Premier Cho greets returning trade negotiators, praises achievements

Taipei, Jan. 19 (CNA) Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) greeted the government's trade negotiation team on their arrival at Taoyuan Airport on Monday, commending them for the tariff reduction and investment agreements reached with the United States.

Led by Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) and chief trade negotiator Yang Jen-ni (楊珍妮), the team hashed out a "substantive" and "meaningful" deal with Washington, which was announced in the U.S. last Thursday, Cho told reporters at the airport.

Cheng, meanwhile, said the trade agreement proved that "the hard work of the Taiwanese people, along with Taiwan's technology and industries, had become a key force in the world," and showed that the world "needs Taiwan."

The trade negotiation team returned after reaching a preliminary agreement with the U.S. last week on the reduction of tariffs on Taiwanese goods to 15 percent, in return for Taiwan semiconductor and technology companies investing at least US$250 billion in the U.S.

The US$250 billion figure includes a US$100 billion investment pledged by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) in March 2025, weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump took office, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick clarified in an interview on Friday.

That implies that TSMC's US$65 billion investment to build three advanced wafer fabs in Arizona, prior to Trump's return to office last year, was not included in the US$250 billion figure.

As part of the new trade agreement, Taiwan's government has also agreed to provide up to US$250 billion in credit guarantees for financial institutions to support investments in the U.S. market by Taiwan's semiconductor industry, as well as its information and communication technology sector.

The terms of the agreement will be signed in the coming weeks as part of a formal trade pact, which would require approval by Taiwan's Legislature.

In Taiwan, reactions to the agreement have been mixed, with some people welcoming the U.S. tariff reduction on Taiwanese goods from 20 percent to 15 percent, the same as the tariff rate on Japan, South Korea, and the European Union.

Other commentators, including some members of the opposition parties, have raised concerns that the deal could force companies like TSMC to move too much of their production to the U.S., effectively "hollowing out" Taiwan.

The agreement does not include a timetable for when Taiwan's investments must be realized.

In a CNBC interview last week, however, TSMC Chief Financial Officer Wendell Huang (黃仁昭) said his company was accelerating its investments in Arizona because of high customer demand.

Even with its growing presence in the U.S., TSMC's most cutting-edge technology will remain in Taiwan for "practical reasons," Huang said, citing the intensive collaboration process between the company's R&D and operations units.