Singapore Sept exports fall 1.5 pct s/adj

SINGAPORE, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Singapore's non-oil exports in September fell a seasonally adjusted 1.5 percent from August, missing expectations for a marginal rise and ending a four-month series of rising exports, data showed on Wednesday.

September's fall compared with market expectations for a 0.5 percent gain, and followed a revised 1.9 percent increase in August.

Non-oil exports in September rose 2.2 percent from a year earlier to S.7 billion ( billion), trade agency International Enterprise Singapore said in a statement.

That compared with a median forecast in a Reuters poll for an annual increase of 8.0 percent, following a 10.9 percent rise in August.

Economists had expected September exports to be nearly flat as weakening output from the volatile drugs sector failed to offset continuously poor electronics shipments.

Electronics account for about 40 percent of the city-state's non-oil exports, while pharmaceuticals make up about 10 percent of overseas sales.

Electronics shipments fell by 10.6 percent in September from a year ago while drugs exports rose 22.1 percent in the same period.

Petrochemicals declined 9.6 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.

REUTERS SI DS1645