Exports last month gained 3.4 percent to US$38.81 billion, ending 12 straight months of decline, thanks to strong demand for technology products related to artificial intelligence (AI), the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.
The release of new-generation consumer electronic products, notably smartphones, and a low comparison base from the same period last year helped boost exports, Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) said.
“It is safe to say that exports are coming out of the woods” following a year of inventory adjustments, Tsai told a news briefing.
Photo: CNA
The crucial economic bellwether might lead to no or a minor contraction this month, while helping to stage a healthy recovery in the coming months, she said.
Nevertheless, shipments of electronics, primarily chips, shrank 4.3 percent year-on-year, but should return to positive territory next month, she added.
An earnings conference next week by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) — which counts Apple Inc, Nvidia Corp, Intel Corp, Advanced Micro Devices and other technology giants among its customers — would shed more light on the state of the industry, Tsai said.
Shipments of information and communication technology (ICT) products surged 59.8 percent to a record US$8.26 billion, underpinning the turnaround in exports and making up 17 percent of overall exports, she said.
Demand for AI-related products accounted for double-digit percentage increases in shipments bound for the US and Europe, where technology firms are aggressively developing and building up AI equipment and solutions despite stubborn inflation, the ministry said.
Shipments to ASEAN markets soared 24.8 percent to US$7.48 billion, making the bloc Taiwan’s second-largest export destination, aided by robust demand for electronics and ICT products, Tsai said, adding that a global supply chain realignment also contributed to the rise.
Exports to China fell 8.8 percent, easing to a single-digit percentage for the first time in 14 months, a positive sign, she said.
Non-tech products also benefited, with exports of chemical and mineral products rising 10.3 percent and 0.9 percent respectively on the back of inventory restocking demand and higher international oil prices, she said.
By contrast, imports fell 12.2 percent to US$28.49 billion, as local firms refrained from buying semiconductor equipment and raw materials used for exports, she said.
That gave Taiwan a trade surplus of US$10.32 billion, more than twice what it was a year earlier, the ministry said.
For the third quarter, exports fell 5.1 percent to US$114.9 billion, while imports dropped 19 percent to US$87.49 billion, beating the government’s forecast in August.
Exports fell 13.8 percent to US$316.98 billion in the first nine months of this year, while imports dropped 19.7 percent to US$263.12 billion, worse than other trade rivals such as South Korea, Japan, Singapore and China.
High comparison bases in the past few years due to the trade effects of COVID-19 accounted for Taiwan’s poor showings and highlight its vulnerability to global technology downcycles, Tsai said.
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