Taiwan's economy is now in a "two-speed economy" pattern: the differentiation between high-tech and traditional industries is intensifying

China News Service, Taipei, September 8. Benefiting from strong demand from the artificial intelligence and semiconductor industries, Taiwan's economic performance was outstanding in the first half of this year, but there are obvious differences in feelings among different industries and groups. A recent editorial in Taiwan's Economic Daily pointed out that the island is gradually forming a "two-speed economy" pattern.

The "two-speed economy" mentioned in this editorial is an economic phenomenon in which the rapid growth of high-tech industries and the sluggishness of traditional industries coexist, and the growth rates of different industries are obviously differentiated.

The production index of various industries calculated by the Taiwan authorities’ economic affairs department shows that in the first half of this year, the electronic components industry increased by 20.81% year-on-year, and the computer, electronic products and optical products industry increased by 81.85% year-on-year. During the same period, the chemical materials and fertilizer industry fell by 7.51% year-on-year, and traditional industries such as the textile industry, furniture industry, and plastic products industry all declined to varying degrees.

Many scholars have expressed concern about this situation. Sun Chi-li, president of the Taiwan Economic Research Society, said that on the one hand, Taiwan's artificial intelligence-related industry exports and financial markets are currently active; on the other hand, demand for real estate and some traditional industries is sluggish. She described Taiwan's economy as being like a "hot spring" on the surface, but some industries have encountered an "ice storm."

Zhang Qilu, a distinguished professor at the Department of Political Economics at Sun Yat-sen University in Taiwan, pointed out that if policy formulation only focuses on the eye-catching data of upward industries and ignores the contraction of employment, investment and demand at the other end, it may underestimate the structural pressure faced by the real economy.

The "2026 Federation of Industry White Paper" recently released by the Federation of Taiwan Industries mentioned that Taiwan should pay attention to the problem of industrial imbalance and called for promoting transformation and promoting balanced industrial development.

The "two-speed economy" is not only reflected at the industrial level, but also gradually reflected in income distribution. Statistics from the Taiwanese authorities' "General Accounting Office" show that in the first half of 2026, the proportion of Taiwanese employees with regular wages below the average exceeded 70% for the first time, setting a record high. The salary distribution is increasingly divided - high-paid groups in the technology industry continue to drive up the overall average salary, while a large number of employees earn below the average salary.

Public opinion believes that this is an important issue currently facing Taiwan. Wu Daren, a professor at Taiwan’s National Central University, pointed out that Taiwan’s service industry employs about 7 million people, and its scale is much larger than that of artificial intelligence-related industries. He suggested that policymakers should consider how to invest the additional tax revenue brought by the artificial intelligence industry into the service industry and traditional industries that are currently weak.

An article in Taiwan's "Economic Daily" also pointed out that traditional industries and small and medium-sized enterprises should be guided to accelerate the popularization and application of artificial intelligence, digitization and automation, so that artificial intelligence can be transformed from an "export product" into a "productivity tool".