Cabinet plans loans to boost economic growth

The Cabinet yesterday approved a plan to allocate NT$60 billion (US$1.85 billion) to banks to provide low-interest loans to emerging industries and medium-size businesses, which it said would contribute to a 0.7 percent increase in the economic growth rate.

"We expect to see NT$150 billion injected into emerging industries and the creation of 20,880 annually as a result of the measure," Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) said.

The low-interest loan program was also intended to help more than 27,000 medium-size businesses get listed on the stock market, he said.

Under plan, the government will offer medium-size enterprises a loan of up to NT$100 million each at an interest rate of less than 4.51 percent.

Twenty NT dollars will be made available to enterprises in the fields of wireless technology, digital life, precision machines, environmental protection and health care for loans of up to NT$3 billion each at an interest rate of less than 2.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet yesterday urged newly elected lawmakers, who are to be sworn in tomorrow, to review a list of 44 bills.

"The public expects the new legislature to accomplish a lot because it was elected under a new election system. We hope the legislature will pass the bills as soon as possible so that the Executive Yuan can implement its policies," Chang said.

The bills are intended to promote clean politics, revise the benefits of laborers and farmers, advocate financial and tax reforms and streamline the government's structure, among other things.