Singapore: Manufacturing sector remains solid – UOB

Pablo Piovano FXStreet

Economist at UOB Group Barnabas Gan assesses the latest data from the manufacturing sector in Singapore.

Key Quotes

“Singapore’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) reported by SIPMM fell marginally by 0.2 point to 50.7 in May 2021. Despite the dip, the PMI continued to post above-50 levels for the 11th straight month, suggesting that the manufacturing sector remains in expansionary territory.”

“We identify three key observations in April’s PMI reading. First, the continued expansion in Singapore’s overall and electronics PMI is supportive of its overall economic growth.”

“Second, the announcement of Phase Two (Heightened Alert [HA]) is likely the key driver behind the growth slowdown in May 2021.”

“Third and lastly, faster rates of expansion in input prices may be a sign of higher inflationary pressures in the immediate horizon.”

“Barring an exacerbation of COVID-19 infections in Singapore, the manufacturing sector is expected to be one of the key pillars of growth for Singapore. Singapore’s export-oriented industries are expected to ride on the winds of the global trade growth, which should subsequently benefit externally-facing sectors such as manufacturing, wholesale & retail trade, and financial services. As such, we expect Singapore’s manufacturing sector to expand by 5.5% in 2021.”

Author

Pablo Piovano

FXStreet

Born and bred in Argentina, Pablo has been carrying on with his passion for FX markets and trading since his first college years.

AUD/USD leans on a China prop that's quietly buckling

The Australian Dollar spent Monday trying to talk itself into a recovery, and the tape was not buying it. AUD/USD has ridden a China-and-commodities narrative for months, one that conveniently glossed over how shaky both legs of that trade have become, and Friday's Nonfarm Payrolls print finally forced a reckoning. US employers added 172K jobs against a consensus near 85K, with roughly 93K of upward revisions to prior months and the unemployment rate steady at 4.3%.

USD/JPY: Japanese Yen ignores every reason it has to strengthen

There is a strange disconnect running through the Japanese Yen right now, and USD/JPY parked just above 160.00 captures it perfectly. By any domestic reading the Yen should be firming: first-quarter Gross Domestic Product beat expectations over the weekend at 0.5% on the quarter, the Bank of Japan is widely expected to raise rates at its meeting on June 18, and authorities have spent the past week jawboning a currency they clearly want stronger.

Gold edges lower below $4,350 as Fed rate hike expectations grow

Gold price trades with mild losses around $4,325 during the early Asian session on Tuesday. The precious metal remains on the defensive near its lowest since March 24 amid uncertainty in the Middle East and rising bets of a US interest rate hike.

Strategy resumes BTC accumulation with 1,550 Bitcoin purchase, adjusts STRC dividend schedule

Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy bought 1,550 BTC last week for roughly $101.3 million, according to a Form 8-K filing on Monday. The purchase, made at an average price of $65,332 per Bitcoin, was funded through proceeds from the company's at-the-market equity offering program.

$1.75 trillion: Is SpaceX the most popular IPO in history, or the most engineered?

On June 12, the largest initial public offering (IPO) in history is set to hit the tape, and almost nobody is asking whether the price is right, because almost everybody already wants in.

The US economy defies the rules: 100 days into the Oil shock and the recession signal is still missing

More than three months after the start of the Iran war and the resulting disruption to global energy markets, the US economy continues to display remarkable resilience. The conflict has triggered a sharp rise in Oil prices, reignited inflationary pressures and fueled widespread concerns about a potential economic slowdown.