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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Tuesday, December 3, 2002

Bankruptcies indicate Singapore on economic skids

Associated Press

SINGAPORE — Singapore is on pace to register its highest bankruptcy rate in 17 years as the wealthy island nation struggles to recover from its worst economic downturn since independence in 1965.

A total of 2,600 individuals declared bankruptcy in the first nine months of this year — a 10 percent rise from the same period last year — according to figures published on the Ministry of Law's online site yesterday.

The figures give further support to government warnings that the country could be slipping into another recession after recovering from one earlier this year.

With an average of 289 people going bankrupt each month, the total number of personal bankruptcies for 2002 will likely surpass last year's 3,097 and hit the highest levels since 1986. A total of 201 companies folded between January and September, marking a 6 percent increase over last year.

The total of bad credit-card debts written off by banks in October hit 12.9 million Singapore dollars ($7.3 million U.S.) — more than double the 5.9 million dollars for the same period last year, according to figures published yesterday by the nation's central bank.

Singapore is battling its highest-ever unemployment levels, which hit 4.8 percent in the third quarter of the year, eclipsing the previous high 4.3 percent seen during the Asian financial crisis in 1997-1999.

Singapore's gross domestic product, an indicator of economic health, shrank 10.1 percent in the third quarter from the second.