Taiwan’s economic growth rate could exceed 3 percent next year, supported by robust demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications despite a higher base this year, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday.
The central bank last month forecast that the economy would grow 2.68 percent next year as emerging-technology applications continue to thrive, but it also warned that US tariff policies could curb global trade growth amid a high base this year.
The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics in August forecast 2.81 percent GDP growth next year.
Photo: CNA
Several research institutions have predicted about 2.5 percent growth for next year.
Compared with those forecasts, Kung said he was “quite optimistic” that Taiwan’s economy could grow more than 3 percent next year after an expected expansion of more than 5 percent this year, as demand for AI-related applications has continued to grow significantly and the trend is expected to persist.
Asked about a case of African swine fever confirmed at a hog farm in Taichung’s Wuci District (梧棲) on Tuesday, Kung said that state-run Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar, 台糖) would continue to improve disease prevention measures at hog farms.
Taisugar on Wednesday said in a statement that it had activated the highest level of biosecurity measures to ensure the safety of pig farms.
As Taisugar sells about 10 tonnes of pork daily and has 362 tonnes of frozen pork in stock, it is expected to be able to meet short-term demand, Kung said.
If demand increases, Taisugar would work with the Ministry of Agriculture to ensure stable supply and prevent supply chain disruptions, he added.
“In terms of volume, Taisugar still has enough capacity to meet demand, so there should be no problem” Kung said.
Regarding the potential effect on the restaurant sector, Kung said the situation still needed to be closely monitored, adding that the government’s top priority was to ensure a stable supply of pork.
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