TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Peng Jin-lung (彭金隆) said on Monday (Jan. 26) that the tariff trade agreement reached between the U.S. and Taiwan on Jan. 15 promises to enhance Taiwan's industrial competitiveness and reduce revenue uncertainty for publicly listed companies. Peng said the agreement's framework includes a 15% reciprocal tariff that does not overlap, marking a significant step forward in trade relations.
Peng made the comments at the Legislative Yuan's (立法院), Taiwan's parliament, Finance Committee (財政委員會), which convened on Monday (Jan. 26) to discuss the agreement's implications on the nation's economy, domestic industries and employment, stock and foreign exchange markets, and consumer inflation. Peng said Taiwan's stock market index rose by 2.64% from the announcement of the agreement to Jan. 20, with daily trading volume increasing by 6.67%. Foreign investors purchased NT$7.929 billion (about US$252.5 million) in Taiwanese stocks during this period, indicating a positive market reaction.
Peng emphasized the central status of the semiconductor and electronics sectors, as demonstrated by changes in trading volume and sector index. He projected that the agreement's 15% reciprocal tariff structure would place Taiwanese manufacturers on a level playing field with Japan and South Korea, offering advantages over Vietnam and China. Taiwan's publicly listed companies reported cumulative revenue of approximately NT$49.57 trillion (around US$1.58 trillion) at the end of December, a 13.78% increase from the previous year, Peng noted.
Finance Minister Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) reported that Taiwan imported goods worth US$48.16 billion (around NT$1.51 trillion) from the U.S. last year, accounting for 10% of total imports, with industrial products comprising 91% of these imports. Taiwan's exports to the U.S. totaled US$198.27 billion (around NT$6.23 trillion), accounting for 30.9% of total exports, with industrial products accounting for 99.6%. Chuang said Taiwan and the U.S. are in the final stages of reviewing the draft text of the trade agreement. ◼ (At time of reporting, US$1 equals approximately NT$31.4)
