Taiwan Trade Surplus Shrinks In December

(RTTNews) - Taiwan's foreign trade surplus decreased notably in December as imports grew much faster than exports, preliminary figures from the Ministry of Finance revealed on Thursday.

The trade surplus dropped to $6.08 billion in December from $11.15 billion in the corresponding month last year. The surplus also declined from $7.92 billion in November. The expected surplus was $8.51 billion.

Exports grew 9.2 percent year-over-year in December, which was slightly slower than the 9.7 percent rise in the prior month. Economists had forecast 6.5 percent growth.

Shipments of information, communication, and audio-video products climbed by 16.0 percent, and those of electronic products rose by 8.6 percent.

Imports jumped 30.4 percent annually in December after a 19.8 percent sharp increase in November. That was well above the 15.1 percent rise expected by economists.

In 2024, total exports expanded 9.9 percent, and total imports rose 12.2 percent compared with 2023, and the trade balance was favorable at $80.61 billion.