Taiwan's exports rose in August at the fastest pace in almost two years as customers in China bought more mobile phones and other goods, countering a slowdown in US demand.
Exports gained 15.5 percent from a year earlier to US$10.91 billion, following a 14.9 percent increase in July, a government report showed. That was the fastest growth since October 2000.
Taiwan-based companies such as Wintek Corp (勝華科技), a maker of mobile-phone displays, are expanding production in China to fill growing demand from that country, which overtook the US last year as the world's biggest mobile-phone market.
That's helping sales grow even as US demand flags.
"China's growth is still faster relative to the rest of the world, and it's also promoting its domestic mobile-phone makers," said James Chen, finance manager at Wintek, whose customers include Motorola Inc and TCL Communication Equipment Co, China's biggest domestic mobile-phone maker.
Wintek, which has factories in Suzhou, China, and Taiwan, posted record consolidated sales last month, Chen said.
Taiwan manufacturers are taking advantage of looser investment rules to move production lines to China, where wages are an average 16 times lower than in Taiwan.
That's helping them cut costs and giving them closer access to a market where the economy grew 8 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, the fastest in Asia.
US manufacturing stalled in August, according to the Institute for Supply Management, the latest sign growth in one of Taiwan's largest export markets is slowing.
Imports rose 18.8 percent from a year earlier to US$9.14 billion, the report showed. That widened the trade surplus to US$1.77 billion from US$1.76 billion a year earlier.
Exports to China more than doubled last month from a year earlier to US$920.8 million, yesterday's report showed.
Shipments to Hong Kong rose 20 percent to US$2.64 billion.
Exports to the US rose 0.7 percent to US$2.29 billion. Sales to Japan rose 9.1 percent, and shipments to Europe rose 5 percent.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique