Fewer German companies in Taiwan consider the business environment friendly, although many have achieved or exceeded their business target for this year and would continue to invest in the nation, a survey by the German Trade Office Taipei showed yesterday.
A majority, or 57 percent, of German firms said they would be able to reach or exceed their business target for this year, a big increase from 38 percent last year, the office’s executive director Axel Limberg told a media briefing.
The improvement came from a global economic recovery, benefiting Taiwan’s economy, which depends heavily on exports of electronic components used in mobile and computing devices.
Most German companies in Taiwan are involved in the sale of machinery equipment, electronics, chemicals, automotive parts, and other goods and services, Limberg said, adding that about 60 percent of them have established a presence in Taiwan for at least 15 years.
While 59 percent of respondents this year considered Taiwanese authorities to be business-friendly, that figure is lower than the 63 percent posted in last year and in 2015, Limberg said.
“We see room for improvement in areas such as applications for product certification, although the issues are not very serious,” Limberg added.
Automotive gadgets already approved in Germany are subjected to further or Taiwan-only tests or certifications, which not only delay their arrival but also raise costs for local consumers, Volkswagen Group Taiwan managing director Terence Johnsson said.
Most German firms operate in Taiwan to tap into the local market or build their presence in Asia, the survey found.
Others set up operations here to be close to their suppliers, cut production costs, and expand their research and development capability in Taiwan, it said.
Taiwan could help advance self-driving technology given its leadership in the development of high-performance processors, Johnsson said.
As in previous years, finding and retaining qualified staff, especially those in senior positions, pose the biggest headache for German companies in Taiwan, with nearly 70 percent citing the issue as the No. 1 challenge, the survey said.
Merck Taiwan’s managing director Dick Hsieh (謝志宏) said the global material supplier is expanding its facilities for research and development in Taiwan because the nation’s employees are talented and hard-working.
Respondents said they hope the government would draw up more consistent and reliable industrial policies so they can operate with better clarity and direction.
Jim Tai (戴英傑), managing director of Remondis, a global waste management company, said different authorities tend to have different interpretations of environmental protection codes, slowing the firm’s effort to help and adjust.
Still, 72 percent of German firms would continue investing in Taiwan and 47 percent expect the economy to improve next year, the survey said.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Chizuko Kimura has become the first female sushi chef in the world to win a Michelin star, fulfilling a promise she made to her dying husband to continue his legacy. The 54-year-old Japanese chef regained the Michelin star her late husband, Shunei Kimura, won three years ago for their Sushi Shunei restaurant in Paris. For Shunei Kimura, the star was a dream come true. However, the joy was short-lived. He died from cancer just three months later in June 2022. He was 65. The following year, the restaurant in the heart of Montmartre lost its star rating. Chizuko Kimura insisted that the new star is still down
While China’s leaders use their economic and political might to fight US President Donald Trump’s trade war “to the end,” its army of social media soldiers are embarking on a more humorous campaign online. Trump’s tariff blitz has seen Washington and Beijing impose eye-watering duties on imports from the other, fanning a standoff between the economic superpowers that has sparked global recession fears and sent markets into a tailspin. Trump says his policy is a response to years of being “ripped off” by other countries and aims to bring manufacturing to the US, forcing companies to employ US workers. However, China’s online warriors
RSS