The production value of the nation’s automotive electronics sector is expected to surpass NT$230 billion (US$7.31 billion) this year, thanks to increasing sales of smart and electric vehicles worldwide, the Automotive Research & Testing Center (ARTC, 車輛研究測試中心) said yesterday.
The automotive electronics sector has had a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 6 percent from 2011 to last year, although vehicle sales in Taiwan have been declining since 2014, ARTC data showed.
“The lingering US-China trade dispute lowered sales of vehicles and car components, but Taiwan’s automotive electronics sales bucked the downturn, partly because of more electric vehicles entering the market,” ARTC vice president Jerry Wang (王正健) told an industry meeting in Taipei organized by Taiwan Stock Exchange Corp (台灣證交所).
Global shipments of electric vehicles rose 65 percent annually last year and had a CAGR of 44.5 percent from 2014 to last year, Wang said.
China remained the world’s largest market for electric vehicles last year due to Chinese government subsidies, he said.
“Stricter emissions and safety laws, as well as improvements in battery efficiency, helped drive the penetration rate of electric vehicles there,” he said.
With governments and companies worldwide setting research goals for Internet of vehicles, self-driving vehicles, car-sharing services and vehicle electrification, automotive electronics would remain the driving force for Taiwan’s auto industry, he said.
Within the sector, the telematics systems segment topped others with annual output of NT$116.7 billion last year, up 4.1 percent from 2017, Wang said, citing data from the Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK, 產業經濟與趨勢研究中心).
The advanced driving assistance system (ADAS) segment saw output grow 6.1 percent to NT$15.6 billion last year, with other segments showing growth of 2.3 to 5.8 percent, IEK data showed.
However, the automotive electronics sector faces challenges, Wang said.
Domestic makers of ADAS products still lack the technology to mass-produce sensor chips for radar and lidar, detection systems that are critical for self-driving cars, while most automotive parts companies rely on selling individual components, he said.
“To remain competitive, local companies would need to focus on providing integrated and smart solutions, and serve as first-tier suppliers,” Wang said.
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