Companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) saw their aggregate sales for January fall more than 9 percent from a year earlier, according to the exchange.
Data compiled by the TWSE, which runs the local main board, showed the combined sales of 895 locally incorporated companies and 76 foreign incorporated companies posted NT$3.01 trillion (US$99.67 billion) in combined revenue in January, down 9.86 percent from a year earlier.
In January, 232 local companies listed on the main board registered a gain in sales with 663 others reporting a decline, while 21 foreign incorporated firms posted an increase in sales and 55 others reported a fall, the TWSE said.
The transportation sector posted around NT$96 billion in aggregate revenue in January, down 43.43 percent from a year earlier and the steepest decline among the major industries in the equity market.
Market analysts attributed the decline to weakening global demand for cargo shipping services during a time of economic slowdown, fast-growing inflation and aggressive rate hikes by the world's major central banks.
The financial and insurance sector experienced the second-largest decline after reporting NT$141.1 billion in revenue, down 41.57 percent from a year earlier due to a decline in insurance premium revenue and the impact resulting from foreign exchange losses.
The optoelectronics industry posted NT$69.5 billion in sales, down 37.56 percent from a year earlier, on traditional slow season effects and a fall in global demand, the TWSE's data indicated.
But some other contract electronics firms, including iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., bucked the downturn after posting NT$711.8 billion in combined sales in January, up 42.87 percent from a year earlier, as they benefited from China's decision to ease COVID-19 controls and saw their production on the mainland market returning to normal.
For its part, Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn on the global market, which runs a sprawling production base in China and hires more than 1 million workers, reported NT$660.36 billion in consolidated sales in January, rising sharply by 48.15 percent from a year earlier as its Zhengzhou complex in Henan province rolled out more iPhones.
Boosted by eased border controls in Taiwan and the 10-day Lunar New Year holiday, the tourism industry saw its sales rise 35.94 percent from a year earlier to NT$8.7 billion, while the combined sales posted by the trading and retail industry rose 19.69 percent from a year earlier to NT$77.8 billion on a recovery in private consumption, according to the TWSE.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel