Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/02/18
By: Huang Ya-chuan and Frances Huang

Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The local manufacturing sector snapped a seven-quarter losing streak in production value in the fourth quarter of last year, largely on the back of a strong showing by the local electronics component industry, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said Saturday.

In the October-December period, the output of the local manufacturing sector rose 5.72 percent from a year earlier to NT$3.26 trillion (US$106 billion) after a 1.38 percent year-on-year decline in the third quarter, the ministry said.

However, the solid performance in the fourth quarter failed to reverse the weakness seen in the previous three quarters, the MOEA said. For the whole of 2016, the production value of Taiwanese manufacturers fell 4.26 percent from a year earlier to NT$12.31 trillion, but the decline moderated from a 10.84 percent year-on-year fall in 2015, the MOEA added.

In the fourth quarter, the electronic component industry served as a driver to boost the manufacturing sector’s total output due to international brands’ efforts to launch new mobile devices, which stimulated buying at a time when global demand was recovering, the MOEA said.   [FULL  STORY]