TAIWAN

Economy to Come Back Strong: Taiwan’s economy, buoyed by rising exports to China, Southeast Asia and Europe, will rebound stronger than expected this year, officials and economists said last week. Taiwan’s gross national product will grow about 7% in 1991, as opposed to the 6.1% forecast in May, said Li Kao-chao, a senior official of the Council for Economic Planning and Development. Last year, GNP growth hit an eight-year low of 5.3%. Officials attributed the higher forecast to exports. June exports soared 31% to a record $6.89 billion from a year earlier. The June figure brought exports to $36.2 billion for the first six months of 1991, up 13.5% from 1990. Exports account for 40% of Taiwan’s GNP.