SINGAPORE'S economy in the second quarter of 2009 is expected to grow at an annualised and seasonally adjusted rate of 16.4 per cent, ending a technical recession after four consecutive quarters of contraction.

A median in a poll of 11 economists by Reuters also showed the gross domestic product in the April-June period to fall just 5.0 per cent from the same period a year earlier, thanks to a recovery in the manufacturing sector, especially the pharmaceuticals.

'The initial bounce from the bottom is being led by the manufacturing sector, on the back of a rebound in the volatile biomedicals segment,' said Citi economist Wei Zheng Kit.

Singapore's economy in the first quarter of 2009 shrank at an annualised and seasonally adjusted rate of 14.6 per cent and fell 10.1 per cent from a year earlier, final government data showed.