Taiwan is expected to enjoy a trade surplus of 18.77 billion U.S. dollars for the whole of 2006 due to booming exports and imports, according to a report reaching here from Taipei Monday.
The report said Taiwan outbound shipments will grow by 13.02 percent to hit 224.266 billion U.S. dollars this year, while its inbound shipments will increase by 12.53 percent to 205.496 billion U.S. dollars.
Taiwan exports in the first quarter of this year reached 49.985 billion U.S. dollars, up 11.45 percent year on year, while its imports totaled 46.754 billion U.S. dollars for a year on year expansion of 9.26 percent, leaving the economy with a quarterly trade surplus of 3.231 billion U.S. dollars -- far ahead of the previous year's level of 2.059 billion U.S. dollars, the report said.
