Amcham Taiwan urges legislature to ratify Taiwan-US trade and tariff deal

Amcham Taiwan urges legislature to ratify Taiwan-US trade and tariff deal

2026-01-27

The chair of Amcham Taiwan has warned that if the legislature fails to ratify a deal reached by the US and Taiwan government to lower Taiwan’s tariff to 15%, it would be a “missed chance” for Taiwan to further its economic and technological ties with the US. This comes after US President Donald Trump threatened to raise South Korea’s tariff from 15% to 25%, as the South Korean legislature would not ratify South Korea’s own deal. The good news is that the chamber’s annual Business Climate Survey found that most companies are feeling confident about the Taiwan market despite geopolitical tensions. Let’s find out more.

Anita Chen
Amcham Taiwan chair
It is clear that Taiwan is transitioning from a manufacturing center to a technological frontier.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan released its latest Business Climate Survey. It revealed most businesses have confidence in the Taiwan market, with 92% planning to maintain or increase their Taiwan investments this year.

Carl Wegner
Amcham Taiwan president
Incredible supply chain, the trustworthiness, we’ve seen this in many industries over Taiwan over decades.

Although Taiwan is viewed internationally as a geopolitical hotspot, Amcham executives said this was having a limited impact.

Anita Chen
Amcham Taiwan chair
National security ranked as the top perceived risk to business operations, followed closely by cross-strait relations. (They) recognize the risks but are not discouraged by them.

Amcham Taiwan is pleased that the US and Taiwan concluded trade talks that saw Taiwan’s tariff reduced to 15%, but the two main opposition parties, the TPP and KMT, argue that they need to scrutinize the new trade agreement strictly. After South Korea’s legislature failed to approve its own US trade deal, US President Donald Trump said he would raise its tariff from 15% to 25%. Amcham Taiwan’s chair Anita Chen said this was a concern.

Anita Chen
Amcham Taiwan chair
We certainly don’t want to see the same situation happen in Taiwan because the agreement is not just about tariffs, it provides a very clear pathway for the US-Taiwan economic corridor, so should that happen in Taiwan, it would be a misstep, it would be a missed chance to build this technology collaboration between the US and Taiwan.

AmCham Taiwan hopes that the US-Taiwan tariff issue can be fully settled and is stepping up efforts to advance a double taxation avoidance agreement, which would give foreign companies greater long-term confidence to invest and operate in Taiwan.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#AmchamTaiwan #Taiwanbusiness #businessconfidence

台灣美國商會肯定15%關稅喊話國會:不願南韓情況上演

2026-01-27

台灣美國商會發布2026年景氣調查，他們認為台灣已從製造中心，轉變為科技前端，對台灣市場抱有高度信心，92%今年會持續在台投資。另外，一月出爐的台美關稅談判，降到15%，商會表達肯定，但也喊話國會，不希望看到類似韓國的情況發生，這會喪失台美未來合作的契機。

[[台灣美國商會理事長陳幼臻]]
“很清楚地，台灣正從製造中心，轉變為科技的前端”

台灣美國商會發布最新景氣調查，企業對台灣市場有信心，92%今年將維持或增加在台投資。

[[台灣美國商會執行長魏凱]]
“很棒的供應鏈，可信賴度，這是我們這幾十年來，在台灣許多產業觀察到的”

儘管台灣被國際視為，地緣政治衝突的熱點，但商會認為影響有限。

[[台灣美國商會理事長陳幼臻]]
“國家安全，在我們注意到的企業營運風險排行榜中排第一，緊跟在後的是兩岸關係，(企業)認知到風險，但並沒有因此灰心”

商會樂見台美關稅談判最終降到15%，但國內藍白兩黨稱"要嚴格審查"，眼看韓國國會沒通過協定，川普就揚言加回到25%關稅，美國商會表達憂心。

[[台灣美國商會理事長陳幼臻]]
“我們當然不願見到，(南韓)相同情況在台灣發生，因為台美貿易協定，不只關乎關稅，更提供一條清楚的路，作為台美經濟走廊，如果(南韓情況)在台灣上演，這會是錯誤的一步，錯失美台科技合作的良機”

美國商會期望，台美關稅能塵埃落定，並加緊推動"避免雙重課稅協定"，讓外國企業有更長遠信心，在台發展。

更多新聞內容，請鎖定：
民視台灣台（152頻道）週一至週五晚上9:30
民視新聞台（53頻道）週二至週六凌晨1:00

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Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital commemorates 2015 water park fire

The Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital held a memorial event for the 2015 New Taipei water park fire, attended by survivors and the hospital’s reconstructive and plastic surgery teams. The event also honored Dr. Chuang Hsiu-shu, who was the head surgeon at the time. Dr. Chuang sadly passed away in December last year, but survivors and the medical team say he’ll always have a place in their hearts.

The Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital is commemorating the 2015 New Taipei water park fire, a little more than ten years on. Survivors were invited to share their stories.

Chung Po-yu
2015 dust fire survivor
Even now, our skin still hasn’t fully recovered. But we still try to stay positive and carry that positivity as we reenter society and the job market.

The road to recovery was arduous for survivors, but they were grateful for the medical team’s help. Right after the incident, it was Dr. Chuang Hsiu-shu, a plastic surgeon, who headed the team treating survivors. Under his watch, many complicated skin reconstruction surgeries were successfully completed. Unfortunately, Dr. Chuang passed away in December and so was unable to attend the memorial event.

Hsia Wen-ling
2015 dust fire survivor
We regret that we didn’t come back to visit Dr. Chuang after we got better. Dr. Chuang will forever live in our hearts.

Chen Chu-jui
2014 Kaohsiung gas explosions survivor
I’m only returning today, a little more than ten years later. I’m so grateful to be treated by such a meticulous plastic surgeon.

More than 100 members of the hospital’s plastic surgery department across generations are here to remember Dr. Chuang for his contributions and leadership.

Chuang Wen-i
Head nurse
Dr. Chuang was already pretty old at the time. I did overnight shifts. But even then, when I was on duty, Dr. Chuang was also still working.

Lin Cheng-hung
Head of plastic and reconstructive surgery
Dr. Chuang was our shepherd. Only with his assistance and organization were we able to perform well. We not only saved our patients, but also helped them in their recovery.

Looking back at the 2015 dust fire, immediately after the incident, numerous burn victims were sent to hospitals for treatment. The Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital alone received more than 40 patients within four hours, the highest number among medical centers in Taiwan. The event was held to celebrate survivors and recognize the medical team.

Chen Chien-tzung
Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital superintendent
Though largely unnoticed by the public, Taiwan already had a resilient healthcare system. I believe the 2015 New Taipei water park fire was the best testament to that at the time.

Chen Yu-ray
Chang Gung Medical Foundation committee chair
This experience is well worth being remembered by our younger generation of doctors, nurses and all medical staff.

After the water park fire, the medical community hopes that the mutual trust between doctors and patients can continue to serve as a source of forward momentum, supporting more people on their journey to recovery.

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Exclusive: President Lai Ching-te gives an inside look into tariff negotiations

Now that Taiwan has secured a deal with the US to lower Taiwan’s tariff rate, President Lai Ching-te is touring various industries across the country to hear workers ‘and executives’ thoughts. FTV got exclusive permission to join him. President Lai revealed just how tough the nearly nine-months of negotiations with the US had been, and how his team needed to work day and night and often on weekends too, to get everything done. Now that the Taiwan-US tariff deal has been secured, it’s critical that opposition parties don’t block it in the legislature, he said. Let’s find out more.

President Lai Ching-te pays a personal visit to a major wrench manufacturer in Taichung. He is listening attentively to the concerns of executives and workers in traditional industries. Ever since the US launched a tariff war last April, Taiwan’s economy has faced significant challenges.

Lai Ching-te
President
Looking back on it, I realized that our work wasn’t just confined to daytime or nighttime hours. We worked on Saturdays and Sundays, and sometimes even in the afternoons we would go to the Presidential Residence to hold meetings with the relevant ministries. During these discussions at the residence, we would treat them to mangoes. That was summer. The talks went from summer into autumn, and from autumn into winter—it can truly be described as a long and drawn-out negotiation process.

This photo shows a typical scene at the Presidential Residence over the nearly nine months of negotiations. President Lai Ching-te personally chaired meetings. Also present were Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim and Premier Cho Jung-tai, as well as Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun, and Minister without Portfolio Yang Chen-ni, who were in charge of the negotiations. Collectively they worked to resolve all the issues the US had raised.

Lai Ching-te
President
I would always convene a meeting before negotiations. Everyone would make decisions together. After they returned from talks, we would immediately hold an emergency meeting to resolve the issues. Whenever it’s daytime in the US, it’s nighttime in Taiwan, so we’d often keep an eye on the entire negotiation process until late in the night as we did not want the negotiation team to encounter difficulties and not be able to resolve them in a timely manner whenever the US raised issues.

Despite overall praise in industry circles for the results of the Taiwan-US tariff negotiations, the opposition KMT and TPP have continued to criticize them, raising concerns that the agreement could be blocked when it is submitted to the Legislative Yuan for review. President Lai has also repeatedly made earnest appeals for support.

Lai Ching-te
President
I hope the opposition parties will offer their support. I often say that even if you won’t do it for my sake, you should do it for the sake of the people. Our citizens and our industries are what matter most. Party competition is inevitable, but it should not descend into scorched-earth politics. If the results of negotiations are overturned yet again, it would deal a severe blow to the economy, and people’s livelihoods would inevitably be affected.

Whether the opposition dominated legislature agrees or not will affect not only people’s livelihoods, but the mutual trust between Taiwan and the US.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
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#tariffs #taiwan #us #trade #international

2026-01-27