Government Rules Out U.S. Pressure Behind Currency Appreciation

TaiwanPlus News

Taiwan's Premier Cho Jung-tai has echoed President Lai Ching-te, saying that the U.S. did not pressure Taiwan to appreciate its currency as part of ongoing tariff talks. TaiwanPlus speaks to industry leaders in southern Taiwan to discuss how they're managing amid broad economic uncertainty.

Transcript

00:00Taiwan's president and top officials are clearing up any speculation

00:03about the new Taiwan dollar's biggest appreciation in decades against the U.S. dollar.

00:10They say that this has nothing to do with Taipei's tariff talks with Washington.

00:21The premier also denied that the government or central bank

00:25had previously intervened to keep the currency artificially weak.

00:30As an undervalued currency is advantageous for Taiwan's export-based economy.

00:35And Taiwan is listed among countries the U.S. Treasury Department monitors for their currency policies.

00:42This is all happening as negotiations to lower U.S. tariffs are still going on.

00:48Earlier, I traveled down to southern Taiwan to speak to industry leaders

00:52to see how they're managing the uncertainty as Taipei officials work to seal a deal.

01:00Taiwanese entrepreneurs are putting their heads together to protect their businesses.

01:05At a recent forum in southern Taiwan, executives from a range of sectors got together

01:11to exchange ideas on how to globalize their businesses, a necessary step, they say, to survive.

01:18I think everybody knows that we're an island type of country, right?

01:22So we don't have only 20 million people on the decline still.

01:26So there's no way we can go except going abroad.

01:29At the event, hosted by Taiwanese alumni of the University of Michigan,

01:34executives shared their experiences operating in places like Vietnam, Germany, and the United States.

01:41Casey Kong helps Taiwanese firms invest in the state of Michigan.

01:45He says fears that U.S. production costs will be higher than Asia are valid,

01:50but that this does not mean investments won't pay off.

01:54Certainly, they will be winner and loser.

01:57Higher costs don't always translate into higher margin.

02:01But in this case, I think if you focus on the U.S. market,

02:06maybe the new change might create more additional opportunity

02:11that's not currently in their business plan.

02:13Alan Cheng also assists Taiwanese investors looking to expand in the U.S.

02:18He says entrepreneurs need to fundamentally shift their business approach,

02:24emphasizing soft-scale traits like courage and confidence to get a good deal.

02:29As Taiwanese businesses wait to see what Taipei and Washington officials settle on,

02:45they're also taking matters into their own hands,

02:49determined to find ways to diversify, to survive in an evolving economy.

02:53Kamashu, Joseph Wu, and Joyce Zinn for Taiwan Plus.

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