Taiwanese President Discusses With Senior Officials To Discuss Impacts Of US Tariffs To Emergency Plans

UNSPLASH ILLUSTRATION

JAKARTA - Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te met with senior officials on Sunday evening to discuss the possible impact of US tariffs and receive up-to-date information on emergency plans.

Trump administration officials, including Finance Minister Scott Bessent, said most of the focus on US reciprocal tariffs would be directed at 15 countries with the highest trade surplus with the United States.

Bessent called these countries "Dirty 15" but did not mention the names in question.

According to data from the US Census Bureau, Taiwan is one of the 15 countries, along with countries such as China and South Korea plus the European Union. The tariff will be announced on April 2.

Taiwan's presidential office said Lai had met with Prime Minister Cho Jung-tai and other members of Taiwan-US trade group at Lai's official residence to discuss the current situation, government assessments, and preparations for various emergency plans.

The official reported various scenarios for rates to be imposed by the United States, "simulating and estimating the possible impact, and preparing an emergency plan", Lai spokesman Karen Kuo said in a statement reported by Reuters on Monday, March 31.

Lai asked Cho and Secretary-General of the National Security Council Joseph Wu to give the best possible response to ensure Taiwan's interests and economic and financial stability, as well as provide strong support and assistance to industries that may be affected, Kuo added.

In response to questions from lawmakers on Monday, Taiwan's Deputy Finance Minister Frank Juan said he thought the electronics industry's chances would face a "low-relative" rate given the new investment of chipmaker TSMC in the United States announced earlier this month.

Taiwan experienced a huge trade surplus with the United States, which jumped 83% last year, with island exports to the US hitting a record $111.4 billion, driven by demand for high-tech products such as semiconductors, Taiwan-dominated sectors.

Taiwan's benchmark stock index (TWII), fell more than 3% on Monday morning due to concerns about the upcoming rates.

Trump said on Sunday the reciprocal rates he would announce this week would cover all countries, not just small groups of 10 to 15 countries with the largest trade imbalance.