(April 21): Taiwan saw its export orders surge at the fastest pace in 16 years, a sign that demand for its artificial intelligence (AI)-related products remains robust despite disruptions to global trade from tensions in the Middle East.
Export orders surged 65.9% in March compared with the same period last year, according to a statement from the Ministry of Economic Affairs in Taipei on Tuesday. That figure marks the fastest growth since January 2010 and blew away the 44.1% forecast by economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.
The surge was due to the continuous strengthening of demand for applications such as AI, high-performance computing and cloud data services, the ministry said.
Orders from the US rose 76.4% in March, while those from Asean nations climbed 94.4% on-year. Companies such as Alphabet Inc, Meta Platforms Inc, Amazon.com Inc and others have been ramping up spending to develop their AI capabilities.
Taiwan’s economy was among the world’s best performers last year, expanding 8.68%, and 2026 is expected to be similarly rosy. In March, the central bank boosted its growth forecast for this year to 7.28%, up from 3.67%.
Uploaded by Tham Yek Lee
