Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and other members of a Taiwan-US trade task force briefed President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday evening on the potential impacts of reciprocal tariffs the US is set to introduce, including contingency preparations.
The Executive Yuan established a US-Taiwan economic and trade task force in November last year, holding interministerial meetings and cooperating with the National Security Council (NSC) to stay updated on the latest developments in US trade and tariff policies.
Cho is monitoring the team to ensure that potential US trade policies are analyzed in advance, allowing the government to assess potential impacts and prepare countermeasures, government officials said.
Photo: Taipei Times
US President Donald Trump yesterday said that reciprocal tariffs he is set to announce this week would include all nations, not just a smaller group of 10 to 15 countries with the biggest trade imbalances.
Trump has promised to unveil a massive tariff plan on Wednesday, which he has dubbed "Liberation Day."
He has already imposed tariffs on aluminum, steel and autos, along with increased tariffs on all goods from China.
The task force, led by Vice Premier Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君), is working with the Office of Trade Negotiations, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Ministry of Finance on preparation work.
Their efforts focus on industry communication, evaluating policy tools, engaging in negotiations with the US and analyzing the global industrial and economic competitive landscape, officials said.
According to reports, Lai thanked Cho and the task force for their work hard over the past few months, cooperating with the NSC to prepare for various uncertainties in the global economy.
Lai requested that Cho and NSC Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) lead their teams in continuing to monitor the latest developments, conducting careful assessments and preparing the most appropriate responses.
This would protect national interests and ensure the stability and growth of the economy, he said.
He added that strong support must be provided for industries that would be impacted by changing global policies.
Additional reporting by Reuters
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
RSS