Taiwan is prepared to negotiate with the U.S. on the issue of tariffs with at least US$200 billion, economy minister J.W. Kuo says. As U.S. President Donald Trump pauses higher tariff rates on roughly 60 countries including Taiwan, Taipei officials say this allows some "breathing room" for negotiations. Taiwan has been bracing for a 32% tariff rate on most of its goods going to the U.S., now lowered to 10% for three months.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00A sharp turn after days of market turmoil, U.S. President Donald Trump pauses the sweeping so-called reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries, levies that sent stocks across the world tumbling.
00:13The higher tariffs on roughly 60 countries have been lowered to 10 percent for 90 days. That's except for China, which faces an increased levy of 125 percent.
00:26Trump says the pause is something he's written up after thinking about it over the last few days.
00:33We wrote it up from our hearts, right? We don't want to hurt countries that don't need to be hurt, and they all want to negotiate. The only problem is, you know, you can only do so many at one time.
00:43Earlier this week, the White House said around 70 countries had already reached out to strike a deal.
00:49Taiwan, which had been bracing for a 32 percent tariff on most of its goods going to the U.S., had offered to start negotiations on the basis of zero tariffs.
01:00President Lai Qingde already ruling out retaliatory tariffs.
01:04Speaking to lawmakers, Foreign Minister Lin Jialong confirmed that Taiwan is among those to get the 90-day reprieve.
01:13Do you have to confirm that Taiwan is these three countries that have been stopped?
01:17Do you have to confirm that Taiwan's markets were a sea of red amid the news, a good thing here in Taiwan, indicating stocks were bouncing back.
01:29The country's benchmarked Tyaxe regaining over 1,600 points, closing up 9.25 percent after falling sharply for days.
01:40Lin says Taiwan is prepared to negotiate with the added time and address Taiwan's large trade surplus with the U.S., a trade imbalance Trump has criticized.
01:50officials say they're using multiple channels to reach their U.S. counterparts, including the U.S. Treasury, Commerce Department, and Trade Agency.
02:15Trade negotiator Yan Hui-xing saying they're on the list for talks.
02:19The government has also taken stock of state-owned assets and says it has prepared a multi-billion-dollar sum to negotiate with.
02:31With several countries looking to get to the negotiating table with Washington,
02:48Taiwan officials say it's unclear when and in what order Trump's team will talk with governments,
02:54Taipei reiterating that it's ready to meet with its largest international backer at any time.
03:00Patrick Chen and Joyce Sen for Taiwan Plus.