Taipei Times
Date: May 22, 2017
Taipei Times (TT): What does the government’s “new southbound policy” aim to
Taiwan Institute of Economic Research vice president Chiou Jiunn-rong is pictured during an interview in his Taipei office on Nov. 2 last year. Photo: Wang Yi-Sung, Taipei Times
achieve?
Chiou Jiunn-rong (邱俊榮): It aims to help local firms cut dependence on China and take advantage of the rapid economic growth in Southeast and South Asia. Most Taiwanese firms focus on producing intermediate goods and services between industries for resale or for the production of other goods.
Under the policy, we should see those nations as both production bases and end markets.
Under the former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration, local manufacturers were encouraged to produce whatever the Chinese market needed, namely low-priced petrochemical, auto parts and other upstream products. The cross-strait ties focused on a few sectors and misallocated the nation’s resources.
Under the policy, firms would provide clients total solutions by selling a combination of hardware devices and software applications, or a combination of products and their supporting services. [FULL STORY]
