President Ma Ying-jeou on the morning of November 18 was invited to attend the "Business Roundtable with the Government of Taiwan" that was held by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The president explained to the participants the status of Taiwan's political and economic situation. President Ma stressed that Taiwan's economic fundamentals are strong. In addition, it holds an advantageous location in the center of East Asia. The president extended a welcome to companies from throughout the world to invest here.
President Ma said that Taiwan's economy has come to a crossroads and 2008 has been a year full of challenges for Taiwan. The financial crisis has expanded from the United States to impact Taiwan, he said. The president said that the crisis in the global financial system since 1929 and it is having an enormous impact on the world's banking system. The impact of this crisis on the economy is nothing short of the influence that the industrial revolution had on the economic environment.
As for the role that Taiwan plays in the global economy, President Ma especially stressed the objective to transform Taiwan into a global center for innovation, an economic and trade hub in the Asia-Pacific and an operations headquarters for Taiwan companies.
The president said that in light of Taiwan's external trade feeling the impact of the global financial crisis, the government has amended its economic strategy to focus on sparking domestic demand. He said the i-Taiwan 12 Projects that he first floated in September of last year were drawn up without anticipating the impact of the global financial tsunami. At the same time, he said, he already realized that Taiwan needed to upgrade its infrastructure. However, with the unfolding of the financial tsunami, this has put even more importance on fully moving ahead with the i-Taiwan 12 Projects. He said that the projects can commence as soon as related budgets are approved by the Legislative Yuan.
With regards to improving cross-strait relations, President Ma stressed that this was a focal point of his campaign platform. Since taking office on May 20, many steps have been taken to fulfill this objective, he said. For instance, in order to improve cross-strait transportation links, the previous administration had helped institute charter flights during major holidays throughout the year. In July of this year, however, the new government was instrumental in expanding this to charter flights during the weekends. The president said that the recently signed agreements with counterparts on the other side of the Taiwan Strait will pave the way for charter flights during weekdays. He said that it is hoped that within the coming six months, these charter flights will be changed into scheduled flights. The president said that agreements between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have helped reduce tensions between Taiwan and Mainland China, which has significantly reduced trade risks. He said Taiwan's standing in a report by BERI on investment environment risk has improved as a result. While Taiwan was ranked 15th in January, its place had jumped to 5th in September. Taiwan is offering a safer investment environment, and a more peaceful climate between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait is good news for neighboring Japan as well as the United States. President Ma stressed that the ROC (Taiwan) government will continue to strive to foster a sustained peace between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.
President Ma also addressed the issue of whether Taiwan could be left out amid the development of ASEAN. The president said that 2015 could mark the beginning of the world's largest free trade zone when ASEAN countries open their borders to free trade with each other. Products that Taiwan sells to Mainland China could as a result face restrictions and high tariffs. Over the past eight years, Taiwan and ASEAN nations have not made progress in signing free trade agreements. However, the president said he is confident that with the improvement in ties between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, this will help Taiwan to avoid the danger of being left out of the ASEAN free trade zone.
President Ma reiterated that Taiwan boasts strong economic fundamentals. He pointed out that the country has foreign exchange reserves of US$280 billion and no foreign debt. It also has a savings rate of 29.5% (with 9 percentage points of this being excess savings that could be used for investment or consumption). Taiwan's inflation rate has been maintained at a relatively stable 3% and the banking system is flush with liquidity. Even with the challenges facing Taiwan, the nation's economic foundations remain stable, he said. The president added that Taiwan has an advantageous geographic location, being situated at the center of East Asia. The island is on average about 3.5 hours by flight from the capitals or major cities in the region, while it takes about 33 hours by vessel to reach key cities or ports. Taiwan, President Ma said, is the best place to invest, and he extended open arms to companies from throughout the world to invest in Taiwan.