TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — At the “Taiwan-U.S. Business Roundtable” held on Thursday (Sept. 30), representatives from business associations, entities, and the government reviewed implications for the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) negotiations and potential ways of reinforcing Taiwan-U.S. collaborations.

The event was co-organized by the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce, Taiwan (CNAIC) and the American Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan (AmCham Taiwan). They issued a joint statement in 2020 urging the governments of Taiwan and the U.S. to begin bilateral trade agreement (BTA) negotiations.

Since then, the relationship between both countries has improved, which proves the importance of the joint statement, AmCham cited CNAIC Chair Lin Por-fong (林伯豐) as saying. He added that as Taiwan’s second largest trading partner, the U.S. is also an important source of foreign investment — yet the lack of tax agreements may affect investments for both Taiwan and the U.S., UDN reported.

Specifically, Lin said the tax rate for Taiwan businesses to invest in the U.S. is as high as 30%. Meanwhile, businesses that invest in the U.K. enjoy a 5% tax rate, and in Japan, 0%, per UDN.

AmCham Taiwan Chair C.W. Chin (金奇偉) said Taiwan-U.S. relations have entered a special moment, during which the COVID-19 pandemic has strengthened the two countries’ friendship through reciprocal donations of face masks and vaccines between both sides.

Business executives discussed the potential for collaboration between Taiwan and the U.S. in several fields. These included semiconductors, communication and information, 5G technology, medical technology, electric vehicle, power, and chemistry.

AmCham reported that Senior Director of the Institute of Information Industry (III) Chen Tzu-ang (陳子昂) said Taiwan’s industries complement those in the U.S., especially in the semiconductor field. Taiwan’s advantage lies in manufacturing, packaging, and testing, while the U.S. has always led design and market development.