Focus Taiwan
Date; 2015/05/02
By: Wu Ching-chun and Frances Huang

Taipei, May 2 (CNA) U.K.-based Standard Chartered Bank said Saturday that it retains its forecast of Taiwan’s 2015 gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 4.3 percent unchanged, although the country reported lower-than-expected economic growth for the first quarter.

Tony Phoo, an economist of Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan, said that the country’s economy will continue to get a boost from a plunge in international crude oil prices, which has helped many enterprises here cut their operating costs.

The Standard Chartered Bank’s 4.3 percent growth forecast was higher than a government estimate of a 3.78 percent increase issued in mid-February.     [FULL  STORY]