Taipei, May 8, 2008 (CENS)--Yiin Chii-min, economics minister-designate, pledged yesterday (May 7) to set up a cross-Taiwan Strait industrial cooperation platform after assuming office, which he said will remove the bottleneck for Taiwan`s economic development and boost the Taiex index to 20,000 points.

In an exclusive interview with Chinese-language Economic Daily News (EDN), sister publication of Taiwan Economic News (TEN), Yiin noted that the platform will be set up via relaxing the ceiling limit on Taiwanese enterprises` investments in China and allowing Chinese enterprises to invest in Taiwan`s industrial sector.

The relaxation of the investment ceiling will be considered from an overall angle and likely be coupled with restrictions on specific lines, to alleviate the side effects, according to Yiin, who hoped to complete the policy package within half a year after assuming office.

Yiin pinpointed several sectors with large potential for cross-Strait industrial cooperation, including wireless communications, aeronautics, and semiconductor, for which mainland China owns market capacities and Taiwan can offer the mainland management and logistics talents for it to link up with the international market.

Moreover, the cross-Strait industrial cooperation platform may attract the participation of foreign enterprises, intending to capitalize on the knowledge of Taiwanese enterprises regarding the status of China and Chinese business behaviors to cut their investment risks. On the other hand, the partnership with international enterprises can facilitate efforts among Taiwanese enterprises to tap the global market.

With numerous multinationals investing in Taiwan, Taiwan will become an integral part of global economic activities, which, in turn, will assure Taiwan`s national security, said Yiin.



(by Philip Liu)