Taiwan's National Development Council, or NDC, announced on January 27 that its domestic economic monitoring indicator reached a composite score of 38 points inDecember 2025, up one point from November, triggering the "red light" signal for the first time since December 2024 in a sign of sustained economic momentum.
Among the nine component indicators, strong AI demand benefited industrial and service sector overtime hours, which shifted to "yellow-red light" status. The manufacturing business climate index improved to "green light," each contributing one point.
However, wholesale, retail, and food service revenues dropped to "yellow-red light" due to delayed Lunar New Year shopping demand, losing one point. The remaining six indicators remained unchanged, resulting in a net gain of one point and the first "red light" signal in a year.
Looking ahead, the NDC analysis indicates that AI applications are expanding from cloud to edge devices, with continued international AI computing investments and sovereign AI development.Taiwan's recent trade agreement with the U.S. is expected to benefit domestic industry orders and boost export momentum.
The NDC reports that domestic semiconductor companies are actively expanding advanced manufacturing processes and high-end packaging and testing capacity. International corporations are increasing investments in Taiwan, while the government's push to intergrate artificial intelligence in ten major construction projects across public infrastructure spending is expected to strengthen investment momentum.
On the consumption front, minimum wage increases and tax reduction measures, combined with wealth effects from record-high stock markets and increased government budgets for tourism and major sporting events, are expected to further stimulate consumer activity.
The NDC also warns that uncertainties in US economic and trade policies, increased international geopolitical tensions and trade conflicts, and major nations' monetary policy directions require close monitoring. （Related： KMT, CCP to Restart Forum in Beijing After Nine-Year Hiatus ｜ Latest ）
