SINGAPORE: Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports fell unexpectedly by 0.1% in February from the same month a year earlier, slowing during the Lunar New Year period, official data showed on Monday.

Last month’s decline compared to a Reuters poll forecast of 4.7% growth in February and 16.7% growth seen for January.

Singapore had previously estimated growth of 16.8% in January.

On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, non-oil domestic exports dropped 4.8% versus analysts’ estimate of a drop of 0.4%.

Enterprise Singapore in a statement said exports declined “mainly due to non-electronics like food preparations, speciality chemicals and electrical circuit apparatus”.

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Meanwhile, electronics grew and the largest contributing markets to growth were Hong Kong, the United States and Indonesia, it said.

February’s non-oil domestic exports were valued at S$14.2 billion ($10.61 billion) on a seasonally adjusted basis.