Society

Mainland, Taiwan busy preparing for economic pact

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-05-26 14:04
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BEIJING - Experts from the Chinese mainland and Taiwan are busy preparing for their third meeting on the economic pact designed to boost cross-Strait business, a mainland official said here Wednesday.

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The two sides will work hard to achieve the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) at the next round of talks between the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), said Yang Yi, spokesman with the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office.

Yang said the third meeting will happen this month. It is expected to be held before the ARATS-SEF talks in June.

"At the previous two meetings, the two sides made good progress and reached common understanding on most topics," Yang said.

The early harvest program under the ECFA which lists the first products and services to enjoy duty reduction and market opening is just the first step, Yang noted.

"It will not solve all problems and concerns," he said.

The two sides can start negotiating agreements on commodity and services trade not included in the early harvest program after the ECFA is signed, Yang added.

During previous talks, the mainland worked to prevent the ECFA from negatively impacting vulnerable Taiwanese industries, and it is also affording such industries and businesses preferential treatment to help them sell the products and services on the mainland, Yang said.

"On the other hand," he said, "some industries in Taiwan are very competitive. We should also consider this in the talks."

When asked to comment on a proposal in Taiwan to hold a referendum on the ECFA, Yang said politics should not be involved for an economic pact like the ECFA.

Yang also confirmed the ARATS will organize some mainland companies to visit Taiwan this year to assess Taiwan's investment environment.