SE Asia overtakes China to become top investment hotspot for Taiwanese businesses
The survey company suggests the change reflects Taiwanese businesses' growing worries about the uncertainties caused by the US-China trade war.
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By Sophia Yang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer 6park.com
2019/01/30 14:30 6park.com
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The flags of the ASEAN member states in Jakarta, Indonesia (Wikimedia Commons photo) 6park.com
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- A survey of hundreds of executives shows that China is no longer the top investment hotspot for Taiwanese businesses, while Southeast Asian nations have become their new darling, as a result of the US-China trade tensions and growing uncertainties.
Standard Chartered Bank and China Credit Information Service jointly conducted a survey of executives (CEOs, CFOs, general managers and others) from different sizes of companies during the period between Oct. 22 and Nov. 28 of last year, with questions including their near-term outlook, business confidence, as well as transformations and overseas expansion plans.
In the survey, 70.6 percent of respondents said they have had investments in China, and 58.4 percent have set foot in Southeast Asian nations, among which Vietnam is the top destination (50.5 percent), followed by Thailand (48.3 percent), Malaysia (42.3 percent), Indonesia (33.3 percent), and the Philippines (26.9 percent).
Asked whether there are any plans to expand overseas in the near future, nearly 40 percent replied no, and the rest with a plan picked Southeast Asia as their top destination (33.2 percent), followed by China (23.4 percent), a perennial top investment hotspot from Taiwan.
China Credit Information Service Deputy General Manager Nickolas Hsu (許滸) explained the change is reflecting Taiwanese businesses' growing worries about the uncertainties caused by the US-China trade war, leading executives to consider options outside China.