ENG-2014 — Page 76

The Economy

government consumption expenditure grew at a steady pace of 3.1 per cent in real terms in 2014.

Overall investment spending, in terms of gross domestic fixed capital formation, dipped by 0.3 per cent in real terms in 2014, the first decline since 2009. The decline was due to subdued machinery and equipment acquisition, which fell by 5.2 per cent in real terms. While a high base of comparison after brisk growth in the preceding three years was to blame, its weak performance to a certain extent might have also been associated with the subpar growth of the economy. Nevertheless, overall building and construction activity staged a solid rebound of 6.5 per cent in real terms in 2014, as public infrastructure works re-accelerated to show notable growth, and private sector building and construction activity also picked up from the lull in the previous year (Chart 8).

Chart 8

Main Components of Domestic Demand (year-on-year rate of change in real terms)

20

Per cent

155

10

เก

5

0

-5

-10

-15

Private

consumption expenditure

Government consumption expenditure

Investment expenditure

in terms of gross domestic fixed capital formation

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4

2010

2011

2012

2013

Domestic demand slowed somewhat in 2014.

2014

|

The Labour Market

The labour market stayed generally tight and resilient in 2014, with the unemployment rate staying at a low level of 3.3 per cent for the year as a whole, down by 0.1 percentage point over 2013. Both total employment and the labour force attained further growth, with the former reaching a new annual high of 3,749,200 in 2014. Meanwhile, the underemployment situation held broadly stable, with the underemployment rate remaining low at 1.5 per cent for the third consecutive year (Chart 9). Nevertheless, the demonstrations associated with the 'Occupy Movement' from late September to mid-December 2014 caused temporary disturbances to certain sectors, including retail, accommodation and food services, and transportation, resulting in some worsening in underemployment.

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