POSITIVE FORECAST: The Ministry of Economic Affairs said that production should continue growing this month, as demand for electronic components remains solid
Taipei Times
Date: Aug 24, 2018
By: Lisa Wang / Staff reporter
The nation’s industrial production climbed 4.43 percent last month from a year earlier, fueled by restocking demand for components, such as semiconductors and camera lenses, ahead of new smartphone launches, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
Last month’s growth strengthened the ministry’s confidence that industrial production would continue its uptrend this quarter, following eight quarters of growth since the third quarter of 2016.
Growth in industrial production decelerated to 0.51 percent in June from a year earlier, due to weak demand for products related to cryptocurrency mining and fewer working days, but “the growth pace last month brings industrial production back on track for healthy growth,” Department of Statistics Deputy Director-General Wang Shu-chuan (王淑娟) told a news conference in Taipei.
This month, industrial production is forecast to continue expanding, backed by continuing demand for electronic components and the resumption of operations at of local petrochemical plants following annual maintenance, the ministry said, citing a survey it conducted. [FULL STORY]