Taiwan says ‘constructive progress’ made in US trade talks

Taiwan said it’s made “constructive progress” in a second round of trade talks with the US, which are aimed at avoiding tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.“It is believed that constructive progress has been made in the negotiations so far,” said an official Taiwanese statement on Sunday. The talks were held in recent days in Washington, it said.

The Trump administration imposed a 32% tariff on Taiwan’s imports on April 2, later pausing it for 90 days.

Last month, Taiwanese trade negotiator Yang Jen-ni met with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer for the first round of talks in Jeju, South Korea.Before the Trump administration announced the levies, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the archipelago’s biggest firm and a key supplier to Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp, said that it would invest an additional $100 billion in the US.

TSMC plans to build six advanced semiconductor fabs and two packaging facilities along with a research center as part of a $165 billion investment in Arizona that’s expected to create thousands of jobs.

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