An agreement reached on Thursday between Taiwan and the US to lower tariffs on Taiwanese goods would benefit local non-tech industries by “leveling the playing field” with major trade competitors, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.
“Japan and South Korea had free trade agreements or quasi-free trade agreements with the US, giving Japanese and South Korean goods an advantage over Taiwanese goods,” Lai told reporters in Taichung.
“But now, the playing field is level. This actually provides a great opportunity for Taiwanese traditional industries exporting to the US,” he said.
Photo: Tsai Shu-yuan, Taipei Times
No formal trade deal has yet been signed, with Taiwanese officials hoping it will be concluded in the coming weeks.
Once signed, the new tariff rate of 15 percent, down from the previously imposed 20 percent, would match the US rates on goods from major trade partners such as Japan, South Korea and the EU.
The two sides also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on investment commitments made by Taiwan to invest more in the US’ semiconductor and technology sectors.
As part of the consensus reached during the negotiations, the US government has agreed to help Taiwanese businesses acquire land, and access utilities and infrastructure, making it easier for them to integrate into the US economy, Lai said.
“Not only will there be a ‘Taiwanese national team’ for US investment, there will also be a ‘US national team’ investing in Taiwan,” Lai said, referring to the MOU.
Taiwan would facilitate US investment in the Taiwanese semiconductor, artificial intelligence, defense and biotechnology sectors to expand market access for US companies, according to the US Department of Commerce, although it did not outline specific commitments in the MOU by the US to invest more in Taiwan.
Because any formal trade deal reached with the US must be approved by the legislature, where opposition parties hold a combined majority, Lai called for nonpartisan support from lawmakers when reviewing the pact.
Under the Conclusion of Treaties Act (條約締結法), once a treaty has been signed, the Cabinet must submit it within 30 days to the legislature for deliberations.
The legislature can then retain or revise the clauses, in which case the treaty must be renegotiated with the other signatory.
The first of 10 new high-capacity trains purchased from South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem arrived at the Port of Taipei yesterday to meet the demands of an expanding metro network, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. The train completed a three-day, 1,200km voyage from the Port of Masan in South Korea, the company said. Costing NT$590 million (US$18.79 million) each, the new six-carriage trains feature a redesigned interior based on "human-centric" transportation concepts, TRTC said. The design utilizes continuous longitudinal seating to widen the aisles and optimize passenger flow, while also upgrading passenger information displays and driving control systems for a more comfortable
Taiwan's first indigenous defense submarine, the SS-711 Hai Kun (海鯤, or Narwhal), departed for its 13th sea trial at 7am today, marking its seventh submerged test, with delivery to the navy scheduled for July. The outing also marked its first sea deployment since President William Lai (賴清德) boarded the submarine for an inspection on March 19, drawing a crowd of military enthusiasts who gathered to show support. The submarine this morning departed port accompanied by CSBC Corp’s Endeavor Manta (奮進魔鬼魚號) uncrewed surface vessel and a navy M109 assault boat. Amid public interest in key milestones such as torpedo-launching operations and overnight submerged trials,
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
SECURITY RISK: A university student sent a general alarm signal to THSRC’s control center on April 5, causing four operating trains to temporarily halt services The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday pledged to submit a report on ways to harden the communication security of railway systems after a university student hacked into Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp’s (THSRC) radio communications system and disrupted operations of four high-speed rail trains last month. Investigation by the police and prosecutors found that the university student and radio enthusiast, surnamed Lin (林), first used a software-defined radio (SDR) filter to analyze THSRC signals, downloaded the data to a computer, cracked the parameters and then programmed the codes into his radio devices. Lin then sent a general alarm signal to
RSS