Taiwan Import Growth Misses Forecasts

Imports to Taiwan climbed 37.4% year-on-year to USD 58.1 billion in July 2026, slowing from a 51.8% surge in June and falling short of market expectations for a 48.4% increase. Growth was driven by purchases of machinery and equipment, which rose 55.8% and accounted for 66.7% of total imports, led by electronic parts (61.5%) and information, communication and audio products (18.8%). Imports of mineral products, which represented 9.8% of the total, increased 25.9%. Mainland China and Hong Kong remained the largest source of imports, accounting for 19.9% of the total, followed by South Korea at 13.6%. In the first seven months of 2026, total imports reached USD 377.3 billion, up 39.8% from the same period a year earlier.

Imports to Taiwan rose 51.8% year-on-year to a record high of USD 62.6 billion in June 2026, exceeding market expectations of 47.8%, but easing from a 54.9% jump in the previous month. Most major import categories recorded increases, particularly mineral products (+58.9%), chemicals (+12.3%), plastics and articles thereof (+17.1%), wood and articles of wood (+8.9%), articles of stone, plaster, and cement (+11.8%), base metals (+15.9%), and machinery and electrical equipment (+73.2%). Meanwhile, imports declined in live animals and animal products (-8.1%), vegetable products (-13.5%), furs and articles thereof (-1.3%). By destination, imports rose the most from Mainland China and Hong Kong (36.3%), the US (47.9%), Japan (37.8%), and Korea (81.4%). For the January–June period, total imports reached USD 319.2 billion, up 43.4% compared with the same period last year.

Imports to Taiwan soared by 54.9% year-on-year to a record high of USD 60.6 billion in May 2026, sharply accelerating from 29.2% in the previous month and easily topping market expectations of 37.4%. All major import categories recorded increases, particularly electronic product parts (66.9%), information, communication and audio-video products (118%), mineral products (70.2%), machinery (24.8%), and chemicals (32.9%). By destination, imports rose the most from Mainland China and Hong Kong (48.4%), ASEAN (123.6%), Korea (73.3%), the United States (13.6%), Japan (27.4%), and Europe (22.8%). Arrivals from the Middle East also climbed to 22.7% after plunging 42% in April. For the January–May period, total imports reached USD 256.6 billion, up 37.8% compared with the same period in the previous year.