Supply chain shifts and the stay-at-home economy boost computer and peripheral device exports to double-digit growth for 5 consecutive years

The Ministry of Economic Affairs recently stated that Taiwan, China's computer and peripheral device exports have grown by double digits for 5 consecutive years. With the vigorous development of information networks and rapid technological advances, Taiwan, China's computer and peripheral device exports rose from USD 3.45 billion in 2015, climbing all the way, with annual growth rates of 15-20%. By 2019, affected by the US-China trade dispute, some manufacturers moved their production lines back to Taiwan, China, and the order-transfer effect boosted domestic production capacity, with export value jumping to USD 8.81 billion, an annual increase of 58.2%, among which servers surged 205.1%, with their share rising to 39.0% to take first place. Then, with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rise of remote business opportunities drove continued growth in demand for computers and peripheral devices, with export value reaching USD 10.56 billion in 2020, continuing to grow by 19.8%. This year, continuing the stay-at-home economy and the emerging technology boom, coupled with stronger momentum in the global economic recovery, exports from January to April 2021 reached USD 3.32 billion, an annual increase of 19.9%.

Because products such as servers and graphics cards were included in the third wave of goods on the US list of increased tariffs on China, a supply chain relocation effect was created. According to the 2019 survey on the actual situation of overseas production, the proportion of information and communication products produced in mainland China fell by 8.5 percentage points compared with 2017, while the proportion produced in Taiwan, China rose by 1.8 percentage points, and the proportion transferred to the US and Europe also rose by more than 2 percentage points each. Under the effect of capacity returning and order transfers, in 2019 Taiwan, China's direct exports of computers and peripheral devices to the United States more than doubled year on year, breaking through 50% for the first time, with the share increasing by 19.7 percentage points from the previous year; while the share of exports to mainland China and Hong Kong, China fell by 3.7 percentage points. From January to April 2021, the export value to the United States grew by 18.4% year on year, with the share still maintaining the level of 60%.

Looking at the US import market for computers and peripheral devices in 2020, the largest source of imports was mainland China, with a market share of 51.1%, while Taiwan, China surpassed Thailand in 2019 to take 3rd place, with a market share of 8.4% in 2020. Compared with 2017, apart from mainland China's share falling by 8.9 percentage points, the market shares of other major import source countries all rose, among which Taiwan, China rose by 5.3 percentage points, the most obvious growth, showing that affected by the US-China trade dispute, US import sources also changed along with the shift in the industrial chain.

In 2020, the world's top 6 exporters of computers and peripheral devices were, in order, mainland China, the Netherlands, Mexico, the United States, Hong Kong, China and Germany. However, Taiwan, China has grown at a double-digit rate in recent years, with strong growth momentum, showing that businesses have actively invested back in Taiwan, China in recent years, and coupled with the boost from remote business opportunities, this helps enhance Taiwan, China's position in the global supply chain.