The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI, 工研院) has raised its growth forecast for the production value of Taiwan’s manufacturing industry to 10 percent for this year, more than double the estimate of 4.75 percent it made in November last year, as local producers benefit from the robust demand for steel, chips and electronics amid a global economic recovery.
The information and communications technology (ICT) industry would advance by 11.4 percent to NT$8.55 trillion (US$308.6 billion) this year, outpacing its previous estimate of 3.55 percent growth, the institute said in a report released yesterday.
“Strong inventory rebuild demand is adding pressure to an already tight supply of ICT products. Average selling price hikes should help boost the profit margins of local manufacturers,” it said.
Photo: CNA
Shipments of electronics, primarily smartphones, are forecast to increase 9.5 percent this year, compared with its previous forecast of 5.4 percent, driven by work-from-home, online learning and stay-at-home trends.
“Some manufacturers have upgraded equipment or added production lines to cope with the rising demand,” the institute said, adding that a surge in COVID-19 cases and a soft lockdown in Taiwan have not affected the sector, which mainly relies on outbound demand.
The production value of basic metals and machine tools is forecast to rise 10.15 percent to NT$5.67 trillion this year, it said, up from its previous projection of 4.28 percent growth, as China and other countries invest heavily in infrastructure projects to stimulate their economy, boosting steel demand.
The petrochemical industry’s output would grow 12.5 percent to NT$4.2 trillion this year, as an improving global economy pushes up demand for and prices of crude oil and petrochemical products, it said.
However, the production value of the livelihood sector — including restaurants, retail, textile and tourism-related businesses — would feel the pinch of a setback in domestic demand, with the institute predicting its output would grow 1.48 percent to NT$2.5 trillion this year, down from its previous estimate of 2.5 percent growth.
On a more positive note, the apparel and textile industry would post a strong recovery, as companies see increasing orders from global brands, while robust domestic investment would underpin the sector’s growth, it said.
WEAKER ACTIVITY: The sharpest deterioration was seen in the electronics and optical components sector, with the production index falling 13.2 points to 44.5 Taiwan’s manufacturing sector last month contracted for a second consecutive month, with the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) slipping to 48, reflecting ongoing caution over trade uncertainties, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. The decline reflects growing caution among companies amid uncertainty surrounding US tariffs, semiconductor duties and automotive import levies, and it is also likely linked to fading front-loading activity, CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) said. “Some clients have started shifting orders to Southeast Asian countries where tariff regimes are already clear,” Lien told a news conference. Firms across the supply chain are also lowering stock levels to mitigate
Six Taiwanese companies, including contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), made the 2025 Fortune Global 500 list of the world’s largest firms by revenue. In a report published by New York-based Fortune magazine on Tuesday, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), ranked highest among Taiwanese firms, placing 28th with revenue of US$213.69 billion. Up 60 spots from last year, TSMC rose to No. 126 with US$90.16 billion in revenue, followed by Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) at 348th, Pegatron Corp (和碩) at 461st, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) at 494th and Wistron Corp (緯創) at
NEGOTIATIONS: Semiconductors play an outsized role in Taiwan’s industrial and economic development and are a major driver of the Taiwan-US trade imbalance With US President Donald Trump threatening to impose tariffs on semiconductors, Taiwan is expected to face a significant challenge, as information and communications technology (ICT) products account for more than 70 percent of its exports to the US, Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) said on Friday. Compared with other countries, semiconductors play a disproportionately large role in Taiwan’s industrial and economic development, Lien said. As the sixth-largest contributor to the US trade deficit, Taiwan recorded a US$73.9 billion trade surplus with the US last year — up from US$47.8 billion in 2023 — driven by strong
ASE Technology Holding Co (ASE, 日月光投控), the world’s biggest chip assembly and testing service provider, yesterday said it would boost equipment capital expenditure by up to 16 percent for this year to cope with strong customer demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Aside from AI, a growing demand for semiconductors used in the automotive and industrial sectors is to drive ASE’s capacity next year, the Kaohsiung-based company said. “We do see the disparity between AI and other general sectors, and that pretty much aligns the scenario in the first half of this year,” ASE chief operating officer Tien Wu (吳田玉) told an
RSS