Links by Oct. 19, Chen says

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday vowed to facilitate direct cargo transportation links between Taiwan and China before Oct. 19, when the 2003 Taiwan Business Alliance Conference convenes.

"The government will begin unilateral measures to facilitate partial cross-strait cargo links, despite the lack of negotiations with China," Chen said. "I won't fall short of the business community's expectations."

The proposed direct cargo link with China is estimated to save Taiwanese companies 5 percent on cargo handling fees charged by Hong Kong, or as much as NT$70 billion a year, Day Sheng-tung (戴勝通), chairman of the National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, said in an interview last month.

Addressing some 600 members of the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (工商協進會) yesterday morning, Chen said that turning around the nation's economy is more important than drumming up support for his re-election bid, and urged opposition parties to put aside political interests.

Before Chen's speech, association chairman Theodore Huang (黃茂雄) said he hoped Chen can keep his promise made last month to realize full direct links by the end of next year.

Huang urged the government to pursue deregulation in areas such as foreign capital restrictions while allowing the market mechanism to prevail.

"It's important that Taiwan's competitiveness is strengthened to maintain its survival," Huang told the association's annual general meeting yesterday. "Businessmen know what's best for them."

Chen reiterated in his speech that his administration is pursuing deregulation to remove controls on capital flow and trade barriers, while beefing up international competitiveness and the investment environment.

The president also talked up the nation's economy yesterday, saying "the worst is over."

Vice Premier Lin Hsin-i (林信義) -- who said in April 2001 when he was minister of economic affairs that the public "should expect two to three more years of pain before things improve" -- echoed the president's optimism, saying unemployment is expected to fall from 5.16 percent in July to 4.25 percent in December.