The nation’s exports rose 13 percent year-on-year to US$25.83 billion last month, expanding at a double-digit percentage after a two-month hiatus as demand for electronic components used in next-generation technology emerged, the Ministry of Finance said in a report yesterday.
Outbound shipments might continue to gain momentum for the rest of the year, albeit at a slower pace as the low-base effect tapers off, the ministry said.
“Demand for almost all product categories improved, especially for electronic components, as global technology brands started to build inventory for next-generation devices,” Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) told a news conference.
Photo: CNA
The showing was the second-highest level ever for the month and bucked the traditional slow season.
Shipments of electronic components, which account for 34 percent of overall shipments, expanded 19.5 percent to US$8.89 billion as trading partners around the world increased orders for semiconductors, information and communication technology (ICT) gadgets, flat panels and machine tools, Tsai said.
Taiwan is home to the world’s largest contract chipmakers, chip designers, suppliers of camera lenses, routers and other critical components used in mobile devices, laptops, connected vehicles and Internet of Things applications.
Exports of ICT products jumped 17.2 percent to US$2.93 billion, while optical devices gained 13.4 percent to US$994 million, the report showed.
Continued improvement in the global economy bodes well for consumer electronic products and the introduction of innovative features will help spur demand, Tsai said, alluding to Apple Inc’s expected launch of its latest iPhone this year.
For the quarter ended last month, exports advanced 10.2 percent to US$75.66 billion, slightly better than the forecast made in May by the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics.
Imports posted a modest increase of 3.7 percent to US$20 billion last month as the purchase of capital equipment slowed among local firms.
Acquisition of semiconductor equipment, in particular, contracted 25.6 percent to US$1.08 billion, the second consecutive month of decline, the report said.
“It is better to be cautious, because reckless purchases of capital equipment might lead to a capacity glut,” Tsai said.
Imports rose 12 percent to US$63.6 billion in the second quarter, missing the government’s forecast.
China accounted for 40 percent of outbound shipments last month, buying US$10.44 billion worth of electronic components, flat panels and ICT products, among other things, Tsai said.
“That translated into a 21 percent increase from a year earlier, after slowing to a single-digit percentage a month earlier,” Tsai said.
For the first six months, exports grew 12.5 percent to US$147.75 billion, while imports rose 16.5 percent to US$124.9 billion, yielding a trade surplus of US$22.85 billion, the report said.
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