On the rising tide of US-China trade war, many have been curious, or even fearful, of the impact or change it has on Taiwan’s economy. Taipei Tech International Academia-Industry Alliance (IAIA) and the office of Industry-Academia Cooperation hosted a forum on the strategies towards US-China trade war, inviting the renowned entrepreneurs in Taiwan – including AU Optronics Corporation (AUO) CEO Paul Peng, Elan Microelectronics Corporation Chair of the board Yeh Yi Hao, TOPCO Chair of the board Kuo Jih Hwei, Microloops Chair of the board Chao Yuan Shan – to give a speech on coping with the outcomes brought about by the trade war from different perspectives of trade, finance, and manufacturing industries.

“The US-China trade war is considered to be the lesson that worth tens of billions of the price,” said CEO Paul Peng, who belongs to AUO, which was much pained by the penalty due to a violation of United States Antitrust law. The real case of his in the panel industry settled in the United States made him more cautious about the legal importance. He suggested Taiwanese enterprises should take heed of the local laws and regulations as extending the business internationally to refrain from any violation of the law, which could result in substantial fines or prosecution.

Yeh Yi Hao, on the other hand, highlighted the challenges the IC designing industry is faced with. Since the trade war has indirectly inflicted on the export from Taiwan to China, he indicated, based on the successful experiences of Elan Microelectronics, that the cooperation with the global technical specifiers, the development of systems on artificial intelligence or other advanced productions, the strategic adjustment of global supply chain, the acceleration of automation, forming niche marketing, or merging, are feasible ways to mitigate such infliction.

TOPCO Chair of the board Kuo Jih Hwei took the Art of War – the ancient Chinese military treatise – as a metaphor for the trade war. Other than the dividing supply chain set apart in the US and China, the difficulties Taiwanese enterprises are going to encounter can be the tariffs imposed, political issues, and brand credibility. The entrepreneurs are suggested to focus on the single market with spread risks.

Microloops Chair of the board Chao Yuan Shan opined that the conflict between the US and China appears to result from trade imbalance, foreign exchange controls and infringements of the copyrights; the conflict, however, is actually one of the strategies with which the US maintains its dominance over the world currencies. The manufacturing industries in Taiwan should be inclined to become service-oriented manufactures, such as after service or customization, and stay innovative and cooperative. Meanwhile, the government is also expected to privatize public enterprises and increase their involvement in the international market.

*This article is translated from the Economic Daily News article.