Taiwan's export orders climbed 62.4% year on year to a record $114.21bn in September, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said, Focus Taiwan reported on October 20.
Orders for the first nine months of 2026 totalled $819.20bn, up 56% from the same period last year. The ministry expects the full-year total to exceed $1.1 trillion, compared with $743.7bn in 2025.
Electronics orders jumped 71% to $47.42bn in September, according to the ministry, which said AI development had boosted IC manufacturing, memory chip output and IC design. Orders for information and communication technology (ICT) products grew faster still, rising 87.3% to $43.88bn. The two categories together accounted for close to 80% of the monthly total.
Optoelectronics was the exception. Orders in that sector fell 5.6% to $1.97bn, mainly because demand for flat panels weakened.
Traditional industries also gained from the AI cycle, the ministry said, as semiconductor suppliers kept purchasing equipment and raw materials to expand capacity. Higher international crude prices pushed up orders for oil and related goods.
Machinery orders grew 21.5% to $2.19bn, while base metals rose 29.7% to $2.43bn. Plastics and rubber orders increased 11.4% to $1.53bn, and chemical products advanced 22.8% to $1.71bn.
By destination, the US remained Taiwan's largest customer. American buyers placed orders worth $45.38bn, up 79.4% from a year earlier, with ICT goods making up the bulk. ASEAN countries ranked second with $20.85bn, ahead of China and Hong Kong at $18.21bn.
The ministry forecast orders of between $112.5bn and $115.9bn in its outlook, which would represent annual growth of 62% to 67%. It attributed the projection to AI demand and peak-season effects.