FX.co ★ Singapore NODX Unexpectedly Falls in May

In May 2025, Singapore witnessed an unexpected 3.5% year-on-year decline in its non-oil domestic exports (NODX), a stark contrast to the 12.4% increase observed in April and falling well short of the anticipated 8.0% growth. This represents the first downturn in NODX since January and the most significant contraction in seven months, largely attributable to the introduction of new U.S. tariffs. Shipments of electronic products saw a modest increase of 1.7%, a significant slowdown from the 23.4% rise in April, driven primarily by the sales of personal computers (50.9%), integrated circuits (49.0%), and consumer electronics (4.3%). Conversely, non-electronic exports decreased by 5.3%, reversing April's 9.3% growth, with significant declines in petrochemicals (-17.8%), non-monetary gold (-25.9%), and specialized machinery (-11.7%). Export reductions were noted toward markets including the United States (-20.6%), Thailand (-17.0%), Malaysia (-7.6%), Japan (-7.4%), China (-3.0%), and the European Union (-4.8%), although exports to Taiwan showed an increase (17.25%), as did those to Indonesia (8.1%). On a monthly basis, NODX experienced a sharp 12.0% decline, the steepest since May 2023, following a 10.4% surge in April, which had been the fastest growth recorded in five months.