SINGAPORE: Singapore's manufacturing sector continued to expand for the third straight month in August, but at a slower rate.
The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for August posted a reading of 51.7 - a decline of 1.6 points over the previous month.
The drop was attributed to fewer new orders as well as lower production output and inventory.
A reading above 50 indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding.
The corresponding index for the electronics sector, which has expanded for the 13th consecutive month, came in at 53.4 a decline of 0.5 point over the previous month.
The dip suggests relatively weaker growth in new orders from both domestic and overseas markets.
- CNA/so
