SINGAPORE (Aug 27): Singapore’s services sector revenue rose 2.8% in 2Q19 compared to 2Q18, according to the latest Business Receipts Index (BRI) released by the Department of Statistics on Tuesday.
This was slower than the 3.4% y-o-y growth recorded in 1Q19 and 4.1% y-o-y growth in 4Q18.
The BRI for the services sector measures the short-term changes in the amount of business or operating receipts on a quarterly basis.
The index showed that all industries had registered higher revenues on a year-on-year basis. The Transport & Storage Services industry was at the forefront of the group with a revenue growth of 5.6% due to an increase in demand for water and air transport segments. The Health & Social Services industry also registered an increase of 4.2% in turnover on the back of higher business receipts from hospitals.
On a quarter-on-quarter, non-seasonally adjusted basis, overall business receipts declined 0.1% in 2Q19 from 1Q19, as compared to a 0.4% decline in the previous quarter, with performance mixed across the services industries.
Business receipts of the Education Services and Recreation & Personal Services industries reported a q-o-q decrease of 10.6% and 8.3% respectively.
Conversely, the Transport & Storage Services industry recorded an increase of 4.1%, due primarily to the firms in the water transport segment. The Business Services industry also registered an increase in revenue of 2.9%, as firms engaged in professional services reported an increase in earnings.
