Taiwan Exports 17.3% More Machine Tools in First Seven Months

Taipei, Oct. 8, 2008 (CENS)--Taiwan exported US$2.24 billion worth of machine tools in the first seven months of this year, for an annual growth of 17.3%, according to customs-cleared statistics compiled by the non-profit Taiwan Machine Tool Foundation (TMTF).

The export of metal-cutting machine tools as a category totaled US$1.783 billion in the first seven months, up 19.09% annually, with the export of metal-forming machine tools totaling US$457.28 million, up 11.2%.

The export of machining centers grew an annual 17.2% in the first seven months of this year, with the growths for lathes, grinding machines, and milling and boring machines growing 33.3%, 6.1% and 15.9% respectively.

The export of presses and stamping machines as metal-forming machinery categories grew 9.2%, with the export of other kinds of metal-forming machines growing 20.2%.

Hong Kong and mainland China were the largest export outlet for Taiwan-made machine tools by absorbing US$665.83 million of such products, down an annual 6.2% and accounting for 29.7% of the total exports. The U.S. was number two at US$204.1 million, up 3.7% and commanding 9.1%. Germany ranked third with US$126.01 million, up a whopping 72.2% and accounting for 5.6%.

Other major export outlets, in descending order, were Turkey (up 16.9%), Italy (up 27.5%), the Netherlands (up 14.5%), Brazil (up 129%), India (up 63.3%), Thailand (up 12.4%), South Korea (up 19.3%), Vietnam (up 78.2%), Malaysia (up 18.9%), United Kingdom (up 91%), Japan (down 20.6%), and Indonesia (up 58.4%).

The TMTF tallies also showed Taiwan imported US$1.1 billion of machine tools in the first seven months, down 28.2% from a year earlier, of which the import of metal-cutting machine tools reached US$1.038 billion, down 29.7%.

TMTF CEO C.C. Wang attributed the sharp decline in imported machine tools to plummeting imports of non-conventional machine tools, whose import value declined 35.2% in the first seven months. The imports of machining centers, lathes, milling and boring machines, and grinding machines grew 53.3%, 0.5%, 20.3%, and 19.8% in the same period, respectively.

In the metal-forming machine tool category, imports for presses and stamping machines grew 36.8% year-on-year in the first seven months of this year. Imports for other kinds of metal-forming machines slid 52.9%.

Japan was Taiwan's largest supplier of import machine tools by selling US$687.79 million of the products in the first seven months, up an annual 11.4% and accounting for a whopping 62.5% of the total imports. The U.S. was number two with US$232.54 million, down 64.6% and commanding 21.1%. The third place went to Germany with US$45.7 million, down a mere 0.5% and commanding 4.2%.