Taipei Times (TT): Some Taiwanese companies have had roots in Indonesia for more than 30 years, including those textile manufacturers that seek production bases with lower labor costs. From your observations, are there any emerging opportunities for Taiwanese companies to explore in Indonesia?
James Huang (黃志芳): Taiwan last year invested a total of US$397 million in Indonesia, indicating a 166 percent jump from US$149 million in 2016. The figure shows that a lot of Taiwanese companies have expressed interests in tapping into the Indonesian market.
There is a noticeable shift in business models. In the past, most Taiwanese export-reliant firms that chose Indonesia as their production base sold their products to overseas customers. However, in recent years, I have found that some companies have shifted their target to Indonesia’s domestic market, such as tire maker Cheng Shin Rubber Industry Co (正新橡膠).
Photo: Kuo Chia-erh, Taipei Times
Apart from suppliers in traditional manufacturing industries, many services and “smart” solution providers have been trying to enter the Indonesian market, eyeing growing demand backed by the country’s strong economic growth.
The trend echoes the government’s New Southbound Policy, which encourages Taiwanese businesspeople to grasp opportunities in the domestic demand markets of our Southeast Asian neighbors.
TT: How can TAITRA help Taiwanese companies sell their products in the Indonesian market?
Huang: We launched the Taiwan Halal Center in Taipei in April last year, with the aim of promoting halal-certified products. Our colleagues working at overseas branches also help Taiwanese companies obtain related certification to export their products to Muslim markets.
It is so important for us to continue promoting halal certification, considering regulatory changes regarding Indonesia’s food products. From next year, all goods distributed in Indonesia must be clearly labeled as halal-certified or non-halal.
TT: TAITRA held its first-ever Taiwan Expo in Indonesia last year. What were the features of this year’s Taiwan Expo in Jakarta?
Huang: The role of the Taiwan Expo is to raise awareness about the New Southbound Policy and facilitate collaborations through matchmaking events. We introduce our best technologies and products to customers in different markets.
The size of this year’s Taiwan Expo almost doubled from last year. For this year’s exhibition, we invited 230 Taiwanese firms from 10 industries, ranging from machinery, home appliances and cosmetics to food and beverages. They used 280 booths to exhibit more than 4,500 products and services at the three-day event.
Aside from new booths and pavilions, we also organized a special team comprising officials from eight Taiwanese banks to investigate Indonesia’s financial market. There is still much room for the development of the banking industry, given that country’s population is nearly 250 million.
The Taiwan Expo last year generated orders worth about US$49 million in Jakarta and we expect the figure to grow by at least 20 percent annually this year.
TT: What are TAITRA’s promotion plans for other Asian countries this year?
Huang: We are to hold a Taiwan Expo in New Delhi for the first time next month. India is a rapidly growing economy with a total population of 1.3 billion people and its economic growth is even faster than China and ASEAN members. The market is worth exploring further.
The India event aims to be in line with the Indian government’s latest economic policies. The government has been pushing several programs that boost economic development, such as Make in India, Green India and Digital India. The size of India’s digital economy, for instance, is expected to reach US$1 trillion in the foreseeable future.
We hope to meet rising demand in those sectors, since Taiwan is globally competitive in the manufacturing, green energy and telecommunication industries. TAITRA will also hold a Taiwan Expo in Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia this year. Each expo will be themed to suit each country.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, booked its first-ever profit from its Arizona subsidiary in the first half of this year, four years after operations began, a company financial statement showed. Wholly owned by TSMC, the Arizona unit contributed NT$4.52 billion (US$150.1 million) in net profit, compared with a loss of NT$4.34 billion a year earlier, the statement showed. The company attributed the turnaround to strong market demand and high factory utilization. The Arizona unit counts Apple Inc, Nvidia Corp and Advanced Micro Devices Inc among its major customers. The firm’s first fab in Arizona began high-volume production
VOTE OF CONFIDENCE: The Japanese company is adding Intel to an investment portfolio that includes artificial intelligence linchpins Nvidia Corp and TSMC Softbank Group Corp agreed to buy US$2 billion of Intel Corp stock, a surprise deal to shore up a struggling US name while boosting its own chip ambitions. The Japanese company, which is adding Intel to an investment portfolio that includes artificial intelligence (AI) linchpins Nvidia Corp and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), is to pay US$23 a share — a small discount to Intel’s last close. Shares of the US chipmaker, which would issue new stock to Softbank, surged more than 5 percent in after-hours trading. Softbank’s stock fell as much as 5.4 percent on Tuesday in Tokyo, its
COLLABORATION: Softbank would supply manufacturing gear to the factory, and a joint venture would make AI data center equipment, Young Liu said Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) would operate a US factory owned by Softbank Group Corp, setting up what is in the running to be the first manufacturing site in the Japanese company’s US$500 billion Stargate venture with OpenAI and Oracle Corp. Softbank is acquiring Hon Hai’s electric-vehicle plant in Ohio, but the Taiwanese company would continue to run the complex after turning it into an artificial intelligence (AI) server production plant, Hon Hai chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) said yesterday. Softbank would supply manufacturing gear to the factory, and a joint venture between the two companies would make AI data
The Taiwan Automation Intelligence and Robot Show, which is to be held from Wednesday to Saturday at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, would showcase the latest in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven robotics and automation technologies, the organizer said yesterday. The event would highlight applications in smart manufacturing, as well as information and communications technology, the Taiwan Automation Intelligence and Robotics Association said. More than 1,000 companies are to display innovations in semiconductors, electromechanics, industrial automation and intelligent manufacturing, it said in a news release. Visitors can explore automated guided vehicles, 3D machine vision systems and AI-powered applications at the show, along
RSS