Local manufacturers of machine tools, molds, plastic products and electronic materials are expected to bear the brunt of the newly announced 20 percent US tariff, as their main competitors from Japan and South Korea face lower rates, an impact assessment report obtained by the Taipei Times showed yesterday.
The competitiveness of Taiwanese firms in these sectors is likely to decline, as Japan — Taiwan’s primary rival in the US market for the products — is subject to only a 15 percent tariff, the Industrial Technology Information Service (ITIS, 工研院產業科技國際策略發展所) said in a report.
The new US import duties add to the challenges already facing Taiwanese manufacturers, who have been squeezed by unfavorable foreign exchange rates over the past few years, the report said.
Photo: CNA
The weakening Japanese yen continues to erode Taiwan’s price competitiveness, it added.
The impact on 13 other sectors — including semiconductors, information hardware, electronic components, communications equipment and steel — is expected to remain stable for now, as the outcome of the ongoing investigation under Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act is still pending, the ITIS said.
Meanwhile, most hardware manufacturers — from makers of mobile phones and PCs to servers — have relocated production from China to Vietnam and Mexico to enhance flexibility amid rising geopolitical tensions, the report said.
China, Taiwan’s main rival, is subject to higher US tariffs than Taiwan.
Contract electronics maker Wistron Corp (緯創) yesterday said its production expansion plans in the US remain unchanged.
The company on Tuesday received approval from the Ministry of Economic Affairs to invest US$455 million to build server facilities in Texas, while Inventec Corp (英業達) also received approval for a US$85 million investment to establish a new server facility in the state.
The 20 percent tariff places Taiwanese firms at a competitive disadvantage, as similar products from Japan and South Korea would face a lower 15 percent levy, the Taipei-based Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (CNAIC, 工商協進會) said, in line with the ITIS’ assessment.
The trade group urged the government to intensify negotiations with Washington to secure more favorable terms.
Adding to the uncertainty, the US has launched a national security probe into semiconductor imports — a move widely viewed as a pretext for imposing trade restrictions on strategic sectors. As a key global chip supplier, Taiwan is likely to be caught in the crosshairs.
“Taiwan’s export resilience is being tested,” CNAIC said in a statement.
The association called for targeted efforts to secure lower US tariffs on key exports such as machine tools, molds, plastics and electronic materials — areas in which Japan already benefits from reduced tariffs.
In addition to seeking tariff relief, the CNAIC also called for stronger domestic policy support to help exporters withstand mounting external pressures.
Meanwhile, local semiconductor firms are increasingly concerned about the economic impact of potential US tariffs on chips. The results of the semiconductor investigation are expected within two weeks.
Msscorps Co (汎銓科技), a provider of advanced material analysis services for the semiconductor industry, yesterday said that its new US facility has recently begun operations, allowing the company to avoid the newly imposed 20 percent tariff on Taiwanese goods.
Msscorps said that it expects not only to emerge largely unscathed by the 20 percent tariff, but also might benefit from the new levies, which could encourage US semiconductor firms to conduct material analysis domestically rather than shipping chips overseas and back, company chairman Gino Leou (柳紀綸) told reporters yesterday.
The company in May opened its first US laboratory in Silicon Valley, with all equipment installed well in advance of the tariff’s implementation, aiming to better serve its US clients, which include Apple Inc, Nvidia Corp, Applied Materials Inc and Lam Research Corp.
Leou said the company is considering expanding the lab’s capacity by the end of this year or early next year, as one of its key customers is accelerating the development of 2-nanometer chip production in the US.
While Leou did not name the client, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) is the only company globally capable of producing chips at that advanced scale.
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
COVETED PRIZE: The US president would be a peace prize laureate should he persuade Xi Jinping to abandon military aggression against Taiwan, William Lai said US President Donald Trump should get the Nobel Peace Prize should he be able to convince Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to abandon the use of force against Taiwan, President William Lai (賴清德) told a conservative US radio show and podcast in an interview. The US is Taiwan’s most important international backer, despite the absence of formal ties, but since Trump took office earlier this year he has not announced any new arms sales to the nation. Trump could meet Xi at the APEC summit in South Korea on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1. Lai, speaking on The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton
RSS