Taiwan raises 2017 GDP growth forecast to 2.11%

[TAIPEI] Taiwan raised its 2017 economic growth forecast to 2.11 per cent from 2.05 per cent, as exports have picked up steam this year on demand for components for the coming iPhone 8 and other tech gadgets.

If the new full-year growth forecast proves right, 2017 will be the best year for export-reliant Taiwan since 2014, when the economy grew 4.01 per cent.

In February, Taiwan projected 1.92 per cent growth for 2017, and that forecast was lifted to 2.05 per cent in May.

The latest revision was announced by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics.

The agency also revised second-quarter growth to 2.13 per cent from a year earlier, from the preliminary 2.10 per cent released last month. In January-March, annual growth was 2.6 per cent.

REUTERS