The nation’s machinery exports are expected to increase by between 5 percent and 10 percent next year from this year on the back of recovering demand in major markets, the Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry (TAMI, 台灣機械工業同業公會) said yesterday.
“The first three quarters of this year were tough for the [machinery] industry, but we have seen a rebound in the current quarter,” TAMI chairman Alex Ko (柯拔希) said by telephone, adding that growth momentum would sustain into the coming year.
Citing statistics compiled by the association, Ko said that Taiwan’s machinery exports grew 8.7 percent and 14.2 percent annually in October and last month respectively, compared with a 12.7 percent decline in September.
He attributed the recovery to improving global demand for machinery products, saying that hesitant customers are more willing to invest in equipment after the US Federal Reserve announced an increase of 25 basis points to its target federal funds rate.
“For our customers, the Fed’s decision might raise costs to buy new equipment, but it also reduced many uncertainties and risks in the global market,” Ko said.
The association said it expects the nation’s machinery exports next year to continue growing in the US, the second-largest export destination for Taiwanese manufacturers.
US president-elect Donald Trump has said that he would return manufacturing to the US, which is expected to stimulate demand for related equipment there, Ko said.
Machinery exports to Vietnam and Thailand are forecast to increase next year, supported by the two countries’ fast-growing economies, the association said.
Cutting-edge “smart” products would also attract more international customers from different industries in the near future, Ko said, citing Taiwanese firms’ acquisition of orders from established German and Italian rivals that produce high-end products.
Far East Machinery Co Ltd (遠東機械), one of the nation’s leading machinery makers, has already expanded its customer base by launching new machines with virtual measurement functions, Ko told the Taipei Times.
The nation’s machinery exports declined 3.1 percent year-on-year to US$19.25 billion in the first eleven months of this year due to intense global competition, TAMI data showed.
From January through last month, machinery exports to China accounted for 24.3 percent of the nation’s total machinery exports, while shipments to the US and Japan accounted for 18.1 percent and 6.9 percent respectively, the data showed.
Taiwan’s machinery exports plunged 6.9 percent annually to US$19.4 billion last year, the lowest since 2011, Ministry of Finance data showed.
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