A pharma production boost offset slumping electronics manufacturing, giving Singapore its biggest industrial production surge in 5 months. Pharmaceutical output soared 157%, while electronics production declined 22% compared with a year earlier.
For Singapore, it translates into a 22% industrial production increase over a year ago, according to its Economic Development Board, as reported by Bloomberg.
Manufacturing accounts for more than 20% of Singapore's economy, the report says. The question for economists is whether the August performance is a fluke, the start of a trend, or something else.
Contract manufacturer Lonza, for one, appears to see plenty of potential there. In the last few months, the CMO has announced a $12 million plan to expand its biopharmaceutical development services platform in Singapore and plans a secondary listing on the Singapore Stock Exchange.
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