Taiwan might face a decline in foreign trade with China if the cross-strait Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) ends this year, Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) said yesterday.
The agreement, which was signed and put into effect in 2010 to reduce trade barriers across the Taiwan Strait, is expected to end this year, despite not having an exact termination date.
“We have not received notification [from China] that it wishes to terminate ECFA,” Shen told reporters prior to attending a meeting at the Legislative Yuan. “Even if we are notified, the agreement would only cease after six months.”
While acknowledging the potential effects on Taiwan’s economy, Shen said termination of the agreement would affect less than 5 percent of commercial exchanges with China.
“The essential thing is for our industries to upgrade and transform,” Shen said, adding that companies should expand their commercial horizons to prepare for any disruptions in the agreement.
Separately, when asked about previously announced e-commerce vouchers to boost the local economy, Shen said that the ministry has already outlined a few general ideas for issuing them.
On Wednesday, Shen revealed that the ministry plans to provide discounts of 20 to 25 percent on purchases made online with the vouchers.
“The point is not to have people making big purchases in one go, but to spend on a day-to-day basis,” Shen said, adding that the vouchers would mainly be valid for daily necessities.
In other news, the ministry yesterday approved applications from eight small and medium-sized enterprises to invest about NT$2 billion (US$66.1 million) in the nation through a government program.
Food products suppliers Fu Che Frozen Food Co Ltd (福記冷凍食品) and Feng Fang Food Co Ltd (芬芳烹材) plan to invest more than NT$400 million each to expand existing production in Taiwan.
Morrison Opto-Electronics Ltd (耀穎光電), which makes optical thin-film coatings and components, is to invest more than NT$300 million to expand production, the ministry said.
Medical equipment suppliers Sangtech Lab Inc (笙特科技) and Medimaging Integrated Solution Inc (晉弘科技) are to invest NT$200 million and NT$100 million respectively to introduce automated production to existing plants.
Sewing machine component supplier Donwei Machinery Industry Co Ltd (東緯機械), manufacturer Jien Wei Knitting Co Ltd (建瑋棉織) and jewelry maker Su-Ao International Corp (豐昌行國際) are to invest a combined NT$400 million.
ELECTRONICS BOOST: A predicted surge in exports would likely be driven by ICT products, exports of which have soared 84.7 percent from a year earlier, DBS said DBS Bank Ltd (星展銀行) yesterday raised its GDP growth forecast for Taiwan this year to 4 percent from 3 percent, citing robust demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-related exports and accelerated shipment activity, which are expected to offset potential headwinds from US tariffs. “Our GDP growth forecast for 2025 is revised up to 4 percent from 3 percent to reflect front-loaded exports and strong AI demand,” Singapore-based DBS senior economist Ma Tieying (馬鐵英) said in an online briefing. Taiwan’s second-quarter performance beat expectations, with GDP growth likely surpassing 5 percent, driven by a 34.1 percent year-on-year increase in exports, Ma said, citing government
UNIFYING OPPOSITION: Numerous companies have registered complaints over the potential levies, bringing together rival automakers in voicing their reservations US President Donald Trump is readying plans for industry-specific tariffs to kick in alongside his country-by-country duties in two weeks, ramping up his push to reshape the US’ standing in the global trading system by penalizing purchases from abroad. Administration officials could release details of Trump’s planned 50 percent duty on copper in the days before they are set to take effect on Friday next week, a person familiar with the matter said. That is the same date Trump’s “reciprocal” levies on products from more than 100 nations are slated to begin. Trump on Tuesday said that he is likely to impose tariffs
HELPING HAND: Approving the sale of H20s could give China the edge it needs to capture market share and become the global standard, a US representative said The US President Donald Trump administration’s decision allowing Nvidia Corp to resume shipments of its H20 artificial intelligence (AI) chips to China risks bolstering Beijing’s military capabilities and expanding its capacity to compete with the US, the head of the US House Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party said. “The H20, which is a cost-effective and powerful AI inference chip, far surpasses China’s indigenous capability and would therefore provide a substantial increase to China’s AI development,” committee chairman John Moolenaar, a Michigan Republican, said on Friday in a letter to US Secretary of
‘REMARKABLE SHOWING’: The economy likely grew 5 percent in the first half of the year, although it would likely taper off significantly, TIER economist Gordon Sun said The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) yesterday raised Taiwan’s GDP growth forecast for this year to 3.02 percent, citing robust export-driven expansion in the first half that is likely to give way to a notable slowdown later in the year as the front-loading of global shipments fades. The revised projection marks an upward adjustment of 0.11 percentage points from April’s estimate, driven by a surge in exports and corporate inventory buildup ahead of possible US tariff hikes, TIER economist Gordon Sun (孫明德) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy likely grew more than 5 percent in the first six months
RSS