Vice President Annette Lu (
"In the past, only traditional industries moved to China but recently the electronics industry has followed," she said. "When the golden hen is gone, there won't be any golden eggs laid here. We must take Sinicization of our industry seriously."
Lu made the remarks in Taipei yesterday morning when addressing an international forum on the restructuring of the small and medium-sized business sector and state-run enterprises.
Lu said that the nation's economy faces three problems: Sinicization, globalization and the on-going effects of technological development.
On Sinicization, Lu said that most Taiwanese businesses had been lured by China's cheap land and labor, causing Taiwan to become too dependent on China economically.
Lu said that Taiwanese investment in China has reached 6 percent of the nation's GDP, while US investment in China accounts for 0.03 percent of its GDP and Japanese investment in China takes up 0.05 percent of its GDP.
The relocation of the nation's electronics industry to China over past years has hollowed out the local economy, Lu said. While 80 percent of the world's laptops were manufactured in Taiwan in 2001, it is estimated that all notebook manufacturing would relocate to China by the end of the year, she said.
In terms of globalization, Lu said that although many of Taiwanese businesses were aware of the importance of globalization, many were ill-prepared for it, delivering another blow to the local economy.
On the continued impact of technological development on the local economy, Lu said that some small and medium-sized businesses have criticized the government for treating the high-tech industry too well.
Lu urged small and medium-sized businesses to upgrade their competitiveness in this era of technology and a knowledge-based economy, saying that only new thinking could help upgrade the industry's competitive edge.
Lu also called for financial and organizational reforms, but expressed regret over the public's misunderstanding of the government's second phase of financial reform.
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