The European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT) yesterday renewed its call for Taiwan to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China, saying it could remove political barriers for Taipei to initiate negotiations for a trade enhancement agreement (TEM) with the EU.
Although the government has put a priority on the ECFA, “we urge Taiwan to take ownership of the TEM project as the next step after [the] ECFA,” ECCT chairman Philippe Pellegrin told a media briefing yesterday while releasing its 2009-2010 position paper titled Taiwan Bouncing Back.
Pellegrin said the trade pact with China would create a triple win for Taiwan’s economy, local businesses and foreign companies considering Taiwan as a springboard to China.
TEM measures would boost the EU’s annual GDP by 2 billion euros (US$3 billion) and Taiwan’s economy by 3.8 billion euros, the chamber said.
Pellegrin refused to respond to questions on whether the Taiwanese government’s policymaking credibility had been tainted by “missteps” in its beef negotiations with Washington, which could have a negative impact on inking a trade pact with China. He only said “we will be very disappointed if the ECFA is postponed.”
In the latest position paper, the ECCT listed 133 recommendations, including 98 issues from the 2008-2009 position paper that were not resolved. Only 11 of the 164 recommendations in 2008-2009 were addressed last year.
The chamber expressed frustration over the government’s failure to resolve agrochemical intellectual property rights infringements and a ban on certain electronic imports.
It also urged the government to create a “robust tax system” to enhance Taiwan’s competitiveness in attracting foreign direct investments as well as to take the initiative in implementing energy-saving measures.
Taiwan can save NT$46 billion annually by adopting energy-efficient technologies in offices and residential buildings and reduce carbon emissions by 30 percent, ECCT vice chairman Peter Weiss said.
Overall, at the cost of 1.5 percent of a country’s GDP, investments in energy-saving technologies could boost its economy by between 5 percent and 20 percent annually in addition to lowering carbon emissions, he added.
Separately, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday said that the signing of an ECFA would help boost the domestic market by creating between 257,000 and 263,000 jobs.
The ministry said in a statement that recent media reports that 1.63 million workers would lose their jobs if the pact were signed were not true.
It said the ECFA would give Taiwan an edge by allowing firms to move into China earlier than competitors and increase Taiwanese products’ market share across the Taiwan Strait.
It would also position Taiwan as a strategic partner for foreign companies when they seek to make inroads in the China market, the statement said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JASON TAN
Shares in Taiwan closed at a new high yesterday, the first trading day of the new year, as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) continued to break records amid an artificial intelligence (AI) boom, dealers said. The TAIEX closed up 386.21 points, or 1.33 percent, at 29,349.81, with turnover totaling NT$648.844 billion (US$20.65 billion). “Judging from a stronger Taiwan dollar against the US dollar, I think foreign institutional investors returned from the holidays and brought funds into the local market,” Concord Securities Co (康和證券) analyst Kerry Huang (黃志祺) said. “Foreign investors just rebuilt their positions with TSMC as their top target,
REVENUE PERFORMANCE: Cloud and network products, and electronic components saw strong increases, while smart consumer electronics and computing products fell Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) yesterday posted 26.51 percent quarterly growth in revenue for last quarter to NT$2.6 trillion (US$82.44 billion), the strongest on record for the period and above expectations, but the company forecast a slight revenue dip this quarter due to seasonal factors. On an annual basis, revenue last quarter grew 22.07 percent, the company said. Analysts on average estimated about NT$2.4 trillion increase. Hon Hai, which assembles servers for Nvidia Corp and iPhones for Apple Inc, is expanding its capacity in the US, adding artificial intelligence (AI) server production in Wisconsin and Texas, where it operates established campuses. This
US President Donald Trump on Friday blocked US photonics firm HieFo Corp’s US$3 million acquisition of assets in New Jersey-based aerospace and defense specialist Emcore Corp, citing national security and China-related concerns. In an order released by the White House, Trump said HieFo was “controlled by a citizen of the People’s Republic of China” and that its 2024 acquisition of Emcore’s businesses led the US president to believe that it might “take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.” The order did not name the person or detail Trump’s concerns. “The Transaction is hereby prohibited,”
Garment maker Makalot Industrial Co (聚陽) yesterday reported lower-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue of NT$7.93 billion (US$251.44 million), down 9.48 percent from NT$8.76 billion a year earlier. On a quarterly basis, revenue fell 10.83 percent from NT$8.89 billion, company data showed. The figure was also lower than market expectations of NT$8.05 billion, according to data compiled by Yuanta Securities Investment and Consulting Co (元大投顧), which had projected NT$8.22 billion. Makalot’s revenue this quarter would likely increase by a mid-teens percentage as the industry is entering its high season, Yuanta said. Overall, Makalot’s revenue last year totaled NT$34.43 billion, down 3.08 percent from its record NT$35.52
RSS