Taiwan Business Guide - Management and Business Studies Portal

INTRODUCTION
WHY Taiwan? (CONTINUED)
The Country at a Glance
Full name: Republic of China (Taiwan)
Capital:
Taipei
Other main cities: Taichung, Kaohsiung
Area:
36,188 sq. km/13,972 sq. miles (roughly the size of Wales)
Population: 23.03 million (2010)
Major languages: Mandarin Chinese (official language), Min Nan Chinese (Taiwanese)
and Hakka. English and Japanese are also widely spoken
Ethnicities: Han Chinese and indigenous minority of Taiwanese aborigines
Life expectancy: 73 years (men), 79 years (women)
Major religions: Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity
Monetary unit: New Taiwan dollar (NT$)
Nominal GDP: US$427 billion
GDP per capita: US$19,155
World Bank ease 33
of doing business
ranking:
A leading choice for investors
Taiwan’s strategic location is one of its most
significant advantages for international
investors. It is ideally situated adjacent
to China and within easy reach of major
commercial centres and ports in the ASEAN
(Association of Southeast Asian Nations)
region. For example, the sailing time from
Taiwan’s largest port, Kaohsiung, to five of
the largest Asia-Pacific ports (Hong Kong,
Manila, Shanghai, Tokyo and Singapore)
is just over two days. This makes Taiwan
a favoured choice for headquarters in the
Asia‐Pacific region, as well as R&D facilities.
With direct flights having been introduced
in 2008, travellers can now fly from Taiwan
to major cities in China with a journey time
of just one to two hours.
The continuing liberalisation of links across
the Taiwan Strait means that foreign
companies are increasingly choosing Taiwan
both as a market in its own right and as a
stepping stone into China. Taiwan signed
the Economic Cooperation Framework
Agreement (ECFA) with China in 2010
to reduce tariffs and commercial barriers
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