Taiwan is underperforming as a destination for foreign investment, lagging behind traditional and emerging competitors in the region chiefly due to difficult access, the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Taipei said yesterday.
The trade group made the statement and a string of policy recommendations at a press conference to announce its annual white paper titled “Taiwan at a Crossroads.”
AmCham said the coming year will be crucial in determining Taiwan’s economic future and warned that the nation risks losing out to its regional competitors if economic reform and liberalization are not enacted swiftly.
Approved foreign direct investment in Taiwan was US$5.56 billion last year, higher than the US$3.81 billion in 2010 and US$4.96 billion in 2011, but much lower than that of Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Singapore, AmCham chairman Alan Eusden said.
South Korea, with which Taiwan is most often compared, drew US$16.3 billion in foreign direct investment last year, Eusden said.
“The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) should thoroughly re-evaluate the foreign investment application approval process,” Eusden said, adding that government agencies should publish clear and comprehensive criteria for assessing investment proposals with specific timetables for regulatory decisions.
Taiwan scared away US$20 billion of foreign investment in June 2011 when it rejected private equity fund Orion Investment Co’s (遨睿投資) buyout of Yageo Corp (國巨), Taiwan’s biggest maker of passive components used in electronics, said William Bryson, head of AmCham’s private equity committee.
The Investment Commission withheld approval due to concerns over the financial soundness and transparency of the deal, ending hopes of 10 to 11 other investment deals valued at US$2 million each, Bryson said.
Attractiveness and ease of investment sit atop the list of concerns of prospective investors and the latter appears the biggest obstacle, Bryson said.
“Although Taiwan scores well on international competitiveness surveys, those rankings do not translate into high levels of inbound investment,” he said.
Taiwan embarrassingly ranks second to last among 17 Asian countries in attracting private equity fund investment, behind Sri Lanka and ahead only of Pakistan, AmCham’s white paper says.
AmCham urged President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), now well into his second term, to make a greater effort to revitalize the economy as time is running out to establish his legacy, the paper says.
“Actions taken in the next 12 months before the ‘lame duck’ status begins to hamper progress will be decisive in shaping the Ma administration’s future place in history,” it says.
Eusden pressed Ma to mobilize a national campaign, with trade liberalization and joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership as overriding objectives, adding that only urgent action can propel Taiwan’s economy out of the doldrums.
Taiwan’s wages have stagnated, consumer confidence is weak and young people increasingly go to China to find better, higher-paying jobs, the AmCham report says.
The trade group does not have an opinion on the planned nuclear referendum, but suggests policymakers make sure there is sufficient energy to meet the demands of all sectors of the economy.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in