Taiwan-China deal
"to cut tariffs on 500 items"
TAIPEI
June 13 (Reuters) - Some 500 Taiwanese petrochemical, machinery,
auto parts and textile products will be among the first to benefit
from tariff cuts under a trade deal with China, Taiwan newspapers
reported on Sunday 13 June.
The reports cited China's Taiwan affairs head Wang Yi as telling
Taiwanese delegates to the third round of expert-level talks on the
economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) that the deal was
certain to be signed by the end of June.
Wang's
comments, which the reports said were made at a Saturday 12 June
evening function ahead of Sunday 13 June's talks, are the clearest
confirmation yet of the content of the deal and the timing of the
signing, both the subject of intense speculation in recent
weeks.
The
reports said the tariff reductions for petrochemical products could
be about 60 percent and those for textiles 80 percent.
Together all the items on the initial list for reductions, dubbed
the "early harvest list", account for some 15 percent of Taiwan's
exports to China, they said.
Taiwan's Premier Wu Den-yih had estimated in an interview with
Reuters last month that some 300 items would make the list.
Taiwan
is banking on ECFA opening doors to trade deals with other major
economies such as Japan, the United States and Southeast Asian
nations, allowing its export-reliant $390 billion economy to stay
competitive with regional rivals.
The
deal's critics fear a flood of cheap Chinese imports could destroy
Taiwan's economy, and see the deal opening the way for a political
takeover by erstwhile foe China.
After
the latest talks on the ECFA on Sunday 13 June, China's official
Xinhua news agency said the two sides "reached a basic consensus"
on the text of the agreement. They would settle on a list of goods
and services to benefit from the "early harvest" plan in subsequent
discussions.
The
Taiwanese government's attempt to sell the deal to a sceptical
public had taken a hit earlier this month when a Chinese official
was quoted as saying it would not allow its allies to sign separate
deals with Taiwan after ECFA.
But
the island's lead negotiator on the China trade deal, Chiang
Pin-kung, told Reuters in an interview on Friday 11 June that the
comments should not be "over-interpreted".
He
also said he could not estimate when it would be signed.