US, trade agreement reached with Taiwan on semiconductors
The US and Taiwan have reached a long-awaited trade agreement that will reduce tariffs on goods from the island
The United States and Taiwan have reached a long-awaited trade agreement that will reduce tariffs on goods from the autonomous island to 15 per cent and allow Taiwanese semiconductor companies to increase financing for US operations by USD 500 billion.
Under the terms of the agreement, which the White House was set to announce on Thursday, tariffs on Taiwanese shipments will drop from the previous 20% rate, bringing them in line with those of Japan and South Korea, which reached their own agreements last year.
On 13 January, Taiwan had reported that it had reached a 'general consensus' with the US on the trade agreement, concluding a dialogue that had gone on for several months. "The objective of the tariff negotiations has always been to obtain reductions in reciprocal tariffs and preferential treatment under Section 232," the Taipei Trade Negotiations Office had specified in a note, adding that there was general consensus on these issues. The move is bound to irritate China, which considers the island a 'sacred' and 'indissoluble' part whose destiny is reunification even by force if necessary.
US moves aircraft carrier Lincoln from the China Sea to the Middle East
The Pentagon has announced the relocation of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln from the South China Sea to the Middle East. This was reported by The Hill. The aircraft carrier and its strike group were spotted heading west, away from the Indo-Pacific region, according to images provided by Copernicus, a satellite data company that monitors maritime traffic. The move will take about a week.
