Ten major companies in Taiwan
Taiwan’s largest companies are in the technology sector, in finance, and in the petrochemical and plastics industries. All figures are quoted from the Forbes 2000 list (2019) and are sorted by revenue.
#1 Hon Hai Precision Most people will know this company as Foxconn. It is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of electronic and PC components, and provides electronics manufacturing services to Apple and HP, among others. With a workforce of 600,000, it is also one of the world’s largest employers.
#2 Pegatron Another manufacturer of computer components and devices such as laptops, consoles and televisions for well-known international brands including Acer, Asus (also Taiwan), Apple, Dell and Intel.
#3 Taiwan Semiconductor TSMC specialises in manufacturing semiconductor products, i.e. microchips used in smartphones, computers, tablets and other electronic equipment. TSMC also manufactures to order for companies that do not have their own production facilities.
#4 Quanta Computer Quanta is also an electronics company, manufacturing laptops, server cabinets, and electronics for data centres and smart homes.
#5 Compal Electronics No surprises here: yet another manufacturer of consumer electronics. The company makes components for Internet of Things devices, laptops, wearables, smartphones, servers and car electronics.
#6 Wistron Another provider of electronics manufacturing services across all sectors, from home entertainment to industrial applications.
#7 Cathay Financial The first company in the top ten that is not an electronics manufacturer is Taiwan’s largest bank.
#8 Formosa Petrochemical The petrochemical industry is one of Taiwan’s key export sectors, and Formosa is the largest company in this field. Formosa refines crude oil into a range of products such as car fuels, lubricants, liquefied petroleum gas and base products for plastics manufacturing.
#9 Fubon Financial Fubon is the country’s second-largest bank that is also active in the insurance sector. Like Cathay Financial, Fubon is active in the banking and investment sector throughout Asia.
#10 WPG Holdings Number ten closes the loop: WPG Holdings has many subsidiaries that are active in the semiconductor industry.