Economy

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen is seeking reduce the island's trade dependence on China with her New Southbound Policy of deepening economic ties with 18 countries in Southeast Asia, South Asia and Australasia. (Nikkei montage/Reuters/AP)
International relations

Taiwan makes new push to drum up Southeast Asia investment

'New Southbound Policy' helps region but Taipei could do more, experts say

18 January 2022
Prior to winning November's presidential election in Honduras, Xiomara Castro of the leftist Liberty and Refoundation Party said if victorious, she would open diplomatic ties with China. But her team has since backtracked on that stance.
15 January 2022
Xi Jinping will have to wait several years longer before the Chinese economy overtakes the U.S.'s, partly thanks to a big spending package Joe Biden shepherded through Congress. (Nikkei montage/AP)
Economy

China's overtaking of U.S. economy delayed to 2033, report says

South Koreans and Taiwanese to earn more than Japanese starting in 2027: JCER

15 December 2021
Demonstrators protest against additive-containing U.S. pork in Taipei, Taiwan, on Nov. 22.
Trade

Taiwan vote on pork ban risks U.S. relations at critical time

Tsai's efforts to join CPTPP also would be set back

14 December 2021
A delegation of lawmakers from Lithuania and two other Baltic nations met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen last month.
International relations

Lithuania's Taiwan overtures create outsize challenge for China

Beijing treads carefully to avoid ripple effects on delicate relations with EU

7 December 2021
Activists holding sunflowers take part in a gathering in Taipei in April 2014: we should unleash the power inherent in the crowdsourcing of democracy.
Opinion

How Taiwan's digital democracy can help Asia thrive

Crowdsourcing for an inclusive and resilient Indo-Pacific

16 November 2021
A containership at a port in a Shenzhen free trade zone: APEC's joint statement called trade a "pillar for the development and future prosperity of all our people."
International relations

At APEC, Xi vows to open China as Taiwan promotes CPTPP bid

Biden raises U.S. engagement while grouping seeks trade-led COVID recovery

13 November 2021
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Tuesday that she will seek support for its bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership when she attends a meeting of economic leaders of the Asia-Pacific group APEC next week.
5 November 2021
Despite Taiwan's tech-fuelled economic boom, many people on the island struggle to make ends meet.
Asia Insight

Taiwan's tech boom masks a daily struggle for the masses

Quarter of island's workforce gets by on minimum wage and cheap food

2 November 2021
Sandra Oudkirk, director of the American Institute in Taiwan, says the U.S. recognizes the critical role that Taiwan plays in global supply chains.
Trade war

Top U.S. diplomat in Taiwan stresses supply chain cooperation

Head of de facto embassy repeats 'rock solid' support amid China tensions

29 October 2021
Police in Vietnam inspect travel documents of commuters during the first day of a lockdown in Hanoi on Sept. 6. The country's economy has been hammered by COVID curbs.
Coronavirus

Asian economies take $1.7tn hit from COVID in 2020

Tourism and other service sectors suffered most

26 October 2021
Chinese President Xi Jinping, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and U.S. President Joe Biden. (Source photos by Reuters)
Politics

China's and Taiwan's dueling bids spell big opportunity for CPTPP

By luring back U.S., bloc could deal from position of multilateral strength

17 October 2021
CPTPP members should encourage the U.S. to return to the fold while President Joe Biden is still in office.
Comment

Why U.S. membership in CPTPP makes more sense than ever

Washington risks being locked out and ceding Indo-Pacific influence to China

24 September 2021
A container terminal at China's Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in Zhejiang Province. China applied to join the CPTPP on Sept. 16, and Taiwan followed with its own application on Sept. 22.
Trade

Rival China and Taiwan bids put CPTPP's free trade mettle to test

Japan under mounting pressure to defend rules-based order

24 September 2021
The Chinese incursion involved two Shaanxi Y-8 planes. (Photo courtesy of Taiwan's Defense Ministry)
Politics

Taiwan reports major Chinese air incursion after CPTPP bid

Taipei denounces 'harassment' from 24-plane flyby

24 September 2021
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen: Taipei has applied to join the Japan-led CPTTP trade pact, a move that is expected to rile China. 
Trade

China blasts Taiwan's bid to join CPTPP trade pact

Taipei accuses Beijing of 'obstructing' island's international presence

23 September 2021
Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen: Taiwan has already been discussing CPTPP membership informally with the trade bloc's existing members.
Trade

Taiwan submits bid to join CPTPP trade pact

Bloc members now face choice of supporting Beijing or Taipei

23 September 2021
Whether the European Union will begin making preparations for a bilateral investment agreement with Taiwan appears to depend on how the EU Commission assesses the bloc's relationship with China. (Nikkei montage/AP/Reuters)
International relations

EU split on Taiwan question as it fears fraying China ties

27-nation bloc must determine whether China is more of a partner or rival

22 September 2021
Unlike last year's Triple Stimulus Vouchers program, similar vouchers will be given out for free this year. (Photo by Yu Nakamura)
Coronavirus

Taiwan rolls out $180 stimulus vouchers in wake of COVID curbs

Taipei expands giveaway from last year, looking to help eateries and hotels

27 August 2021
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen receives a dose of Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp.'s COVID-19 vaccine at National Taiwan University Hospital in Taipei on August 23. 
COVID vaccines

Taiwan begins contested rollout of new Medigen domestic vaccine

Island joins small global group of COVID-19 vaccine producers

23 August 2021
Participants line up at immigration counters for passport checks during a mock trip abroad at Taipei Songshan Airport on July 7, 2020. (File photo by AP) 
Coronavirus

Taiwan's COVID rules bar foreign workers from entering or leaving

Overseas visa runs a no-go for travelers unable to renew on island

14 August 2021
The administration of President Tsai Ing-wen and major chipmakers are investing at least $300 million to create graduate programs for the semiconductor industry over the next decade. (Source photos by Taiwan's Office of the President and TSMC)
Semiconductors

Taiwan to invest $300m in grad schools to stem chip brain drain

TSMC and peers act as US and China ramp up investment in semiconductor talent

16 July 2021
Japan takes 36 times longer to process trade paperwork than France or Italy, the World Bank reports.
Trade

Blockchain greases trade wheels between 7 Asian-Pacific economies

TradeWaltz aims to keep supply chains of 5,000 companies moving at steady pace

11 July 2021
President Xi Jinping speaks during a celebration marking the 100th founding anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing on Thursday. (Captured from CCTV YouTube account)
Politics

Xi vows to crush meddling forces and Taiwan independence attempts

President says CCP has achieved 1st centennial goal of eliminating absolute poverty

1 July 2021
Cargo cranes and cargo are seen at Keelung Port during sunset hours .
Trade

US and Taiwan revive trade talks after 5-year freeze to counter China

Taipei pushes Washington for pact, but both sides likely face heavy pushback at home

1 July 2021