Taipei, June 24 -- Taiwan's manufacturing business sentiment weakened for the fourth consecutive month in May, reaching its lowest level in 29 months. The primary cause, according to the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER), was uncertainty over America's tariff policy, as reported by Focus Taiwan.

The TIER's latest composite index, which measures business sentiment among local manufacturers, dropped by 4.74 points to 85.83 in May. This marked the fourth straight monthly decline and represented a new low, not seen since December 2022 when it hit 85.97.

The service sector indicator also saw a decline, moving 0.35 points lower to 85.32 from the previous month. This marked its fifth consecutive monthly decline, as TIER data showed....