The sentiment gauge for local manufacturers last month has further declined, but service providers and real-estate companies recovered some confidence during the high season for private consumption, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) said yesterday.
The confidence measure for the manufacturing industry last month printed 87.91, falling for seven straight months to its lowest level since June 2020, as global clients shunned inventory building amid rising economic uncertainty, the Taipei-based think tank said.
Poor sales of smartphones, notebook computers and other consumer electronic gadgets globally deepened growing economic unease, TIER said, citing a monthly survey of local makers.
“Clouds gather force over the [economic] landscape in China and the US, the two largest markets for Taiwanese exports,” TIER president Chang Chien-yi (張建一) told an online news conference yesterday.
Exports are likely to meet headwinds in the second half of this year, as major technology brands could encounter oversupply in the market until the second quarter of next year, Chang said.
About 39 percent of manufacturers hold pessimistic outlooks for the coming six months, three percentage points up from a month earlier, while about 20 percent hold positive expectations, up 1.6 percentage points monthly, the survey found.
While leading semiconductor firms remain optimistic about business prospects, second-tier firms are being affected negatively, and many chemical, textile and plastic suppliers share dim views, Chang said.
Mineral and food product suppliers are optimistic given a recovery in private consumption in Taiwan, it said.
Despite ongoing COVID-19 infections, Taiwanese have returned to normal social activities and travels, TIER Economic Forecasting Center director Gordon Sun (孫明德) said.
The recovery was responsible for the sentiment reading for service sectors growing 2.55 points monthly to 96.41, ending three months of downturn, the survey showed.
Retailers, restaurants and hotels are looking at a business increase in the next six months as the government is expected to further loosen COVID-19 controls, it said.
Similarly, the confidence score advanced 3.84 points to 96.7 among civil engineering companies and property developers, given an approaching high season, it said.
It is common for local developers to launch new housing projects in September, and wrap up construction on earlier projects by the end of the year, the institute said.
The macro-environment remains unfavorable for property sectors, it added.
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