Taiwan: Merchandise exports grow at a softer pace in January
Latest reading: Merchandise exports increased 4.4% annually in January, less than December’s 9.2% rise but exceeding market expectations. The slowdown from December was expected given that the Lunar New Year holiday fell partly in January in 2025, reducing the number of working days vs January 2024. Looking at subsectors, a surge in IT exports was partly offset by lower plastic and metal exports. Meanwhile, merchandise imports dived 17.2% on an annual basis in January (December: +30.4% yoy), marking the weakest reading since February 2024.
As a result, the merchandise trade balance improved from the previous month, recording a USD 10.0 billion surplus in January (December 2020: USD 6.1 billion surplus; January 2024: USD 2.4 billion surplus). Lastly, the trend pointed up, with the 12-month trailing merchandise trade balance recording a USD 88.2 billion surplus in January, compared to the USD 80.6 billion surplus in December.