00:00Taiwan's government says it's standing by its trade deal with Washington, despite uncertainty
00:05about what a new U.S. tariff environment means for an agreement that took months of negotiations
00:10to produce. That's after U.S. President Donald Trump issued a new global 15% tariff under a new
00:17legal authority after his so-called Liberation Day tariffs were ruled to be illegal by the Supreme
00:22Court. At a post-Lunar New Year holiday ceremony in Taipei, Taiwan's premier seemed to acknowledge
00:28the upheaval. 15% is a significant number because it's the same rate Taiwan negotiated by committing
00:53to up to 585 billion U.S. dollars in U.S.-based investments, purchases, and loans. Taiwan's
01:00premier says other aspects of the deal still make it valuable, such as preferential treatment on
01:04semiconductor and electronics tariffs. But some in Taiwan's opposition parties are calling for a
01:09delay in reviewing the deal in the legislature, or even renegotiating the terms with Washington
01:13entirely. Those working in traditional export industries are especially feeling the uncertainty
01:18in their businesses. But U.S. trade representative Jameson Greer says no country has backed out of
01:37their trade deals, and he expects partners to stand by them. Despite the news, investors in Taiwan didn't
01:43seem to be panicking. Taiwan's main stock index rallied on Monday, closing up about half a percent
01:48after a jump in early trading. The trade deal still must go through Taiwan's legislature, and debate over
01:54whether to keep it, change it, or scrap it is only just getting started. Joseph Wu and Chris Gorin for
01:59Taiwan Plus.
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