Chen meets with economic advisors as growth jumps

Noting that Taiwan's economy is recovering, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday also warned of challenges ahead.

The president made the remarks after meeting with his economic advisors. It was the first time that Chen met with his economic team since he was reelected in March.

The eight-member group is headed by former Vice Premier Lin Hsi-yi (林信義).

Other members are Taiwan Institute of Economic Research President Wu Rong-I (吳榮義), Chung-hua Institution for Economic Research President Chen Tien-jy (陳添枝), Taiwan Thinktank Vice President Ko Chen-en (柯承恩), Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce Chairman Theodore Huang (黃茂雄), Bank of Taiwan President Joseph Lu (呂桔誠), National Tsinghua University's Technology Management Department President Shih Chin-tay (史欽泰) and chairman of Association of Electronic Industry Hsu Sheng-Hsiung (許勝雄).

"I look for panel members to provide broad, long-term economic and industrial policy advice," Chen said.

The Cabinet-level Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics last week revised the nation's economic growth rate to 5.87 percent for the year, up from its 5.41 percent forecast in May.

Chen said that although this would be the best performance in four years, soaring oil prices, interest rate hikes by industrialized countries, inflation and terrorist threats around the world may be stumbling blocks to higher economic growth in Taiwan.

At a news conference held following the meeting, Lin said that the group's purpose was to brief the president on the state of the economy and that no significant policy measures were put forward by the advisors.

Lin said that the president wants to discuss the privatization of state-own corporations and state-own financial organizations at the panel's next meeting, along with a host of other issues such as reform of the nations public-health system, which is bleeding vast amounts of red inks.