US anti-dumping sanctions will cast a shadow over this year's Taiwan International Photovoltaic Forum and Exhibition, where one organizer expects turnover could drop to less than half of last year's event.

The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) said Tuesday that the annual show running Oct. 22-24 may bring only US$100 million in on-site turnover and subsequent business, well below last year's US$230 million.

The 150 local and foreign exhibitors that have registered at the PV Taiwan exhibition will take up 435 booths to showcase their latest breakthroughs, an increase from the 405 booths in last year's show, TAITRA said.

But US anti-dumping sanctions on Taiwan which started in July have led to sliding sales among Taiwanese manufacturers of solar cells and modules for the near term, even though the impact has been buffered by growing demand from Asia and emerging markets, the trade body said.

Meanwhile, many Taiwanese solar suppliers have established overseas factories to help them cut costs and reduce tax burdens, the council said.

The production value of Taiwan's solar industry is forecast to reach NT$187.7 billion (US$6.18 billion) this year, an increase of more than 20% from last year, according to the Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK) under the government sponsored Industrial Technology Research Institute.