Export-focused manufacturing drove GDP growthEXPERIENCES MAY VARY: Manufacturing firms had a great year, the service sector did alright, but other areas limped along, such as the traditional industries sectorStaff writer, with CNAExport-oriented manufacturing served as the major contributor to Taiwan’s strong GDP growth in the first three quarters of last year, government statistics showed. Photo: CNAIn November last year, the DGBAS raised its GDP growth forecast to 7.37 percent for last year and predicted the economy would grow another 3.54 percent this year, citing the continued AI boom. Tsai said the growth of the local manufacturing sector varied from industry to industry. Many employees did not feel significant benefits from the GDP growth in Taiwan and consumer confidence remained weak, he said. In the service sector, the retail and wholesale industry’s contribution to total GDP growth was 0.7 percentage points, and the financial/insurance industry’s share was 0.29 percentage points in the first nine months of last year, DGBAS data showed.

Source: Taipei Times January 11, 2026 16:31 UTC