(I) Total Manufacturing Performance
1.  Manufacturing output contracted by 13.9% in March 2009 compared to February 2009 on a seasonally adjusted basis. On a year-on-year basis, output in March 2009 fell by 33.9%. Cumulatively, output in the first three months of 2009 declined by 26.1% compared to the same period last year.

(II) Performance by cluster
2.  The transport engineering cluster grew by almost 1.0% year-on-year in March 2009. The aerospace and marine & offshore engineering segments saw output increased by 10.1% and 2.5% respectively while the land transport segment contracted by 45.8% due to lower export orders. Output of the cluster grew by 6.9% in the first three months of 2009 compared to the same period last year.

3.  Output of the general manufacturing industries declined by 10.5% in March 2009 compared with a year ago. This was due to reduced orders amidst the current economic conditions. Cumulatively, output for the general manufacturing industries in the first quarter of 2009 was 11.0% lower compared to the same period a year ago. 

4.  The chemicals cluster contracted by 22.7% in March 2009 on a year-on-year basis. There were output declines across all segments. In particular, the cluster’s output was affected by maintenance shutdown of a number of plants in the petroleum and petrochemicals segments. On a year-to-date basis, output of the chemicals cluster shrank by 23.0%.

5.  Output of the precision engineering cluster fell by 29.6% in March 2009 from a year ago. Lower orders led to 30.8% and 28.5% declines in the output of machinery & systems and precision modules & components segments respectively. For the first three months of 2009, the cluster’s cumulative output declined by 29.5% compared to the same period in 2008.

6.  The electronics cluster contracted by 34.6% in March 2009 compared to March last year. The cluster’s performance continued to be affected by weak demand for electronic products worldwide. Cumulatively, the electronics cluster shrank by 38.8% in the first three months of this year.         

7.  The biomedical manufacturing cluster contracted by 54.8% year-on-year in March 2009 due mainly to a different mix of active pharmaceutical ingredients produced. For the first quarter of 2009, the cluster’s output contracted by 29.4% compared to the same period a year ago. 

8.  The next monthly manufacturing performance media release will be issued on 26th May 2009.

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
Ms Shireen Mahtani 
(Tel: 68326842/ Handphone: 98173407/ Email: shireen_mahtani@edb.gov.sg)

For further information, please contact 
Ms Kok Yit Hoe 
( Tel 68326741/Handphone : 98416281/ Email yithoe@edb.gov.sg)