Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) on Thursday opened the first-ever Taiwan Expo in Japan, touting an estimated NT$10 billion (US$309.1 million) in new investment from Japanese companies in Taiwan.
The opening of the three-day event in Tokyo was attended by dignities from the two countries, including Representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) Chairman James Huang (黃志芳) and global chief marketing officer and Taiwan president of SEMI Terry Tsao (曹世綸), as well as Japanese Representative to Taiwan Kazuyuki Katayama, Tomohiro Takashima, director of Japan External Trade Organization’s Taiwanese Company Investment Support Group, and Japanese lawmakers Yasushi Kaneko and Yuki Waseda.
The Taiwan Expo provides a marvelous opportunity to showcase Taiwan’s diversity and creativity in technology, culture, arts and other fields, reflecting the importance Taiwan attaches to Japan and other partners around the world, Hsieh said.
Photo: Lin Ching-hua, Taipei Times
Wang told reporters that her delegation visited Fujifilm and some semiconductor companies, including Ebara Corp, after arriving in Japan.
“All these companies have indicated a willingness to increase their investment in Taiwan, which could reach about NT$10 billion, [US$309.1 million] and we can expect to see the first tranche of that in the first quarter of next year,” she said.
Wang on Thursday also attended the Japan-Taiwan Semiconductor Forum in the Japanese capital. During her stay in Japan, she is also participate in an activity to mark the 50th anniversary of the Hsinchu-based Industrial Technology Research Institute — a key promoter of Taiwan’s semiconductor industry.
Wang is heading a delegation that is visiting Japan from Thursday to Monday next week.
Praising the close bond between Taiwan and Japan, Wang said that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s investment in a new wafer fab in Japan’s Kumamoto Prefecture has triggered great interest from the Japanese side, while also bringing more Japanese businesses to invest in Taiwan.
Optimistic that the Taiwan Expo would attract many Japanese visitors, Huang said the expo centers around the theme of a smart sustainable life, with 135 Taiwanese companies displaying state-of-the-art products and technology.
Huang expressed hope the event would help forge closer partnerships between enterprises in the two countries.
In addition, a virtual display of cultural treasures staged by the National Palace Museum, a digital tour of temples around Taiwan organized by the General Association of Chinese Culture and an orchid exhibition will also showcase the beauty of Taiwan’s culture to Japanese visitors, TAITRA said.
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