Economies in both Taiwan and the EU would greatly benefit from the implementation of full-fledged trade enhancement measures (TEMs), similar to those in a free trade agreement (FTA), an international economics consultancy firm commissioned by the European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT) said yesterday.
Trade barriers between Taiwan and the EU result in 12 billion euros (US$16.6 billion) in lost business opportunities per year for European exporters to Taiwan and 10 billion euros for Europe-bound Taiwanese exports, a Copenhagen Economics report said yesterday.
The local economy would see an estimated annual GDP boost of 1.2 percent or 3.8 billion euros in exports to the EU, while the EU would see an increase of 2 billion euros or 0.02 percent GDP in Taiwan-bound exports if an FTA or full-fledged TEMs were implemented in three to five years’ time, the report said.
“The EU should consider saying ‘yes’ to Taiwan if Taiwan knocked on the door and asked for initiation of discussions on TEMs,” Martin Thelle, partner of Denmark-based economics consultancy Copenhagen Economics and the report’s author, told a media briefing in Taipei yesterday.
Thelle, who previously wrote an evaluation report for the FTA between the EU and South Korea, yesterday said that “Taiwan, in relative terms, is just as attractive as South Korea” even though its economy is smaller and Taiwan would be negatively affected by an EU-South Korea FTA.
Under the EU-Taiwan pact, what would make Taiwan additionally valuable would be its special role as a stepping stone for European businesses interested in branching into China, he said, adding that China would also benefit from a stronger Taiwan economy although Chinese exports to the EU would encounter direct competition.
In the long run, the trade pact would further help enhance European productivity and competitiveness by opening trade with Taiwan, a technology powerhouse, while creating more opportunities for Taiwanese electronic and machinery exports to Europe once preferential tariffs were imposed, the report said.
After the nation’s economics ministry expressed similar interest in forging closer trade ties with the EU, Guy Wittich, CEO of the ECCT, yesterday said that the chamber had sent the lengthy report to EU headquarters last week and expects to receive a preliminary response by next week.
The chamber also expects to soon conduct discussions with European officials during its trip to Europe, he said.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
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