Premier Lin Chuan says the crisis following Britain’s decision to leave the EU could be turned into an opportunity. He was speaking on Monday during a meeting on the impact of the British exit – or Brexit – on Taiwan.
Lin said government agencies will closely monitor the knock-on effect. That’s because while Britain’s decision to leave the EU will have limited impact on Taiwan in the short-term, there are political uncertainties in the future.
Cabinet spokesman Tung Cheng-yuan on Monday relayed the premier’s remarks.
“The premier asked the economics ministry to map out a plan to turn the crisis into an opportunity. For example, Britain and the EU are both likely to expand trade and economic ties with Asia, which is an opportunity for Taiwan. Also, international [investors] might be interested in investing in Taiwan. The economics ministry should come up with a plan to take advantage of those sorts of opportunities," said Tung.
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s financial watch-dog, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), says it has already held a telephone meeting with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and Britain’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). The FSC says it is “cautiously optimistic” about the current situation.