The nation’s industrial production last month increased for the 11th consecutive month, thanks to strong demand for tech products as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
Despite a global economic downturn, local industrial production last month grew 5.22 percent month-on-month and 9.9 percent year-on-year, resulting in production last year increasing 6.81 percent from 2019, the ministry said.
“Production in the electronic components and electronic goods categories were up by double-digit percentage points for the year, while output at traditional industries mostly declined along with the global economy,” Department of Statistics Deputy Director-General Huang Wei-jie (黃偉傑) told a news conference in Taipei.
Photo: CNA
Production of electronic components was up by 16.4 percent year-on-year last month and 19.33 percent for the year, while output of computers, electronics and optical products grew by 12.33 percent year-on-year last month and 11.06 percent for the year, ministry data showed.
“Taiwan was able to capitalize on strong global demand for 5G-related components and pandemic-related demand for consumer electronics,” Huang said. “The trends of learning from home, working from home, shopping from home and entertainment at home are all still going strong.”
HIT HARD
Unlike tech production, which rebounded early in the year and sustained heightened demand for the rest of the year, traditional industries were hit hard for most of the year, the ministry said.
Despite making a strong recovery in the past few months, all traditional industries except for chemical manufacturers ended the year with production falling from a year earlier.
“Chemical products benefited from the global demand for personal protective equipment, and there was strong demand for raw materials used to make protective gloves, masks and disinfectants,” Huang said.
Chemical production rose 8.84 percent year-on-year last month and 0.31 percent for the year, data showed.
Base metal production gained 14.33 percent year-on-year last month, but fell 0.87 percent for the year as a whole, while mechanical equipment production increased 14.3 percent last month, but was down 2.8 percent last year, the ministry said.
HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Production of vehicles and automotive parts rose 21.57 percent year-on-year last month, which Huang credited to the popularity of new models and the government’s incentive program for purchasing new vehicles.
However, production fell 4.42 percent last year, data showed.
For this month, the ministry said that industrial production would likely grow by up to 2.5 percent month-on-month and 27.2 percent year-on-year.
“Products related to the stay-at-home economy would continue to sell well, and the increased demand for auto-related electronics would keep semiconductor makers booked,” Huang said.
“However, COVID-19 is still not under control, and we still need to be on the lookout for the possibility of another round of lockdowns,” he added.
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