New Southbound Policy Portal

The annual Taiwan-U.K. consultation on economics and trade wrapped up Dec. 1 in London, with the two sides pledging to expand collaboration across the board, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said.
 
During the one-day meeting convened by MOEA Vice Minister Wang Mei-hua and British Minister of State for International Trade Greg Hands, the two sides discussed issues spanning such areas as financial services, intellectual property rights protection, medical technology evaluation and renewable energy.
 
According to Wang, Taiwan and the U.K. agreed to discuss ways to further strengthen ties and committed to establishing new platforms for deepening cooperation on agriculture and energy starting from the next consultation.
 
Hands said the U.K. attaches great importance to expanding exchanges with Taiwan’s vibrant economy, adding that its open consumer market offers significant opportunities for British businesses as his country prepares to leave the EU.
 
As part of their commitment to boosting ties, the two sides concluded a memorandum of understanding on mutual recognition of the deposit of biological material later the same day in London. Taking effect immediately, the pact will facilitate the filing of patent applications involving such materials and decrease related application costs.
 
Following the signing ceremony, Wang attended a function celebrating the launch of a direct route from Taipei to London by Taiwan-headquartered international carrier China Airlines Ltd. It is hoped that the nonstop service will further promote bilateral exchanges in business, culture and tourism, she said.
 
During their stay in London, Wang and the Taiwan delegation also visited the City of London and London Chamber of Commerce and Industry to identify opportunities for collaboration on financial technology between businesses from the two sides.
 
According to the MOEA, bilateral trade between Taiwan and the U.K. totaled US$4.69 billion during the first 10 months of this year, up 3.2 percent from the same period in 2016. The U.K. is Taiwan’s third largest trading partner in Europe and second leading source of investment among EU countries, the ministry said.
 
Statistics from the International Air Transport Association show that the U.K. accounted for about 11 percent of both inbound and outbound journeys between Taiwan and Europe from 2014 to 2016, with the total number of trips between the two sides rising around 10 percent year on year to 150,000 in 2016. (SFC-E)

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