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Taiwan: Trade Volume Up
Despite strained political relations across the Taiwan Straits, bilateral trade and investment volumes have expanded remarkably and are believed to be gathering momentum.
Statistics from the General Administration of Customs reveal that during the first four months of this year, cross-Straits trade increased by 30.4 per cent over a year earlier to US$8.71 billion.
Mainland exports to Taiwan grew by 30.4 per cent to US$1.48 billion, while its imports from Taiwan rose to US$7.23 billion, representing a 30 per cent surge from a year earlier.
Liu Xueqin, a senior researcher from the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Co-operation, attributed the growth to the international market's strong demand for products from both the mainland and Taiwan.
"Since the mainland's exports have increased significantly, its demand for Taiwan-manufactured components has grown correspondingly,'' she told Business Weekly last week.
Taiwan-invested plants on the mainland, many of which import raw materials from Taiwan and export products to other countries, have made substantial contributions to the mainland's exports.
Similarly, the upbeat international market situation for Taiwan businesses has caused them to import more raw materials from the mainland.
Liu predicted that cross-Straits trade will grow by double-digits during the second half of this year, but growth might slow a little bit.
"It depends on the economic growth of the mainland's and Taiwan's major trade partners such as the United States and Japan,'' she said.
The political situation across the Taiwan Straits has not noticeably influenced Taiwan businesses' investments on the mainland.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation (MOFTEC), Taiwan investors pledged US$1.15 billion worth of investments during the first four months of this year, representing a 42.8 per cent increase from the same period last year.
MOFTEC approved 823 Taiwan investment projects during January-April, which was 9.9 per cent up from a year earlier.
"Although the Taiwan authorities still impose strict restrictions on its businesses' investments on the mainland, it has failed to dampen Taiwan investors' enthusiasm for the mainland market,'' said Liu.
She said the mainland's impending entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) has strengthened Taiwan investors' confidence in the mainland market.
"Many Taiwan businesses have already started to or have increased their investments on the mainland in order to benefit from the latter's upcoming accession to the WTO,'' she added.
She stressed that the huge market and favorable investment environment have made the mainland a top external investment site for Taiwan businesses.
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