Feer has been director of TOSI over 20 years and holds an inseparable feeling with Taiwan. According to an interview conducted by the Central News Agency, Feer pointed out that as a small country with great dependency on foreign trade, Taiwan has no other choice but to actively seek external opportunities. "You must get out and about and meet people. Nobody will wait for you in business. Let people become acquainted with you and be familiar with your products," Feer stressed.
Compared with the other Asian tigers such as Singapore and South Korea, Taiwan is seen as being less aggressive and lagging behind in exploiting the European market. Feer put forward that Switzerland is the place to tap into the this market, which he described as full of potential. "Taiwanese companies should be more internationalized, venturing out into new areas, such as Europe," Feer said. "Switzerland, in that way, is a good base for doing business in Europe."
According to Feer, Switzerland is an ideal starting point for doing business in Europe because of its geographic location, diversity of industry, services and internationalization. "Taiwanese companies should change the way of thinking and explore more possibilities. In Europe, they can do more," Feer added.
Switzerland and Taiwan are very similar in their economic structures, Feer explained, with around 70 percent in services and less than 5 percent in agriculture. The former is much more internationalized and competitive in the global market. Switzerland ranks in the top five most competitive countries despite limited land and natural resources, disadvantages Taiwan also faces.
According to the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2008, released in May by the Lausanne-based International Institute for Management Development, Switzerland won first place in Europe and fourth in the world's most competitive countries for its strong economic growth, low unemployment and a large current account surplus. The country was ranked only behind the United States, Singapore and Hong Kong. Taiwan was assessed at 13th in the report.
The trade office director pointed out that Taiwanese enterprises put an emphasis on production rather than branding and marketing, which limits profit margins. Often, Taiwanese companies think price-cutting is the best way to win the market. "That is not true," Feer said. "If your product is very good, you don't have to be cheap. You can afford to be good and expensive. Switzerland is a very good example in this aspect."
Speaking of bilateral economic and trade relations between Taiwan and Switzerland, Feer said the two countries are not competitors. "The trade relations we have are complementary. That is why we see potential for increases in business volume," he said. The two countries should continue to work under the framework of the World Trade Organization, which is important in representing the interests and opportunities of both countries.
According to TOSI statistics, bilateral trade between Taiwan and Switzerland has seen sustainable growth over the past several years. For Taiwan, Switzerland was its 47th largest export market and the country's 27th most important import market, with Swiss investment in Taiwan totaling US$592 million and Taiwanese investment in Switzerland reaching US$18.75 million in 2007.
As for how to decrease the influence and magnetic effect of the mainland Chinese market, Feer said that Taiwan's dependency on the mainland is like the EU market to Switzerland. If Taiwanese companies could have a broader focus and put more effort on internalization, they can avoid any disadvantages from the mainland and win a bigger slice of the global business pie.
Write to Eric Chao at clchao@mail.gio.gov.tw