TAIPEI, May 19 -- Taiwan's manufacturing output in the first quarter reported the highest growth in almost six years, driven by strong global demand for electronic components.
During the January to March period, the manufacturing sector's output value rose 11.35 percent year on year to 3.17 trillion new Taiwan dollars (105 billion U.S. dollars), the island's statistics authorities said Friday.
The authorities attributed the growth to strong global demand for the island's semiconductor and flat panel products, which saw their output increased 9.86 percent and 33.0 percent, respectively, from a year earlier.
On the back of a rebound in international raw material prices, the production value of the base metal sector, chemical material sector as well as petroleum and coal products for the first quarter also rose 33 percent, 21 percent and 30 percent respectively.
The authority expects Taiwan's manufacturing activity to further pick up as the global economy takes hold and the launch of new smart devices is expected to buoy orders for Taiwan-made components.
