TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry reported that machine exports reached NT$87.8 billion (US$2.66 billion) in October, up 11.8% from the same month last year, marking nine consecutive months of growth.

According to the association, overall exports for the first 10 months of this year also showed stable expansion, totaling approximately NT$855.3 billion, representing a 7.3% year-on-year increase, per CNA.

The sector’s top export destinations were the US, accounting for 26.3% of total exports, followed by China at 22.9% and Japan at 7.6%. Leading exported machinery products included inspection and measurement equipment, electronic equipment, and machine tools.

Association Chair Chuang Ta-li (莊大立) said that Taiwan’s machinery exports to China grew 5.3% during the first ten months, while exports to the US rose 14.1%, including a 24.3% year-on-year increase in October. He added that earlier concerns over declining exports due to US tariffs have eased.

However, machine tool exports in October fell to NT$4.65 billion, down 23.1% year on year. Exports to the US dropped 18.8%, while shipments to China fell 22.6%.

Chuang attributed the export decline to the Taiwan dollar exchange rate. Between 2021 and November 2025, the NT dollar depreciated 8.9%, while the Japanese yen fell 48.5%. Taiwan’s roughly 30% cheaper machinery price advantage over Japanese equipment has narrowed, contributing to a drop in machine tool export orders, Chuang added.

On the import side, Taiwan’s machinery imports for January to October reached NT$150.89 billion, up 12.6% year-on-year. Total imports for the period amounted to NT$1.72 trillion, a 45.5% rise from last year. The top three imported machinery products were electronic equipment, inspection and measurement equipment, and turbines.