TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s exports fell for the sixth straight month in February, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said on Tuesday (March 7).

February exports totaled US$31.05 billion (NT$957 billion), representing a year-on-year decline of 17.1%, according to the MOF, while imports totaled US$28.70 billion, a 9.4% decrease from a year earlier. Taiwan’s trade surplus in February came out to US$2.35 billion, a 59.3% year-over-year drop.

Exports for the first two months of the year totaled US$62.56 billion, a 19.2% decline from a year prior, while imports equaled US$57.86 billion or a 13.3% year-over-year reduction. Taiwan’s trade surplus through February currently stands at US$4.69 billion, representing a 56.2% year-on-year drop.

Taiwan’s February electronic components exports made up 41.7% of all exports and came in at US$12.94 billion, which was a 17.8% year-on-year reduction. Chip exports were US$11.99 billion, down 17.3% from a year prior.

Exports of information, communications, and audio/visual products totaled US$4.16 billion in February, down 9% year-over-year.

As for destinations, China accounted for 35.4% of February exports, which totaled US$11.01 billion, representing a 30.2% decline year-on-year. Exports to ASEAN countries, which accounted for 18.2% of February totals, came in at US$5.66 billion, a year-over-year decrease of 11.1%.

Exports to the U.S. in the second month dropped 13.7% from a year prior to US$4.73 billion, while exports to Europe dropped 4.8% to US$2.91 billion. Meanwhile, exports to Japan grew by 1% year-over-year to US$2.33 billion in February.