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Export orders rise on demand from China, Asia

"The numbers show that Taiwan so far hasn't been affected by the global slowdown."

Fang Wen-yen, an economist at KGI Securities

Taiwan's export orders rose last month, helped by demand from emerging markets such as China.

Orders, an indication of shipments in the coming three months, advanced 18.08 percent from a year earlier, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. That compares with the median estimate of 18 percent in a Bloomberg News survey and 16.89 percent in January.

Business with China may get a boost after Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) won Saturday's presidential election pledging direct flights to China and allowing more visitors to Taiwan within a year of his inauguration.

A slowdown in the US, Taiwan's second-biggest overseas market, will inevitably affect shipments, central bank Governor Perng Fai-nan (彭淮南) said yesterday.

"The numbers show that Taiwan so far hasn't been affected by the global slowdown," said Fang Wen-yen (方文妍), a Taipei-based economist at KGI Securities Co (中信證). "Foreign demand may lose some momentum, but we expect domestic demand to pick up."

The figures were released after close of trading on Taiwan's stock exchange.

The TAIEX jumped 3.99 percent on optimism that Ma's election will boost links with China.

Ma, 57, pledged to enact immediately his policy to end a five-decade ban on direct flights between Taiwan and China.

Travelers are currently required to fly through a third port such as Hong Kong, adding up to five hours to flight times.

Ma has also promised to ease a ban on Taiwanese companies investing more than 40 percent of their assets in China, a rule aimed at preventing money and jobs moving away from the nation.

"Taiwan won't break this trend of relying on China," Fang said. "It's very important, particularly as US demand weakens."

Exports to Asia, including China and Hong Kong, have so far insulated Taiwan from the effects of a weaker US economy. China and Hong Kong combined accounted for 38 percent of Taiwan's overseas shipments last month. About 12 percent went to the US.

Orders from China and Hong Kong increased 26.07 percent last month, while those from Japan advanced 14.13 percent, Singapore climbed 10.38 percent and the rest of Asia 31.79 percent.

US orders rose 8.95 percent, compared with 7.65 percent in January and from Europe they increased 14.69 percent.

Orders for electronics climbed 22.79 percent from a year earlier and those for information technology and communications products gained 3.52 percent, yesterday's report showed.

Taiwan Semiconductor Man-ufacturing Co (台積電), the largest custom chipmaker in the world, forecast first-quarter sales to rise more than a third from the same period a year earlier, as customers buy its most-advanced products.

Industrial production increased 15.22 percent last month from a year earlier, the ministry said.

That compares with the estimate of 12 percent in the Bloomberg News survey and the 12.3 percent gain in January.
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