TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) announced that economic growth in Q1 reached 6.51%, the highest in three years, powered by AI exports.Demand for AI drove Taiwan exports to the best performance in 11 quarters and a 0.59% increase over the quarterly growth forecast made by DGBAS in February. DGBAS attributed the strong growth to a better-than-expected performance by exports and continued momentum associated with private consumption, per CNA.DGBAS specialist Wang Tsui-hua (王翠華) said, "The economy is gradually getting better," based on external demand and the steady growth in domestic demand. Wang said telecommunications and audio-visual products saw export growth of 1.2 times in Q1, while other product categories experienced negative growth. However, Wang said March export data regarding machinery, chemicals, metals, and other traditional goods increased year-on-year, indicating many industries are slowly improving.In terms of domestic demand, DGBAS estimated private consumption grew 4.14% in Q1, an increase of 0.24 percentage points from the previous forecast. Wang said that during COVID, many citizens delayed foreign travel, which quickly returned to pre-pandemic levels in Q1 with numerous holidays such as the Lunar New Year. With many people traveling abroad, DGBAS has continued enthusiasm for domestic consumption.DGBAS said that in February, the full-year economic growth forecast for 2024 was 3.43%. Given the unexpected growth experienced in Q1, DGBAS has adjusted its full-year growth forecast to 3.57%.May. 1, 2024 09:50Sean ScanlanTaiwan News, Staff Writer (ICE TAIPEI)

Fonte notizia: Organi di Stampa - Taiwan News