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Amid a ‘friendship recession’, some young Singaporeans are building bonds through shared interests
Summary by The Singapore Editorial Desk Straits Times — Singapore
· September 6, 2026
· 1 min read
Photo: Straits Times — Singapore · view original
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Summary created by The Singapore Editorial Desk — automated, rule-governed Published by Straits Times — Singapore Original story Read at the source Source published Sep 6, 2026 Indexed here Sep 6, 2026 AI assistance Automated summary drawn from the source’s own published text Prepublication human review No — editorial rules, flagged-item review, and published samples
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Key points In 2025, only 48 per cent of young people reported having more than three close friends. This represents a decrease from 2013, when 56 per cent of young people had more than three close friends.
A trend of shrinking friendship circles has been observed, with a notable decline in the number of young people having close friends. In 2025, only 48 per cent of young people reported having more than three close friends.
This represents a decrease from 2013, when 56 per cent of young people had more than three close friends.
Further details on this trend are available from the source, which discusses the impact of a 'friendship recession' on young people and how some are forming bonds through shared interests.
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Category: Local Published: September 6, 2026 Source: Straits Times — Singapore Reading time: 1 min
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What is this story about? A trend of shrinking friendship circles has been observed, with a notable decline in the number of young people having close friends. In 2025, only 48 per cent of young people reported having more…
When was this published? This article was first published on September 6, 2026 by Straits Times — Singapore and curated for The Singapore readers.
Who reported this story? This story was reported by Straits Times — Singapore. To learn more about how The Singapore selects and reviews stories, see our editorial standards .
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