Taiwan president keen for free-trade deal with Thailand

[webfact]

Taiwan president keen for free-trade deal with Thailand
By Wichit Chaitrong
The Nation

 

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ingwen: Taiwan will play a proactive role in AsiaPacific region.

 

BANGKOK: -- TAIWAN is seeking a free-trade agreement with Thailand aiming at increasing trade, investment and cultural exchanges.

 

“If we could have some sort of free-trade arrangement, I’m sure our bilateral trade would grow rapidly,” President Tsai Ing-wen told The Nation during an interview including six reporters from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and India at the Office of the President Republic of China (Taiwan) in Taipei on Friday. She gave the interview in both Mandarin and English.

 

President Tsai said Taiwan and Thailand had agreements already – on investment protection, agriculture, a double taxation treaty and labour cooperation. But Taiwan wanted to expedite economic cooperation.

 

She referred to the Prayut government’s structural reforms in the launch of Thailand’s 4.0 policy, which aim to create high-value innovative industry sectors, such as agriculture, biotechnology, healthcare and “smart” electronics, which are also strong industries for Taiwan. There was a lot of room for cooperation between the two countries, she said, referring to technology transfers and the exchange of research and development.

 

Thailand and Taiwan’s industrial strengths complemented each other, she said. At the end of last year, Taiwan was the third-largest investor after Japan and the US, with Taiwan’s accumulated investment amounting to US$14.2 billion (Bt492 billion).

 

Taiwan has major investments in Asean, with accumulated investment in Vietnam and Malaysia of $31 and $12 billion respectively last year.

 

There are over 5,000 Taiwan firms investing in Thailand and 140,000 Taiwan businesspeople in the Kingdom, Taiwan officials say.

Taiwan and Thailand signed an investment protection agreement in 1996. According to senior officials, Taiwan wants to revise the deal to create a better dispute-settlement mechanism that would ensure stronger protections for Taiwanese investors.

 

Most Taiwanese companies are small and medium-sized enterprises investing in industries in Thailand such as electronics, electrical home appliances, chemicals and paper, metal machinery and processed food.

 

Annual two-way trade with Thailand reached $9.3 billion last year.

 

During the first three months of this year, Taiwan’s exports to Thailand were worth $1.5 billion, jumping 19 per cent compared with the same period last year, and imports from Thailand rose nearly 18 per cent to $1 billion, resulting in Taiwan having a trade surplus.

 

The trade surplus has grown at a rate of 22.5 per cent, according to Taiwan’s Bureau of Foreign Trade in the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

 

The number of Thais visiting Taiwan showed the largest increase among Asean tourists, jumping 57 per cent to 195,640 last year, said Tsai.

 

Taiwan already has free-trade deals with Singapore and New Zealand, and is seeking agreements with Thailand and other countries in the Asia-Pacific.

 

After Tsai took office in May last year, she initiated the so-called the New Southbound Policy (NSP), aiming at strengthening cooperation with Asean and South Asian nations, as well as Australia and New Zealand.

 

“Past southbound policies have emphasised developing market and short-term business opportunities. The NSP is different. This time we are setting down a long-term policy agenda that places focus on wide-ranging cooperation. This mutually beneficial arrangement will put people at the heart of what it does,” a statement from the President’s Office said.

 

“The New Southbound Policy ... is about how we can build more mutually beneficial relationships with the international community, and the community here in Asia. It’s taking another look at how Taiwan can play a more proactive role in a community of so many close neighbours,” Tsai said.

 

The statement appeared to address concerns Taiwan may try to play politics with China and the US after President Trump stirred controversy by calling Tsai after he was elected.

 

Tsai also said the NSP and China’s Belt and Road Initiative were two completely different models.

 

One flagship project, Tsai said, encourages Taiwanese students to study abroad while offering foreign students scholarships to study in Taiwan. Some 16,000 Malaysian and over 1,700 Thai students were studying in Taiwan last year as the Taipei government worked with companies by providing scholarships for students from Asean and India. Tsai said her government encouraged foreign students who complete study in Taiwan to work with local companies before they return to their home countries.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/national/30314520

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-05-08

[yellowboat]

Wonder if the current administration will spur these offers in favor of pleasing the Chinese speaking country to the north.  Thai and Taiwanese currencies are similar in value.  A link there would be interesting.  Taiwan has more chip making capacity than the US.  President Tsai is an interesting woman.  Taiwan's Universities are empty.  They have a dwindling population. 

[mike324]

Thailand can benefit a lot from Taiwan in regards to all industries - manufacturing, electronics, even agriculture. Thailand won't work with Taiwan for the simple reason of China's influence. China wants Taiwan to suffer so they will not allow Thailand to cooperate with Taiwan.

[IMA_FARANG]

I'm afraid politics has more to do with this than economic realty.

China is the "elephant in the room" in this and they still won't recognize Taiwan as anything but Chinese territory.

That is silly as co-operation is in the Chinese interest more  than confrontation would be.

[mtls2005]

Thailand, and "Free Trade" (with any country, China's not the restrictive factor here)

 

 

This will happen right after a return to "democracy", education reforms, judicial reforms and military coups are eliminated.

 

 

[ratcatcher]

" She gave the interview in both Mandarin and English."

And I am sure when Prayuth and Prawit are asked the same questions, they will give the answers in Thai and English........................

 

 

Edited May 8, 2017 by ratcatcher
add link

[elgordo38]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Taiwan has major investments in Asean, with accumulated investment in Vietnam and Malaysia of $31 and $12 billion respectively last year.

Wonder why Vietnam got the lions share??

[elgordo38]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

The number of Thais visiting Taiwan showed the largest increase among Asean tourists, jumping 57 per cent to 195,640 last year, said Tsai.

 

I wonder how many were round trip??

[pentap]

I wish her luck!


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect

[IAMHERE]

9 hours ago, elgordo38 said:

Wonder why Vietnam got the lions share??

Vietnam is not as corrupt is what comes to mind.

[elgordo38]

1 hour ago, IAMHERE said:

Vietnam is not as corrupt is what comes to mind.

You could have a point but it looks more like the cheapest labor in Asia and a business friendly government a supplier of labor?