The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) last night announced to rescind a notice it previously publicized on July 3 allowing the import of Chinese bedding products.
The decision came after complaints from local bedding product industry leaders who on Thursday said the imports would spell doom for the local industry.
The businesspeople said they have just found out that the MOEA’s Bureau of Foreign Trade held a cross-departmental review on June 20 and allowed the import of six items from China, including cotton and synthetic fiber products used in bedding.
Photo: Cheng Hung-ta, Taipei Times
The policy has “doomed” the local bedding industry, they said.
The administration of former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) had limited the imports to items such as fitted sheets, due to pressure from local industry, the businesspeople said, adding that despite limitations, incidents of Chinese-made products masquerading as Taiwanese brands took place.
The Ma administration allowed the import of synthetic fibers and cotton materials in a bid to use them to increase the output of products for export, they said.
The policy was unregulated, causing companies to sell products in the domestic market, leading to the oversaturation of low-quality products, especially in traditional markets, the businesspeople said.
“The Democratic Progressive Party’s [DPP] decision would allow Chinese-manufactured products to further dominate the domestic market,” they said.
The ministry’s failure to communicate with the local industry prior to the decision would severely affect the operations of at least 80 percent of domestic bedding factories, Taiwan Bedding Industry Alliance chairperson Huang Kuang-yi (黃光藝) said.
The DPP government’s actions shows that its claim to be “the administration most willing to communicate” with the public to be false, Huang said.
Bureau officials said there is no organization representing the bedding industry, when asked why they failed to communicate with industry leaders.
However, business leaders said there are local bedding industry unions in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taiwan Bedding Industry Alliance.
When asked about the timing of the announcement, officials said it came after approval of an application for importing the items.
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