The government of Singapore raised its economic outlook for 2009 on Monday, as Singapore’s gross domestic product continued to expand at a rapid rate during the third quarter.

Singapore's GDP for the three months ended September jumped at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 14.9 per cent.

As per the trade ministry, the economy will contract 2 per cent to 2.5 per cent in the current year as compared with an earlier forecast of 4 per cent to 6 per cent.

Figures compiled by the Ministry of Trade & Industry revealed that manufacturing activity jumped by 34.9 per cent and service jumped by 9.5 per cent during the third quarter.

However, the construction sector reported a decline of 0.6 per cent.

About exports economist Alvin Liew, said, “The export outlook is improving but there are still potential speed bumps such as unemployment and we may see a prolonged recovery process.”

On a year-on-year basis, Singapore’s economy grew 0.8 per cent during July to September quarter, better than 0.5 per cent estimated earlier.