Taiwan’s real GDP expanded 14.36% year over year in the third quarter, as household and investment demand contributed more than net trade to growth, official advance data showed.
The Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) put the result 2.94 percentage points above its August projection of 11.42%. Growth has exceeded 10% for four quarters in a row: it was 12.95% in the fourth quarter of 2025, 15.43% in the first quarter of 2026 and 12.93% in the second quarter. Bloomberg reported that this was Taiwan’s longest such run since 1987.
Domestic demand added 9.41 percentage points to third-quarter growth, while net external demand contributed 4.94 points. Among domestic demand components, gross capital formation rose 26.36% and added 6.32 percentage points. The measure includes fixed investment and inventory changes. Private consumption grew 5.37%, contributing 2.30 percentage points.
Trade figures also showed strong activity. The Ministry of Finance said September exports totaled US$87.22 billion, up 60.9% from a year earlier and the highest monthly amount on record. Imports increased 51.7% to US$63.59 billion, leaving a US$23.63 billion surplus.
DGBAS pointed to demand for artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance computing and cloud services, along with consumer-electronics inventory buildup and higher prices, as factors behind export strength. The bureau also said businesses were extending advanced production processes and adding capacity for AI infrastructure. Bloomberg quoted Michelle Lam, Greater China economist at Societe Generale, as saying, “AI remained the central growth engine, but the impulse is increasingly broad-based.”
A National Development Council business gauge remained in its red category for a 10th straight month in September, a reading the council associates with booming conditions, as EconoTimes previously reported.
DGBAS said its preliminary GDP statistics, due in November, will offer more detail on fixed investment and inventory changes. The Ministry of Finance lists Nov. 9 as the next release date for monthly trade data.
