Exports to China surged by almost half in November as mobile-phone and computer makers shipped more parts for assembly at Chinese plants and China's demand for steel and other raw materials rose.
Shipments to China rose 47 percent from a year earlier to US$3.2 billion, the Board of Foreign Trade said. Imports from China rose 52 percent to US$750.9 million, it said.
Taiwanese companies, including Quanta Computer Inc (廣達電腦) and Nan Ya Plastics Corp (南亞塑膠), are expanding production in China, where wages and land costs are lower. Shipments to China are helping to drive the nation's export growth. The government estimates the economy grew 3.27 percent in 2002 after a record 2.18 percent contraction in 2001.
In November, China accounted for 27 percent of Taiwan's overseas sales, the board said.
In the first 11 months of last year, exports to China, mostly shipped via Hong Kong, totalled US$29.87 billion, up 36.2 percent from a year earlier. The China-bound shipments made up 25.1 percent of the nation's total exports.
During the same period, US$7.12 billion worth of goods were purchased from China, up 32.9 percent. Chinese goods made up 6.8 percent of total imports, the board said. Taiwan enjoyed a US$22.75 billion trade surplus, which was up 37.2 percent.
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