New Taiwan PM To Reshuffle Cabinet
By ANNIE HUANG, Associated Press Writer
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Taiwan's new finance minister says he will stabilize the country's stock market so it reflects Taiwan's strong economic fundamentals: low unemployment, high exports and a projected growth rate of 6.6 percent - up from 5.7 percent.
The appointment of Yen Ching-chang was just one of several announced Thursday by Taiwan's new premier - Chang Chun-hsiung. He also named a vice premier and a government spokesman.
Chang took over as the island's third most powerful leader on Wednesday, replacing Tang Fei, who stepped down amid a bitter debate about a nuclear plant and growing concerns about the slumping stock market. He has served as vice finance minister.
Yen, who has served as vice finance minister, replaces Shea Jia-dong, whom many investors blamed for the market's recent slide.
The new premier said that former Grand Justice Lai In-jaw would take over as vice premier, Chang's old job. The new government spokesman will be Taiwan Daily News senior editor Su Cheng-ping, who replaces Chung Chin, an economist who was handicapped by her lack of public relations experience.
The Cabinet's new secretary-general is Chiou I-jen, the former deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council, which advises the president on the island's security policies. Chiou replaces Wea Chi-lin.
Chiou's successor in the National Security Council is veteran journalist Antonio Chiang, publisher of the English-language Taipei Times daily.
Chang repeated his pledge that the economy and political stability would be the most important issues for the government.
``We hope that all of the opposition parties will work hard to cooperate with us,'' Chang said.
Many expected that President Chen Shui-bian's 4-month-old government would have a rough start. For more than five decades, the Nationalist Party controlled Taiwan and it still has a majority in the legislature. So far, Chen's government has failed to form alliances with opposition lawmakers.
Since taking office in May, Chen's approval rating has been slipping. After Tang's resignation, the number has dipped to a new low of 37 percent. After his first month in office, Chen's approval rating was 77 percent.
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Taiwan Brings Financial Expert Into New Cabinet
Reuters Photo
By Alice Hung
TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's premier-designate announced a minor cabinet shake-up on Thursday, bringing in an independent politician with financial expertise to help him tackle troubling financial problems.
Premier-designate Chang Chun-hsiung named Grand Justice Lai In-jaw as vice premier, succeeding Chang who was appointed premier on Wednesday after the shock resignation of Tang Fei.
Political analysts said Lai was also brought in because he has close ties to Taiwan's second biggest opposition party, the People First Party.
The DPP hopes closer ties with the People First Party could help to offset the power of the Nationalist Party, analysts said.
The main opposition Nationalist Party, which dominates parliament, has been blocking attempts to introduce economic reforms and is determined to make the DPP look incompetent.
Vice Finance Minister Yen Ching-chang was appointed finance minister, replacing Shea Jia-dong who resigned along with the rest of the cabinet as a matter of procedure after Tang's departure on Wednesday.
Economics Minister Lin Hsin-i and other cabinet members, including the central bank governor, were reappointed to their posts, Chang told a news conference.
The new cabinet is expected to be sworn in on Friday.
Lai, 54, a former vice finance minister with a Harvard degree, would also lead a task force on economics and finance, said Chang, a veteran of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and confidant of President Chen Shui-bian.
Cautious Welcome
Market analysts cautiously welcomed the changes.
``The appointment of Lai In-jaw who has economic and financial background demonstrates the government's determination to deal with the current problems,'' said Tu Ji-lung, vice president of Grand Cathay Securities.
``The new appointments are acceptable.''
Taiwan's economic fundamentals are strong, but a crisis of confidence has knocked down shares prices by 30 percent since the new government assumed office in May in the island's first democratic transfer of power.
Political uncertainties and tensions with rival China continue to weigh on the stock market.
An opinion poll by cable network TVBS showed President Chen's approval rating has plunged to 37 percent in the wake of the latest turmoil, from 77 percent in June.
Reuters Photo
Forty-eight percent of respondents said they had no confidence in the government's ability to buoy economic growth.
Finance Minister-designate Yen sought to assure investors the domestic stock index would soon return to a reasonable level and said there was no danger of a financial crisis.
Shortly before the start of stock trading, Yen said the T$500 billion (US$16 billion) National Stabilization Fund would intervene ``reasonably'' in the stock market.
Stocks, Currency Rebound
With active intervention, the benchmark Taiwan stock index reversed a downtrend to close 0.53 percent higher at 6,029.65 points, after tumbling 2.37 percent on Wednesday.
By the midday break, the Taiwan dollar edged up to T$31.32 compared with Wednesday's T$31.322 finish.
``Share prices in the past have fallen to unreasonably low levels and this will certainly bring some losses to investors,'' Yen told reporters.
``But as far as the entire financial condition is concerned, there will not be a financial crisis or a financial storm.''
Also on Thursday, Chiou I-jen, another DPP heavyweight, was named cabinet secretary-general.
Su Cheng-ping, chief editorial writer of the Taiwan Daily News, was named government spokesman, replacing Chung Chin who was made a minister without portfolio.
Tang, 68, became Taiwan's shortest serving premier when he stepped down citing deteriorating health.
He said his resignation had nothing to do with a heated debate on whether to halt construction of a US$5.5 billion, 2,700 megawatt nuclear power plant, but it came days after Tang said he would quit if the project was scrapped.
Chen and the DPP want to dismantle the plant, now a third complete, but Tang and his Nationalist Party insist the project should go ahead. |
