TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Despite months of falling exports amid weak overseas demand, Taiwan’s total export figure for 2023 will still reach US$400 billion (NT$12.5 trillion), its third-highest level ever, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said Saturday (Dec. 2).

The pessimism about months of declining exports was partly caused by the high comparative base, according to the MOEA. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the country still managed to set down a positive performance, per CNA.

Since the pandemic, the global economy had been hit by high inflation, rising interest rates, and two wars, causing overseas demand for goods from Taiwan to slow down.

Nevertheless, the MOEA said figures comparing the exports before, during, and after COVID left room for optimism. In 2019, average monthly exports amounted to US$27.43 billion, last year they reached US$40 billion, and during the first 10 months of this year, they averaged US$35.5 billion a month.