Unfazed by war, March electricity prosperity index flashes red; semiconductors become the core of economic resilience
The Taiwan Research Institute reported that the March electricity prosperity index maintained a 'red' light. Strong AI demand and semiconductor production act as core engines protecting Taiwan's economy against global uncertainties.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 22, 2026 at 17:30
- 🔍 Collected: April 22, 2026 at 18:02 (32 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 23, 2026 at 15:36 (21h 34m after Collected)
Central News Agency
(CNA Reporter Pan Tzu-yu, Taipei, 22nd) The ongoing war in the Middle East has brought shocks to the global economy. However, the Taiwan Research Institute (TRI) announced today that the March electricity prosperity index continued to flash a hot red light. TRI pointed out that the continuous strong demand for Artificial Intelligence (AI) has pushed up power consumption and kept the economy's momentum steady, making Taiwan's semiconductor industry the core of economic resilience.
TRI issued a press release today stating that after the outbreak of the US-Iran conflict, the Middle East war pushed up international energy prices and exacerbated supply chain uncertainties. Although variables have been added to the global economic outlook, Taiwan has benefited from the sustained strong AI capital expenditures by major international Cloud Service Providers (CSP). Semiconductor production capacity remains highly fully loaded, and investments in semiconductor equipment and demand for related raw materials have risen simultaneously.
TRI frankly stated that the semiconductor, computer, and electronic industries have become the core engines supporting overall economic performance, and through supply chain spillover effects, they have driven demand in related traditional industries.
TRI further pointed out that under the strong support of AI momentum, the national industrial power consumption of high-voltage and above in March grew by 1.76% compared to the same period last year, and the electricity prosperity index continued to show a hot red light. It predicted that the economic growth rate in March would reach 11.4%, continuing the pattern of high growth.
Looking closely at industry performance, TRI analyzed that in the semiconductor industry, demand for advanced processes and advanced packaging is strong, and capacity remains highly fully loaded, even experiencing supply constraints. Operators continue to expand capital expenditures to cope with long-term demand growth. Even with rising geopolitical risks, operators stated that operations have not been significantly affected by the war, showing that the industry possesses a high degree of resilience.
In addition, the machinery and equipment industry and the plastics and rubber industry have also benefited from the demand for building semiconductor equipment, servers, and data centers, driving a rebound in demand for plastic components, wire rods, and insulation materials. Coupled with the impact of the Middle East war, upstream raw material prices and volumes have increased, turning industrial power consumption to positive growth. The decline in power consumption in the chemical materials industry and the steel industry has converged, indicating a recovery in industrial demand.
Traditional industries were relatively sluggish last year, but are now gradually emerging from the trough. TRI noted that the global steel market is in a moderate recovery phase, and the Middle East war has pushed up raw material prices. The steel industry's electricity prosperity index has turned from a recessionary blue light to a yellow-blue light, showing signs of improvement.
The textile industry remains sluggish, affected by the expansion of upstream petrochemical raw materials in China and low-price competition. However, TRI stated that some operators have transitioned to high-value applications such as fiberglass cloth, engineering plastics, and semiconductor-related materials to meet the needs of AI servers and emerging technologies. Although the textile industry is sluggish, the industry is developing towards high value-added and differentiated products.
Following the outbreak of the Middle East war, the international political and economic situation has been turbulent, yet Taiwan's single-month economic data remains robust. TRI analyzed that relying on the critical position of the semiconductor and AI supply chains, Taiwan has formed an industrial advantage to resist external shocks, which not only supports export momentum but also drives overall economic performance better than most countries. (Editor: Pan Yi-ching) 1150422
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(CNA Reporter Pan Tzu-yu, Taipei, 22nd) The ongoing war in the Middle East has brought shocks to the global economy. However, the Taiwan Research Institute (TRI) announced today that the March electricity prosperity index continued to flash a hot red light. TRI pointed out that the continuous strong demand for Artificial Intelligence (AI) has pushed up power consumption and kept the economy's momentum steady, making Taiwan's semiconductor industry the core of economic resilience.
TRI issued a press release today stating that after the outbreak of the US-Iran conflict, the Middle East war pushed up international energy prices and exacerbated supply chain uncertainties. Although variables have been added to the global economic outlook, Taiwan has benefited from the sustained strong AI capital expenditures by major international Cloud Service Providers (CSP). Semiconductor production capacity remains highly fully loaded, and investments in semiconductor equipment and demand for related raw materials have risen simultaneously.
TRI frankly stated that the semiconductor, computer, and electronic industries have become the core engines supporting overall economic performance, and through supply chain spillover effects, they have driven demand in related traditional industries.
TRI further pointed out that under the strong support of AI momentum, the national industrial power consumption of high-voltage and above in March grew by 1.76% compared to the same period last year, and the electricity prosperity index continued to show a hot red light. It predicted that the economic growth rate in March would reach 11.4%, continuing the pattern of high growth.
Looking closely at industry performance, TRI analyzed that in the semiconductor industry, demand for advanced processes and advanced packaging is strong, and capacity remains highly fully loaded, even experiencing supply constraints. Operators continue to expand capital expenditures to cope with long-term demand growth. Even with rising geopolitical risks, operators stated that operations have not been significantly affected by the war, showing that the industry possesses a high degree of resilience.
In addition, the machinery and equipment industry and the plastics and rubber industry have also benefited from the demand for building semiconductor equipment, servers, and data centers, driving a rebound in demand for plastic components, wire rods, and insulation materials. Coupled with the impact of the Middle East war, upstream raw material prices and volumes have increased, turning industrial power consumption to positive growth. The decline in power consumption in the chemical materials industry and the steel industry has converged, indicating a recovery in industrial demand.
Traditional industries were relatively sluggish last year, but are now gradually emerging from the trough. TRI noted that the global steel market is in a moderate recovery phase, and the Middle East war has pushed up raw material prices. The steel industry's electricity prosperity index has turned from a recessionary blue light to a yellow-blue light, showing signs of improvement.
The textile industry remains sluggish, affected by the expansion of upstream petrochemical raw materials in China and low-price competition. However, TRI stated that some operators have transitioned to high-value applications such as fiberglass cloth, engineering plastics, and semiconductor-related materials to meet the needs of AI servers and emerging technologies. Although the textile industry is sluggish, the industry is developing towards high value-added and differentiated products.
Following the outbreak of the Middle East war, the international political and economic situation has been turbulent, yet Taiwan's single-month economic data remains robust. TRI analyzed that relying on the critical position of the semiconductor and AI supply chains, Taiwan has formed an industrial advantage to resist external shocks, which not only supports export momentum but also drives overall economic performance better than most countries. (Editor: Pan Yi-ching) 1150422
Choose to stand with facts. Every sponsorship is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the CNA 'First News' APP to grasp the latest news instantly.
The text, images, and audio/video on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.