The government has prepared a strategic plan and is ready to negotiate with the US on tariffs, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said today.
The aim for negotiations would be to balance trade, Cho said, adding that he urges the public to have patience while negotiations are ongoing.
Speaking to reporters prior to a Legislative Yuan policy briefing today, Cho said that the world trade order is undergoing a major reorganization in response to US tariff policy, and in response, the government wants to stabilize domestic industries and prepare for negotiations.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Preparations have been made for tariff discussions with the US, including by Vice Premier Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君), the Office of Trade Negotiations and the national security team, Cho said.
The US Department of Commerce yesterday said it would investigate semiconductor and semiconductor manufacturing equipment imports, along with the pharmaceutical industry, for potential new tariffs.
In response, Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) told reporters that the ministry is prepared to respond to either drug price increases or drug shortages to ensure that the public maintains sufficient and safe access to medicines.
Taiwan imports about 10 percent of its drugs from the US, many of which are cancer drugs, Chiu said, adding that the ministry is prepared for the possibility of price increases.
In response to potential semiconductor tariffs, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said that Taiwan is to simulate potential impacts and seek talks with Washington on the issue.
Also speaking to reporters outside the legislature, Kuo said he would seek to discuss the matter with the US and ensure "fair competition" for Taiwanese industry.
The Taiwanese and US chip sectors are complementary, he added.
"As to how much [the tariffs] could be, we will of course carry out simulations," Kuo said. "On the tariffs issue, we will try as hard as possible to communicate with the US side."
The level of chip tariffs would be "the outcome of talks," he added without elaborating.
Additional reporting by Reuters
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The next minimum wage hike is expected to exceed NT$30,000, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday during an award ceremony honoring “model workers,” including migrant workers, at the Presidential Office ahead of Workers’ Day today. Lai said he wished to thank the awardees on behalf of the nation and extend his most sincere respect for their hard work, on which Taiwan’s prosperity has been built. Lai specifically thanked 10 migrant workers selected for the award, saying that although they left their home countries to further their own goals, their efforts have benefited Taiwan as well. The nation’s industrial sector and small businesses lay
Quarantine awareness posters at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport have gone viral for their use of wordplay. Issued by the airport branch of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, the posters feature sniffer dogs making a range of facial expressions, paired with advisory messages built around homophones. “We update the messages for holidays and campaign needs, periodically refreshing materials to attract people’s attention,” quarantine officials said. “The aim is to use the dogs’ appeal to draw focus to quarantine regulations.” A Japanese traveler visiting Taiwan has posted a photo on X of a poster showing a quarantine dog with a
RSS