On Monday evening, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation as leader of the Liberal Party, but would stay on as prime minister until a successor is selected. He had been in office since November 2015. At the end of last year — as a result of an economic downturn and a series of political scandals — his approval rating plummeted to an unprecedented low of 33 percent, leading to intense criticism from within the party. Faced with immense pressure on all sides, Trudeau was left with no choice but to step down.
Like many countries straining under the weight of inflation in the past few years, during Trudeau’s administration, Canada faced new records for inflation. Housing prices in major cities such as Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal have soared by as much as 30 to 40 percent in the past few years — a source of great hardship for Canadians. Several years ago, one of my Canadian clients lamented gas prices that were rising for no apparent reason, leaving them at a loss for what to do.
Meanwhile, Trudeau was repeatedly exposed for accepting luxurious vacations from his corporate friends. Close family members were revealed to have accepted thousands of US dollars in “rewards” from the charitable organization WE Charity — which had signed lucrative contracts with Trudeau’s administration — as payment for attending charity events. The payments appeared to be kickbacks. All of this irreparably damaged Trudeau’s reputation.
In contrast, Taiwan has controlled inflation quite well — unlike Canada and the US, where public dissatisfaction has led to the resignation of a prime minister and the return of former US president Donald Trump.
The housing market is quite an intriguing issue. About 15 years ago, a client of mine in Vancouver told me that housing prices had reached sky-high levels thanks to Chinese immigrants. It is quite a relief that the Taiwanese government has imposed restrictions on Chinese investment to protect Taiwan’s real-estate market from Chinese Communist Party influence. Otherwise, the consequences for Taiwan could have been even worse than in Canada.
In light of Trudeau’s resignation, many foreign media outlets took the opportunity to mention Trump — who is to be inaugurated on Jan. 20 — and his threat to impose a 25 percent tariff on Canadian goods. Trump also mocked Trudeau last month, referring to him as the “governor” of the “Great State of Canada” rather than prime minister, implying that Canada is a US state. That was the straw that broke the camel’s back, as it became clear Trudeau had lost ground in the realm of foreign diplomacy.
Canada is the largest trading partner of the US — the largest economy in the world. Despite this, severe inflation and skyrocketing prices led the public to lose its faith in the government. For Taiwan — the US’ eighth-largest trading partner — this should serve as a cautionary tale. Aside from bolstering ties with the US, economic stability and political integrity are two factors essential to earning the public’s trust.
Fang Fu-chuan is an international trader.
Translated by Kyra Gustavsen
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