Singapore’s industrial production rose at twice the pace estimated by economists in January as manufacturers ramped up output of electronics and pharmaceuticals to meet rising demand, reported Bloomberg.

Manufacturing, which accounts for about a quarter of Singapore’s economy, gained 39.4% in January from a year earlier following a revised 14.6% increase in December, the Economic Development Board said today. The median forecast of eight economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 19.3% gain.

 

Singapore’s industrial production rose a seasonally adjusted 11.8% in January from the previous month, when it climbed a revised 13.4%.

 

Electronics production climbed 80.6% last month from a year earlier, following a revised 58.4% gain in December.

 

Pharmaceutical output gained 51.1% after declining a revised 16.4% in the previous month. Excluding biomedical manufacturing, production gained 36.2% in January.