EDITORIAL: Taiwan economy growing confidentlyThe Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DBGAS) on Friday lowered its GDP growth estimate for the April-to-June quarter to 1.48 percent on an annual basis, down from the 1.82 percent expansion it predicted in May, as two major GDP components — net exports and gross capital formation — continued to contract. Moreover, the latest data indicated the economy also rebounded from a technical recession in the previous two quarters, underlining recovering growth momentum in the economy, albeit weaker than expected. The central bank last month trimmed its projection for Taiwan’s GDP growth for this year from 2.21 percent to 1.72 percent. The stronger-than-expected domestic demand came as the economy continued to add jobs, services demand recovered further and the tourism sector remained vibrant. It is unusual that domestic demand in Taiwan could help offset the negative effects of slowing external demand so strongly, as seen in the second quarter.
