Oct export orders 6.3 yy vs 1 poll forecast
Export orders from China 26.7 yy vs 27.9 in Sept
Ministry sees Nov orders between 14.5 and 17.6 yy
Outlook difficult, not helped by China39;s zeroCOVID policy

TAIPEI, Nov 21 Reuters Taiwan39;s export orders contracted more severely than expected in October on weak consumer demand hit by inflation and interest rate hikes, with the government warning that China39;s insistence on a zeroCOVID strategy would affect the outlook.

Export orders, a bellwether for global technology demand, shrank 6.3 in October from a year earlier to 55.4 billion, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Monday. Analysts had expected a drop of 1.

October39;s fall the steepest since January 2020, when it dropped 12.8 followed September39;s annual contraction of 3.1.

Orders for telecoms products slipped 0.3 in October from a year ago because of weaker consumer demand, but also coming off a high base, the ministry said.

However, orders for electronic products rose 9.6, driven by demand for highend computing, automobiles and stockpiling ahead of the end of the year, it added.

There were also many clouds ahead, despite growth momentum from automotive electronics and data centres ahead of the yearend holiday season in Western markets and January39;s Lunar New Year holiday in East Asia, it added.

Global inflation and interest rate pressures continue to be high; the war between Russia and Ukraine, and mainland China39;s insistence on the zeroCOVID…