The government’s business climate monitor last month flashed “red” for the sixth straight month, signaling a continued economic boom even though the overall score shrank slightly due to a local COVID-19 outbreak, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday.
The gauge shed 2 points to 38 and could falter this month as the low-base effect tapers off, NDC research director Wu Ming-huei (吳明蕙) said.
“Regardless, the nation’s economy should stay on a stable course in the foreseeable future, thanks to strong exports, industrial production and private investment, while virus containment measures crimp business for service sectors,” Wu told a news conference in Taipei.
Photo: CNA
The council uses a five-color system to portray the nation’s economic state, with “green” indicating steady growth, “red” suggesting a boom and “blue” signaling a recession. Dual colors indicate a transition.
Lackluster retail, wholesale and restaurant revenues accounted for the decline of 2 points, while other indicators held steady, Wu said.
On the trade front, demand for electronics gained momentum as international technology brands are about to release new-generation products to meet back-to-school and holiday demand, the official said.
Taiwan is home to the world’s leading manufacturers of chips and other electronic components used in smartphones, laptops, wearables and vehicles.
Export orders, a critical barometer of actual exports one to three months ahead, last month expanded 21.4 percent year-on-year to US$55.3 billion, boding well for Taiwan’s export-focused economy, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said earlier this week.
The index of leading indicators, which seeks to predict the economic situation in the next six months, softened 0.66 percent to 100.47, as all constituent measures lost points except for the reading on local share prices, the council’s report found.
A local COVID-19 outbreak caused retreats in business confidence, labor accession rates and construction floor areas, Wu said, adding that the situation should improve as the outbreak subsides.
The index of coincident indicators, which reflects the current economic situation, pared 0.89 percent to 101.51, the council said.
Industrial production, sales of manufacturing goods and imports of capital equipment picked up, while non-farm payroll, electricity usage and export value pointed downward, it said.
The government is to help shore up domestic demand by distributing Quintuple Stimulus Vouchers likely in October, Wu said.
That would lend timely support to GDP growth at a time when a favorable base effect for exports wanes, the official said.
The EU and US are nearing an agreement to coordinate on producing and securing critical minerals, part of a push to break reliance on Chinese supplies. The potential deal would create incentives, such as minimum prices, that could advantage non-Chinese suppliers, according to a draft of an “action plan” seen by Bloomberg. The EU and US would also cooperate on standards, investments and joint projects, as well as coordinate on any supply disruptions by countries like China. The two sides are additionally seeking other “like-minded partners” to join a multicountry accord to help create these new critical mineral supply chains, which feed into
Elon Musk’s lieutenants have reached out to chip industry suppliers, including Applied Materials Inc, Tokyo Electron Ltd and Lam Research Corp, for his envisioned Terafab, early steps in an audacious and likely arduous attempt to break into the production of cutting-edge chips. Staff working for the joint venture between Tesla Inc and Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) have sought price quotes and delivery times for an array of chipmaking gear, people familiar with the matter said. In past weeks, they’ve contacted makers of photomasks, substrates, etchers, depositors, cleaning devices, testers and other tools, according to the people, who asked not to
Japan approved ￥631.5 billion (US$3.97 billion) in additional subsidies to hasten Rapidus Corp’s entry into the high-stakes artificial intelligence (AI) chipmaking arena, ramping up support for a project widely regarded as a long shot. The capital is intended to bankroll Rapidus’ work for information technology firm Fujitsu Ltd, one of the initial customers that Tokyo hopes would get the signature endeavor off the ground. The new money raises the fees and investments that the government is injecting into the start-up to ￥2.6 trillion by the end of the current fiscal year to March next year, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and
The founder of Chinese property giant Evergrande Group (恆大集團) has pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and bribery, a court said yesterday, the latest blow for what was once the country’s leading developer. Evergrande’s rise was propelled by decades of rapid urbanization and rising living standards, but in 2020, its access to credit dramatically narrowed when the government introduced curbs on excessive borrowing and speculation. The company defaulted in 2021 after struggling to repay creditors. Founder Xu Jiayin (許家印), 67, known as Hui Ka Yan in Cantonese, was reportedly held by police in 2023, with Evergrande saying he had been subjected to
RSS