South Korea
There are so many affairs in South Korea, and these things have a great influence on their national development. So I choose this country to be the topic of my final report.
1. Politics
The government of South Korea is divided into three branches: executive, judicial, and legislative. The executive and legislative branches operate primarily at the national level, although various ministries in the executive branch also carry out local functions. Local governments are semi-autonomous, and contain executive and legislative bodies of their own. The judicial branch operates at both the national and local levels.
The South Korean government's structure is determined by the Constitution of the Republic of Korea. This document has been revised several times since its first promulgation in 1948 . However, it has retained many broad characteristics; with the exception of the short-lived Second Republic of South Korea, the country has always had a presidential system with a relatively independent chief executive.
As with most stable three-branch systems, a careful system of checks and balances is in place. For instance, the judges of the Constitutional Court are partially appointed by the executive, and partially by the legislature. Likewise, when a resolution of impeachment is passed by the legislature, it is sent to the judiciary for a final decision.
(my analysis) According to the structure of this system, I can obviously see that this kind of structure really illustrate the spirit of a democracy country. For the reason that the power has been divided into three different branches, no on can really decide an important thing by his or her self and this kind of system also monitors the leader. If one immediate policy has to be realized in a short of time, this system might be kind of slow. In general, this system successfully distributes the power to three branches so each of one can monitor each other and create better policy for their people.
2. Economics
South Korea is a major international economic power; it has the twelfth largest economy in the world (eleventh largest by purchasing power parity) and the third largest in Asia, behind only Japan and China (fourth behind China, Japan, and India by purchasing power parity). Its largest trading partner and export market today is China. As one of the Four Asian Tigers, it achieved rapid economic growth through exports of manufactured goods. In the 1950s, South Korea was one of the poorest countries in Asia. At the end of World War II, the country inherited a colonial economic system designed solely for Japan's needs. Much of the country's infrastructure was destroyed during the Korean War that followed in 1950-1953. After the war, South Korea became heavily dependent on U.S. aid.Following the military coup led by General Park Chung-hee in 1962, South Korea embarked on a series of ambitious five-year plans for economic development. Emphasis shifted to foreign trade with the normalization of relations with Japan in 1965 and a resulted in a boom in trade and investment. Rapid expansion, first into light and then heavy industries, followed in the 1960s and 1970s. During this period, the South Korean economy grew at an average annual rate of 8.6%.
This phenomenal growth is often called the "Miracle on the Han River", the Han River being the main river that runs through the nation's capital and largest city, Seoul. In the 1980s and 1990's, growth continued as South Korea transformed itself from an exporter of mostly textiles and shoes into a major global producer of automobiles, electronics, shipbuilding, steel and, later, high-technology products such as digital monitors, mobile phones, and semiconductors.
The South Korean model of encouraging the growth of large, internationally competitive companies through easy financing and tax incentives led to the dominance of the family-controlled conglomerates. These companies, known as chaebol, flourished under the support of the Park regime. Some such as Hyundai, Samsung, LG and SK Company became global corporations. In 2004, South Korea joined in the trillion dollar club of world economies.
Since the Asian financial crisis of 1997, however, the corporate landscape has changed considerably as a result of massive bankruptcies and government reforms. The crisis exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's economy, including high debt-to-equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. This led to two rounds of financial and industrial restructuring; once in 1997 and again following the collapse of Daewoo in 1999. Daewoo's collapse has been recorded as one of the largest bankruptcies in world history. By 2003, just over one-half of the 30 largest chaebol from 1995 remained.
Between 2003 and 2005, economic growth has slowed to about 4% per year, an enviable figure in much of the rest of the world. A downturn in consumer spending, attributed to massive personal credit card debt, was offset by rapid export growth, primarily to China. In 2005, the government proposed labor reform legislation and a corporate pension scheme to help make the labor market more flexible, and new real estate policies to cool property speculation. In 2006, South Korean economy has recovered its growth rate to 5.1%, and its outlook for 2007 is foretold positively.
The South Korean economy is characterized by moderate inflation, low unemployment, an export surplus, and fairly equal distribution of income. South Korea continues to strive to maintain global competitiveness. South Korea has been opened to various employment opportunities in various industries. An example would be the influx of English teachers from native English-speaking countries seeking employment and travel in the country.
(my analysis) From the information above, I can see that the economy of South Korea was badly influenced by the Korean War happened in 1950~1953. Due to this fact and under the colonization of Japan, South Korea’s economy is a mess. Not until the normalization of the relationship with Japan can South Korea really revive its economy. Then we can also see that their economy mainly has been lead by big enterprises. Some of the very famous worldwide brand can fully illustrate this idea. Its information technology is always one of the best in the world. All in all, the domestic economy is pretty strong and the development of the technology is in advance. Speaking of the trades with other countries, there may result another issue. Though the FTA with America has been signed on April fourth, 2007, recently America asks more freedom from the trade barriers including the beef problem and this is the issue which I am interested and yearning to follow and get the first piece of news.
3. The issue of signing the FTA with America
Top Countries From Which South Korea Imports (2006)
South Korea imported some US$309 billion worth of commodities in 2006. Korean imports are principally electronics and electronic equipment, machinery, oil, organic chemicals, plastics and steel.
Japan ... US$57 billion (18.5% of total South Korean imports)
China ... $46 billion (14.8%)
United States ... $37 billion (11.8%)
Saudi Arabia ... $19 billion (6.2%)
(From America’s Point of View)
America's trade deficit with South Korea is about $11 billion, a statistic that the U.S. hopes to reduce through a 20% increase in exports under the new free trade treaty.
The KFTA is Washington's biggest free trade deal since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed in 1993. The treaty is expected to eliminate duties on more than 90% of U.S. exports to South Korea within three years.
(From South Korea’s Point of View)
For Seoul, the agreement will improve South Korea's economic freedom by locking in additional economic reforms. It may also give a boost to South Korea's credit ratings and give the country a competitive advantage over regional rivals China and Japan.
American & Korean Trade Issues
Critics say that U.S. Congress will not pass the KFTA without substantial changes. For example, the Automotive Trade Policy Council, a lobby group for the North American automotive industry, objects that the deal does not eliminate South Korea's 8% duty on new vehicles.
And, although the KFTA eliminates South Korea's 40% tariffs on American beef, Seoul continues to restrict U.S. beef imports since the "mad cow disease" scare in late 2003. Technically, South Korea has opened its markets to import U.S. boneless beef from cattle less than 30-months old. Recently, however, Korean inspectors rejected three large shipments of U.S. beef because they contained small bone fragments. The U.S. cattle industry demands that the KFTA be amended to allow the U.S. to ship both boneless and bone-in beef to South Korea regardless of the cattle's age.
Strong & Dynamic Trade Partnership
Both the U.S. and South Korea are committed to open trade relationships. America leads the world with some US$30 billion directly invested in South Korea and over 3,000 U.S. companies operating there.
For its part, South Korea continues to demonstrate progress in removing barriers to U.S. exports. For example, Seoul has announced a reduction in quotas that require Korean cinemas to show domestic movies for a minimum period. This expands U.S. filmmakers' access to Korean moviegoers.
Free trade with South Korea positions America as an alternative to China's growing economic influence in Northeast Asia. A Korean Free Trade treaty will also bear witness to America's resolve in overcoming trade barriers, thus providing a case study that may inspire the World Trade Organization to enact similar strategic solutions.
My Analysis of This Issue
According to what I see about this issue, I really think this trade both benefits South Korea and America. I want to use the knowledge of the negotiation to define, explain, and also share my points of view. This treaty is just like an expansion of the pie so we can say it’s an integrative bargaining. Integrative bargaining (also called "interest-based bargaining," "win-win bargaining") is a negotiation strategy in which parties collaborate to find a "win-win" solution to their dispute. This strategy focuses on developing mutually beneficial agreements based on the interests of the disputants. "Integrative refers to the potential for the parties' interests to be [combined] in ways that create joint value. Potential for integration only exists when there are multiple issues involved in the negotiation. This is because the parties must be able to make trade-offs across issues in order for both sides to be satisfied with the outcome. On the surface there might be only one issue and that is signing the treaty with America. However, there are a lot of smaller issues in the treaty and it’s just that many small issues are packed in this big bag. It’s good that it might save a lot of time when we have to discuss so many issues each time. It’s not only time consuming but also money consuming. On the other hand, there are still some drawbacks. For example, one country might degree several small issues in this big issue but this country doesn’t satisfy with all of the issues. Then, the probability of making this issue realized could be a problem. In my point of view, I think it’s a good thing that America and South Korea successfully reach a consensus and sign the treaty in 2007.
However, now there are some problems occurred. I want to focus on the beef issue. From the South Korea, they assert that the cow that imported by America might not be safe because of the mad cow disease. Besides, they don’t appreciate that the America broke the promise and imported the bone-in beef. According the treaty, only boneless beef can be imported. Now America wants the Korea to import both of these beef. In my point of view, America is the country which holds bigger power and they know that South Korea highly relies on them. To see this problem from an objective perspective, I can say that America is not really in the justice side this time because it is them who break the promise. Anyway, we still have to face the truth that they are more powerful than us. If South Korea has to agree this issue, I would suggest that they can offer some proposals as a condition to trade or America has to give the promise that if they import the mad cow disease, there should be some compensation. I am wondering what would really happen afterwards so I will keep track on this issue.
4. Reflections on Taiwan from South Korea
Both South Korea and Taiwan are major trading countries, and they are each other’s fifth largest trading partner. Taiwan and South Korea have been competitors in the business world, but they can also collaborate. Due to the fact that China is a huge market and that is really attractive for South Korea. Huge market represents numerous business opportunities and great profit. Since Taiwan and China remain the conflict about sovereignty problem. This kind of problem is hard to negotiate and to be more specific I think it’s about the value. Value is something which is nonnegotiable. For the relationship between a country and a country, it’s always about the interest. As an old saying goes, no one is really your enemy and no one is really your friend. The relationship is based on the profit. Without the profit, everything goes wrong. Though holding this kind of attitude might be a little bit pessimistic but that is the world and that is the truth and also how it goes.
5. My Reflection on This Report
After doing this report and taking the course for this whole semester I want to share my findings. I find out that Taiwan is experiencing several economic and political problems. We can analyze this problem from two different perspectives. If we see Taiwan’s economy from the global perspective, the challenges result from the objection of China; if we look at it from a domestic perspective, the challenges result from the high unemployment rate.
To see Taiwan’s economic challenge from the global perspective, I am not going to blame the western credit crisis. For Taiwan’s economic challenges, I am going to emphasize the cross-Strait confrontation. Because of the uncertainty in the transformation of the Chinese economy, Taiwan grew wary of its reliance on the Chinese market and production resources. Due to Chinese political objection, Taiwan could not participate in the East Asian economic integration. This kind of exclusion hindered Taiwan’s ability to utilize the effects of scale economies, growth opportunities, and integration of regional resources brought by the regime. As a result, Taiwan lost the opportunity to develop and integrate the available resources in the region.
Then let’s see the economic challenge from the domestic perspective. We can easily know that the unemployment rate is getting higher and higher. Hundreds pieces of news are filled with the job loss and how the job applicants outnumbered the required employees. People who don’t have two or even more professional skills are in a great probability to lose the job. Under the circumstances of job loss, people would tend to choose not to be consumers but to be money savers. As a result, bad economic circulation kept going. All kinds of stores’ earning shrink and then those storekeepers and its employees turned to be savers but not consumers. As a result, the GDP gets lower, the stock price slumps, and the consumer sentiment crashes. Undoubtedly, Taiwan’s economy is a mess.
Knowing the problem is always a good start, but it is even more important to take the second step- find the solutions. Though it seems impossible that we students can make a difference between the relationship of Taiwan and China, I believe we can have the right conception. Facing the economic problems, we should put aside the prejudice and find the common interest. Chen-yuan Tung, who is an associate professor in National Chengchi University, conducted a research on 1,019 Taiwanese enterprises and foreign firms. The finding shows that if Taiwan joins the East Asian economic integration regime, Taiwanese enterprises will increase the investment in Taiwan by net 21.6 percent; Taiwan listed companies will increase their investment in Taiwan by net 19.0 percent; foreign firms in Taiwan will increase their investment in Taiwan by net 35.2 percent; global investment institutions will increase their investment in Taiwan by net 92.9 percent. By signing a treaty with China in carrying out economic integration, Taiwan will gain leverages on global economic competition and facilitate globalization of Taiwan’s economic development.
Speaking of the unemployment, we should feel lucky that we are still students so that we have a chance to enhance our professional skills. It is clear that if we want to lower the unemployment rate, the conception of learning must change. Due to the fact that we used to think we learn something because we have to, our motivation of learning is weak. We became realistic so we chose to learn only the thing we thought is useful. Then when the economic environment changed or the trend of the technology changed, we finally felt panic and regret that we did not grab the chance to learn the second profession. According to the speech of Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs, we should always stay foolish and stay hungry. Not only should we follow our heart of learning, but we should believe that the dots would connect to each other. In short, we should not choose to learn only the thing we like; instead, when it comes to the chance of learning we stay hungry and stay foolish.
People would say it is hard to see a promising future of Taiwan’s economy. I say we still have a chance to build a miracle of Taiwan’s economy. We have to neglect the political prejudice of China and embrace the common interest so that we can join the East Asian economic integration regime to strengthen our economy. We should change our attitude of learning and give ourselves a chance to learn more so that when the economy is in a mess, we still have several professional skills to keep our job and the unemployment rate would be lower. I am so glad to say it again that I have a chance to join this class and have the gain a lot of valuable the methods to see and analyze events. Facing the dilemma on Taiwan’s situation, I hope one day in the future I can contribute something for our country.
There are so many affairs in South Korea, and these things have a great influence on their national development. So I choose this country to be the topic of my final report.
1. Politics
The government of South Korea is divided into three branches: executive, judicial, and legislative. The executive and legislative branches operate primarily at the national level, although various ministries in the executive branch also carry out local functions. Local governments are semi-autonomous, and contain executive and legislative bodies of their own. The judicial branch operates at both the national and local levels.
The South Korean government's structure is determined by the Constitution of the Republic of Korea. This document has been revised several times since its first promulgation in 1948 . However, it has retained many broad characteristics; with the exception of the short-lived Second Republic of South Korea, the country has always had a presidential system with a relatively independent chief executive.
As with most stable three-branch systems, a careful system of checks and balances is in place. For instance, the judges of the Constitutional Court are partially appointed by the executive, and partially by the legislature. Likewise, when a resolution of impeachment is passed by the legislature, it is sent to the judiciary for a final decision.
(my analysis) According to the structure of this system, I can obviously see that this kind of structure really illustrate the spirit of a democracy country. For the reason that the power has been divided into three different branches, no on can really decide an important thing by his or her self and this kind of system also monitors the leader. If one immediate policy has to be realized in a short of time, this system might be kind of slow. In general, this system successfully distributes the power to three branches so each of one can monitor each other and create better policy for their people.
2. Economics
South Korea is a major international economic power; it has the twelfth largest economy in the world (eleventh largest by purchasing power parity) and the third largest in Asia, behind only Japan and China (fourth behind China, Japan, and India by purchasing power parity). Its largest trading partner and export market today is China. As one of the Four Asian Tigers, it achieved rapid economic growth through exports of manufactured goods. In the 1950s, South Korea was one of the poorest countries in Asia. At the end of World War II, the country inherited a colonial economic system designed solely for Japan's needs. Much of the country's infrastructure was destroyed during the Korean War that followed in 1950-1953. After the war, South Korea became heavily dependent on U.S. aid.Following the military coup led by General Park Chung-hee in 1962, South Korea embarked on a series of ambitious five-year plans for economic development. Emphasis shifted to foreign trade with the normalization of relations with Japan in 1965 and a resulted in a boom in trade and investment. Rapid expansion, first into light and then heavy industries, followed in the 1960s and 1970s. During this period, the South Korean economy grew at an average annual rate of 8.6%.
This phenomenal growth is often called the "Miracle on the Han River", the Han River being the main river that runs through the nation's capital and largest city, Seoul. In the 1980s and 1990's, growth continued as South Korea transformed itself from an exporter of mostly textiles and shoes into a major global producer of automobiles, electronics, shipbuilding, steel and, later, high-technology products such as digital monitors, mobile phones, and semiconductors.
The South Korean model of encouraging the growth of large, internationally competitive companies through easy financing and tax incentives led to the dominance of the family-controlled conglomerates. These companies, known as chaebol, flourished under the support of the Park regime. Some such as Hyundai, Samsung, LG and SK Company became global corporations. In 2004, South Korea joined in the trillion dollar club of world economies.
Since the Asian financial crisis of 1997, however, the corporate landscape has changed considerably as a result of massive bankruptcies and government reforms. The crisis exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's economy, including high debt-to-equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. This led to two rounds of financial and industrial restructuring; once in 1997 and again following the collapse of Daewoo in 1999. Daewoo's collapse has been recorded as one of the largest bankruptcies in world history. By 2003, just over one-half of the 30 largest chaebol from 1995 remained.
Between 2003 and 2005, economic growth has slowed to about 4% per year, an enviable figure in much of the rest of the world. A downturn in consumer spending, attributed to massive personal credit card debt, was offset by rapid export growth, primarily to China. In 2005, the government proposed labor reform legislation and a corporate pension scheme to help make the labor market more flexible, and new real estate policies to cool property speculation. In 2006, South Korean economy has recovered its growth rate to 5.1%, and its outlook for 2007 is foretold positively.
The South Korean economy is characterized by moderate inflation, low unemployment, an export surplus, and fairly equal distribution of income. South Korea continues to strive to maintain global competitiveness. South Korea has been opened to various employment opportunities in various industries. An example would be the influx of English teachers from native English-speaking countries seeking employment and travel in the country.
(my analysis) From the information above, I can see that the economy of South Korea was badly influenced by the Korean War happened in 1950~1953. Due to this fact and under the colonization of Japan, South Korea’s economy is a mess. Not until the normalization of the relationship with Japan can South Korea really revive its economy. Then we can also see that their economy mainly has been lead by big enterprises. Some of the very famous worldwide brand can fully illustrate this idea. Its information technology is always one of the best in the world. All in all, the domestic economy is pretty strong and the development of the technology is in advance. Speaking of the trades with other countries, there may result another issue. Though the FTA with America has been signed on April fourth, 2007, recently America asks more freedom from the trade barriers including the beef problem and this is the issue which I am interested and yearning to follow and get the first piece of news.
3. The issue of signing the FTA with America
Top Countries From Which South Korea Imports (2006)
South Korea imported some US$309 billion worth of commodities in 2006. Korean imports are principally electronics and electronic equipment, machinery, oil, organic chemicals, plastics and steel.
Japan ... US$57 billion (18.5% of total South Korean imports)
China ... $46 billion (14.8%)
United States ... $37 billion (11.8%)
Saudi Arabia ... $19 billion (6.2%)
(From America’s Point of View)
America's trade deficit with South Korea is about $11 billion, a statistic that the U.S. hopes to reduce through a 20% increase in exports under the new free trade treaty.
The KFTA is Washington's biggest free trade deal since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed in 1993. The treaty is expected to eliminate duties on more than 90% of U.S. exports to South Korea within three years.
(From South Korea’s Point of View)
For Seoul, the agreement will improve South Korea's economic freedom by locking in additional economic reforms. It may also give a boost to South Korea's credit ratings and give the country a competitive advantage over regional rivals China and Japan.
American & Korean Trade Issues
Critics say that U.S. Congress will not pass the KFTA without substantial changes. For example, the Automotive Trade Policy Council, a lobby group for the North American automotive industry, objects that the deal does not eliminate South Korea's 8% duty on new vehicles.
And, although the KFTA eliminates South Korea's 40% tariffs on American beef, Seoul continues to restrict U.S. beef imports since the "mad cow disease" scare in late 2003. Technically, South Korea has opened its markets to import U.S. boneless beef from cattle less than 30-months old. Recently, however, Korean inspectors rejected three large shipments of U.S. beef because they contained small bone fragments. The U.S. cattle industry demands that the KFTA be amended to allow the U.S. to ship both boneless and bone-in beef to South Korea regardless of the cattle's age.
Strong & Dynamic Trade Partnership
Both the U.S. and South Korea are committed to open trade relationships. America leads the world with some US$30 billion directly invested in South Korea and over 3,000 U.S. companies operating there.
For its part, South Korea continues to demonstrate progress in removing barriers to U.S. exports. For example, Seoul has announced a reduction in quotas that require Korean cinemas to show domestic movies for a minimum period. This expands U.S. filmmakers' access to Korean moviegoers.
Free trade with South Korea positions America as an alternative to China's growing economic influence in Northeast Asia. A Korean Free Trade treaty will also bear witness to America's resolve in overcoming trade barriers, thus providing a case study that may inspire the World Trade Organization to enact similar strategic solutions.
My Analysis of This Issue
According to what I see about this issue, I really think this trade both benefits South Korea and America. I want to use the knowledge of the negotiation to define, explain, and also share my points of view. This treaty is just like an expansion of the pie so we can say it’s an integrative bargaining. Integrative bargaining (also called "interest-based bargaining," "win-win bargaining") is a negotiation strategy in which parties collaborate to find a "win-win" solution to their dispute. This strategy focuses on developing mutually beneficial agreements based on the interests of the disputants. "Integrative refers to the potential for the parties' interests to be [combined] in ways that create joint value. Potential for integration only exists when there are multiple issues involved in the negotiation. This is because the parties must be able to make trade-offs across issues in order for both sides to be satisfied with the outcome. On the surface there might be only one issue and that is signing the treaty with America. However, there are a lot of smaller issues in the treaty and it’s just that many small issues are packed in this big bag. It’s good that it might save a lot of time when we have to discuss so many issues each time. It’s not only time consuming but also money consuming. On the other hand, there are still some drawbacks. For example, one country might degree several small issues in this big issue but this country doesn’t satisfy with all of the issues. Then, the probability of making this issue realized could be a problem. In my point of view, I think it’s a good thing that America and South Korea successfully reach a consensus and sign the treaty in 2007.
However, now there are some problems occurred. I want to focus on the beef issue. From the South Korea, they assert that the cow that imported by America might not be safe because of the mad cow disease. Besides, they don’t appreciate that the America broke the promise and imported the bone-in beef. According the treaty, only boneless beef can be imported. Now America wants the Korea to import both of these beef. In my point of view, America is the country which holds bigger power and they know that South Korea highly relies on them. To see this problem from an objective perspective, I can say that America is not really in the justice side this time because it is them who break the promise. Anyway, we still have to face the truth that they are more powerful than us. If South Korea has to agree this issue, I would suggest that they can offer some proposals as a condition to trade or America has to give the promise that if they import the mad cow disease, there should be some compensation. I am wondering what would really happen afterwards so I will keep track on this issue.
4. Reflections on Taiwan from South Korea
Both South Korea and Taiwan are major trading countries, and they are each other’s fifth largest trading partner. Taiwan and South Korea have been competitors in the business world, but they can also collaborate. Due to the fact that China is a huge market and that is really attractive for South Korea. Huge market represents numerous business opportunities and great profit. Since Taiwan and China remain the conflict about sovereignty problem. This kind of problem is hard to negotiate and to be more specific I think it’s about the value. Value is something which is nonnegotiable. For the relationship between a country and a country, it’s always about the interest. As an old saying goes, no one is really your enemy and no one is really your friend. The relationship is based on the profit. Without the profit, everything goes wrong. Though holding this kind of attitude might be a little bit pessimistic but that is the world and that is the truth and also how it goes.
5. My Reflection on This Report
After doing this report and taking the course for this whole semester I want to share my findings. I find out that Taiwan is experiencing several economic and political problems. We can analyze this problem from two different perspectives. If we see Taiwan’s economy from the global perspective, the challenges result from the objection of China; if we look at it from a domestic perspective, the challenges result from the high unemployment rate.
To see Taiwan’s economic challenge from the global perspective, I am not going to blame the western credit crisis. For Taiwan’s economic challenges, I am going to emphasize the cross-Strait confrontation. Because of the uncertainty in the transformation of the Chinese economy, Taiwan grew wary of its reliance on the Chinese market and production resources. Due to Chinese political objection, Taiwan could not participate in the East Asian economic integration. This kind of exclusion hindered Taiwan’s ability to utilize the effects of scale economies, growth opportunities, and integration of regional resources brought by the regime. As a result, Taiwan lost the opportunity to develop and integrate the available resources in the region.
Then let’s see the economic challenge from the domestic perspective. We can easily know that the unemployment rate is getting higher and higher. Hundreds pieces of news are filled with the job loss and how the job applicants outnumbered the required employees. People who don’t have two or even more professional skills are in a great probability to lose the job. Under the circumstances of job loss, people would tend to choose not to be consumers but to be money savers. As a result, bad economic circulation kept going. All kinds of stores’ earning shrink and then those storekeepers and its employees turned to be savers but not consumers. As a result, the GDP gets lower, the stock price slumps, and the consumer sentiment crashes. Undoubtedly, Taiwan’s economy is a mess.
Knowing the problem is always a good start, but it is even more important to take the second step- find the solutions. Though it seems impossible that we students can make a difference between the relationship of Taiwan and China, I believe we can have the right conception. Facing the economic problems, we should put aside the prejudice and find the common interest. Chen-yuan Tung, who is an associate professor in National Chengchi University, conducted a research on 1,019 Taiwanese enterprises and foreign firms. The finding shows that if Taiwan joins the East Asian economic integration regime, Taiwanese enterprises will increase the investment in Taiwan by net 21.6 percent; Taiwan listed companies will increase their investment in Taiwan by net 19.0 percent; foreign firms in Taiwan will increase their investment in Taiwan by net 35.2 percent; global investment institutions will increase their investment in Taiwan by net 92.9 percent. By signing a treaty with China in carrying out economic integration, Taiwan will gain leverages on global economic competition and facilitate globalization of Taiwan’s economic development.
Speaking of the unemployment, we should feel lucky that we are still students so that we have a chance to enhance our professional skills. It is clear that if we want to lower the unemployment rate, the conception of learning must change. Due to the fact that we used to think we learn something because we have to, our motivation of learning is weak. We became realistic so we chose to learn only the thing we thought is useful. Then when the economic environment changed or the trend of the technology changed, we finally felt panic and regret that we did not grab the chance to learn the second profession. According to the speech of Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs, we should always stay foolish and stay hungry. Not only should we follow our heart of learning, but we should believe that the dots would connect to each other. In short, we should not choose to learn only the thing we like; instead, when it comes to the chance of learning we stay hungry and stay foolish.
People would say it is hard to see a promising future of Taiwan’s economy. I say we still have a chance to build a miracle of Taiwan’s economy. We have to neglect the political prejudice of China and embrace the common interest so that we can join the East Asian economic integration regime to strengthen our economy. We should change our attitude of learning and give ourselves a chance to learn more so that when the economy is in a mess, we still have several professional skills to keep our job and the unemployment rate would be lower. I am so glad to say it again that I have a chance to join this class and have the gain a lot of valuable the methods to see and analyze events. Facing the dilemma on Taiwan’s situation, I hope one day in the future I can contribute something for our country.
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