Singapore Upgrades Full-Year Economic Outlook

SINGAPORE—Singapore’s economic outlook seems brighter, as resilience in external demand and a recovery in the key electronics sector helps guard against headwinds elsewhere, the trade ministry said as it adjusted the city-state’s growth forecast for the year.

The Singapore economy grew 2.9% in the second quarter from a year earlier, according to revised data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry released on Tuesday. That matched the advance estimate compiled in July and compared with growth of 3.0% in the first quarter.

For the first half of the year, growth averaged 3.0%, the data showed.

Taking into account the performance of the Singapore economy in the first half, as well as global and domestic economic factors, MTI updated its full-year growth forecast to 2.0% to 3.0% from 1.0% to 3.0%.

Expansion in the April-to-June period was driven mainly by the wholesale trade, finance & insurance, and information & communications sectors, the ministry said. The manufacturing sector—a key engine of the economy—shrank in the quarter, largely due to a sharp fall in the volatile pharmaceuticals segment, the data showed. On the bright side, electronics returned to growth, backed by strong demand for smartphones, PCs and AI-related chips, it added.

“Singapore’s external demand outlook is expected to be resilient for the rest of the year. However, downside risks in the global economy remain,” the MTI said.

How other global trading partners fare is key for the trade-reliant economy of Singapore, which is well-placed to benefit from the global tech cycle upturn but exposed to downturns abroad.

A potential headwind could come from a slight slowdown in the U.S. economy, where MTI expects consumption growth to ease as the labor market softens. Growth in other advanced economies like the European Union and Japan is tipped to pick up, however.

Among Singapore’s major trading partners in Asia, MTI sees a slight slowdown in China in the second half of the year as investment growth tapers but thinks the property market will stabilize as government support measures kick in, boosting consumer sentiment. Growth in key Southeast Asian economies is projected to pick up slightly in the second half of the year as domestic demand strengthens, aided further by recoveries in global electronics and tourism demand.

Risks that could put the brakes on Singapore’s economic momentum include geopolitical and trade conflicts, which could hurt business sentiment and drive up production costs. Disruptions to the global disinflation process meanwhile could lead to higher for longer rates and trigger market volatility, MTI said.

“Against this backdrop, Singapore’s manufacturing sector is expected to see a gradual recovery in the second half of the year,” MTI said, expecting electronics to recover strongly.

Singapore’s GDP grew 0.4% on a quarter-over-quarter seasonally adjusted basis in the second quarter, the revised data showed. That matched both the advance estimate for the quarter, and was steady from the 0.4% expansion seen in the first quarter.

Meanwhile, data in a separate release from Enterprise Singapore showed that the city-state’s total merchandise trade expanded by 10% on the year in the second quarter, surging from the 4.8% growth seen in the first quarter.

Non-oil domestic exports slid 6.4% in the second quarter from a high base a year ago, widening the 3.4% decrease seen in the previous quarter, the data showed. Shipments of pharmaceuticals dragged on the results, but electronics grew for the first time in eight quarters.

Enterprise Singapore expects total trade to be supported by high oil prices, and the electronics recovery in the latter half of the year to boost exports, driven by demand in AI servers and consumer devices. Key downside risks for the NODX forecast remain, including a weaker-than-expected recovery in the final months of the year.

“Taking the above into consideration, the 2024 growth forecasts are narrowed to +5.0% to +6.0% for total merchandise trade and to +4.0% to +5.0% for NODX, from the earlier forecasts of +4.0% to +6.0% for both,” it said.

Private-equity firm Paine Schwartz Partners is backing BERO, a nonalcoholic beer brand launched by British actor and “Spider-Man” star Tom Holland.

A person familiar with the transaction said it values New York-based BERO at more than $100 million and will help support the brand’s ambitious growth plans.

BERO co-founder and Chief Executive John Herman said the company aims to more than double its sales team and significantly expand distribution to roughly triple sales this year.

BERO, which Holland and Herman launched in late 2024, reached nearly $10 million in sales in its first year and expects sales to reach almost $30 million this year, said Herman, who previously served as president of C4 Energy brand drink maker Nutrabolt.

“We weren’t just looking for capital,” Herman said. “We were looking for great partners that could help us grow.”

Paine Schwartz is investing through BetterCo Holdings, a portfolio company in the firm’s sixth flagship fund that it formed late last year to hold non-control investments in better-for-you food and beverage businesses, Paine Schwartz CEO Kevin Schwartz said.

Ultimately, Schwartz said he expects BetterCo to hold five to 10 investments.

BERO, BetterCo’s third investment, falls within the firm’s typical growth investment range of $10 million to $25 million, he said.

Earlier BERO backers include leading talent agency William Morris Endeavor Entertainment and venture-capital firm Imaginary Ventures, which also participated in the latest investment.

“This first external raise is not just a milestone, but a validation of what’s been achieved in a single year,” said Logan Langberg, a partner at Imaginary Ventures.

When they started BERO, Holland and Herman tapped as brewmaster Grant Wood, a past Boston Beer executive who went on to found Revolver Brewing, now part of Tilray Brands.

The brand currently offers four types of beer, including two IPAs. Its products are sold at Target stores, on Amazon.com and at other retail locations, such as supermarket chains Sprouts Farmers Market and Wegmans Food Markets in the U.S. and Morrisons in the U.K. BERO is also available at a number of liquor stores and bars and restaurants.

The company also offers a $55 a year premium membership that offers such perks as free shipping and access to member-only products and limited-edition releases.

To help build the brand’s name, BERO has struck a series of partnerships, becoming the official nonalcoholic beer partner of luxury sports-car maker Aston Martin and fitness studio chain Barry’s.

Nonalcoholic beers, which generally contain less than 0.5% of alcohol by volume, have become increasingly popular and account for the biggest share of alcohol-free drink sales, according to the Beer Institute, a national trade association.

Sales of such drinks are growing at a more than 20% annual rate and were expected to exceed $1 billion in 2025, according to market-research firm NielsenIQ, citing so-called off-premise channel sales it tracks, such as sales at liquor stores and grocery stores. But the bulk of those sales come from the top five brands, such as Athletic Brewing, co-founded by a former trader at Steve Cohen’s hedge fund Point72 Asset Management, NielsenIQ said.

Alcohol-free drinks, the market-research firm said, have emerged as a lifestyle choice—one based not on quitting alcohol but expanding options, with most non-alcohol buyers also buying alcoholic drinks.

“There’s a pendular swing in behaviours that [is] happening right now when it comes to people’s relationship with alcohol,” Herman said.

Corrections & Amplifications undefined Nonalcoholic beer brand BERO offers its fans a premium membership for $55 a year. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said the membership costs $50. (Corrected on Jan. 20.)

Singapore Upgrades Full-Year Economic Outlook

The Singapore economy grew 2.9% in the second quarter from a year earlier

Paine Schwartz joins BERO as a new investor as the year-old company seeks to triple sales.