TAIPEI: Taiwan's reliance on the mainland as its biggest export market continued to increase during September as 32.2 percent of exports, with a total value of $6.14 billion went to the mainland, according to statistics released by an external trade body on Monday.

However, the statistics indicate that the economic downturn may have affected two-way trade.

In the first nine months of this year, two-way trade between Taiwan and the mainland amounted to $60.35 billion, down 29.7 percent compared with the same period last year, statistics showed.

In January-September, cross-Straits trade accounted for 22.7 percent of Taiwan's external trade in value.

During the nine-month period, Taiwan's exports to the mainland amounted to $43.45 billion, down 28.6 percent from the same period last year; imports from the mainland were valued at $16.9 billion, down 32.4 percent year-to-year.

In September, Taiwan's exports to the mainland registered a record high for the previous 12 months at $6.14 billion, a slight decrease of 0.3 percent, year-on-year.

Imports from the mainland in September were valued at $2.49 billion, also a single-month high for the past 12 months, though a 7.5 percent drop compared with the same month a year ago.

Statistics on export orders released by the economics affairs authorities show that after months of sluggishness, export orders from the mainland have been picking up since July and have been gaining momentum, with month-to-month growth at 2.2 percent in July, 7.3 percent in August, 9.47 percent in September and 19.6 percent in October.

Meanwhile, statistics compiled by the mainland customs authorities indicate that Japan, South Korea and Taiwan were the three major sources of supplies, with January-September imports from Japan amounting to $92.35 billion, from South Korea totaling $72.55 billion, and from Taiwan valued at $59.71 billion.

The mainland customs statistics show that Taiwan remained the mainland's No 1 supplier of electrical appliances and parts and second largest supplier of optical products and plastics products.

TCM imports

In another development, the non-profit Development Center for Biotechnology reported Monday that a big chunk of Taiwan's imports of traditional Chinese medicinal (TCM) materials came from the mainland last year.

Taiwan imported $29.66 million worth of TCM materials from the mainland in 2008, making the island the fifth largest TCM export market for the mainland, Liu Tzu-hui, a researcher with the center, quoted a mainland customs report as indicating.

According to Taiwan's customs statistics, however, the percentage of Taiwan's TCM imports from the mainland was even greater - at about 60-70 percent of its total imports of products in this category.

Ginseng preparations made the bulk of these imports, constituting about 28.5 percent of the total, Liu said, citing Taiwanese official statistics.

Taiwan's imports of TCM materials from around the world, excluding prepared herbal medicines, totaled NT$2.42 billion ($75 million) in 2008, according to the statistics.

Taiwan's locally-produced TCM preparations made up about 10 percent of its total pharmaceutical output annually, and were worth between NT$5-6 billion, Liu said.

China Daily/CNA

(HK Edition 12/02/2009 page2)