No industry will be sacrificed in U.S. tariff talks: President Lai

Taipei, May 2 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on Friday assured Taiwanese industries that no sector would be sacrificed in ongoing tariff negotiations with the United States, pledging to safeguard national interests and preserve space for industrial development.

Speaking at a meeting with business leaders in New Taipei, Lai emphasized that his administration is taking a rigorous approach to addressing the issue.

He said that the interests of Taiwan's 1.5 to 1.6 million small and micro enterprises -- which employ over 9 million people -- remain a top priority, given their vital role in national development.

New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), also present at the meeting, called for increased government transparency, a stable power supply, and more direct dialogue between policymakers and industry representatives.

In response, Lai guaranteed that Taiwan's power supply will remain stable through 2032, even amid growing demand from AI and data centers.

He also pointed to the government's continued expansion of renewable energy sources, including wind, solar, hydro, and geothermal power.

Lai noted that the first round of tariff talks with the U.S. has already taken place and that preparations for further negotiations are underway, adding that the government has increased its export supply chain relief package from NT$88 billion to NT$93 billion (US$2.87 billion-US$3 billion).

Despite downward revisions of global economic forecasts by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), partly due to changes in U.S. policy, Lai highlighted that Taiwan's own outlook has improved -- from 2.7 percent to 2.9 percent -- reflecting confidence in the country's economic resilience.

He was referring to the IMF's prediction in an April report that Taiwan's economy would grow by 2.9 percent this year -- a figure 0.2 percentage points higher than its previous forecast in October last year.

The IMF's 2025 World Economic Outlook report, published on April 22, noted that the imposition of sweeping tariffs by the U.S. was "resetting the global trade system and giving rise to uncertainty" that is testing the resilience of the global economy.

Given that uncertainty, the IMF said it was forecasting global economic growth of 2.8 percent in 2025 and 3.0 percent in 2026, down 0.5 and 0.3 percentage points, respectively, from its last forecast in January.