Taiwan's monthly exports rose 41 per cent from a year earlier to a record, lifted across the board by demand for artificial-intelligence servers and the semiconductors and components that go with them.

Integrated circuits and server components stood out by category. As data-centre construction continued, demand grew for high-performance computing chips along with substrates and cooling and power parts.

The other side of concentration

Greater reliance on a narrow set of products and a small number of customers is cited as a structural issue, since any downturn in demand would be felt just as sharply.

Exports from traditional industries were comparatively weak, and analysts note the figures contain a marked gap between sectors, with machinery, chemicals and plastics the clearest cases.

Currency and prices

Strong exports also bear on the currency and on prices. Larger inflows of foreign exchange add to appreciation pressure, which in turn squeezes exporters' margins.

Officials have kept to the cautious line that buoyant trade data does not by itself signal a broad recovery. How base effects work through next month's figures is the point to watch.