Taiwan experienced a notable surge in exports in December, outperforming expectations primarily due to increased demand for high-tech products from the United States. The finance ministry reported a substantial 11.8% year-on-year growth, reaching $39.94 billion. This exceeded the 4.9% growth forecast in a Reuters poll and marked a significant improvement from the 3.8% gain observed in November.
The robust export performance was attributed to heightened demand for artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, data centers, and automotive electronics. Taiwan's economy minister, Wang Mei-Hua, expressed optimism about the continued strength in demand for related products such as servers and chips, driven by the ongoing advancement of AI technology.
Despite the positive outlook, concerns loom over potential economic uncertainties for Taiwan in the coming year. However, industry insiders have indicated that the strong demand for tech-related products could serve as a buoyant factor for the economy.
Looking ahead to January, the finance ministry anticipates a further increase in exports, ranging between 20% and 24% year-on-year. This optimistic forecast is attributed, in part, to the later occurrence of the Lunar New Year holidays, resulting in more working days this month compared to the previous year.
While Taiwan faced challenges related to weak global demand, leading to a downward revision of its 2023 economic growth forecast to 1.42%, the recent export figures underscore the resilience of the island's high-tech sector.
In terms of trade partners, exports to the United States experienced a remarkable surge of 49.7% in December, surpassing the 33.1% growth recorded in November. However, exports to China continued to face challenges, declining by 6.4% in December from a year earlier, following a 6.3% drop in the previous month. This trend reflects China's ongoing economic struggles.
In a related development, Taiwan's imports, often considered an indicator of re-exports of finished products, decreased by 6.5% to $28.84 billion in December. This result was slightly better than economists' expectations, who had forecasted a 7.3% decline. The overall trade dynamics suggest that while challenges persist, Taiwan's high-tech exports remain a driving force behind its economic resilience and growth.
