Singapore  - Singapore's central bank said Tuesday it stands ready to intervene and manage the Singapore dollar exchange rate if volatility continues.

Citing the weakening external economic environment and its impact on Singapore's economy, the bank said its monetary policy would shift to keeping the currency from appreciating too much, which hurts exporters.

"This policy maintains the current level of the policy band, and there will be no re-centring of the band or change to its width," it said in its latest macroeconomic review.

The central bank said it expected economic growth to remain below potential due to the weak global economic environment and the crisis in financial markets.

Singapore's gross domestic product growth forecast for this year has been revised to around 3 per cent, from 4-5 per cent projected earlier.

The city-state's economy is heavily dependent on external factors, including exports and services' industries related to its transport hub and tourism, all of which could suffer in a global downturn. dpa gs tl