Foreign direct investment declined 35.17 percent annually in the first eight months of the year to US$3.72 billion, while 1,757 investments were approved over the period, down 22.12 percent from a year earlier, the Investment Commission said yesterday.
The commission blamed the COVID-19 pandemic for the decline, saying that investments by multinationals have so far this year slowed markedly.
From countries included in the government’s New Southbound Policy, 332 investments were approved in the first eight months, a drop of 3.77 percent year-on-year, but the amount invested reached US$450.70 million, up 63.96 percent from a year earlier, the commission said.
Photo: Sam Yeh, AFP
Most of the investments from New Southbound Policy countries came from Singapore, Thailand and Australia, it added.
Only 26 Chinese investments were approved, down 63.38 percent year-on-year, the commission said, adding that the investments totaled US$29.47 million, down 75.09 percent annually.
“The decline [in investments from China] has to do with changes in international strategic conditions, the intensification of the US-China trade war, shifts in cross-strait relations and changes in regulations governing Chinese investors in Taiwan,” it said.
The commission approved 265 outbound investments, down 27.6 percent year-on-year, but they totaled US$8.63 billion, up 36.7 percent year-on-year.
The commission said that “a handful of outsized investments,” such as GlobalWafers Co’s (環球晶圓) acquisition of Germany’s Siltronic AG, accounted for the rise in US dollar amounts, despite the decrease in the number of projects.
As for New Southbound Policy countries, only 82 outbound investments were approved in the first eight months, down 32.23 percent year-on-year.
However, the total amount invested hit US$5.35 billion, up 197.31 percent from the previous year, with major investments in Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand, the commission said.
The commission approved 277 China-bound investments, a drop of 12.34 percent year-on-year, which totaled US$2.60 billion, a drop of 32.75 percent, it said.
“The main reason for the drop in investments in China is the hike in wages and land prices, and commodities prices in Taiwan,” the commission said.
“With the investment environment not what it used to be, plus the rise in US-China tensions, Taiwanese investors are increasingly cautious,” it added.
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