The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month climbed to 56.2, the fastest expansion in 19 months, as local companies benefited from 5G deployment and inventory demand for electronics ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday.
Companies turned upbeat about their prospects for the first time since July last year, with the possibility of a US-China phase one deal on Jan. 15 contributing to the optimism, the Taipei-based think tank said.
The PMI value — the result of a monthly survey intended to gauge the health of the nation’s manufacturing sectors — indicated an upturn in operating conditions for a third consecutive month.
Scores higher than 50 indicate an expansion, while those below the threshold suggest a contraction.
“An increase in demand for semiconductor equipment fueled the pickup and inventory demand ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday also contributed,” CIER president Chen Shi-kuan (陳思寬) told a media briefing in Taipei.
Chinese technology brands are rolling out 5G smartphones in an effort to increase sales over the Lunar New Year holiday this month.
All sectors reported business improvement with the exception of companies that supply electrical and machinery equipment, the monthly survey showed, meaning that companies selling chemical, plastic and basic materials also emerged from a protracted slowdown.
The sub-index on overall new business orders added 0.5 points to 61.5, while new export orders posted a concrete gain of 5.5 points to 55.8, CIER said, adding that the reading on industrial production reached an impressive 59.9, although easing from 60.4 a month earlier.
Manufacturers kept high headcounts last month, with the employment sub-index at 55, down from 55.6 in November, the survey showed.
Most companies have a positive business outlook moving forward, with the six-month outlook adding 8.4 points to 57.4 — pushing above 50 for the first time since July last year, CIER said.
Chen said that he attributed the rise in sentiment to reports that Washington and Beijing aim to sign a trade deal on Jan. 15 and organize further negotiations afterward.
Steve Lai (賴樹鑫), executive director at Supply Management Institute in Taiwan (中華採購與供應管理協會), said that 5G deployment would bring new consumer experiences and lend support to companies that are tapping related businesses.
The non-manufacturing index (NMI) was 54.1 from 55 in November, reflecting vibrant operating conditions for service-oriented firms for the 10th month in a row.
All sectors had an increase in business except for restaurants and hotels, the NMI report said.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last