Taiwan GDP Growth Outpaces China For First Time In 30 Year, Posts 2.98% Growth In 2020

Taiwan's economic growth last year (2020) outpaced China for the first time in 30 years, helped by a strong demand for island nation's technology exports during the last quarter of the year and remarkable success in containing the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Taiwan's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 2.98 percent in 2020, the official data released on Friday showed, compared with China’s 2.3 per cent rise.

Taiwan's economy grew 4.94% on the year in the final quarter -- its best quarterly figure in almost a decade.

Electronic component exports, the mainstay of Taiwanese exports, registered a whopping 21.2 per cent growth in the last quarter of 2020.

Taiwan's surpassing the growth rate of China may be an one-off occurrence. According to estimates by Taiwanese government, the country's economy will expand 3.83% in 2021. International Monetary Fund has however forecast 8.1% growth for China in 2021.

"The economic growth stemmed from the continued domestic investments from manufacturers. The production capacity continued to expand and the supply chain localization also helped. Export performance was better than expected. The decline of domestic spending is not as serious as we thought last quarter," the budget, accounting and statistics bureau said in a statement on Friday.