President Lai Ching-te said he was confident in the country’s ability to overcome the challenge of newly announced U.S. policies on tariffs.
Taiwan has a yearly export value of over US$400 billion, the president said April 12 at a Rotary International district conference in Taipei City, adding that 23.4 percent of exports go to the U.S.
Taiwan will cooperate with the U.S. and does not intend to resort to retaliatory tariffs, Lai continued, and said the government anticipates fruitful collaborations with the U.S. that maintain local industries’ vital position in the global supply chain.
The president laid out the country’s major strategies in response to U.S. tariffs, which include negotiating a better rate, devising mid- and long-term economic development projects, and rolling out initiatives to support impacted businesses. Lai explained that industry support projects have a budget of NT$88 billion (US$2.7 billion), which will be allocated to micro-, small- and medium enterprises.
According to a news release from the Executive Yuan, a trade negotiations team held a video conference with U.S. counterparts April 11 to exchange views on mutual tariffs and nontariff trade barriers including export controls. Both parties look forward to follow-up talks to jointly forge a more robust trade partnership, the release added. (POC-E)
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