Premier Jiang Yi-huah has urged the legislature to pass bills on the cross-strait trade in services agreement and the free economic pilot zones.
Speaking at a conference on legislative procedures on Thursday, the premier said that trade liberalization and globalization have presented Taiwan with some unique challenges. But he said Taiwan has to tackle these problems head on instead of holding on to the past.
Jiang said that the global economy has been steadily improving since the beginning of 2014. Taiwan’s economy is also rebounding because of the government’s stimulus measures. But Taiwan has still been slow when it comes to trade liberalization and the adjustment of industry structure. The premier cited the cross-strait trade pact, which has been stalled in the legislature, as an example, saying that if the bill is not passed soon, Taiwanese exporters might face fierce competition from South Korea in the Chinese market.
Jiang said he understands that people have different opinions about Taiwan’s economic policies. But he hopes that the Taiwanese people can turn their passion for their society into forces that can improve Taiwan’s competitiveness.