The petroleum and petrochemical industry is a major component of Singapore's economy, but hard to quantify accurately because the government withholds basic statistics on the sector. This wider category also comprises as much as 15 percent of Singapore's total manufacturing value added. The large trade volume is chiefly due to Singapore's importance as a break bulk location for product sales and as an export bunkering point. This was up from 1995's figure of 8.1 percent of total trade. Industry sources estimate that between 80 and 90 percent of refined product is exported.
China is an increasingly important consumer of petrochemicals, according to private observers.
The Gulf countries are Singapore's major crude source. Investment in petrochemicals is expected to continue its healthy growth in order to meet the regional demand for plastics and petrochemical products. When Singapore began its industrialization program in the 1960s, it departed radically from its neighbors and most other developing countries at the time by reaching out to attract multinational corporations to invest in Singapore and set up manufacturing and services with a global reach. Singapore targeted the petroleum industry to complement its port facilities and because of the high value-added nature of the sector. This formula still applies to the industry today and the government continues to contribute to the communications, utilities, and facilities infrastructure in order that Singapore will maintain its attractiveness as ever more capacity and competition comes on stream in the region.