Feb. 5, 2013 (China Knowledge) - Taiwan saw its official purchasing managers' index increase to 57.7 in January, an increase of 6.4 point from 51.3 in December 2012, according to figures jointly released by Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research and Council for Economic Planning and Development.
The index above 50 indicates growth in purchasing, while the index below 50 represents a decrease.
Last month, the new order index rose from 52.6 to 66.6, while the output index increased to 62.6 in the month.
Meanwhile, the island saw its employment index edge up 1.5 points from a month earlier to 54.8 in January.
Chen Shin-hui, research assistant of Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research said that the increase in PMI last month was mainly due to manufacturers has stronger confidence for economic recovery and placed more orders before the Lunar New Year holiday.
Taiwan's official PMI is based on a monthly questionnaire survey from 245 manufacturing enterprises' purchasing manager.