Economy—overview: Singapore has an open economy with strong service and manufacturing sectors and excellent international trading links derived from its entrepot history. Extraordinarily strong fundamentals allowed Singapore to weather the effects of the Asian financial crisis better than its neighbors but the crisis did pull GDP growth down to approximately 6% in 1997. Projections for 1998 GDP growth are in the 4.5% to 6.5% range. Rising labor costs and appreciation of the Singapore dollar against its neighbors' currencies continue to be a threat to Singapore's competitiveness. The government's strategy to address this problem includes increasing productivity improving infrastructure and encouraging higher value-added industries. In applied technology per capita output investment and labor discipline Singapore has key attributes of a developed country.

GDP: purchasing power parity—$84.6 billion (1997 est.)

GDP—real growth rate: 6% (1997 est.)

GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity—$24 600 (1997 est.)

GDP—composition by sector:
agriculture: NEGL%
industry: 28%
services: 72%

Inflation rate—consumer price index: 1.8% (1997 est.)

Labor force:
total: 1.856 million (1997 est.)
by occupation: financial business and other services 33.5% manufacturing 25.6% commerce 22.9% construction 6.6% other 11.4% (1994)

Unemployment rate: 3% (1997 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $16.3 billion
expenditures: $13.6 billion including capital expenditures of $NA (FY97/98 est.)

Industries: electronics financial services oil drilling equipment petroleum refining rubber processing and rubber products processed food and beverages ship repair entrepot trade biotechnology

Industrial production growth rate: 7% (1996 est.)

Electricity—capacity: 4.513 million kW (1995)

Electricity—production: 21 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity—consumption per capita: 7 234 kWh (1995)

Agriculture—products: rubber copra fruit vegetables; poultry

Exports:
total value: $125.6 billion (1997 est.)
commodities: computer equipment rubber and rubber products petroleum products telecommunications equipment
partners: Malaysia 19% US 18% Hong Kong 9% Japan 8% Thailand 6% (1995)

Imports:
total value: $133.9 billion (1997 est.)
commodities: aircraft petroleum chemicals foodstuffs
partners: Japan 21% Malaysia 15% US 15% Thailand 5% Taiwan 4% South Korea 4% (1995)

Debt—external: $NA

Economic aid: $NA

Currency: 1 Singapore dollar (S$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: Singapore dollars (S$) per US$1—1.7533 (January 1998) 1.4848 (1997) 1.4100 (1996) 1.4174 (1995) 1.5274 (1994) 1.6158 (1993)

Fiscal year: 1 April—31 March