The value of Taiwan’s export orders in June rose to US$58.83 billion, the highest ever for the month, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said Wednesday.

The June figure was a 9.5 percent increase from a year earlier and a 6.1 percent increase from the previous month, driven mainly by strong demand for emerging technologies and applications, as China gradually lifted a range of COVID-19 restrictions, the ministry said.

In the second quarter, Taiwan’s export orders rose 3.2 percent from a year earlier to US$166.17 billion, also a record for the quarter, but declined 4.0 percent from the first quarter.

In the first six months of the year, orders received by Taiwanese companies surged 9.5 percent from a year earlier to US$339.29 billion, also a record for that period, data compiled by the MOEA showed.

The ministry had estimated export orders to be between US$55.5 billion and US$57.0 billion in June, or 3.3 percent to 6.1 percent year-on-year growth.

The better than forecast export orders in June was mainly due to solid demand for emerging technologies, 5G applications and web-based communication services amid digital transformation, a gradual recovery in industrial production and global supply chains, said Huang Yu-ling (???), head of the MOEA’s Department of Statistics.

As for the second half of the year, Huang said whether the value of Taiwan’s export orders will continue to grow over the next few months remains to be seen as the global economy continues to trend downward.

Taiwan’s export orders in the third quarter are generally better than the second quarter, Huang said.

However, owing to three uncertainties: inflation, the Russian-Ukrainian war and the volatile COVID-19 situation, the world still faces the risk of an economic downturn, which could also inhibit the growth momentum of global trade, Huang said.

In addition, China’s COVID-19 control measures will also have an uncertain impact on future export orders, according to Huang.

Meanwhile, following COVID-19 restrictions imposed by China, this year is the first time in history that export orders in the second quarter were lower than the first quarter, Huang noted, adding that the figure in the second quarter could be the lowest for any quarter in the year.

Looking ahead, Huang said the ministry expects export orders to be between US$55.5 billion and US$57.0 billion in July, which would represent 0.4 percent to 3.1 percent year-on-year growth and a 3.1 percent to 5.7 percent decrease month-on-month.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel