Singapore - Singapore's service sector is less upbeat about business prospects for the second half of the fiscal year, according to a quarterly business expectation survey released Friday.

Fifteen per cent of the firms surveyed said they thought the business climate would improve from October to March while 30 per cent projected less favourable conditions, according to the survey conducted by the Department of Statistics.

The majority of the firms, 55 per cent, expected the business situation to remain unchanged.

The data, collected from September to mid-October, indicated a drop in positive expectations after 23 per cent surveyed about the same period a year ago felt positive.

The Business Expectations survey of 1,400 businesses is conducted quarterly by the department. (dpa)