Taiwan Manufacturing Downturn Deepens

The S&P Global Taiwan Manufacturing PMI fell to 46.8 in September 2025 from 47.4 in August, signalling a quicker and solid deterioration in business conditions and extending the current downturn to seven months. Both output and new orders contracted at sharper rates, with sales to the US, Europe, Japan and China falling amid muted global demand and uncertainty over trade policy. New export orders fell at one of the fastest rates in two years, while firms scaled back purchasing activity and reduced inventories. Employment also declined for the thirteenth straight month, reflecting spare capacity and weaker workloads. On prices, input cost inflation accelerated to the strongest level so far in 2025, driven by higher raw material prices, though manufacturers kept selling prices broadly unchanged in efforts to secure new business. Looking ahead, sentiment remained pessimistic, with confidence around future output among the weakest in the past two years due to global demand concerns.