By Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterExports last month rose for a second straight month, increasing 4 percent from a year earlier to US$29.5 billion, as electronics shipments rose ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, while declines in non-tech products tapered off, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. Semiconductor shipments grew 14.2 percent to US$9.4 billion on the back of 5G deployments by Chinese technology brands, Tsai said. Meanwhile, a protracted retreat in non-tech product exports has subsided, although it is premature to speculate on a turnaround, she said. “Strong imports are encouraging, as they usually arise from needs for capacity expansion and technology upgrades,” Tsai said. For the fourth quarter, exports returned to the positive zone with a 1.9 percent increase year-on-year to US$87.06 billion, while imports grew 4.9 percent to US$76.34 billion, the ministry said.

Source: Taipei Times January 08, 2020 15:33 UTC