The economy last quarter expanded 3.06 percent from a year earlier, as robust exports and cargo shipping services offset a sluggish recovery in consumer spending, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday.
The figure was 0.06 percentage points higher than the forecast made by the statistics agency two months ago and would boost GDP growth for this year from 4.42 percent to 4.43 percent, national income section official Wu Pei-shuan (吳佩璇) said, attributing the upside to stronger-than-expected exports.
However, it was slower compared with the previous quarter’s 4.9 percent annual expansion, partly due to a high base of comparison from a year earlier when the economy expanded 9.2 percent.
Photo: CNA
There is also growing concern over the impact of China’s strict lockdown measures on Taiwanese businesses operating across the Taiwan Strait.
“Uncertainty is building up this quarter.... The lockdowns in Shanghai and Kunshan have forced Taiwanese firms there to suspend or cut operations, which could weigh on industrial output,” Wu said.
Exports of goods and services increased 8.9 percent during the January-to-March period, beating estimates of a 7.31 percent pickup, the DGBAS said.
Demand for new technology applications and cargo shipping services remained vibrant amid eased supply chain bottlenecks, it said.
By contrast, imports of goods and services gained 8.91 percent in US dollar terms, missing the agency’s forecast by 0.07 percentage points.
Altogether, external demand contributed 1.22 percentage points to first-quarter GDP.
Capital formation, a key growth driver in recent years, underperformed with a 7.19 percent increase, compared with expectations of 8.67 percent growth, Wu said, adding that semiconductor equipment suppliers seemed to need more time to fill orders.
Major Taiwanese companies have kept their capital spending plans intact, Wu said.
This component accounted for 60 percent of GDP growth last quarter, DGBAS data showed.
Consumer spending increased by just 0.23 percent, missing the forecast by 0.99 percentage points, the agency said.
Retail sales gained 3.9 percent year-on-year, buoyed by online shopping, while loosened virus controls allowed restaurant revenue to increase 4.93 percent, it said.
Nevertheless, recurrent virus outbreaks and unfavorable weather limited the pace of the recovery, it said.
In addition, stock market trading volume tumbled 7.74 percent, as global markets took a hit from hawkish monetary policy stances by major central banks and escalating inflationary pressures, it said.
The statistics agency is to provide an official update of its GDP forecast next month.
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