Taiwan News
Date: 2015-11-09
By: Central News Agency

Taipei, Nov. 9 (CNA) Taiwan’s exports dropped 11 percent to US$23.94 billion in October, declining for the ninth month in a row, according to statistics released Monday by the Ministry of Finance.

The October figures represented a fifth consecutive monthly double-digit drop in Taiwan’s exports.

Imports in October, meanwhile, fell 20 percent from a year earlier to US$17.82 billion. As a result, the trade surplus for that month was US$6.12 billion. In the first 10 months of the year, Taiwan’s exports dropped 9.6 percent year-on-year to US$236.31 billion, while its imports fell 16.8 percent to US$191.65 billion, creating a trade surplus of US$44.66 billion.

The Ministry of Finance attributed the plummet in exports to slumping international oil prices, saying it has caused a plunge in demand for mineral and plastic products.     [FULL  STORY]