US President Donald Trump’s 90-day pause on most tariffs gives breathing space for more in-depth talks, and Taiwan hopes to take advantage of the “huge” US market for more balanced trade, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday.
The US’ baseline tariff of 10 percent is to remain in place, but the additional 22 percent tariff has been suspended for 90 days, Lin said during a legislative hearing.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) asked whether the 75-plus countries that had proposed talks with the US instead of taking retaliatory actions had all been listed for the 90-day pause.
Photo: CNA
Lin said he had confirmed with the US that Taiwan was on the list, but he was not sure about the other countries.
“The temporary baseline 10 percent tariff is now giving Taiwan a relative advantage point [pending further talks],” Lin said.
On Wednesday last week, Trump announced a universal baseline tariff of 10 percent on all imports to the US and higher rates on trading partners the White House deemed the “worst offenders” in “unfair trade practices,” including Taiwan.
In anticipation of the 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, which took effect briefly on Wednesday, the government had been preparing for the economic consequences.
However, in a dramatic turn on Wednesday, Trump said he was pausing the “reciprocal” tariffs on the targeted countries for 90 days, except for China, which is to be subject to a 125 percent tariff.
Prior to yesterday’s legislative session, Lin told reporters that Taiwan was prepared to engage in talks with the US on the tariff issue.
Trump’s latest announcement of a 90-day pause would give both sides more time to prepare for “deeper, more thorough” bilateral negotiations on the issue, he said.
The negotiation team is led by Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) and includes members from the Office of Trade Negotiations, as well as national security and foreign affairs agencies, the Cabinet said.
On Wednesday, Lin said that Taipei was in contact with the US, which has “officially acknowledged our outreach.”
“Taiwan has been included on the list for upcoming trade talks,” he said, without elaborating.
Lin did not provide a timeline for the negotiations.
However, he said that the two sides had been exchanging information, with the US requesting additional data from Taiwan, which the government was in the process of providing.
The government is also looking to boost purchases from the US to narrow the trade deficit.
Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) told lawmakers that state-backed bodies could purchase an additional US$200 billion of goods from the US over the next decade, including a one-third increase in the share of liquefied natural gas (LNG) imported from the country.
That does not include purchases by private companies, he added.
Asked about raising the proportion of Taiwan’s imports of LNG from 10 percent of the total, Kuo said that was the “direction” being eyed.
Most of Taiwan’s LNG comes from Australia and Qatar.
Central bank Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) told lawmakers that the formula used by the US to calculate “reciprocal” tariffs is unreasonable and too rough, but emphasized that it targets all countries globally, not Taiwan specifically.
Trump did not take into account the fact that Taiwan’s trade surplus with the US was because of his country’s need for Taiwan’s products, he said, adding that Taiwan has contributed to the US’ productivity and economy.
Yang said that a suggestion from legislators that the central bank use Taiwan’s holdings of US Treasury securities as a bargaining chip was a “good idea.”
If Taiwan enters negotiations with the US, it should highlight that while the US has to issue government bonds to finance its deficits, Taiwan’s long-term investment in US Treasuries plays a key role in helping to lower US borrowing costs, he added.
Additional reporting by Reuters
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
DEMOGRAPHICS: Robotics is the most promising answer to looming labor woes, the long-term care system and national contingency response, an official said Taiwan is to launch a five-year plan to boost the robotics industry in a bid to address labor shortages stemming from a declining and aging population, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The government approved the initiative, dubbed the Smart Robotics Industry Promotion Plan, via executive order, senior officials told a post-Cabinet meeting news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s population decline would strain the economy and the nation’s ability to care for vulnerable and elderly people, said Peter Hong (洪樂文), who heads the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC) Department of Engineering and Technologies. Projections show that the proportion of Taiwanese 65 or older would
The government is considering polices to increase rental subsidies for people living in social housing who get married and have children, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During an interview with the Plain Law Movement (法律白話文) podcast, Cho said that housing prices cannot be brought down overnight without affecting banks and mortgages. Therefore, the government is focusing on providing more aid for young people by taking 3 to 5 percent of urban renewal projects and zone expropriations and using that land for social housing, he said. Single people living in social housing who get married and become parents could obtain 50 percent more
Democracies must remain united in the face of a shifting geopolitical landscape, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) told the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on Tuesday, while emphasizing the importance of Taiwan’s security to the world. “Taiwan’s security is essential to regional stability and to defending democratic values amid mounting authoritarianism,” Tsai said at the annual forum in the Danish capital. Noting a “new geopolitical landscape” in which global trade and security face “uncertainty and unpredictability,” Tsai said that democracies must remain united and be more committed to building up resilience together in the face of challenges. Resilience “allows us to absorb shocks, adapt under