Export orders in January expanded 60.1 percent year-on-year to US$76.9 billion, the 12th straight month of double-digit percentage growth and the highest for a single month, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
The figure rose 0.9 percent from the previous month, exceeding the ministry’s estimate of US$70 billion to US$72 billion, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing applications, Department of Statistics Director-General Huang Wei-jie (黃偉傑) told a news conference in Taipei.
January’s growth was mainly driven by strong momentum in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry, with strong orders for servers and other high-tech products, Huang said.
Photo: CNA
While traditional industries also posted year-on-year growth, the increase was largely due to a lower comparison base, as the Lunar New Year fell in January last year, but in February this year, and whether demand has truly rebounded would depend on last month’s data, he said.
Export orders for last month are estimated to rise 9 to 12.9 percent year-on-year to between US$56.3 billion and US$58.3 billion, Huang said.
While the first two months’ average might fall short of US$70 billion, it does not indicate weakening demand, he said.
Strong AI demand would continue to support order momentum for electronic components and ICT products. he added.
However, the war in Iran poses uncertainty for the order outlook, and a prolonged conflict could push up fuel prices and inflation, potentially affecting global demand and trade activity, Huang said.
If crude oil prices continue to rise, local petrochemical and plastics industries could be the first to be affected, including products such as plastics and chemical materials, he said.
The impact could then spread to broader prices and create inflationary pressure, he added.
In January, export orders rose 78.6 percent year-on-year for electronic components, surged 102 percent for ICT products, increased 40.6 percent for machinery products and climbed 18.6 percent for optoelectronic products, ministry data showed.
The surge in machinery orders — the largest year-on-year increase since July 2021 — was driven by capacity expansion in high-tech industries, which boosted demand for semiconductor production and automation equipment, Huang said.
However, it is not clear yet whether the machinery industry has truly rebounded, he said.
Orders also rose across traditional industries in January, increasing 13.9 percent year-on-year for plastic and rubber products, 8.8 percent for base metals and 10.4 percent for chemical products, ministry data showed.
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