Compaq Computer Corp is to lay off around 1,600 workers at its Singapore plant – around two-thirds of the workforce. The plant assembles Intel printed circuit boards, a task that Compaq will now outsource. 500 of the jobs are expected to go by the end of the year, with the rest gone by the end of the first quarter 2000. Compaq closed Digital Equipment Corp’s Singapore based plant after it acquired the company in 1998. Local company Natsteel Electronics Ltd said it would consider buying Compaq’s Singapore operation if it comes up for sale.
