Taiwan Not Alone In Facing China's Economic Coercion

Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua said that the government has been working to prepare Taiwanese businesses for the possible total withdrawal of China's trade agreement with Taiwan, adding that Taiwan is not alone in facing Chinese economic coercion, as reported by Alison Hsiao for Central News Agency (CNA).

Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua said that Taiwan is not alone in facing economic coercion from Beijing, which has also strong-armed South Korea, Japan, Lithuania, Australia, and Canada for its own political ends by leveraging its trade relationship with those countries. I Photo: Ministry of Economic Affairs

In a recent television interview broadcast, Wang was asked about China announcing the suspension of preferential tariffs on petrochemical products under the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA).

On December 21, 2023, China's Customs Tariff Commission announced it was suspending preferential tariffs on 12 petrochemical products, including propylene and paraxylene, citing trade barriers imposed by Taiwan on similar products.

The minister stated that Taiwan is not alone in facing economic coercion from Beijing, which has also strong-armed South Korea, Japan, Lithuania, Australia, and Canada for its own political ends by leveraging its trade relationship with those countries.

Taiwan's exports to China covered by ECFA fell further in 2023, from US$20.5 billion in 2022 to US$15 billion, due to China's economic downturn and its increase in domestic supply in related industries, Wang said.

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