Taiwan Nov exports seen surging for 17th month

Taiwan’s exports likely rose for a 17th straight month in November, a Reuters poll showed, boosted by sustained demand for chips and technology, and ahead of the key end-of-year holiday shopping season.

Taiwan, a global hub for chip production and a key supplier to Apple Inc, is one of Asia’s major exporters of technology goods, and the trade data is seen as an important gauge of world demand for tech gadgets. Exports last month were expected to rise 23.3 per cent from a year earlier, a Reuters poll of 20 analysts showed, slightly slowing from a 24.6 per cent gain in October.

The export forecasts ranged widely between a rise of 10 per cent and 33 per cent, reflecting uncertainties over the global economic recovery and ongoing supply chain disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Separately, the consumer price index (CPI) was expected to rise 2.5 per cent from a year earlier, compared with an increase of 2.58 per cent in October.

The trade and inflation data will both be released on Tuesday.