Sourcing Taiwan, a major trade promotion event, is set to get under way March 28 in Taipei City, providing a boon for local exporters seeking to offset the effects of uncertain global economic conditions.
Chang Chun-fu, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Economic Affairs Bureau of Foreign Trade, said March 19 that the two-day event at the World Trade Center is part of ROC government efforts to help Taiwan businesses overcome challenges stemming from the European sovereign debt crisis and sluggish U.S. economy.
“The promotion is forecast to create US$4.6 billion in business opportunities for the island’s firms, with the information and communications technology and machinery sectors accounting for over half of this number.”
More than 560 buyers from 59 countries will take part in what event organizer Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) is billing as the largest trade fair to be held in Taiwan this year. These include mainland China’s ICT firm Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., French retailer Groupe Auchane SA, automotive parts producer Thai Summit Harness Public Co. Ltd. and Vestas Wind Technology India Pvt. Ltd.
Over 1,560 local suppliers have signed up for 7,520 one-on-one trade meetings spanning sectors such as computers and peripherals, food, light-emitting diodes, machinery, medical devices and solar energy, TAITRA said.
As a warm-up to the event, the bureau’s Green Trade Project Office is staging a procurement forum March 19 in Taipei for Japan’s Omron Corp. The Kyoto-based electronics manufacturer is keen on sourcing components from Taiwan for industrial automation.
“This is a great opportunity for Taiwan suppliers to make inroads into Japan’s electrical equipment sector after the July 2011 Thai floods that disrupted the global supply chain,” an MOEA official said.
A similarly lucrative opportunity is in the offing at Tokyo-based Techno-Frontier—the largest electronics parts exhibition in Japan. Running July 11-13, the event provides a peerless platform for Taiwan firms to showcase the island’s manufacturing muscle, the official said. (JSM)
Write to Meg Chang at meg.chang@mail.gio.gov.tw