The government statistics office has raised its full-year economic growth forecast for 2014 to 2.98%. That’s the highest forecast figure in three years.
The office said on Friday that it revised its forecast due to rising private investment and consumer spending. It predicted that GDP growth for the first and second quarters would come to 3.14% and 2.79%, respectively, followed by 2.96% in the third quarter and 3.01% in the fourth.
Head of the General Chamber of Commerce Lai Chang-yi said that Taiwan’s GDP growth this year may top 3% on the back of continued recovery in the United States and Europe.
But chairman of the Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association, Gou Tai-chiang, is less optimistic. He said it remains to be seen whether the stalled trade in services agreement with China will have a negative impact on Taiwan’s exporters.