Minister without Portfolio Kuan Chung-ming said at a global economy taskforce meeting on July 25 that the Executive Yuan has adjusted the order of priority of its seven recession response strategies as follows: attracting investment, helping industries, stimulating finance, promoting exports, boosting consumption, increasing employment and stabilizing commodity prices.
The proactive "stimulating finance" has replaced "stabilizing finance" as a goal. New measures were also put forward at the meeting to serve as guiding principles for revitalizing the economy in the short term.
Minister Kuan pointed out that when the task force was first established in February this year, the top priority was to stabilize commodity prices and the financial system to help strengthen Taiwan's economic fundamentals. As circumstances have changed, first priority must now be given to attracting investment and helping industries to achieve economic synergy in the short term, he said.
To attract investment, the government will expedite the expansion of the Taipei World Trade Center Nangang Exhibition Hall and the construction of the Kaohsiung Conference and Exhibition Center, Kuan said. It will also redouble its efforts to attract investment in science parks and take stock of public lands that can be put to active use, including lands inside schools and military barracks that have been standing idle as well as state-owned lands managed by the Ministry of Finance.
Kuan said that to bolster domestic industry, concrete measures will be adopted to facilitate the development of electronic commerce in light of its growing importance.
Cross-strait finance will be an important part of the government's effort to stimulate the financial industry, the minister stated, with the details of its programs depending on the form of the cross-strait currency clearance and settlement mechanism that will be established. The government will continue its work to stabilize the financial system, he added.
Following up on suggestions made in a previous meeting, Kuan stated the government also has plans to launch major construction projects throughout the island to spur investment from the private sector.