Economists estimate that Singapore's economy may have shrunk about 6 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year, compared with the third quarter, as the global slowdown took its toll.
This is based on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's statement on Saturday that full-year growth last year came in at 4.8 per cent, slightly weaker than the expected 5 per cent expansion.
Still, when compared with the same period in 2010, the economy is expected to have expanded in the fourth quarter.
Prior to Mr Lee's statement, economists had believed that a quarter-on-quarter contraction in the October to December period was likely. But the 4.8 per cent full-year figure not only confirms a contraction, but means it was probably more severe than expected.
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