Although it was reduced from 32% to 20%, the level remains high compared to our country.
Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te stated that the “interim tax rate” was set during the final stages of negotiations and that the tariff might be lowered once a final agreement is reached. This statement came after U.S. President Donald Trump decided to impose a 20% tariff on Taiwan, as a trade agreement had not yet been completed.
On August 1st, President Lai posted on his Facebook account, “Just now, the U.S. notified Taiwan’s negotiation team in Washington, D.C., that the ‘temporary tariff’ is set at 20%,” explaining that this was due to the fact that the final meetings between Taiwan and the U.S. had not yet been concluded.
He continued, “Thus, the U.S. announced a preliminary 20% ‘temporary rate’ for Taiwan, which could be reduced further after reaching an agreement. The two countries will then discuss supply chain cooperation and topics related to Section 232 of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act.”
Additionally, he emphasized that despite a limited schedule, Taiwan’s negotiation team completed technical negotiations after four working-level meetings and several video conferences, steadfastly adhering to four critical tasks: protecting national interests, safeguarding industrial security, maintaining public health, and ensuring food security.
He added that although the announced rate by the U.S. is a temporary measure, they will strive to secure and maintain a reasonable rate and complete the final hurdle of tariff negotiations.
On July 31, President Trump signed an executive order adjusting reciprocal tariffs between countries, lowering the tariff for Taiwan from the previously notified 32% to 20%.
To negotiate tariffs with the U.S., Taiwan recently sent a negotiation team led by Deputy Premier Cheng-wen Tseng to the U.S. The previous day, on July 31, the Executive Yuan of Taiwan announced through a spokesperson that “technical consultations with the U.S. have been completed, and certain agreements have been reached on tariffs, non-tariff trade barriers, trade facilitation, supply chain resilience, and economic security. We are awaiting the end of the U.S. government’s decision-making process.”