Taiwan Exports of Machinery Up 3% in First Five Months

Taipei, July 31, 2006 (CENS)--Taiwan exported US$5.538 billion worth of general machinery in the first five months of this year, representing a growth of 3% from the corresponding period of last year, according to customs-cleared statistics compiled by the Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry (TAMI).

In respect of the individual export categories, exports for machine tools amounted to US$1.138 billion in the first five months of this year, up 7.6% year-on-year. The second place went to special-purpose machinery with exports reaching US$372.45 million, up 25%. Plastics and rubber processing machinery came third with exports of US$366.65 million, down 6%. The category of pumps, compressors and fans ranked fourth with US$357.472 million, down 5.5%. The category of valves and parts ranked fifth with US$325.491 million, up 12.1%.

Other major export categories, in descending order, were textile machinery (US$255.601 million, up 13.2%), molds and dies (US$253.846 million, up 6.1%), woodworking machinery (US$233.029 million, down 17.1%), bearings, gears and ballscrews (US$208.015 million, up 3.1%), sewing machines (US$193.172 million, down 9.7%), paper-making and printing machinery (US$74.821 million, down 19.7%), and leather and shoe-making machines (US$39.183 million, down 19.5%).

In terms of export outlets for Taiwan-made machinery, Hong Kong and mainland China together ranked first by absorbing US$1.887 billion worth of the products in the first five months of this year, up 2.9% annually and accounting for 34.1% of the total exports. The U.S. ranked second with US$919.27 million, down 2.6% and commanding 16.6%. The third place went to Japan with US$319.14 million, up 2.9% and accounting for 5.8%.

Thailand was the fourth-largest export outlet with US$222.46 million, up 7% annually. The fifth-largest outlet went to Vietnam with US$165.73 million, down 10.5%. Other major export outlets, in descending order, were Malaysia, Germany, Indonesia, Turkey, South Korea, India, Canada, United Kingdom, Italy, Singapore, the Netherlands, Australia, Spain, the Philippines, France, Mexico, United Arab Emirates, Finland, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.

The TAMI's tallies also showed Taiwan imported US$7.305 worth of machinery in the first five months of this year, down 14.7% year-on-year. Of this, special-purpose machinery ranked first with import value amounting to US$2.081 billion, down 34.2% annually and commanding 28.5% of the total imports. Machine tools came second with US$713.62 million, up 9.9% and accounting for 9.8%. The third place went to the category of pumps, compressors and fans with US$451.16 million, down 5.5% and commanding 6.2%. Engines and parts ranked fourth with US$353.89 million, down 15% and accounting for 4.8%. The fifth rank went to valves and parts with US$205.04 million, up 15.9% and accounting for 3.4%.

Other major import items, in descending order, were plastics and rubber processing machinery (US$126.32 million down 1.2%) and textile machinery (US$111.94 million, down 2.5%).

Wang Cheng-ching, vice president of TAMI, noted Taiwan still relies on Japan and the U.S. for imports of the state-of-the-art machinery in the first five months of this year. Japan was the largest import source by selling US$3.611 billion worth of the products to Taiwan in the first five months, down 26.6% annually and accounting for 49.4% of the total imports. The U.S. ranked second with US$1.507 billion, down 1.9% and accounting for 20.6%. Hong Kong and mainland China together ranked third with US$499.31 million, up 21.9% and commanding 6.8%.

Other major import sources, in descending order, were Germany, South Korea, Italy, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and France.

Exports of Taiwan-made Machinery by Products in Jan.-May 2006 Unit: US$1,000
Rank	Products	Jan.-May 2005	Jan.-May 2006	Annual Change (%)
1	Machine Tools	1,058,003	1,138,768	7.6
2	Special-purpose Machinery	298,045	372,451	25
3	Plastics & Rubber Machinery	390,032	366,652	-6
4	Pumps, Compressors, Fans	378,112	357,472	-5.5
5	Valves & Parts	290,480	325,491	12.1
6	Textile Machinery	225,719	255,601	13.2
7	Molds & Dies	239,179	253,846	6.1
8	Woodworking Machinery	281,223	233,029	-17.1
9	Bearings, Gears, Ballscrews	201,777	208,015	3.1
10	Sewing Machines	213,824	193,172	-9.7
11	Paper-making, Printing Machinery	93,234	74,821	-19.7
12	Leather & Shoe-making Machines	48,697	39,183	-19.5
	Others	1,657,000	1,719,940	3.8
	Total	5,375,325	5,538,441	3
Source: Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry

Taiwan Imports of Machinery by Products in Jan.-May 2006 Unit: US$1,000
Rank	Products	Jan.-May 2005	Jan.-May 2006	Annual Change (%)
1	Special-purpose Machinery	3,161,278	2,081,397	-34.2
2	Machine Tools	649,594	713,628	9.9
3	Pumps, Fans, Compressors	477,377	451,161	-5.5
4	Engines & Parts	416,126	353,898	-15
5	Valves & Parts	216,075	250,413	15.9
6	Plastics & Rubber Machinery	127,861	126,326	-1.2
7	Textile Machinery	114,843	111,943	-2.5
	Others	3,398,298	3,216,524	-5.3
	Total	8,561,452	7,305,290	-14.7
Source: Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry