The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Affairs must take action and assist the domestic beer industry amid declining market share due to competition from cheap beer imported from China, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers said on Friday.
The market share of Chinese beer in Taiwan has increased to 39 percent, while the share for domestic beer was at 36 percent, DPP Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said.
“There is a real risk of further intrusion by Chinese goods associated with the ‘red supply chain,’ which could endanger our national and economic security,” he said, adding that there was evidence that many of Chinese breweries receive large financial incentives and subsidies from the Chinese government.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times Warning: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health
The ministries should compile reports on the beer industry in Taiwan and come up with ways to boost domestic brewers’ market share, Kuo said.
DPP Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) said that in the first half of the year, the market share of domestic beer declined to 36 percent.
“Although the Ministry of Finance imposed anti-dumping duties on Chinese-made beer on July 3, imports of beer last month increased by 27 percent compared with the same period last year,” Hsu said. “These figures point to serious issues.”
“Growth in the volume of imported beer was higher than the increase in their value, indicating that the beer imports were low to medium-priced products,” Hsu said.
He cited as an example Chinese-made Bar Beer and Busch Snow Mountain Beer, which face anti-dumping duties of 13 percent and 33 percent respectively, saying that the tariffs were still too low and had little effect in deterring China from dumping in low-priced beer in Taiwan.
“Even after imposing anti-dumping duties, this did not stop their sales promotion, low prices and volume discounts,” Hsu said.
DPP Legislator Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) said that Chinese beer companies were also falsely marketing their products as being made in the US, Japan or Taiwan, and called on government agencies to amend the Regulations Governing Trade Between the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (台灣地區與大陸地區貿易許可辦法) to ensure clear labeling of products’ country of origin.
National Treasury Administration deputy head Lin Hsiu-yen (林秀燕) said the agency would discuss adjusting duties on the import of ingredients for beer production.
Bureau of Foreign Trade official Huang Ching-hsuan (黃?萱) said they would coordinate with the finance ministry to provide guidance for the beer industry, and discuss possible additional conditions importers must meet to obtain permits to sell in Taiwan.
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