U.S. Senators Invite Tsai to Address Congress A group of U.S. senators has called for President Tsai Ing-wen to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress — a proposal that drew a characteristically cautious, non-committal response from the Taiwanese leader. The senators said having the Taiwanese leader speak to Congress would be consistent with…
I used to wait until breakfast before reading the news. Now it’s the first thing I do after shutting off my alarm. Before getting out of bed, I reach for my iPhone and start scanning the headlines of The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Financial Times for positive news that might have broken…
Feeling the Pinch With the global trade environment growing increasingly uncertain, Taiwan recorded exports worth US$28.6 billion in December, 3% less than in the same month a year earlier. The Ministry of Finance attributed the dip largely to sluggish demand for semiconductors used in manufacturing smartphones. New export orders received in December told a similar…
Forecasts for Taiwan’s economic growth next year currently range between 2.18% and 2.5%. The Taiwan economy is expected to undergo a moderate slowdown next year as overseas demand falters for its information technology and other high-tech products. But if that prospect is somewhat disappointing, the consolation is that Taiwan is likely to escape suffering harsh…
More Mixed Signals The release of Taiwan’s September trade figures brought some good news – a record monthly level for exports – but any exuberance was dimmed by uncertainties about the potential impact of the “trade war” being waged between the United States and China, given the large number of Taiwanese enterprises with production facilities…
Each spring when AmCham Taipei conducts its Doorknock trip to Washington DC, one of the most important stops on the itinerary is the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) a block away from the White House. USTR is the U.S. government agency responsible for developing and coordinating trade policy and for carrying out trade…
U.S.-China Trade War Draws Attention News reports indicate that at a number of Taiwanese firms are considering abandoning their Chinese production bases and returning to Taiwan to avoid being caught in the U.S.-China trade war. Although Taiwan has not been directly targeted by either country, many Taiwanese manufacturers have moved their production sites to China,…
It’s still hard to assess the prospective impact on Taiwan of the U.S.-China tariff battle. As the U.S.-China tariff war unfolds, observers in Taiwan have been searching for clues as to what the impact on the Taiwan economy will be. Heavily trade-dependent Taiwan, after all, is in a precarious position in the middle. It regards…
A look back at the founding and early days of AIT. In the lead-up to President Jimmy Carter’s announcement on December 15, 1978 that the United States would switch diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing, only cursory discussion had taken place within the U.S. government about the nature of the future American relationship with Taiwan….
The organization will soon move into impressive new quarters in Taipei’s Neihu district. When the Taipei office of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) opened for business on April 15, 1979 to replace the U.S. embassy following “derecognition,” many observers wondered how well the United States would be able to maintain its broad range of…
