By Natasha Li / Staff reporterProducts across the board saw declines in export orders last month, except for information and communications technology (ICT) items, as orders dropped for the eighth consecutive month, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Orders totaled US$38.5 billion, down 4.5 percent year-on-year, with cumulative orders in the first six months decreasing 6.5 percent to US$222.86 billion, the ministry said. Orders for ICT products rose by 4.7 percent to US$11.09 billion, which the ministry attributed to a growth in orders of high-priced laptops and the impact of frontloaded laptop orders. US orders for ICT products, Taiwan’s biggest market in the segment, increased by US$510 million year-on-year, taking up to 41.5 percent of the sector’s total orders, the ministry said. A survey of exporting companies also suggested that orders would further decline this month, it said.

Source: Taipei Times July 22, 2019 15:56 UTC