation of production was the primary reason for the contraction. Output of the infocomms & consumer electronics segment also shrank by 15.6% with lesser production of telecommunication products, PCs and consumer electronics. However, the semiconductors segment grew 8.1% with higher output of DRAMs, NAND flash and microprocessors. The computer peripherals segment also reversed out of its October contraction to grow 5.1% in November. For the first eleven months of 2006, the electronics cluster grew 4.4% compared to the same period last year.

7. The general manufacturing industries grew 13.6% year-on-year in November. There was strong growth of 13.2% in the manufacture of food and beverage products boosted by seasonal year-end demand. Output of the printing industries rose 4.2%. Among the miscellaneous industries, there was higher output of advertising displays and signage. Cumulative growth for this group ofindustries was 5.9% for the first eleven months of 2006 compared to the same period in 2005.

8. The Monthly Index is available from the Research & Statistics Unit of the Economic Development Board. For further information, please contact Miss Kok Yit Hoe by tel - 6832 6741 / fax - 68326493 / email yithoe@ edb.gov.sg

9. The monthly manufacturing performance media release is issued by EDB on the 26th of the month. The next media release will be on 26th January 2007.

Editors’ Note: Updates on Monthly Manufacturing Output are available on http://www.sprinter.gov.sg and http://www.sedb.com

For media enquiries, please contact Mr Sheo S. Rai (Tel:6395-7784 -/ Handphone: 9003-2949 Email: sheo_shanker_rai@edb.gov.sg)