TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth in 2024 will be increased to at least 3.5%, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said Wednesday (May 29).
While the official predictions will not be made public until May 30, DGBAS Director-General Chen Shu-tzu (陳淑姿) told lawmakers the new forecast would be higher than the earlier estimate of 3.43%. As the government had forecast growth during the first quarter of 6.51%, the overall figure for the year might reach 3.57% if predictions for the second, third, and fourth quarter remain the same, per CNA.
Economic data for the beginning of the year were positive, giving hope that Taiwan’s GDP could expand to at least 3.5% this year, Chen said. However, due to the electricity rate hikes introduced last month, the consumer price index (CPI) is likely to rise, with 2.03% as a preliminary estimate for the year.
The change would mean extra costs for businesses and a negative factor influencing economic growth, according to Chen. The ideal situation would be to keep inflation under 2%, but external factors including geopolitics and wars will make that difficult.
Nevertheless, the emergence and expansion of new technologies including AI and High Performance Computing will likely boost Taiwan’s exports. Domestic consumption and investment are also likely to evolve in a positive direction, Chen said.