Business News
United States and Taiwan to resume suspended trade talks
Sep 30, 2010, 14:41 GMT
Taipei - Taiwan said Thursday that long-suspended trade talks with the United States could resume early as December, after a visit by a US official.
The talks to establish a bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) were suspended three years ago amid a dispute over imports of US beef to Taiwan and other issues.
'If all goes well, the suspended TIFA talks will resume and could be held as early as mid-to-late December,' Taiwan's Vice Economics Minister Francis Liang said.
The announcement came after Assistant US Trade Representative for China Affairs Claire Reade on Thursday concluded a two-day visit to Taiwan.
The US delegation said in a statement that, after successful initial discussions, the two sides were now 'working to finalize mutually agreeable dates for the meeting, targeting late 2010 or early 2011.'
Taiwan's economists and trade officials said the signing of a semi-free trade pact between Taipei and Beijing in June has prompted other countries, including the United States, to enhance their trade ties with the island.
The US was once Taiwan's biggest trading partner - a status that has been replaced by China in recent years.
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