Singapore May exports fall unexpected 9.8 pct s/adj

SINGAPORE, June 17 (Reuters) - Singapore's May non-oil exports unexpectedly fell 9.8 percent after seasonal adjustments from April, the sharpest fall since January 2006, providing new evidence that a global slowdown may be weighing on Asian exports.

May's fall amid weaker annual electronics and drugs shipments compared with market expectations for a 1.1 percent rise, and followed a 1.6 percent gain in April when shipments unexpectedly rose.

Non-oil exports in May fell 10.5 percent from a year earlier to S$12.4 billion, trade agency International Enterprise Singapore said in a statement. That compared with a revised 5.3 percent rise in April, and with a median forecast in a Reuters poll for an annual rise of 1.9 percent.

The Singapore economy is heavily dependent on trade, and non-oil domestic exports were worth about 70 percent of the city-state's gross domestic product last year.

Economists had expected monthly exports in May to rise slightly as higher petrochemical and drug shipments offset persistent weakness in electronic goods.

May's electronics shipments fell 8.5 percent from a year ago while drugs exports dropped 48.5 percent in the same period. Petrochemicals slipped 2.6 percent.

Singapore's non-oil domestic exports, which comprise of goods that have been manufactured in Singapore or undergone further processing, include mobile phones, medical instruments, and active ingredients for some blockbuster drugs.