Singapore's economy grew 7.2% last year, and although many sectors haven't yet recovered to pre-pandemic levels, the rebound has largely reversed the pandemic-induced recession of 2020. According to advance estimates released on Monday morning by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, all sectors of the economy improved over 2021.

Manufacturing leading due to semiconductor demand: The manufacturing sector expanded the most, at 12.8% for the full year, with the bulk of the growth coming from electronics and precision engineering - industries that are currently riding on the global demand for semiconductors and semiconductor equipment. However, labour market statistics from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) also indicate that the sector, which relies noticeably on foreign labour, is facing a significant manpower shortage due to border closures.

Construction grew - but hasn't recovered to pre-pandemic levels: The construction sector grew even more than manufacuring, at 18.7%, but the ministry's figures show that it is contributing 26% less to GDP than in 2019. Singapore's construction industry relies even more heavily on foreign labour than manufacturing, meaning that it has been one of the hardest hit by border closures. That obstacle is also visible in skyrocketing property prices as the city-state faces a shortage of residential developments just as flexible work has sent up the demand for homes.

Information & communications, finance & insurance and professional services are actually growing more slowly: This group of higher-value services sectors expanded 6.8% for the year, but on a quarterly basis, they have grown less than they did in 2020. The information and communications sector in particular has been able to ride global trends including ongoing demand for IT and digital solutions. This has also been reflected in manpower demand, with the latest MOM figures showing that the sector had the largest number of job vacancies across the entire economy as of last September.

Trade, transportation, and storage haven't fully recovered either: A combination of high export demand and stringent travel restrictions have had a mixed impact on these sectors. This group of sectors grew 4.3% for the year, but their GDP contribution is still below 2019 levels.

Other services grew a little but still lag behind: The group of other services sectors, including accommodation & food services, real estate, and administrative & support services, grew 4% for the year. Out of this group, the accommodation and food services sector - which is to say hospitality and dining - actually contracted, having suffered from both ongoing international travel restrictions and domestic restrictions during the additional lockdowns imposed over the course of 2020. An ongoing labour shortage may have contributed to this.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry has stated that it will release more comprehensive figures in February.