Singapore semiconductor growth to ease in 2018: industry group head

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's semiconductor output growth in 2018 will probably moderate compared with last year's strong expansion, amid recent signs of softening in global demand for mobile devices, the head of a local semiconductor industry group said on Thursday.

Singapore's trade-reliant economy grew at its fastest pace in three years in 2017 with an expansion of 3.6 percent, getting a boost from a pick-up in global demand for electronics products.

The semiconductor industry gave a large boost to the city state's growth last year, with semiconductor output having surged 48 percent in 2017, according to data from the Economic Development Board.

Singapore's semiconductor production in 2018 is unlikely to be as strong as last year, C.K. Tan, the president of the Singapore Semiconductor Industry Association (SSIA), told Reuters on the sidelines of the 2018 SSIA summit.

"Right now these two months, you will see some softness depending on the market segment. I think automotive continued to be strong. Those that apply to the consumer market, like handsets...there's a little bit of a slowdown," Tan said.

"When you compare it with a very good (performance) last year, this year will not be as good, but there will be growth," said Tan, who declined to give a specific forecast.

Speaking at the same event, Senior Minister of State for the Ministry of Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon said growth in the broader Singapore electronics industry was also likely to moderate this year.

"In 2017, output of the electronics cluster grew by more than 30 percent compared to 2016, supported by strong growth in the semiconductors segment which made up close to two-thirds of the electronics manufacturing GDP," Koh said.

"With demand in the global electronics and semiconductor equipment markets expected to remain firm, the electronics sector should continue to expand in 2018, albeit at a more moderate pace," he said.

The overall electronics cluster, including the semiconductor segment, accounts for more than a quarter of Singapore's manufacturing gross domestic product, at about S$90 billion ($67.9 billion), Koh added.

($1 = 1.3249 Singapore dollars)

(Reporting by Masayuki Kitano; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)