Industrial production up for 21st straight month in October

Industrial production in Taiwan grew year-on-year for a 21st consecutive month in October as global demand for tech gadgets remained robust, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

 

Taiwan’s industrial production index rose 11.25 percent from a year earlier to 134.93, the highest ever for October, according to data compiled by the MOEA.

 

The sub-index for production of the manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than 90 percent of the country’s total industrial production, rose 11.53 percent from a year earlier to 136.72.

 

Huang Wei-chieh (黃偉傑), deputy director of the MOEA’s Department of Statistics, said emerging technologies continue to evolve, boosting demand for 5G communications gadgets, high performance computing devices, automotive electronics, and Internet of Things applications.

 

As a result, Huang said, the tech industry continued to be the main factor in the country’s industrial production growth.

 

In October, the production index for the electronics component industry rose 15.72 percent, marking the 23rd consecutive month of year-on-year double-digit growth, the MOEA said.

 

Within the sector, the production index for semiconductors rose 14.72 percent from a year earlier in October, marking the 24th straight month of double-digit growth, as pure play wafer operators, structure IC suppliers and memory chip producers expanded their capacity to meet demand.

 

As for the computer and optoelectronics industry, the production index rose 4.88 percent from a year earlier in October on strong demand for storage devices and TVs and the launch of virtual reality devices and auto controllers, according to the data.

 

The MOEA said old economy industries got a boost from rising demand for raw materials, such as steel and petrochemical items, at a time when many manufacturers are expanding capacity.

 

In October, the production index for the chemical raw material, base metal and machinery industries rose 4.88 percent, 9.02 percent and 25.05 percent, respectively, from a year earlier.

 

In the first 10 months of the year, Taiwan’s industrial production index rose 13.75 percent from a year earlier to 129.81 with the index for the manufacturing sector up 14.62 percent at 131.70.

 

Huang expected the production index for the manufacturing sector to grow 9.7-11.9 percent year-on-year in November.

 

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel