Taiwan's economy grew 12.92% in Q2, slowing from the previous quarter's multi-decade high

According to preliminary estimates from Taiwan's statistics office published on Friday 31 July 2026, Taiwan's economy expanded 12.92% year on year in the second quarter of 2026, beating the market expectation of 10.8% but slowing from the first quarter's 14.55%, a multi-decade high. It is the weakest growth reading since the third quarter of 2025.

The slowdown came from external demand: growth in exports of goods and services eased to 21.64% from 35.76% in the first quarter, while import growth slowed to 18.27% from 26.34%. Domestic demand strengthened by contrast, with household consumption rising to 5.88% from 4.74% and gross capital formation accelerating to 15.14% from 5.92%, while government spending moderated to 3.22% from 4.06%.

On a seasonally adjusted quarterly basis, Taiwan's economy grew 2.39% in the second quarter, up from 1.69% growth in the first. Taiwan is one of the world's main semiconductor manufacturing centres, and its export cycle is treated as a leading indicator of global technology demand.