Singapore's GDP up 4.6% in Q3

It's the strongest in three years.

Singapore's GDP grew 4.6% YoY in Q3, the highest in three years, advanced estimates from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) revealed.

Manufacturing showcased a "stellar" performance with a 15.5% YoY growth whilst services advanced 2.6%, OCBC Treasury Research said.

The construction sector continued to show dismal performance as it shrank by 6.3% in Q3.

There was no change to the official 2017 growth forecast of 2-3% YoY, albeit “in the upper half of the 2-3% forecast range”, which implies that 4Q2017 growth could slow sharply to around 2.2%.

Whilst manufacturing is likely to decelerate in 4Q17, not least because there is a relatively higher base in 4Q2016 at 11.5% YoY, the broadening growth drivers in services is reassuring, OCBC said.

Here's more from OCBC Treasury Research:

Services momentum has picked up speed at around sub-1% in 2H16 to around 2.5% in 2Q-3Q17, partly due to improved optimism in financial services & insurance, wholesale & retail trade, and transportation and storage sectors. Moreover, manufacturing growth was also supported by biomedical manufacturing, beyond electronics and precision engineering, in 3Q17.