The Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) yesterday revised downward its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth next year to 3.59 percent from the forecast of 4.29 percent it made in July.
The Taipei-based think tank also cut its GDP growth forecast for the nation this year from the 2.36 percent it forecast in July to 1.52 percent, the fifth straight time it had revised downward the forecast since July last year.
“Under the current conditions, the nation’s economy should have bottomed out in the third quarter, with the momentum likely to rebound in the fourth quarter,” CIER president Wu Chung-shu (吳中書) said at a press conference.
The institute’s quarterly report showed GDP may rise 1.42 percent in the third quarter, followed by a 4.26 percent expansion in the fourth quarter.
As for next year, the think tank expected the economy to be more balanced, with the contribution from domestic demand strengthening compared with that from external demand.
Taipei-based Standard Chartered Bank economist Tony Phoo (符銘財), who also attended the press conference, said the retail industry may be the major driver boosting domestic demand-related sectors next year.
Phoo added that domestic demand driven by the retail industry would likely contribute significantly to the nation’s economy next year.
Retail industry sales usually account for less than 40 percent of the nation’s exports, but have been climbing to more than 40 percent over the past two years, reflecting the strong performance of the industry, Phoo said.
Phoo added that the continuously strong performance of the tourism sector could in turn help boost sales in the retail industry.
The institute’s forecast for next year was generally in line with Phoo’s views.
In the next year, the retail industry is expected to post about NT$4 trillion (US$136.57 billion) in sales, with exports set to stand at about US$320 billion, its data showed.
The think tank forecast private consumption would rise 2.76 percent next year, up from the 2.12 percent growth recorded this year, the report said.
Private investment is expected to climb 6 percent next year, compared with a 2.11 percent contraction this year, the report said.
As for the external sector, the institute estimated exports would grow 6.44 percent next year, from the 1.09 percent drop this year, it said.
On the inflation front, the research institute expected the nation’s consumer price index (CPI) to show 1.97 percent growth this year and further exhibit a 1.59 percent expansion next year, both lower than the 2 percent critical mark.
The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics will update its latest forecast on the nation’s economy and headline inflation on Oct. 31.
In August, the agency estimated GDP would grow 1.66 percent this year, with the headline inflation index expected to rise by 1.93 percent.
Sweeping policy changes under US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr are having a chilling effect on vaccine makers as anti-vaccine rhetoric has turned into concrete changes in inoculation schedules and recommendations, investors and executives said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has in the past year upended vaccine recommendations, with the country last month ending its longstanding guidance that all children receive inoculations against flu, hepatitis A and other diseases. The unprecedented changes have led to diminished vaccine usage, hurt the investment case for some biotechs, and created a drag that would likely dent revenues and
Global semiconductor stocks advanced yesterday, as comments by Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) at Davos, Switzerland, helped reinforce investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence (AI). Samsung Electronics Co gained as much as 5 percent to an all-time high, helping drive South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI above 5,000 for the first time. That came after the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose more than 3 percent to a fresh record on Wednesday, with a boost from Nvidia. The gains came amid broad risk-on trade after US President Donald Trump withdrew his threat of tariffs on some European nations over backing for Greenland. Huang further
HSBC Bank Taiwan Ltd (匯豐台灣商銀) and the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance cooperation on the suspicious transaction analysis mechanism. This landmark agreement makes HSBC the first foreign bank in Taiwan to establish such a partnership with the High Prosecutors Office, underscoring its commitment to active anti-fraud initiatives, financial inclusion, and the “Treating Customers Fairly” principle. Through this deep public-private collaboration, both parties aim to co-create a secure financial ecosystem via early warning detection and precise fraud prevention technologies. At the signing ceremony, HSBC Taiwan CEO and head of banking Adam Chen (陳志堅)
CULPRITS: Factors that affected the slip included falling global crude oil prices, wait-and-see consumer attitudes due to US tariffs and a different Lunar New Year holiday schedule Taiwan’s retail sales ended a nine-year growth streak last year, slipping 0.2 percent from a year earlier as uncertainty over US tariff policies affected demand for durable goods, data released on Friday by the Ministry of Economic Affairs showed. Last year’s retail sales totaled NT$4.84 trillion (US$153.27 billion), down about NT$9.5 billion, or 0.2 percent, from 2024. Despite the decline, the figure was still the second-highest annual sales total on record. Ministry statistics department deputy head Chen Yu-fang (陳玉芳) said sales of cars, motorcycles and related products, which accounted for 17.4 percent of total retail rales last year, fell NT$68.1 billion, or
RSS