Taiwan overtakes China as Singapore's largest trading partner in 2025
This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.
Taiwan overtook China as Singapore's largest merchandise trading partner in 2025, with bilateral trade reaching S$170.3 billion. The surge was driven by semiconductor trade, which accounted for 80 percent of Taiwan's exports to Singapore. Singapore's non-oil domestic exports to Taiwan grew 37.4 percent, the strongest among its major trading partners.
Key Facts
- In 2025, Taiwan overtook China as Singapore's largest merchandise trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching S$170.3 billion (US$134 billion).
- Singapore's trade with China totaled S$162.9 billion and with Malaysia S$145.0 billion in 2025.
- Roughly 80 percent of Taiwan's exports to Singapore in 2025 were semiconductors and related products.
- Singapore's non-oil domestic exports to Taiwan grew 37.4 percent in 2025, the strongest performance among its major trading partners.
- Singapore unveiled the world's first governance framework for agentic AI at the World Economic Forum in January 2026.
Trade Shift
Taiwan overtook China as Singapore's largest merchandise trading partner for the first time in 2025. Bilateral trade reached approximately S$170.3 billion (US$134 billion), ahead of Singapore's trade with China at S$162.9 billion and Malaysia at S$145.0 billion. One year earlier, Taiwan had ranked fourth among Singapore's trading partners. Singapore values Taiwan as a node in a diversified economic portfolio, but official diplomacy remains limited within the One China framework.
Semiconductor Complementarity
Much of the bilateral trade between Singapore and Taiwan involves the semiconductor industry. Taiwan's semiconductor industry accounts for over 60 percent of global foundry revenue and more than 90 percent of leading-edge chip manufacturing. In 2025, roughly 80 percent of Taiwan's exports to Singapore were semiconductors and related products, while about 60 percent of Singapore's exports to Taiwan consisted of semiconductor equipment and intermediate goods. Singapore's non-oil domestic exports to Taiwan grew 37.4 percent last year, the strongest performance among its major trading partners. Taiwan fabricates the overwhelming share of the world's leading-edge logic chips through TSMC and its foundry ecosystem, while Singapore supplies equipment, materials, assembly, advanced packaging, and test capacity.
AI Strategies
Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong recently established a National AI Council alongside national AI missions in advanced manufacturing, financial services, connectivity, and healthcare. Singapore unveiled the world's first governance framework for agentic AI at the World Economic Forum in January 2026. Taiwan has developed a Ten AI Initiatives Promotion Plan, an interagency effort that channels funding into silicon photonics, quantum technology, and AI robotics. Each set of measures raises domestic demand for end-use AI and embeds it in existing business models, feeding a cycle of rising demand and supply across both economies.
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Taiwan overtakes China as Singapore's largest trading partner in 2025
