Taiwan's 3 Main Science Parks Report Record Revenues and Exports in 2014

Last year, Taiwan's three science-based industrial parks, namely the Hsinchu Science and Industrial Park (HSIP), the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP), and the Southern Taiwan Science Park (STSP), together set record highs in production revenue, export revenue, and employment.

According to Taiwan's Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), which oversees the three science industrial parks, last year the three parks together generated revenue of NT$2.32 trillion (US$74.99 billion), exported NT$1.36 trillion (US$44.10 billion) of goods, and had a payroll numbering 263,649.

The production revenue and export revenue represented an increase of 6.28 percent and 2.04 percent respectively, from a year ago.

Last year, the Hsinchu park had revenue of NT$1.16 trillion (US$37.52 billion), up 4.57 percent year on year; the central Taiwan park had NT$522.1 billion (US$16.84 billion), increasing 13.52 percent; and the southern Taiwan park had NT$639.4 billion (US$20.62 billion), climbing 3.95 percent.

The MOST predicts the joint production revenue of the three parks at NT$2.46 trillion (US$79.66 billion) for this year, up 6.22 percent from last year, to be mostly driven by smartphone, Internet of Things (IoT) and big-data industries, also attributing 2014 export and production revenue growths mostly to the semiconductor, telecommunication-equipment, and precision-machinery industries.

The island's semiconductor industry generated an additional NT$173.00 billion (US$5.58 billion) of revenue last year, for an increase of 13.99 percent  from 2013, which were driven by robust demand for for mobile communication devices and sustained growth in smartphone applications.

The island's telecommunications-equipment industry grow 18.45 percent, or NT$5.56 billion (US$179.34 million), year on year in 2014 mostly thanks to accelerated installation of fourth-generation mobile networks by telecom service providers worldwide, which in turn drove local equipment suppliers' shipments of 4G products.

Driven by persistent growth in demand from vehicle and aircraft industries worldwide, the island's precision-machinery industry grew NT$5.17 billion (US$166.88 million) year on year in 2014, for the first time to rank in the top-three industries of the island's science-based industrial parks.

In contrast, local computer and peripheral equipment suppliers saw revenue plunge approximately 30 percent from 2013's NT$80.80 billion (US$2.60 billion), to NT$57.2 billion (US$1.84 billion) last year, which was due to the outmigration of the island's PC makers to mainland China and Southeast Asia.

Although the three science-based industrial parks posted record exports last year, their imports sank 4.41 percent year on year to NT$754.9 billion (US$2.43 billion) in 2014.

China remained their main export destination last year, accounting for 43.92 percent, or NT$600.50 billion (US$19.37 billion), of their total exports. Japan remained their major import supplier to account for 28.28 percent, or NT$213.5 billion (US$6.88 billion), of their total imports.

Last year 83 manufacturers were approved to invest some NT$64.29 billion (US$2.07 billion) in the three science-based industrial parks, with biotech manufacturers accounting for 30 of the total to become the largest investor group, followed by optoelectronics and semiconductor manufacturers.

(KL)

Taiwan's Science Based Parks and Their 2013, 2014 Revenue Results

Industrial Revenue
Year	HSIP revenue	CTSP revenue	STSP revenue	Total revenue
2013	NT$1.11tn	NT$459.90bn	NT$615.12bn	NT$2.18tn
2014	NT$1.16tn	NT$522.07bn	NT$639.43bn	NT$2.32tn
Export Revenue
2013	NT$714.37bn	NT$209.45bn	NT$416.04bn	NT$1.33tn
2014	NT$738.08bn	NT$213.89bn	NT$415.19bn	NT$1.36tn

Source: MOST