AI still driving business confidence

Here are 5 key points from the article:

Positive Economic Sentiment: Business confidence across Taiwan’s manufacturing, services, and construction sectors rose in the recent past, reaching multiyear highs driven by an artificial intelligence (AI) boom that has boosted exports, investment, and domestic demand.
AI-Driven Expansion: The artificial intelligence boom is aiding Taiwan’s exports and economic growth, leading to record levels, which in turn has impacted domestic investment, consumption, and financial markets.
Improved yet Cautious Optimism: While 29% of firms expect conditions to improve (slightly up from last month), a significant 14.6% anticipate deterioration, mainly due to concerns over energy supply.
Sector-Specific Insights: In manufacturing and construction, sectors showed strong confidence figures, reflecting high utilization rates and increased housing transactions. In contrast, the chemical industry remains cautious due to weak external demand and competition from low-cost Chinese products.
Mixed Traditional Industry Outlook: While the normalization of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz may help petrochemical producers, industries like chemicals continue to face challenges from subdued global demand and strong competition from China.