TAICHUNG (TVBS News) — Taiwan's economic planners received a momentary breather as Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) cautiously acknowledged the temporary tariff suspension announced by U.S. President Trump. During a Thursday (April 10) briefing, Lu warned that despite the 90-day pause in punitive trade measures, Taiwan must continue preparing for potentially damaging economic scenarios once the grace period expires.
The sweeping tariff suspension, which affects more than 75 nations including Taiwan, has forced a rapid recalibration of the island's economic defense strategies. Speaking before the Taichung City Council, Mayor Lu revealed that municipal officials had already established a specialized task force to navigate the potential fallout from American trade barriers. The mayor personally chairs these emergency planning sessions, focusing on insulating the city's vital manufacturing sector from international trade disruptions.
Lu pointed to the central government's substantial tax surplus of NT$500 billion (US$15.2 billion) from the previous year, while expressing concern that looming revenue deficits could threaten critical subsidies to local administrations. With characteristic frankness, the mayor advocated for robust contingency planning in case trade talks collapse. "If negotiations don't go well," she cautioned, "ordinary citizens and businesses may find themselves crushed beneath an unsustainable tax burden."
The mayor's dual-track approach to the crisis became evident as she prioritized her appearance at the Taichung City Council while dispatching Vice Mayor Cheng Chao-hsin (鄭照新) to represent municipal interests at a high-level meeting convened by the Executive Yuan (行政院, Taiwan's cabinet). Leadership from all six of Taiwan's special municipalities — the island's largest administrative divisions — gathered at the central government session to press for protective measures for their respective industrial bases.
