SME broad turnaround paves way for GDP growth

The OCBC SME Index posted its first – albeit marginal – expansion, at 50.2 points, after shrinking for the five previous quarters. — The Straits Times

SINGAPORE: A rebound in the fortunes of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) helped the economy to grow by the fastest pace in one and a half years, notes a quarterly survey.

OCBC Bank polled about 800 business owners and used the data to predict the pace of economic growth for the second quarter to be around 3% – surpassing economists’ gross domestic product (GDP) growth estimates.