The US wants to see Taiwan play a leading role in its efforts to increase US exports to help the administration of US President Barack Obama to fulfill its commitment of opening to more markets, US Assistant Secretary of Commerce Suresh Kumar said in Taipei yesterday.
“While the president has called for a doubling of US exports between 2009 and 2014, we believe Taiwan can lead the way and we have the potential of trebling our exports during this period,” Kumar said at a luncheon with the business community in Taipei.
Kumar, who is also director-general of the US and Foreign Commercial Service, arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday for a three-day visit, part of his tour of Asia to build partnerships with US trade partners in the region and to promote Obama’s National Export Initiative, which aims to double US exports in five years.
Photo: CNA
Kumar commended Taiwan for its strong and growing bilateral trade with the US, saying it was likely that Taiwan would move up one slot to become the US’ eighth-largest trading partner this year.
“We share a common interest in an ever-widening range of regional and global issues, from economic development to climate change and from health to education,” he said.
With a network of offices in 108 US cities and US embassies and consulates in more than 75 countries, the US and Foreign Commercial Service has assisted 18,000 US companies with their exports, of which 16,000 are small and medium-sized firms, Kumar said.
He said the service at the American Institute in Taiwan has ranked top for the number of export successes over the past several years and that it has taken a proactive lead in promoting Obama’s initiative.
“Last year alone we recorded nearly 1,000 export successes valued at US$233 million and this year we are on track to do even better ... The growth of US exports to Taiwan is inspiring. US exports of US$26 billion, on a per capita basis to Taiwan, is among the highest in the world,” he said.
In a meeting with President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) earlier yesterday, Kumar listened as Ma promoted the business opportunities created by the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with China. The president called for economic cooperation with the US to help expand the Chinese market via the cross-strait economic pact.
“After the signing of the ECFA last year, the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei gave a positive review of the business environment and the ECFA’s contribution to trade and investment in Taiwan. I expect the ECFA to present a great opportunity for Taiwan and the US in the joint development of the Chinese market,” Ma said.
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