Lawmakers on Wednesday unanimously passed an initial agreement reached under the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century that focused on basic trade facilitation and transparency standards and procedures.
Thanking the legislators for their support, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) expressed her hope on Facebook that the agreement could create more business opportunities for Taiwan and contribute to a more secure global supply chain.
Referring to Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁), Executive Yuan spokesman Lin Tze-luen (林子倫) said the passage, which followed the US Senate’s approval of the pact on Tuesday last week, should pave the way for stronger bilateral trade relations.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan and the US signed the first set of terms under the initiative on June 1, which was focused on making customs, border procedures and regulatory practices more efficient with an aim to make bilateral trade easier, faster, and more transparent.
Under the agreement, which does not cover tariff reductions or exemptions, Taiwan and the US committed to facilitate bilateral trade and investment flows, promote anti-corruption measures, minimize unnecessary border formalities, and encourage the development of small and medium-sized enterprises.
The deal also stipulated the establishment of a “foundation” allowing both sides to address trade and investment challenges and opportunities over time.
The Legislative Yuan, which is holding an extraordinary session from July 17 to 31, completed committee discussions and review of the agreement Thursday last week. Following Wednesday’s development, Legislative Yuan said the two countries will continue negotiations on more complicated issues, such as agriculture, digital trade, labor, environmental, and non-market policies and practices, as well as state-owned enterprises and standards.
MULTIFACETED: A task force has analyzed possible scenarios and created responses to assist domestic industries in dealing with US tariffs, the economics minister said The Executive Yuan is tomorrow to announce countermeasures to US President Donald Trump’s planned reciprocal tariffs, although the details of the plan would not be made public until Monday next week, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. The Cabinet established an economic and trade task force in November last year to deal with US trade and tariff related issues, Kuo told reporters outside the legislature in Taipei. The task force has been analyzing and evaluating all kinds of scenarios to identify suitable responses and determine how best to assist domestic industries in managing the effects of Trump’s tariffs, he
TIGHT-LIPPED: UMC said it had no merger plans at the moment, after Nikkei Asia reported that the firm and GlobalFoundries were considering restarting merger talks United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world’s No. 4 contract chipmaker, yesterday launched a new US$5 billion 12-inch chip factory in Singapore as part of its latest effort to diversify its manufacturing footprint amid growing geopolitical risks. The new factory, adjacent to UMC’s existing Singapore fab in the Pasir Res Wafer Fab Park, is scheduled to enter volume production next year, utilizing mature 22-nanometer and 28-nanometer process technologies, UMC said in a statement. The company plans to invest US$5 billion during the first phase of the new fab, which would have an installed capacity of 30,000 12-inch wafers per month, it said. The
Taiwan’s official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month rose 0.2 percentage points to 54.2, in a second consecutive month of expansion, thanks to front-loading demand intended to avoid potential US tariff hikes, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. While short-term demand appeared robust, uncertainties rose due to US President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policy, CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy this year would be characterized by high-level fluctuations and the volatility would be wilder than most expect, Lien said Demand for electronics, particularly semiconductors, continues to benefit from US technology giants’ effort
‘SWASTICAR’: Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s close association with Donald Trump has prompted opponents to brand him a ‘Nazi’ and resulted in a dramatic drop in sales Demonstrators descended on Tesla Inc dealerships across the US, and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump. Waving signs with messages such as “Musk is stealing our money” and “Reclaim our country,” the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as terrorism. Hundreds rallied on Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in Manhattan. Some blasted Musk, the world’s richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his
RSS