Taiwan’s tech exports remain in free fall, and analysts are ‘still searching for the bottom’
- The island’s exports in March were valued at nearly a fifth less than they were a year prior, and it marked the seventh straight month of falling shipments
- Taiwan tech producers are expected to stay cautious in the coming months amid a foggy outlook
An ongoing slump in global demand for hi-tech hardware, including critical computer chips, has pushed Taiwan’s exports lower for another month, the Ministry of Finance said on Tuesday, and analysts see no turnaround in the near term.
The value of the island’s exports lost 19.1 per cent last month compared with March 2022, reaching US$35.2 billion, the ministry said. The exports have declined for seven consecutive months, largely because of waning worldwide demand for consumer electronics and their parts.
An early-pandemic rush to buy PCs and smartphones for telework and home study has eased, leaving the island’s major tech exporters with excess inventory, economists say.
“Tech producers are still in the process of managing their inventories, and there’s still no clear visibility in terms of outlook, meaning that many of them are still likely to be cautious into the next quarter,” said Tony Phoo, an economist with Standard Chartered Bank in Taipei.
“We are still searching for the bottom,” he said.
Also last month, Taiwan’s National Development Council issued its sixth straight monthly “blue light” – its gloomiest possible economic forecast for the next half year.