US Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson said on Sunday the US government would "do what it takes" to calm jittery markets after regulators intervened to drag the Bear Stearns bank from the brink of collapse.
The former Goldman Sachs boss reaffirmed that a "strong dollar is in our nation's interest," and insisted that the US economy's "fundamentals are strong" -- provided Congress keeps taxes low and embraces free trade.
"The government is prepared to do what it takes to maintain the stability of our financial system. That is our priority," he said on Fox News after the Federal Reserve was forced on Friday to bail out investment bank Bear Stearns.
On a round of TV interviews, Paulson talked up the faltering economy, and denied that US President George W. Bush's administration was neglecting to head off the decade's second recession after the "dotcom" downturn of 2001.
The Treasury chief said he was concerned about "moral hazard," when other banks in trouble might be encouraged to continue risky behavior because of the prospect of a federal rescue.
But his main concern in the Bear Stearns crisis was "to minimize the impact on the broader economy," he said.
"I think we made the right decision. The Federal Reserve made the right decision here. I have confidence in our markets and in our financial institutions," he said.
Bush on Friday said the economy was going through a "tough time" but ruled out Democratic calls for a second stimulus package, warning that political over-reaction may instead make things worse.
"My reaction is we are all over this. The president is very focused on what's going on in the economy," Paulson said, stressing that he had been manning the telephones to oversee the Bear Stearns crisis.
The Treasury chief noted that US taxpayers should start receiving rebate checks early in May under a US$168 billion stimulus package pushed through Congress last month at the administration's urging.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS