The Singapore government has raised its economic growth forecast for 2006 to between 5 percent and 7 percent from between 4 percent and 6 percent, according to a statement by the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Wednesday.

The MTI said that the change is based on the improving global economic environment, the expected healthy expansion of the global electronics industry, as well as the strong performance of the domestic economy in the first quarter of 2006 and the rosy business expectations for the next six months by companies in the manufacturing and services sectors.

Singapore's economy grew by 10.6 percent in the first quarter of this year over the corresponding period of last year, higher than the estimated 9.1 percent released by the MTI last month.

Total demand rose by a robust 14 percent in the first quarter as the domestic demand grew by 3.5 percent and the external demand increased by 17 percent.

All economic sectors except the construction registered positive growth in the first three months of 2006, led by the manufacturing sector and the wholesale and retail trade sector which rose by 20 percent and 15 percent respectively. The construction sector contracted by 1.3 percent in the same quarter.

The external trade expanded by 21 percent in the first quarter, while the non-oil domestic exports increased by 17 percent year-on- year during the same period.

As total employment rose by 33,400 in the first quarter, the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate remained at 2.6 percent in March.

The consumer price inflation (CPI) rose by 1.4 percent in the first quarter over a year ago due to higher electricity tariffs, petrol prices, holiday travel cost and education fees.

Singapore's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 6.4 percent in 2005 over the previous year.

Source: Xinhua