DOMESTIC DEMAND GAUGE:Holidays at the beginning of this month are expected to have boosted retail and restaurant revenues, as well as the launch of Apple’s iPhone SE

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 25, 2016
By: Lauly Li / Staff reporter

The nation’s commercial trade contracted by 3.41 percent annually to NT$1.13 trillion (US$34.95 billion) last month, dragged down by continued weakness in the wholesale sector, the Ministry of Economics Affairs said.

The commercial trade data — including revenues from the wholesale, retail and restaurant sectors — is a closely watched gauge of the nation’s domestic demand.

The wholesale sector, which contributed 69.53 percent of total commercial trade, saw revenue plunge 5.3 percent year-on-year to NT$785.7 billion last month, mainly affected by declining purchases of notebook computers and TVs from Japan, the ministry’s Department of Statistics said in a report released on Friday.     [FULL  STORY]