Taiwan鈥檚 economy expanded four times faster than the year before in 2024, government data showed Friday, thanks to global demand for the island鈥檚 high-tech exports.
The island of 23 million people is a world power in semiconductors, which are used in everything from smartphones to wind turbines, and even missiles.
Chips and other exports drive its economy but there are concerns that a record-high trade surplus with the United States last year could prompt Donald Trump to hit it with tariffs in his second term in the White House.
Taiwan鈥檚 gross domestic product grew 4.3 per cent last year, the government鈥檚 statistics agency said, matching the average forecast of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.
That compares with 1.1 per cent growth in 2023, the data showed.
The statistics agency has forecast expansion of 3.3 percent this year.
Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on imports from several US trading partners as he seeks to revive the country鈥檚 manufacturing industry.
In a video appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, Trump warned companies to make their products in the United States or they would be hit with tariffs.
Taiwan鈥檚 trade surplus with the United States soared about 83 percent to a record $64.9 billion in 2024, according to Bloomberg, citing government figures.
Trump has previously accused Taiwan of stealing the US semiconductor industry.