Get Ready for Taipei Cycle 2025
The 2025 Taipei Cycle Show will be held from March 26-29 at the Nangang Exhibition Center in Taipei, Taiwan. Here are some of the major topics we expect to be in discussion during the annual trade show.
New US Tariffs
While the newly announced general tariffs of 10 percent by the United States against China does not directly impact Taiwan exports to the United States, there are growing concerns that a general tariff may also be placed on Taiwan. Already in January 2025, the United States announced heavy tariffs on semiconductors of Taiwan origin. If a similar general tariff is placed upon Taiwan, the impact towards bicycle and e-bike exports to the United States will be severe enough to further weaken output and demand.
Production in Vietnam
The inevitability of shifting bicycle and e-bike production to Vietnam because of European Union zero import duty incentives remains a huge focal point. The main question here is when the policy will actually come into effect. There has not been any reliable information from the EU, trade offices, news agencies, or manufacturers. The expectation is that this will occur sometime in 2025 and so a huge number of bike assemblers, frame and component manufacturers, and general supply chain producers from both Taiwan and China have been quietly building new facilities or moving their resources into Vietnam.
Economic Downturn of Bike Industry
Recent official export figures showed that Taiwan exports of bicycles and e-bikes continued to drop drastically coupled by declining quarterly revenue from various listed industry manufacturers such as Giant, Merida, Ideal, Darfon, Lee Chi, Sun Race Sturmey Archer, etc. It is not surprising to see manufacturers in both Taiwan and China reducing the number of working days per week, implement personnel layoffs, and other measures to reduce their economic woes caused by the global reduction in demand.
Resilient Demand for Carbon Fiber
Despite the general downturn in output across the bike manufacturing industry, the resilience in demand for carbon fiber frames and components remains strong. Various carbon fiber manufacturers in Taiwan and China disclosed that steady demand has helped them remain revenue positive. With the relatively high cost and time required for sea shipments, many carbon fiber parts are actually shipped by air freight, signifying that market demand for high-end carbon fiber frames and components, either as OEM or aftermarket pieces, is robust compared to the rest of the industry.