Singapore's non-oil domestic exports slipped 1 per cent in April over the same month a year ago, as a fall in electronics shipments outweighed a rise in other exported products.

This was a smaller drop than March's 4.8 per cent decrease, said trade agency IE Singapore on Friday. It also beat economists' forecast of 1.9 per cent decline.

On a month-on-month basis, however, export growth slowed.

Shipments rose 1.1 per cent in April from March, less than the 8 per cent expansion in March from February.

Fewer exports were shipped to Europe, South Korea, Malaysia, Japan and Indonesia in April from a year ago, IE Singapore said.

But shipments to Hong Kong, Thailand, the United States, Taiwan and China increased.