Taiwan exports to US surpass China record to hit monthly high

Taiwan’s exports to the US topped the record for any month’s shipments to China, underscoring rapidly shifting East Asian supply chains.

The archipelago’s shipments to the US rose to $11.89 billion in August, data from the Finance Ministry in Taipei showed on Monday. That beat the previous high of $11.72 billion to China in 2021.

Also, Taiwan’s exports climbed to a record last month, coming in at $43.64 billion.

The new monthly record is partly the result of a yearslong campaign by the US to rewire Asian trade, highlighted by President Joe Biden’s sweeping tariff hikes on a range of Chinese imports. Japan’s exports to the US have been above shipments to China for 22 months, the longest stretch since 2017. 

In December, the US overtook China as South Korea’s top export market, though in recent months the China figure has been greater.

The new monthly record also comes as the US’s artificial intelligence boom drives a surge in Taiwanese exports, especially for tech-related shipments. The US has been the biggest customer for the chips, made by the likes of Nvidia Corp. and critical to powering graphics and training AI services. Companies in the Netherlands and Hong Kong have also been big customers.