Trade gains may last post-pandemicBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterTaiwan has delivered strong trade growth since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and its rising weight in international trade and supply chains could go beyond the boost spurred by the pandemic, UBS Group AG North Asia economist William Deng (鄧維慎) said on Thursday. Already edging up in mid-2019 before the COVID-19 shock, Taiwan’s international trade share stepped up further in early 2020, which was sustained into this year, he said. Although work-from-home demand is no longer a stimulus this year, and most other exporters have returned to normal operations, Taiwan maintained a large share of international trade. Taiwanese trade held a larger market share in the US in the first quarter than in the same period in 2019, he said. Taiwan’s trade and production chain gains are broad-based, covering technology and non-tech spaces, it said.
