Taiwan's Exports Soar for 17th Consecutive Month, Driven by Tech and Strategic Shipping

March sees robust growth in Taiwanese exports, fueled by strategic maneuvers and booming tech demand.

Taipei, April 10 – Taiwan's export performance continued its impressive streak in March, rising by over 18% year-on-year, marking the 17th consecutive month of growth. This positive trend is attributed to a combination of strategic business practices and a surge in demand for key technology products, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF).

Data released by the MOF reveals that Taiwan's total exports reached US$49.57 billion in March, representing an 18.6% increase compared to the same period last year.

Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜), Director-General of the ministry's Department of Statistics, highlighted that manufacturers frontloaded shipments amid uncertainties regarding potential new tariffs from the United States, which contributed to the strong export figures.

Tsai further emphasized that the continued global demand for emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence applications and high-performance computing devices, also fueled the March growth.

China and Hong Kong remained major markets for Taiwanese goods, purchasing US$14.30 billion in March, accounting for 28.9% of Taiwan's total exports. The United States followed closely, importing US$12.75 billion worth of merchandise, representing 25.7% of the total, the MOF data showed.

The information communications and video/audio industry experienced significant growth, with exports increasing by 34.2% year-over-year to reach a record high of US$16.94 billion for the month, driven by strong demand for graphics cards and servers, Tsai noted.

Exports of electronic components also performed well, reaching US$17.53 billion in March, an increase of 19.3% year-on-year.

These two sectors collectively accounted for approximately 92% of the total export growth that month, the director-general indicated.

In contrast, exports from the plastics/rubber industry experienced a 6.8% year-on-year decline in March, primarily due to global oversupply. Textile exports also faced headwinds, declining by 4.6% year-on-year, affected by weaker demand from China and Hong Kong, Tsai added.

Looking at the first quarter performance, the information communications and video/audio industry continued to be a major driver of Taiwan's outbound sales, Tsai stated.

The sector's exports hit a record high of US$43.51 billion in Q1, Tsai highlighted.

The MOF also reported that Taiwan's imports increased by 28.8% year-on-year in March, reaching US$42.62 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of US$6.95 billion.