The appointment of veteran economist Hu Cheng-sheng (胡勝正) as minister without portfolio yesterday gives the minor Cabinet reshuffle a dose of economic clout.
But as director of Academia Sinica's economic institute, Hu faces an uphill battlefield strewn with economic landmines.
For starts, unemployment is at a 15-year high, international demand for Taiwan's export products is sliding and the domestic investment environment continues to deteriorate as the high-tech sector seeks greener pastures in China.
But one government watcher says that even with the addition of Hu -- a strong economic theorist -- he can achieve little on his own.
"He faces a very tough battle because he can't do the whole job by himself. He needs a strong team but the [economic] team is not functioning well," said Norman Yin (殷乃平), an economics professor at National Chengchi University.
"We can't put too much faith on one man's ability to deal with the economic problems the country is facing."
But Hu told the Taipei Times by phone yesterday that he was up to the task.
"I will do my best to help the premier improve the economy," Hu said. "While I am still unclear how I will assist the Cabinet, I believe the premier will probably have me focus on macroeconomics and monetary issues. But I won't know until Wednesday when I meet the premier and receive my instructions."
Hu, who served as an economics professor at Indiana's Purdue University from 1968 to 1996, returned to Taiwan to work for Academia Sinica in 1996. He received his PhD in 1967 in economics from the University of Rochester, New York.
Yesterday's reshuffle by Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (
Hu said that the trouble in the banking sector and monetary policymaking would top his list of priorities.
"The first issue is to reduce the ratio of non-performing loans, and the second is to improve information transparency in the monetary system," Hu said. "We have to focus on these to improve the credibility of the financial system."
Hu also said mapping out both a short- and long-term economic plan was the key to tackling both the economic slowdown and rising unemployment.
"We can resolve the two problems together by, in the short term, expanding domestic demand to increase employment and, in the long-term, by transforming our economic structure," Hu said.
According to Hu, he will also help coordinate economic-policymaking -- an area pundits say the Cabinet is weak in.
"I will be working closely with [the Ministries of Finance, Economic Affairs and the Council for Economic Planning and Development] to coordinate economic policymaking," Hu said.
But while Yin agreed that coordination was a priority, he said obtaining the cooperation of economic officials would prove to be a formidable task.
"Since economic officials have done little coordination in policymaking in the past 10 months, the public should not expect too much from them now" following Hu's appointment, Yin said.
"Economic and finance officials prefer to "blow their own horns," Yin said.
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
DEFENSIVE EDGE: The liaison officer would work with Taiwan on drones and military applications for other civilian-developed technologies, a source said A Pentagon unit tasked with facilitating the US military’s adoption of new technology is soon to deploy officials to dozens of friendly nations, including Taiwan, the Financial Times reported yesterday. The US Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) is to send a representative to collaborate with Taiwan on drones and military applications from the semiconductor industry by the end of the year, the British daily reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “Drones will certainly be a focus, but they will also be looking at connecting to the broader civilian and dual-use ecosystem, including the tech sector,” one source was
RSS