Taiwan Industrial Output Grows Sharply; Retail Sales Growth Eases

(RTTNews) - Taiwan's industrial production expanded at the fastest pace in three months, preliminary data from the Ministry of Economic Affairs showed on Thursday.

Separate official data showed that retail sales expanded at a slightly slower pace at the start of the second quarter.

Industrial production advanced 14.6 percent year-on-year in April, much faster than the revised 4.2 percent rebound in March.

Among the main sectors, manufacturing output alone surged 14.9 percent annually in April, followed by utility production with a 10.77 percent increase. Meanwhile, mining and quarrying output dropped 4.2 percent.

On a month-on-month basis, industrial production rebounded a seasonally adjusted 0.54 percent from March, when it fell by 0.67 percent.

Another report from the statistical office showed that annual retail sales growth eased somewhat to 1.6 percent in April from 1.9 percent in the prior month.

Sales of textiles and clothing in specialized stores declined by 2.62 percent, while sales at general merchandise stores rose by 1.48 percent.