Tackle Trade World - January 2024

DBW...
taiwan
advancements, innovative
materials and designs, making
for quality gear, with exports
around the globe, most notably
to the USA, Europe, Japan
and, more recently, China.
By the same token, while
Taiwanese anglers buy
products at all price points,
there is a notable market for
premium tackle from brands
with a strong kudos, for
example high-end Japanese
lure brands.
The Taiwan International
Fisheries and Seafood Show
(TIFSS) had been growing
in popularity in recent years,
with an increased emphasis
on recreational fishing, but it
appears it has now moved to
focus more on the aquaculture
and commercial fishing
industry once again.
e C o n o M y i n f o C u s
The economy of Taiwan is, and has been
for some time, driven by manufacturing
– particularly the manufacturing of
electronics, machinery, chemicals and, of
course fishing tackle too. As a result, it is
very heavily dependent on exports.
The quick industrialisation and rapid
growth of Taiwan during the latter half
of the 20th century has been dubbed
the “Taiwan Miracle” and the country
– which includes the main island of
Formosa plus Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu –
is one of the ‘Four Asian Tigers’ alongside
Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore.
Since 2001, agriculture constituted less
than two per cent of GDP, down from
32 per cent in 1951 and its economy is
dominated by small and medium-sized
businesses. Traditional labour-intensive
industries are steadily being moved
offshore and with more capital and
technology-intensive industries replacing
them.
Today Taiwan has a dynamic, exportdriven
economy with gradually decreasing
state involvement in investment and
foreign trade. In keeping with this trend,
some large government-owned banks and
industrial firms are being privtatised.
Since the beginning of the 1990s,
economic ties between Taiwan and
China have been extensive. In 2002,
China surpassed the United States to
become Taiwan’s largest export market
for the first time. China is also the most
important target of outward foreign direct
investment. China hosts around 4,200
Taiwanese enterprises and over 240,000
Taiwanese work in China.
Although the economy of Taiwan
benefits from this situation, some have
expressed the view that the island has
become increasingly dependent on the
mainland Chinese economy.
There are many challenges facing the
economy in Taiwan, one of the main ones
being an ageing population. The country
has one of the world’s lowest fertility rates
and it is estimated that, by 2025, almost
20 per cent of the island’s population will
be aged 65 or over. This, combined with
an increase in affluence of its population
and subsequent demand for higher
wages in manufacturing jobs, means that
the country is potentially facing labour
shortages in the coming years.
Despite all this, Taiwan remains an
important global manufacturing epicentre
and one with which many fishing tackle
brands do business on a regular basis.
The country is experiencing solid GDP
growth and is also managing to keep its
unemployment level low.
t a r G e t s P e C i e s
target this species, fished at a
wide range of depths and with
no real preference between hard
or soft.
snaKehead
The aggressive and hard-fighting
predator that is the snakehead is
one of Taiwan’s most revered fish.
The species is definitely top of
the list for many sport fishermen
in the country thanks to its
abundance and its exciting take
or bite. They are predominantly
fished for with lures, particularly
surface lures such as frogs.
Snakehead can be found
all over Taiwan’s freshwater
including lakes, rivers, ponds and
canals – if you can throw a lure in
it, chances are you may well catch
a snakehead.
The average snakehead comes
in at around 50cm in length
while a real specimen is classified
as anything of 70cm or above.
BLaCK Bass
A popular freshwater fish species
throughout much of east Asia,
the black bass is a hard-fighting
relative of the largemouth bass
that is more familiar to anglers
from the United States. They are
most commonly found in ponds,
lakes and reservoirs and may
often be stocked by the owners of
these waters for the enjoyment of
fishermen.
The average size for these fish
is around 40cm but anything
bigger than 50cm is considered a
good fish. Lures are, once again,
the most popular method to
BLuefin tuna
A slightly controversial subject
in Taiwan, due to restrictions
imposed on the country’s
commercial anglers for overfishing
the stocks of these fast and hardfighting
fish, bluefin tuna remain
popular with recreational sea
anglers, where permitted to catch
them.
Often it’s a case of getting
a boat out offshore for some
deepwater jigging that is the most
popular method to catch them. If
that doesn’t work, then high speed
trolling is also an option.
other sPeCies:
Panfish • Trout • Squid • Snapper
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