TW Biz News｜WK 06/16 - 06/22

Every week, we'll select Taiwan's five business news from the previous week for your review.

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• 〔Focus Taiwan〕Taiwan climbs to 6th in 2025 IMD World Competitiveness Rankings

Taipei, June 17 (CNA) Taiwan has risen two spots to sixth place in the 2025 IMD World Competitiveness Rankings, outperforming 63 of the 69 surveyed economies. Taiwan also retained its position as the world's most competitive economy among economies with populations over 20 million for the fifth consecutive year, according to the annual report released Tuesday by the Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD).

• 〔Focus Taiwan〕Taiwan cleanroom firms see orders surge as chipmakers expand overseas

Taipei, June 21 (CNA) Taiwanese companies that build cleanroom systems are seeing a surge in orders as global semiconductor makers, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), ramp up production abroad. Longtime TSMC supplier United Integrated Services Co. (UIS) is one of the biggest beneficiaries of this trend. According to data obtained by CNA, UIS secured NT$83.68 billion (US$2.57 billion) in cleanroom-related contracts from January to May.

• 〔Taiwan News〕Taiwan sporting goods output tops NT$12 billion in Q1

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of Economic Affairs said that Taiwan's sporting goods industry reached a production value of NT$12.1 billion (US$372 million) in the first quarter, marking a 5.6% year-on-year increase. Fitness and golf equipment drove demand. Golf equipment was the primary contributor in Q1, with a rise in overseas orders pushing production value up by around 24% year-on-year. In contrast, the production value of indoor fitness equipment declined by 15.9% year-on-year, per CNA.

• 〔Taiwan News〕Taiwan’s Din Tai Fung tops US restaurant ranking

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese soup dumpling chain Din Tai Fung now ranks as the most profitable US restaurant chain by average unit volume, according to Restaurant Business Online. With just 16 locations in the US, the upscale-casual brand posted an average of NT$800 million (US$27.4 million) per store last year—nearly double that of Mastro’s Steakhouse, the next closest competitor—according to Technomic’s Top 500 restaurant chain report, per Liberty Times.

• 〔CommonWealth magazine〕Alishan Railway: Three Unsung Stations You Have to See

The Alishan Forest Railway reopened its full rail line in July 2023 after undergoing 15 years of repairs to deal with destruction wrought by successive natural disasters. The railway began service more than 110 years ago during the Japanese colonial era to transport Taiwanese cypress logs out of hard-to-access mountain sites. Much of the original main line has remained unchanged, leaving it vulnerable to the rough terrain it traverses.