Singapore's Key Exports Rise 12.4% in April, Beating Forecast

Surge driven by stronger electronics and non-electronics shipments amid tariff pause

- Timothy Goh

Singapore's key exports grew at a faster-than-expected pace in April, boosted by stronger shipments of both electronics and non-electronics as customers front-loaded orders amid US President Donald Trump's tariff reprieves.

Economists said Singapore will continue to benefit from the reprieves for the next few months, but the export outlook remains clouded for when the 90-day "tariff windows" end.

In April, non-oil domestic exports (Nodx) surged 12.4 per cent year on year, compared with a 5.4 per cent rise in the previous month, according to figures released by trade agency Enterprise Singapore on May 16.

April's increase far outstripped the 4.3 per cent growth forecast by analysts in a Bloomberg poll.

Electronics exports expanded 23.5 per cent year on year, almost double the 12.2 per cent growth in March. Growth was underpinned by personal computers, disk media products and integrated circuits.

Non-electronics exports grew 9.3 per cent in April, higher than the revised 3.7 per cent increase in March.