TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan's exports to the US in August reached a record high, surpassing all previous monthly trade records with China. 

On Monday (Sept. 9), the Ministry of Finance (MOF) announced that August exports reached US$43.64 billion (NT$1.4 trillion), a record high for a single month. This marks 10 consecutive months of growth, primarily due to strong exports of information and communication products, as well as a recovery in traditional industries.

The ministry stated that August exports "exceeded expectations," with September exports estimated to grow by 5% to 9% year-on-year. The growth rate for third-quarter exports is expected to be revised upwards by 2 to 3 percentage points, with an estimated year-on-year increase of 8.2% to 9.6%, exceeding the forecast by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting, and Statistics.

August exports registered a month-on-month increase of 9.3% and a year-on-year increase of 16.8%. Exports for the first eight months totaled US$308.57 billion, a year-on-year increase of 10.9%. August imports were US$32.14 billion, down 8.4% month-on-month but up 11.8% year-on-year. 

Imports for the first eight months totaled US$256.12 billion, the second-highest on record for this period, with a year-on-year increase of 9.3%. The trade surplus for August was US$11.49 billion, a new monthly high, and the trade surplus for the first eight months was US$52.45 billion, an increase of US$8.55 billion year-on-year.

Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜), director-general of the MOF's Department of Statistics, told the media that August exports went beyond expectations for four main reasons, per Liberty Times: 

1. Global inventories of consumer goods returned to healthier levels, leading to restocking by customers. 

2. Demand for high-performance computing and AI business opportunities remained high.

3. International brands launched new products.

4. Shipments delayed due to the Typhoon Gaemi holiday at the end of July were delivered in August.

Of the major product categories, 10 out of 11 saw export growth for the first time in two and a half years. The information and communications and audiovisual industries led the way with a year-on-year increase of 71.3%. Exports of information and communication products for the first eight months totaled US$88.47 billion, already surpassing the annual record. 

However, electronic components saw only a 0.1% year-on-year increase, mainly due to changes in the sales distribution structure.

Among the five major markets, exports to the US continued to hit monthly records in August at US$11.89 billion, a year-on-year increase of 78.5%. This broke the previous monthly export record of US$11.72 billion to China in 2021, per Bloomberg.

Exports to the US for the first eight months reached US$75.45 billion, a year-on-year increase of 64.6%, and are expected to set a new annual record by September. 

Exports to ASEAN countries grew by 16.9% year-on-year, while exports to Japan, Europe, and both China and Hong Kong fell by 20.4%, 8.3%, and 3.3%, respectively.

Tsai noted that the trade surplus with the US for the first eight months reached US$42.26 billion, surpassing previous records. In comparison, the trade surplus with China and Hong Kong was less than US$1 billion, the smallest gap in 34 years. 

Exports to the US accounted for 24.5% of total exports, the highest in 25 years, while exports to China and Hong Kong fell to 30.8%, the lowest in 23 years. The share of exports to Japan also dropped to a historic low of 5.5%.