News
January export orders rise to US$52.7 billion
By ECCT staff reporters
Taiwan’s export orders in January 2021 increased 49.3% to US$52.7 billion year-on-year, according to a report from the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA). It was the 11th consecutive monthly increase, although a like-for-like annual comparison is not possible given the fact that the Chinese New Year holidays fell in January in 2020 and in February 2021. When measured in New Taiwan dollars, export orders were approximately NT$1,499 billion in January 2021, representing an increase of 41.3% year-on-year.
The United States, mainland China/Hong Kong, and Europe were the three biggest sources of export orders for Taiwan. The value of their orders all set new highs, thanks to strong demand for Taiwan-made electronics and information/telecommunication products, according to MOEA data. In particular, the value of export orders from American firms surged by an annual of 49.6% in January to US$14.8 billion.
Export orders placed with the local electronic component industry grew 64.3% year-on-year to a new monthly high of US$16.93 billion, registering a double-digit increase for the 12th consecutive month, according to MOEA statistics. The sector was the major driver of the growth in January's export orders.
Taiwan's IC design, chip foundry, random access memory chips, printed circuit board and passive components sectors all saw increases in export orders, boosted by strong global demand for digital devices such as smartphones, notebook and tablet computers, automobile electronics and game consoles, stemming from the stay-at-home economy amid the pandemic, according to the ministry.
At the same time, the conventional machinery, rubber, automobile, home appliance, basic metal and steel sectors also saw double-digit growth in their January export orders, as the pandemic began to slow down across the world, according to the ministry.
For instance, export orders received by machinery manufacturers totalled US$2.16 billion, up 42.9% year-on-year, while orders for rubber items grew 43.3% to US$2.33 billion.
