Taiwan’s exports last month soared 29.9 percent year-on-year to US$48.66 billion, the second-highest on record, thanks to front-loading demand for tech products used in artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing, after Washington announced a 90-day respite for its “reciprocal” tariffs, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.
Last month’s export momentum proved stronger than expected and is to continue this month, with an annual increase of 15 percent to 20 percent, Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) said.
“Front-loading demand and rush orders are evident across sectors,” Tsai said. “The 90-day pause prompted firms on the sidelines to actively build inventory.”
Photo: CNA
That could disrupt seasonality for technology products — with the first half of this year outperforming the second half in terms of sales, Tsai said.
Outbound shipments of information and communications technology products spiked 60.5 percent annually to US$18.83 billion last month, overtaking electronic components as the top driver, on the back of demand from AI infrastructure and big data centers, she said.
Shipments of electronic components, mainly chips, increased 26.8 percent to US$16.41 billion, consistent with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (台積電) expectations.
The company has said that it does not see customers canceling orders amid uncertainty related to US tariffs.
Front-loading also benefited exports of chemicals, base metals, optical products and machinery equipment, the ministry said, adding that last month, all major markets’ shipments — except Europe — recorded double-digit percentage growth.
Mexico saw a threefold increase, while Malaysia rapidly climbed to the fourth-largest export destination, after China, the US and Japan, Tsai said, adding that it was due to the ongoing global supply chain realignment.
Imports last month also expanded 33 percent year-on-year to US$41.16 billion, fueled by local tech firms’ purchases of capital equipment and the deepening of global division of labor in the tech supply chain, Tsai said.
That gave Taiwan a trade surplus of US$7.21 billion in the month, up 15 percent from a year earlier.
Tsai declined to comment on the effect of the New Taiwan dollar’s rapid appreciation on exports, saying that she cannot pass judgment on the issue based on customs data alone.
However, Tsai said she believed Taiwanese firms command the pricing power in areas where they maintain a strong global competitive edge.
With global cloud service providers’ AI infrastructure investments showing no signs of deceleration, Taiwan appears poised to maintain its export strength in the months ahead, she said.
In the first four months of this year, cumulative exports rose 20.6 percent to US$178.23 billion, while imports gained 20.4 percent to US$147.38 billion from a year earlier, ministry data showed.
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