Taiwan just posted its biggest export month ever, which is good news for its economy but risks putting it in Trump's crosshairs over the ballooning trade gap with the US.

• August exports hit a record $82 billion, and Taiwan is on track for a $900 billion year — enough to make it the world's fifth-largest exporter.
• Exports to the US jumped more than 50% this year, leaving a surplus of over $140 billion that could draw a reaction from Trump.
• That surplus hides a big deficit with South Korea: Taiwan buys far more from Samsung and SK Hynix than it sells, mostly high-end memory chips for AI.
• With Seoul seen as treating Taipei coldly under Lee Jae-myung, there are calls for Taiwan to stop being accommodating.
• One idea gaining traction: push TSMC into memory chips and shift purchases toward America's Micron instead.

Outlook: Expect pressure on Taiwan to shrink its US surplus, with chip buying the most likely lever to shift.