Industrial production up over 2pc in November

TAIPEI: Taiwan's industrial production rose more than 2 percent from a year earlier in November, largely on the back of solid demand for tech gadgets at a time of an increase in emerging applications, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said Monday.

Data compiled by the MOEA shows that the November industrial production index rose 2.09 percent from a year earlier to 111.30 after an 8.32 percent year-on-year increase in October.

It was the index's ninth straight month of increase and the 18th rise in 19 months. The last fall was in February 2018, when industrial production fell 4.73 percent from a year earlier due to the reduced number of working days caused by the Lunar New Year holiday.

The sub-index for the manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than 90 percent of total industrial production, rose 2.23 percent from a year earlier to 112.55, the data indicates.

On a month-on-month basis, November industrial production fell 4.42 percent, and after seasonal adjustments, the figure also fell 2.33 percent from a month earlier, the MOEA said. In the first 11 months of this year, the industrial production index rose 4.10 percent from a year earlier, with the sub-index for the manufacturing sector up 4.42 percent, the MOEA added.

Production generated by the local electronics component industry for November rose 1.99 percent from a year earlier in reflection of rising orders placed with high-end chip suppliers, as well as growing demand for large flat panel makers ahead of the Lunar New Year.

The data indicates that production of optoelectronics and other electronic devices also rose 12.12 percent from a year earlier on the back of rising demand for select products such as servers, routers and Internet equipment.

Base metal production in Taiwan rose 0.72 percent from a year earlier in November, with the relatively small growth reflecting the impact of uncertainty over the business outlook, prompting some foreign buyers to put their purchase plans on hold amid trade friction between Washington and Beijing, the MOEA said.

The ministry said a plunge in international crude oil prices sent production of the local chemical raw material industry down 0.92 percent from a year earlier in November, while machinery production also fell 1.06 percent on falling demand from China and a relatively high comparison base over the same period of last year.

Production in the local auto and auto part industry fell 16.10 percent from a year earlier in November as local car vendors cut production due to lower demand, the ministry said. The MOEA said the growth momentum in industrial production is expected to continue into December, but the growth rate could be affected by the trade dispute between the US and China.