The government’s business climate monitor last month flashed “red,” indicating a boom for the nation’s export-oriented economy thanks to strong demand for semiconductors and servers used in artificial intelligence (AI) devices, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday.
It is the first boom in 30 months after the monitor gained 2 points month-on-month to 38, just enough to turn the signal from “yellow-red” to “red,” partly helped by non-technology sectors that have emerged from inventory adjustments and eased an imbalanced recovery, NDC Economic Department Director Chiu Chiu-ying (邱秋瑩) said.
The boom came after the reading on exports rose 2 points and the overtime measure in the industrial and service sectors moved up 1 point, offsetting the loss of 1 point on business confidence among manufacturers, the council said.
Photo: CNA
“The momentum should sustain for the rest of this year with the high sales season for technology products approaching,” Chiu said.
The AI frenzy would likely spread from cloud-based data centers to smartphones and personal computers after technology brands release next-generation gadgets in September, thereby ramping up business at local firms, she said.
Shipments of information and communications technology products last month spiked more than twofold on the back of avid spending on AI infrastructure by US technology giants, she added.
At the same time, exports of mineral, chemical, textile and machinery products posted double-digit percentage increases, while shipments of plastic and base metal products resumed growth, although at a slower pace, Chiu said.
The data showed that the ongoing economic rebound is no longer limited to the technology sector, she said.
The index of leading indicators, which aims to project the economic landscape in the next six months, increased 0.7 percent month-on-month to 103.59, rising for nine straight months with a cumulative expansion of 4.6 percent, the council said.
The subindices on export orders, imports of semiconductor equipment, share prices and labor accession rates all posted encouraging signs, it said, adding that the measure on construction floor space proved the only exception.
The index of coincident indicators, which reflects the current economic situation, climbed another 1.43 percent to 105.53, as component measures on exports, electricity use, industrial output and overtime, as well as wholesale, retail and restaurant revenues all showed positive cyclical movements, the council said.
Looking ahead, end-market demand would continue to improve, as inventory adjustments come to an end for most sectors, Chiu said.
However, local firms should remain cautious about uncertainties linked to November’s US presidential election and the US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy intentions, as they have important bearings on global trade, she said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS