Singapore's trade surplus surges amidst drop in total trade

It shot up to $17.9b in Q3.

Disappointing figures of Singapore's non-oil domestic exports should not dampen the city-state's mood as it still enjoyed a surge in trade surplus in September.

According to a report by Maybank KimEng, imports contracted by a steeper 6.2% in the past month, compared to 1.3% contraction in August, resulting to this year’s highest trade surplus of $7.06 billion. This is in contrast from $5.29 billion trade surplus recorded in August.

The brokerage firm said this has resulted in a slightly wider trade surplus of $17.9 billion in 3Q16, an improvement from the previous quarter's $17 billion.

"The wider trade surplus in 3Q 2016 vs 2Q 2016 suggest net external demand was less of a drag on 3Q 2016 GDP as implied by the advanced estimate," Maybank said.

Trade surplus is the amount by which the county's exports surpass the cost of its imports.