The recent 2004 edition of the Taipei Int'l Auto/Motorcycle Parts & Accessories Show (Taipei AMPA) further consolidated its position as one of the most important auto parts and accessories promotional events in the world, with a turnout of both exhibitors and foreign buyers that blasted away past records, according to show co-organizer Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA).

According to TAITRA and fellow co-organizer Taiwan Transportation Vehicle Manufacturers' Association (TTVMA), over 20,000 foreign and local buyers visited AMPA this year, up 2,830, or 16%, from the last show in 2002. The 2003 show was canceled because of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak.

TAITRA, which used the magnetic-strip card-registration system at the event for the first time, states that a total of 5,018 foreign buyers attended, up 29% from 3,897 in 2002. The local visitor count also increased, by 12%, to 14,027.

Among the foreign buyers, 56% came from Asia, 14.5% from North America, 9.5% from Europe, 7% from the Middle East, 5% from Oceania, 4% from Africa, 2% from Central America, and 2% from South Africa. The turnout of buyers from Russia, Turkey, and Poland grew sharply from last show, TAITRA says, showing the successful market-segmentation strategy of local parts makers.

Yuan Ching, chairman of U.N. Great International Co., a leading auto parts and accessory trading company, says that a large number of foreign buyers at the show were returning to Taiwan suppliers after trying their luck with mainland Chinese producers. Company president Sun Ta-cheng explains that some Taiwan traders can offer quality products at lower costs, thanks to the superior quality-control management at their production facilities in mainland China.

Sun says that the Taipei AMPA has been gaining in global importance as it provides a convenient venue for international buyers to source a comprehensive range of auto parts and accessories.

Hsu Si-yuan, president of Safety Control Cable Industry Co., Ltd., Taiwan's largest supplier of automobile and motorcycle control cables, says that most of the buyers at this year's event showed a strong procurement interest and had decision-making powers. Many were representatives of big international automakers and tier-one parts suppliers, underlining the increasing importance of the Taipei AMPA.

Hota Industrial Manufacturing Co., Ltd., a leading maker of high-precision transmission gears, says that it landed a big-ticket gear order from General Motors (GM) of the U.S. and was negotiating the relevant order details with a GM representative at the fair.

Indeed, TAITRA invited many procurement officials of automakers and first-tier parts suppliers in the U.S., Brazil, France, Turkey, Australia and South Korea to attend the show, including representatives of TRW, Delphi, GM, Kia, Uzel, DHB, Agrale and Tenneco. Over 300 local parts and accessory makers met the foreign procurement representatives at this year's event, TAITRA says.

TAITRA says that more and more foreign buyers of auto parts and accessories buyers who originally procured from France, Italy and Japan have switched their orders to Taiwan companies, especially for global positioning system (GPS) navigation systems, in-auto liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs, in-car multimedia entertainment systems, car alarm systems, reverse image displays and over-speed radar sensors.

TAITRA says that many exhibitors expressed a strong willingness to participate in the 2005 Taipei AMPA. It adds that next year's show, which will be held on May 13-16, is expected to out-do this year's event.

TAITRA claims that Taipei AMPA has become the largest auto parts and accessory show in Asia and one of the key shows in the world.

Records for Exhibitors and Booths

According to TAITRA and TTVMA, Taipei AMPA posted a record 827 exhibitors and 2,170 booths this year, up 41% from the 2002 event.

"AMPA has long been the largest auto and motorcycle parts show in the Asia-Pacific region and has been playing a key regional hub role as an integrated transaction platform for buyers and exhibitors worldwide," says AMPA project manager Judy Lo and marketing manager Christie Huang. "Most exhibitors and industry professionals consider AMPA to be one of the world's top-three fairs, especially in terms of its specialization in auto and motorcycle parts and accessories."

In order to accommodate its rapid growth, Taipei AMPA 2004 expanded its exhibition space from the main floor of the Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC) Exhibition Hall 1 to the newly expanded show floor on the second level ("Area H") at the venue as well as the nearby Exhibition Hall 3.

Huang says Taipei AMPA is one of the best one-stop sourcing centers in the world for automobile and motorcycle parts and accessories, joining both leading-edge and nuts-and-bolts items at one venue. Everything from complete engines, parts and accessories, power trains, tires and tubes and brakes to lights and signals, whole motorcycles, and auto and motorcycle frames can be found at the fair.

At a time when other major trade shows in Taiwan are losing business to counterpart events in mainland China, Huang says that Taipei AMPA has been expanding rapidly in the past few years.

According to responses from foreign buyers, Huang says, Taipei AMPA's leading role in Asia will not be easily challenged by rival shows in mainland China or even the Automechanika Asia in Thailand, which was launched two years ago.

Taipei AMPA 2004 also attracted a large number of big local makers with international brand reputations, says Lo. In the past, most of the leading companies in Taiwan were absent from the fair due to the limited exhibition space, she explains, but the expanded venue and rising prominence of the fair is drawing them back.

Status Quo

The total production value Taiwan's transportation vehicle industry, comprising automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles and parts, hit a record high of NT$466.6 billion (US$13.93 billion at US$1:NT$33.5) in 2003, up 13.8% from a year earlier, according to TTVMA.

Auto production accounted for 189.2 billion (US$5.72 billion) of the total, up 17.1% from 2002, motorcycles for NT$40.6 billion (US$1.27 billion, up 32.3%), bicycles for NT$24.8 billion (US$749.24 million, up 17.1%), auto parts for NT$166.7 billion (US$5.04 billion, up 7.6%), motorcycle parts for NT$28.6 billion (US$864.05 million, up 17.7%), and bicycle parts for NT$16.7 billion (US$504.53 million, up 1.8%).

Including automobile-use rubber tires, batteries, glass, light bulbs, electrical devices, audio/video (A/V) entertainment, communication, and navigation systems and parts, the total production value of Taiwan's transportation vehicle industry would be about NT$600 billion (US$18.13 billion), or about 7% of all manufacturing output in Taiwan. By this measure, the transportation vehicle industry is the fourth-largest industry in Taiwan, trailing power/electronic devices, chemical materials, and basic metals.

In general, Taiwan's auto production is focused on domestic sales, while motorcycle and auto parts output are sold both domestically and abroad, according to the TTVMA.

In 2003, Taiwan produced about 387,000 autos, up 15.9% from 2002, including about 368,000 units (up 15.9%) for domestic sale and about 6,400 units for export (up 108.3%).

Taiwan also turned out about 1.34 million powered two-wheelers, a segment that includes both motorcycles and scooters. Of this total, about 781,000 units, or 58.2%, were sold locally and about 561,000 units (41.8%) were exported.

Backed by long experience in small-batch, large-variety production mode and production flexibility, Taiwan's auto parts industry has been rapidly evolving into a major manufacturing segment. Local producers in the segment also have been aggressively upgrading their global competitiveness by refining production techniques and aggressively investing in product development.

Taiwan's auto parts industry has also benefited from a tightly integrated and highly efficient central-satellite system. This system joins together about 300 OE (original equipment), or tier-one, suppliers to auto makers worldwide, and more than 2,000 other parts suppliers, including second- and third-tier factories and those supply the AM market.

In the past few years, the production value of Taiwan's auto parts segment has been steadily increasing. Last year, the island's auto parts industry hit a record production value of NT$166.7 billion (US$5.04 billion), excluding rubber tire, battery, glass, light bulb, electrical devices, audio/video (A/V) entertainment, communication, and navigation systems and parts. If included, the total value would be about NT$250 billion (US$7.55 billion).

Exports of Taiwan-made auto parts have also been picking up. Last year, Taiwan exported a record NT$107.8 billion (US$3.26 billion) worth of auto parts.

The United States continued to be the largest export market for Taiwan-made auto parts last year by importing NT$38.3 billion (US$1.16 billion) worth of such products, accounting for 35.52% of total parts exports from the island. Hong Kong, a transshipment point for exports to mainland China, for the first time outstripped Japan to become the second-largest importer of Taiwan auto-parts last year, with an import value of NT$10.5 billion (US$317.22 million), or 9.77% of the export total. Japan and mainland China were the No. 3 and No. 4 importers of Taiwan-made parts last year by importing NT$5.6 billion (US$169.18 million, 5.19%) and NT$3.1 billion (US$96.66 million), respectively. The top-four export markets together accounted for 54.17% of the island's parts exports last year.

Among all the export markets for Taiwan-made auto parts, mainland China and Hong Kong grew at the highest rates of 315.8% and 119.65%, respectively, last year. The major reasons for the rapid growth was that the booming Chinese automobile-production industry is requiring more and more quality auto parts. Two Taiwanese automakers, Yulon Motor Co. (in partnership with Nissan of Japan) and China Motor Corp. (in cooperation with Mitsubishi Motors of Japan), and a group of leading auto parts makers have also set up subsidiaries or joint venture in mainland China and are increasing their procurement of auto parts from Taiwan.

"Parts and accessories for other motor vehicles" was the top export item in the auto parts segment last year, with an export value of NT$47.5 billion (US$1.44 billion), or about 44.1% of the total export value. The trailing categories include "electrical head-lighting and tail-lighting for motor vehicles and motorcycles" (7.37%); "other parts and accessories of bodies (including cabinet) of the motor vehicles" (7.15%); "radial tires, of a kind used on motor cars (including station wagons and racing cars)" (6.94%); "other new pneumatic tires of a kind used on motor cars (including station wagons and racing cars)" (3.63%); "bumpers and parts thereof" (2.97%); "other electrical lighting equipment for motor vehicles" (2.80%); "rear-view mirrors for vehicles" (2.31%); and "lead-acid accumulators, of a kind used for starting piston engines" (1.75%).

The top-12 product categories together accounted for 82.17% of the total export value last year. The highest growth segments were "electrical signaling equipment for motor vehicles and motorcycles" (up 35.58%); "parts and accessories for other motor vehicles" (up 20.79%); and "bumpers and parts thereof" (up 16.46%).