Major trade groups yesterday called on President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to maintain stable cross-strait relations and pursue membership in regional trade blocs to make Taiwanese firms more competitive.
The Third Wednesday Club (三三會), whose member companies have combined annual revenue of US$673 billion, urged the Tsai administration to also seek free-trade agreements (FTAs).
Taiwan should try harder to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a trading bloc that represents 495 million consumers and 13.5 percent of global GDP, group chairman Rock Hsu (許勝雄) said.
CPTPP members would gain preferential access to key markets in Asia and Latin America, said Hsu, who owns contract laptop maker Compal Electronics Inc (仁寶電腦).
Cross-strait rapprochement is critical in pursuing FTAs and membership in regional trading bodies, he said.
FTAs cover only 9.9 percent of Taiwanese exports, while the ratio is 50 percent in South Korea, 70 percent in Vietnam and 83 percent in Singapore, putting local exporters at a disadvantage, he added.
Additionally, foreign and domestic firms are relocating production bases to cope with the US-China trade dispute and the government must ensure Taiwan has sufficient and stable electricity, water, land and labor to stand out as a favored investment destination, Hsu said.
Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (CNAIC, 工商協進會) chairman Lin Por-fong (林伯豐) said different sectors are worried about potential electricity shortages and steep price hikes with the movement toward green energy over nuclear power.
“The DPP government has not yet given final details to calm unease, and the ongoing dispute over the coal-powered Taichung Power Plant’s operation is deepening concerns over rate hikes,” Lin said.
CNAIC, which represents 1,200 members, also pressed for equal income tax terms for local and foreign companies, as well as stock investors.
The General Chamber of Commerce (全國商業總會) said the government should give serious thought to revising labor rules as existing requirements fail to please employers or employees.
The current overtime pay is unreasonably high at 2.5 times regular wages, leading companies to outsource and deny workers the opportunity to earn extra money from working overtime, the chamber’s chairman Lai Cheng-yi (賴正鎰) said.
Policymakers should grant labor rules more wiggle room regarding working hours and overtime pay as different sectors have different needs, Lai said.
Lai, owner of Shining Building Business Co (鄉林建設) and luxury hotel brand Lalu (涵碧樓), also said that cross-strait interactions should improve, increasing the number of Chinese tourists and benefiting the hospitality industry.
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