Taiwan should adopt international standards, allow more goods imports from China and pursue trade enhancement measures with the EU in a bid to make the nation more attractive to foreign investors, the European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT) said yesterday.
Regulatory hurdles continue to hinder Taiwan’s competitiveness, although the nation has made headway in being more business friendly in recent years, ECCT chairman Peter Weiss told a news conference publicizing the release of the chamber’s annual position papers.
Double-testing requirements and Taiwan-only standards have hindered imports of electronics products, electric equipment, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and medical equipment, he said.
“Authorities have to take decisive action to harmonize the regulatory environment with international standards to enhance investment and competitiveness,” Weiss said.
This year, the trade group raised 140 issues, including 95 unresolved from previous years. Taiwan needs improvement in areas identified by the chamber to secure a better position in the global economy, the press statement said.
While Taiwan has improved relations with China, it still restricts the import of more than 2,000 items from China, the chamber said. -European firms in the automotive, electrical engineering and retail industries are affected by the ban, it said.
This has diminished the willingness of multinational corporations to maintain or increase their investments in Taiwan and has led to price hikes and to less consumer choice for Taiwanese customers and businesses, Weiss said.
“Taiwan needs to fully normalize relations with China, particularly lifting the import ban on products manufactured in China,” he said.
The chamber also advised Taiwan to pursue free-trade agreements with major trading partners, including a trade enhancement measure (TEM) agreement with the EU.
Aware that a TEM takes time, the chamber suggested Taiwan explore interim measures in areas of mutual interest with the EU, such as more effective implementation of the government procurement agreement, investment flows and international standards.
Helmut Felix Bolt, chair of the chamber’s automotive committee, voiced concerns the government may implement a plan to impose heavy taxes on luxury goods, including cars imported from Europe.
Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) told the legislature last week the Cabinet was considering levying a “luxury tax” on luxury apartments and imported cars, both to bolster the treasury and to bridge the widening income gap between rich and poor.
“The issue has been in discussion for the past two years,” Bolt said. “I’m afraid it will materialize and make imports of cars from Europe extremely expensive, restricting freedom of choice on the part of consumers.”
Currently, imported cars are subject to a commodity tax of between 25 and 35 percent, a business tax of 5 percent, an import tax of between 20 and 30 percent and a trade promotion tax of 0.04 percent.
The premier said that luxury car owners have expressed a willingness to pay more tax and Vice Premier Sean Chen (陳沖) is heading a task force that is studying the matter.
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