Building a future on mutual understanding

Tourists enjoy a view of Taipei from the 101 Tower, the tallest building in the city, in July. The number of visitors from the Chinese mainland to Taiwan is rising rapidly. Du Lianyi / China Daily

Cooperation is key

Taiwan's economy has long been heavily reliant on exports, but it is gradually losing its advantages in fields such as electronics because the sector is maturing rapidly on the mainland and in other developing countries. The situation has been exacerbated by falling demand for electronic products in the United States, Taiwan's second-biggest export market.

Data released by Taiwan's "ministry of economic affairs" on Sept 21 show that export orders slowed in the five months running up to August. Meanwhile, export orders in August were 8.3 percent lower than the same month last year, the biggest monthly slowdown for six years.

By contrast, the Chinese mainland has become the world's second-largest economy and several provinces have GDP that surpasses that of Taiwan.

The mainland is Taiwan's biggest trade partner, export region and its second-largest source of imports, meaning Taiwan's foreign trade surplus mainly stems from the mainland.

A shared destiny

In May, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, urged the building of a shared cross-Straits destiny, and the resolution of political differences via mutual cooperation as equals.

Ni, of the Shanghai Institute of Taiwan Studies, said Xi had delivered an important message that greater efforts will be made to open up to compatriots in Taiwan, which would help assuage concerns that the era of Taiwan benefiting from the mainland has ended.

"Taiwan's economy has experienced a downturn in recent years, but it still has many strong features. The finance and service industries, especially high-end services, are still very competitive," he said.

Other initiatives proposed by the mainland, such as the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, will also provide good opportunities for Taiwan, he said.

"The Chinese mainland is always happy to listen to the views of Taiwan's residents, and we hope they will open their ears to our opinions. We need more understanding and fewer doubts," he said.

Li Mengran contributed to this story.

Contact the writer at hena@chinadaily.com.cn

Previous Page 1 2 3 Next Page

Previous Page 1 2 3 Next Page