The American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei (AmCham) released its Taiwan White Paper 2014 on Thursday. The preface to the report praises Taiwan’s efforts at promoting economic liberalization.
Speaking on Thursday, Chairman of AmCham, Thomas Fann said that Taiwan has resolved 6 of the 103 issues brought up in last year’s report. Fann also said that Taiwan has made tangible progress on 21 other issues. Fann said that this represents the biggest improvement in Taiwan’s business environment in the past five years.
"The active work of the Center of Economic Deregulation and Innovation under the new National Development Council- proactively contacting and coordinating with [foreign] chambers of commerce, including the American Chamber of Commerce- is something we are very pleased to see, because this is an area where we have been unable to make a breakthrough for a long time," said Fann.
In his remarks, Fann also pledged AmCham’s support for Taiwan’s bid to enter the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a proposed trade agreement that would include many countries along the Pacific Rim.
Fann said that the AmCham will present its case in Washington when a delegation presents the latest report there on June 16th.
"We also hope that the US Government can support Taiwan, and that Taiwan can eventually enter into the TPP," said Fann. "Taiwan is the United States’ 12th largest trading partner. Taiwan is important. Regardless of politics, Taiwan is very important in terms of economics and trade. There is no reason not to allow Taiwan to enter into this kind of organization."
While the AmCham’s 2014 report on Taiwan noted many instances of progress, it also expressed concerns on issues including Taiwan’s future energy security.