Export orders last month rose 10.70 percent from a year earlier, boosted by the global economic recovery and strong demand for consumer electronics, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement yesterday.
The orders -- indicative of shipments in one to three months -- totaled NT$486.3 billion (US$14.39 billion) last month, the ministry said. But the figure was down from July's record monthly high of NT$490 billion (US$14.50 billion).
To meet this demand, industrial output rose 5.31 percent last month from a year earlier, slower than July's revised 6.77 percent on-year increase, it said.
Export orders in the eight months to last month amounted to US$107.60 billion, up 9.51 percent from the same period the previous year, it added.
Orders will probably reach all-time highs this month or next amid demand for electronics products ahead of the festive seasons, traditionally a time for big spending, especially in electronics, over the Christmas and Lunar New Year holidays, Chang Yaw-tzong (
"US economic indicators are continuing to improve and consumer confidence is rising," Chang said.
Tax cuts in the US are also boosting consumer demand there, and in turn helping lift Taiwan's export orders, he added.
The ministry's growth forecasts have not taken into account currency appreciation.
"Any surge in the local currency against the US dollar will positively affect the amount of export orders in US dollar terms in the near-term but in the long run the impact will be depend on how the currencies of our competitors move against the greenback," Chang said.
Orders from Hong Kong rose 18 percent to US$3.4 billion last month, while orders from the US, the nation's second-biggest export market, rose 5.4 percent to US$4.13 billion.
Strong demand for electronics products, particularly handsets and digital cameras, was behind the phenomenal growth in last month's overall industrial output, Chang said.
"Centrino remains hot," Chang added, referring to Intel Corp's new mobile computing platform, which is increasing demand for notebook computers.
Overseas orders, also from new markets, for Taiwanese-made electronic goods rose 18 percent last month to US$3 billion and those for the telecommunications equipment increased 12 percent to US$2.8 billion, the ministry said.
RSS