Shih praises trade ties with Philippines

Taiwan and the Philippines will further strengthen cooperation in the fields of trade and economics, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-hsiang (施顏祥) said Saturday at the end of an annual ministerial-level Taipei-Manila economic conference.

"The two-day economic cooperation conference has been fruitful," said Shih, who arrived in Manila Thursday along with a delegation of trade officials and business executives, headed by Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Yi-fu (林義夫), to attend the Nov. 28 to Nov. 29 conference.

A memorandum of understanding on expanding bilateral economic cooperation was signed at the conclusion of the meeting, with Lin and his Philippine counterpart, Manuel Roxas, witnessing, Shih said.

The two sides discussed a broad range of topics during the meeting, including protection of the rights and interests of the large number of Philippine workers in Taiwan, simplification of procedures for importing Philippine laborers and income taxes on Philippine workers in Taiwan, Shih said. The Philippines has been one of Taiwan's major import sources of alien workers.

As the Philippines has been designated by the ASEAN to coordinate the electronics industry development in the bloc, Shih said, the two sides exchanged views on the latest market trends in electronics and semiconductor industries.