Taiwan Orders Break Records as US EV Fleet Shrinks

Taiwan's export machine produced an all-time high in September 2026. Total export orders reached NT$3,622.3bn, according to the Taiwan Ministry of Economic Affairs series that dates to 1984. That compares with NT$2,137.7bn in September 2025. Breaking the figure down by product group, orders hit $95,691m in dollar terms, topping the previous record of $84,274m. No single month in more than four decades of data has come close.

US Electric Vehicle Registrations at a Four-Year Low

While Taiwan's export machine accelerated, US state electric vehicle registration data told a different story. The ORTEX US state EV fleet dataset recorded just 13,272 registered battery-electric vehicles in July 2026. That is the smallest July total in four years. The prior July peak, set in 2022, was 15,268. Plug-in hybrids fell alongside pure electrics. Registered plug-in hybrids came to 8,210 in July 2026, also a four-year July low, against a previous July high of 10,126 in 2022.

Elsewhere in consumer data, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board's retail sportsbook handle figures showed a 23% year-on-year decline for September 2026, falling to $31.2m from $40.4m in September 2025. Massachusetts casino sportsbook gross and taxable revenue have each fallen for three consecutive months through September 2026, according to the same dataset. Australia air traffic data from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority showed the smallest September for both sectors flown and sectors scheduled in two years.

Canada's national statistics office recorded a CPI index level of 170.0 in September 2026, the largest September reading since the series began in 1914, up from 164.9 a year earlier. The annual rate was also at a two-year September high.

Automakers Reporting This Week: What the Registration Data Shows

Several major carmakers report in the next seven days. The ORTEX Austrian car registration series, which has a measured lead on revenue by 45 days with a moderate fit, is running 9% above the same quarter last year with all three months of the quarter in. That reading covers Kia, which reports on 26 October.

Dutch car registrations, carrying a strong measured fit and a 26-day lead on revenue, are running 6% below the same quarter last year with all three months in. That dataset covers Mercedes-Benz, which reports on 28 October. Finnish registrations, a separate measured lead with a weak fit, are running 36% above the same quarter for the same company.

Austrian registrations are also a measured lead for Volkswagen, reporting 29 October, where the series runs 6% below the year-earlier quarter. For Renault, also reporting 29 October, Austrian registrations run 6% above year-earlier levels with a 32-day measured lead. Dutch registrations, a separate measured lead for Renault with a moderate fit, are running 19% below the same quarter last year, all three months in.

India registrations, a dataset with a measured but weak fit and a 58-day lead, are running 31% above the year-earlier quarter. That reading covers Maruti Suzuki, which reports on 27 October.