With domestic consumption remaining the major driving force, the nation's economy is forecast to expand by 4.18 percent next year, according to a report released by the Polaris Research Institute (
The government's Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics last month predicted economic growth for next year, gauged by GDP growth, at 4.08 percent, while the Cabinet-level Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) said earlier this month that economic growth next year will be 4.5 percent.
The nation's GDP ratio this year is predicted to be 3.8 percent, lower than the original goal of 4 percent, the CEPD said on Wednesday. The council attributed the failure to reach the goal to weaker-than-expected exports in the first half of the year, resulting in only 2.73 percent economic growth in the first six months.
Economic growth in the latter half of the year should climb to 4.83 percent, according to the council.
Polaris observed that as the unemployment rate remains higher than 4 percent and the inflation rate dwarfs salary growth, domestic consumption is less likely to drastically increase, although it is expected to climb by 3.18 percent next year, up from 3.15 percent this year.
As for the CEPD, the jobless rate should be 4.1 percent this year in the wake of various job-creation programs promoted by the government.
Meanwhile, consumer price hikes could contract from this year's estimated 2.3 percent to 1.42 percent next year as global oil prices stabilize, Polaris said.
The CEPD on Wednesday predicted that the consumer price index would reach 2.23 percent this year, up from its previous estimate of 2 percent, because of soaring oil prices as well as the the sharp increase in fruit and vegetable prices. The figure is expected to stay under 2 percent next year, the council added.
Polaris yesterday said that global economic growth in the coming year should maintain similar momentum with trade activities expanding mildly. In addition, the New Taiwan dollar's depreciation against the US dollar in the latter half of the year is conducive to the nation's exports.
A weakening NT dollar will make Taiwanese products less expensive in overseas markets, helping local exporters to compete with their Asian counterparts.
Therefore, Polaris estimated that the nation's GDP growth in the fourth quarter should extend the rebound trend to reach 5.18 percent, leading whole year growth to 3.77 percent.
However, as the US Federal Reserve hinted its interest rate hike is coming to an end and the IMF predicted that the US' current account deficit this year could reach US$759 billion with no sign of improving, Polaris said that the competitiveness of Taiwan's exports could be weakened if the US dollar adopts a reverse trend.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
RECORD-BREAKING: TSMC’s net profit last quarter beat market expectations by expanding 8.9% and it was the best first-quarter profit in the chipmaker’s history Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which counts Nvidia Corp as a key customer, yesterday said that artificial intelligence (AI) server chip revenue is set to more than double this year from last year amid rising demand. The chipmaker expects the growth momentum to continue in the next five years with an annual compound growth rate of 50 percent, TSMC chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) told investors yesterday. By 2028, AI chips’ contribution to revenue would climb to about 20 percent from a percentage in the low teens, Wei said. “Almost all the AI innovators are working with TSMC to address the
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”