Taiwan Machinery Makers Export 10.7% More Goods in First Eight Months of 2008

The machinery sector in Taiwan exported US$11.598 billion of products in the first eight months of 2008, up 10.7% from that in the previous year, according to the statistics compiled by the Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry (TAMI).

The export value of the machine tool category exceeded all others, totaling US$2.591 billion in the first eight months, up 17.1% year-on-year. The second highest was the special-purpose machine category at US$912.89 million, up 16.1%, with the plastics and rubber processing machinery category ranking third at US$756.03 million, up 11.9%.

Other major export items, in descending order, were the category of woodworking machinery (US$438.73 million, up 0.3%), molds and dies (US$363.1 million, up 6.5%), textile machinery (US$354.9 million, down 19.2%), sewing machinery (US$247.3 million, down 2.9%), paper making and printing machinery (US$168.78 million, down 10.8%), and leather and shoes making machinery (US$59.38 million, up 19%).

Mainland China and Hong Kong collectively bought the most Taiwan-made machinery, totaling US$3.297 billion, in the first eight months, up a mere 0.1% and accounting for 28.4% of the total exports. The U.S. was the second biggest buyer at US$1.766 billion, up 1.5% and commanding 15.2% of the total. Japan was third at US$674.33 million, up 8.2% and accounting for 5.8%. Other lesser importers of Taiwan-made machinery are shown in the table below.

Machinery Imports

The TAMI statistics also show that Taiwan imported US$13.085 billion of machinery in the first eight months of this year, representing a 4.6% year-on-year growth.

The import value of the special-purpose machinery category topped all the others, reaching US$3.74 billion in the first eight months, up 2.3% and accounting for 28.6% of the total. TAMI said such special-purpose machinery is mainly employed by high-tech industries as semiconductor manufacturing and 3C (computer, communications, consumer electronics). The second biggest was the category of machine tools at US$1.194 billion, up 34.9% and commanding 9.1%. The category of pumps, compressors and fans registered an import value of US$717.7 million, up 9.9% and accounting for 5.5%; while other categories with lesser import values are shown in the following table.

C.C. Wang, TAMI vice president, said that the imported machines are mainly used by high-tech industries as optoelectronics, communications, information technology and semiconductor, adding that Taiwan still buys the bulk of imported machinery from Japan and the U.S.

Japan & the U.S. Major Suppliers

Taiwan bought more machinery from Japan than any other nation, totaling US$5.475 billion, up 5.2% and accounting for 41.8% of the total imports. The U.S. was the second biggest supplier at US$2.949 billion, down 13.4% and accounting for 22.5%. Hong Kong and mainland China came in third at US$1.293 billion, up 34.7% and commanding 9.9%. Other major supplier nations, in descending order, were Germany, South Korea, Italy, United Kingdom, Switzerland and France.

With the world predicted to be mired in a downturn till at least mid-2009, the TAMI warned of reduced capital expenditures, hence declining purchase of machinery globally.

The TAMI predicts an 8% to 10% growth for Taiwan's machinery industry in 2008, also estimating the production value for the year to grow 8% to 10% to reach NT$960 billion.

Exports of Taiwan-made Machinery (Jan.-Aug. 2008) Unit: US$1,000
Rank	Product Category	Jan.-Aug. 2007	Jan.-Aug. 2008	Annual Change (%)
1	Machine Tools	2,212,980	2,591,762	17.1
2	Special-purpose Machinery	786,278	912,890	16.1
3	Plastics & Rubber Machinery	675,666	756,035	11.9
4	Valves & Parts	624,519	656,150	5.1
5	Pumps, Compressors, Fans	563,617	637,337	13.1
6	Machine-Tool Parts & Components	435,373	493,591	13.4
7	Bearings, Gears, Ball Screws	394,319	491,373	24.6
8	Woodworking Machinery	439,950	438,738	-0.3
9	Molds & Dies	340,787	363,107	6.5
10	Textile Machinery	439,198	354,903	-19.2
11	Sewing Machines	254,672	247,307	-2.9
12	Paper Making, Printing Machinery	189,166	168,784	-10.8
13	Leather & Shoes Making Machines	49,916	59,382	19
	Others	3,070,092	3,427,079	11.6
	Total	10,476,533	11,598,438	10.7
Source: Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry

　

Machinery Imports Into Taiwan (Jan.-Aug. 2008) Unit: US$1,000
Rank	Product Category	Jan.-Aug. 2007	Jan.-Aug. 2008	Annual Change (%)
1	Special-purpose Machinery	3,655,435	3,740,456	2.3
2	Machine Tools	1,833,916	1,194,084	-34.9
3	Pumps, Compressors, Fans	652,597	717,105	9.9
4	Engines & Parts	604,969	554,535	-8.3
5	Valves & Parts	413,304	431,441	4.4
6	Textile Machinery	263,729	227,636	-13.7
7	Plastics & Rubber Machinery	225,326	209,400	-7.1
	Others	4,863,860	6,010,610	23.6
	Total	12,513,136	13,085,267	4.6
Source: Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry

　

Export Destinations for Taiwan-made Machine Tools (Jan.-Aug. 2008) Unit: US$1,000
Rank	Nations	Jan.-Aug. 2007	Jan.-Aug. 2008	Annual Change (%)
1	China + Hong Kong	3,295,779	3,297,565	0.1
2	United States	1,739,321	1,766,105	1.5
3	Japan	623,113	674,339	8.2
4	Vietnam	334,102	453,195	35.6
5	Germany	345,103	438,926	27.2
6	Thailand	353,320	360,780	2.1
7	Indonesia	221,174	311,460	40.8
8	Malaysia	241,013	285,439	18.4
9	India	210,198	273,202	30
10	Italy	185,766	239,647	29
	Others	2,927,644	3,497,780	19
	Total	10,476,533	11,598,438	10.7
Source: Taiwan Machine Tool Foundation

　

Supplier Nations of Machinery Imports Into Taiwan (Jan.-Aug. 2008) Unit: US$1,000
Rank	Nation	Jan.-Aug. 2007	Jan.-Aug. 2008	Annual Change
1	Japan	5,204,458	5,475,077	5.2
2	United States	3,406,423	2,949,271	-13.4
3	China + Hong Kong	960,006	1,293,491	34.7
4	Germany	902,660	1,154,115	27.9
5	South Korea	504,371	399,374	-20.8
6	Italy	190,937	269,789	41.3
7	United Kingdom	180,842	235,419	30.2
8	Switzerland	228,997	178,630	-22
9	France	100,208	101,713	1.5
	Others	834,234	1,028,388	23.3
	Total	12,513,136	13,085,267	4.6
Source: Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry