>SINGAPORE - Singapore's economy shrank at a worse-than-expected rate of 6.8 percent on an annualised and
seasonally adjusted basis in the third quarter, final government data showed on Friday, confirming the export-dependent country's first recession since 2002.
The government forecast full year 2008 growth at around 2.5 percent, from a previous estimate of 3 percent.
Economists had expected the data to confirm a previous government flash estimate of a 6.3 percent contraction on an annualised seasonally adjusted basis. The median of forecasts by eight economists was for full-year GDP growth of 2.3 percent.
Singapore was the first country in Asia to fall into a recession, usually defined as two consecutive quarters of
economic contraction, with Japan and Hong Kong having followed.
