Singapore employers expanded payrolls for a fifth consecutive quarter, pushing the jobless rate to the lowest in 2 1/2 years.
The city-state added an estimated 24,100 jobs in the three months ended September, after the creation of 24,900 positions in the second quarter of 2010, the Ministry of Manpower said in a statement today.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 2.1 percent from 2.2 percent the previous quarter, beating the median estimate of 2.2 percent in a Bloomberg News survey of 12 economists.
Singapore’s services industry is still expanding even after weakening overseas demand for manufactured goods caused the economy to contract last quarter.
The city’s two casino resorts run by Genting Singapore Plc and Las Vegas Sands Corp. have attracted millions to its gaming centers, helping boost spending at malls and restaurants.
“The employment creation came primarily from services,” the Ministry of Manpower said today. “Construction employment rose marginally due to the completion of major building projects earlier in the year.”
The services industry added 24,100 jobs last quarter while construction companies increased hiring by 100, the report showed, citing preliminary data. The manufacturing industry cut 400 jobs. A total of 85,500 jobs have been created in the first nine months of 2010.
Singapore’s central bank this week reiterated the government’s forecast for a 2010 expansion of as much as 15 percent, and said the $182 billion economy will “grow in line with its potential” in 2011, without providing figures.
“Compared to this year, when the manufacturing sector experienced a sharp surge in activity, gross domestic product growth next year will be driven more by the services sector,” the central bank said Oct 27.
- Bloomberg
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