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SINGAPORE - SINGAPORE'S economy will grow 5.7 per cent in the first quarter from a year ago, picking up slightly from a 5.4 per cent expansion in the fourth quarter, a central bank survey showed on Monday.
However, growth in the full year will slow to 5.6 per cent from last year's blistering 7.7 per cent, the Monetary Authority of Singapore's (MAS) quarterly survey of 19 private sector economists showed.
The government expects the economy to grow by between 4-6 per cent this year.
The 2008 economic growth forecast was cut from 6.3 per cent in the MAS's December survey, on a worsening economic outlook in key export market the United States.
The construction sector is seen to be leading growth in 2008, expanding 15.9 per cent from a year ago, while the financial services sector is expected to grow 9.5 per cent.
Economic growth in 2008 is seen to be the weakest in the second quarter at a median 4.4 per cent, before picking up to peak in the fourth quarter at a median 6.8 per cent.
Reflecting 25-year high inflation in the Southeast Asian city-state, economists expect inflation this year to more than double to 5.0 per cent from last year's 2.1 per cent.
The Singapore economy, which shrank in the October-December period from the previous quarter for the first time since 2003, is expected to slow this year, dragged by a struggling US economy.
However, rising consumer prices in the city-state are limiting the central bank's ability to loosen monetary policy to boost economic growth. -- REUTERS
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