Taipei, May 3 (CNA) Taiwan’s manufacturing activity continued to expand in the wake of solid growth in new orders and industrial production as the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to its highest level in April, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER) said Monday.
Data compiled by CIER showed that the PMI rose 6.0 points from a month earlier to 68.7 in April, a new high since the think tank started to release such statistics in July 2012. The April data marked the sixth consecutive month in which the PMI stood above the 60 mark.
In the service sector, the non-manufacturing index (NMI) rose 4.9 from a month earlier to hit a record high of 60.1 in April since the think tank began to compile the index in August 2014, the data indicated.
For the PMI and NMI, readings above 50 indicate expansion, while those below 50 represent contraction.
CIER President Chang Chuang-chang (張傳章) told reporters that global demand showed signs of growth, pushing up all five of the factors in Taiwan’s PMI in April, while new orders and industrial production in particular, registered solid growth.
Out of the five factors in the PMI, the sub-indexes on new orders and industrial production rose 11.1 and 11.7, respectively, from a month earlier to 71.6 and 70.9 in April, making the 10th straight month of expansion, the think tank said.
The think tank said the sub-indexes on employment, supplier deliveries and inventories also rose 4.8, 0.1 and 2.4, respectively, from a month earlier to 63.8, 74.8, and 62.3 in April.
Among the six major industries in the index, the sub-indexes on three — the electronics/optoelectronics, food and textiles, and electric and machinery industries — moved higher and stayed in expansion mode in April, CIER said.
However, the sub-indexes on the other three — the chemical and biotech, basic raw material and transportation equipment industries — moved lower, but remained in expansion mode, CIER added.
In terms of the service sector, all of the four factors trended higher, with the sub-indexes on business activity, new orders, employment and supplier deliveries up 9.1, 9.0, 0.4 and 1.0, respectively, from a month earlier to 63.5, 64.8, 53.9 and 58.1 in April, the think tank said.
Despite the growth in the PMI and NMI, Chang said, an escalation in COVID-19 infections at home and abroad could result in economic uncertainty, and he urged companies operating in Taiwan to remain alert.
Source: https://focustaiwan.tw/business/202105030017