TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's financial officials are on high alert as the United States prepares to unveil new tariff policies. The deputy finance minister revealed Monday (March 31) that Washington will announce these measures on Wednesday, intensifying market anxiety that has already sent ripples through global exchanges. Taiwanese financial authorities have mobilized to monitor the potential fallout from these reciprocal tariff policies, which threaten to further destabilize a local stock market already showing signs of vulnerability.
The turbulence in American markets has already reverberated across the Taiwan Strait, triggering an alarming 800-point collapse in Taiwan's stock market. This precipitous decline has sparked urgent concerns among lawmakers, with legislators Lai Hui-yuan (賴惠員), Lee Kuen-cheng (李坤城), and Lo Ming-Tsai (羅明才) voicing particular apprehension about the market's trajectory. Their anxiety centers on the psychological and technical significance of the 20,000-point threshold for the Taiwan Stock Exchange Weighted Index, a level whose breach could potentially accelerate selling pressure and investor panic.
Deputy Finance Minister Juan Ching-hwa (阮清華) outlined the government's contingency plans, indicating that the National Financial Stabilization Fund (國安基金) — Taiwan's market intervention mechanism — stands ready to convene an emergency committee meeting should conditions deteriorate further. Juan stressed that any intervention would follow meticulous analysis of market dynamics rather than hasty reaction. In a note of cautious optimism, the deputy minister suggested that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company's (TSMC, 台積電) substantial recent investments in American manufacturing facilities might serve as a buffer, potentially reducing the likelihood that Taiwanese electronic products would face punitive tariffs.
Juan clarified the procedural constraints governing market intervention, explaining that the stabilization fund operates under strict protocols that permit resource deployment only after the fund management committee formally determines that major domestic or international developments have materially undermined public confidence in the markets. While extraordinary circumstances could prompt an emergency session, the National Financial Stabilization Fund already has a regular meeting scheduled to occur before April 15, providing a formal opportunity to evaluate market conditions and determine appropriate responses.
