Editing Taiwan (section)

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of Taiwan|Economic history of Taiwan}}
[[File:Sun Down (250260941).jpeg|thumb|upright|[[Taipei 101]] held the world record for the highest skyscraper from 2004 to 2010.|alt=Photo of Taipei 101 tower against a blue sky.]]

The quick industrialization and rapid growth of Taiwan during the latter half of the 20th century has been called the "[[Taiwan Miracle]]". Taiwan is one of the "[[Four Asian Tigers]]" alongside Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore. As of October 2022, Taiwan is the 21st largest [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|economy in the world by nominal GDP]].<ref name="IMFWEOTW">{{cite web |date=April 2023 |title=World Economic Outlook Database |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April/weo-report?c=156,&s=NGDP_RPCH,NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPRPPPPC,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2015&ey=2026&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |access-date=11 April 2023 |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]]}}</ref>

Since 2001, agriculture constituted less than 2 percent of GDP, down from 32 percent in 1951.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bilaterals.org/article.php3?id_article=242|title=US-Taiwan FTA would have limited impact |publisher=bilaterals.org|access-date=28 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060510102658/http://www.bilaterals.org/article.php3?id_article=242|archive-date=10 May 2006}}</ref> Unlike its neighbors, South Korea and Japan, the Taiwanese economy is dominated by [[small and medium-sized enterprises]], rather than the large business groups.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.moea.gov.tw/MNS/english/news/News.aspx?kind=6&menu_id=176&news_id=103826|title=SMEs Serve as the Backbone of Taiwan's Stable Economic Development|website=Ministry of Economic Affairs, R.O.C.|date=28 October 2022|access-date=5 February 2023|archive-date=5 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230205043422/https://www.moea.gov.tw/MNS/english/news/News.aspx?kind=6&menu_id=176&news_id=103826|url-status=dead}}</ref> Traditional labor-intensive industries are steadily being moved offshore and with more capital and technology-intensive industries replacing them. [[Economy of Taiwan#Science and industrial parks|High-technology science parks]] have sprung up in Taiwan.

Today Taiwan has a dynamic, [[capitalism|capitalist]], export-driven economy with gradually decreasing state involvement in investment and foreign trade. In keeping with this trend, some large government-owned banks and industrial firms are being [[privatized]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://taiwanreview.nat.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=1153&CtNode=128|title=Privatization Set in Motion|last=Her|first=Kelly|date=12 January 2005|work=Taiwan Review|access-date=5 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430041754/http://taiwanreview.nat.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=1153&CtNode=128|archive-date=30 April 2011}}</ref> Exports have provided the primary impetus for industrialization. The trade surplus is substantial, and Taiwan remained one of the [[List of countries by foreign-exchange reserves|world's largest forex reserve holders]].<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2188rank.html | title=Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | work=[[World Fact Book]] | publisher=[[CIA]] | date=4 September 2008 | access-date=3 January 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613005020/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2188rank.html | archive-date=13 June 2007 | quote=Rank 5 Taiwan $274,700,000,000 31 December 2007}}</ref> Taiwan's total trade in 2022 reached US$907&nbsp;billion. Both exports and imports for the year reached record levels, totaling US$479.52&nbsp;billion and US$427.60&nbsp;billion, respectively.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://focustaiwan.tw/business/202301070020|title=Taiwan exports hit high in 2022 despite weakness in 2nd half|work=Focus Taiwan|date=7 January 2023|access-date=5 February 2023}}</ref> China, United States and Japan are Taiwan's three largest trading partners, accounting for over 40 percent of total trade.<ref name="BoFT">{{cite web|url=https://cuswebo.trade.gov.tw/FSCE040F/FSCE040F|title=Trade Statistices|website=The Bureau of Foreign Trade, MOEA|access-date=5 February 2023|archive-date=5 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230205043424/https://cuswebo.trade.gov.tw/FSCE040F/FSCE040F|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Since the beginning of the 1990s, economic ties between Taiwan and China have been extensive. In 2002, China surpassed the United States to become Taiwan's largest export market for the first time.<ref>{{cite book|last=Tung|first=Chen-yuan|year=2005|chapter=Trade Relations between Taiwan and China|editor-last=Luo|editor-first=Jing|title=China Today: An Encyclopedia of Life in the People's Republic|publisher=Greenwood Press|pages=625–628|chapter-url=https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=bec896d05679fdd36eea200f63ad93ab09b1b9b6}}</ref> China is also the most important target of outward [[foreign direct investment]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Kuo|first1=Anthony|last2=Kao|first2=Ming-Sung|date=23 April 2018|title=Taiwan's FDI: Why Outflows are Greater than Inflows|url=https://taiwaninsight.org/2018/04/23/taiwans-fdi-why-outflows-are-greater-than-inflows/|website=taiwaninsight.org|access-date=5 February 2023}}</ref> From 1991 to 2022, more than US$200&nbsp;billion have been invested in China by Taiwanese companies.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.moeaic.gov.tw/english/news_bsAn.jsp|title=Statistics|website=Investment Commission, Ministry of Economic Affairs|access-date=5 February 2023|archive-date=5 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230205043423/https://www.moeaic.gov.tw/english/news_bsAn.jsp|url-status=dead}}</ref> China hosts around 4,200 Taiwanese enterprises and over 240,000 Taiwanese work in China.<ref>{{cite web|last=Chang|first=Hannah |date=8 July 2021|title=Taiwan businesses: Exiting China not an option amid struggle for survival|url=https://english.cw.com.tw/article/article.action?id=3030|website=CommonWealth Magazine|access-date=5 February 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Chase|first=Steven|date=29 September 2022|title=Fraying ties? More Taiwanese people are leaving successful careers in China to return home|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-china-taiwanese-population/|work=The Globe and Mail|access-date=5 February 2023}}</ref> Although the economy of Taiwan benefits from this situation, some have expressed the view that the island has become increasingly dependent on the mainland Chinese economy.<ref>{{Harvnb|DoIT|2008|p=5}} "Although used-to-be-hostile tension between Taiwan and China has been eased to a certain degree, Taiwan should seek to maintain stable relation with China while continuing to protect national security, and avoiding excessive "Sinicization" of Taiwanese economy. Strategies to avoid excessive "Sinicization" of the Taiwanese economy could include efforts to increase geographic diversity of overseas Taiwanese employment, diversifying Taiwan's export markets and investment. "</ref> Others argue that close economic ties between Taiwan and mainland China would make any military intervention by the [[People's Liberation Army|PLA]] against Taiwan very costly, and therefore less probable.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34729538|title=What's behind China-Taiwan tensions?|work=BBC News|date=2 August 2022|access-date=5 February 2023|quote=Some Taiwanese people worry their economy is now dependent on China. Others believe that closer business ties make Chinese military action less likely, because of the cost to China's own economy.}}</ref>

[[File:TSMC Fab5.JPG|thumb|[[TSMC]] fab 5 located in [[Hsinchu Science Park]]|left]]

Since the 1980s, a number of Taiwan-based technology firms have expanded their reach around the world.<ref>{{cite book|last=Feigenbaum|first=Evan A.|year=2020|chapter=Historical Context of Taiwan's Technological Success|title=Assuring Taiwan's Innovation Future|publisher=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace|pages=5–9|url=https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2020/01/assuring-taiwans-innovation-future?lang=en}}</ref> Taiwan is a key player in the supply chain for advanced [[integrated circuit|chips]]. Taiwan's rise in the key semiconductor industry was largely attributed to [[TSMC|Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC)]] and [[United Microelectronics Corporation|United Microelectronic Corporation (UMC)]].<ref>{{Citation |title=How Taiwan Created TSMC | date=6 December 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fVrWDdll0g|access-date=23 May 2022}}</ref> TSMC was founded 21 February 1987 and as of December 2021 its [[market capitalization]] equated to roughly 90% of Taiwan's GDP.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mak |first=Robyn |date=17 December 2021 |title=Breakingviews – TSMC can fix Taiwan's stalled green transition|work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/breakingviews/tsmc-can-fix-taiwans-stalled-green-transition-2021-12-17/ |access-date=20 June 2022}}</ref> The company is the 9th largest in the world by market capitalization<ref>{{Cite web |title=TSMC (TSM) – Market capitalization |url=https://companiesmarketcap.com/tsmc/marketcap/ |access-date=20 May 2022 |website=companiesmarketcap.com}}</ref> as well as the world's biggest semiconductor manufacturing company, surpassing [[Intel]] and [[Samsung Semiconductor Inc.|Samsung]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=TSMC Announces Intention to Build and Operate an Advanced Semiconductor Fab in the United States |url=https://pr.tsmc.com/english/news/2033 |access-date=23 May 2022 |website=Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited|date=15 May 2020 }}</ref> UMC, another major company in Taiwan's high-tech exports and global semiconductors, competes with the American [[GlobalFoundries]], and others, for less advanced semiconductor processes and for silicon wafers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=LaPedus |first=Mark |date=9 September 2009 |title=GlobalFoundries to give UMC a run for its money |url=https://www.eetimes.com/globalfoundries-to-give-umc-a-run-for-its-money/ |access-date=22 May 2022 |website=EETimes}}</ref> Other well-known international technology companies based in Taiwan include personal computer manufacturers [[Acer Inc.]] and [[Asus]], as well as [[Foxconn]], an electronics contract manufacturer.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=What is Foxconn? Only the world's No. 1 contract electronics maker |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-what-is-foxconn-20170727-story.html |access-date=27 May 2022 |website=Chicago Tribune|date=27 July 2017 }}</ref>

Taiwan is a major manufacturer of bicycles and their component parts and accounts for around 40% of all bikes imported to Europe. In the past several decades, the industry has relied on exploitative [[Migrant worker|migrant labor]] practices to boost its productivity. Workers recruited from poorer neighboring countries face [[debt bondage]], passport retention, wage withholding and substandard living conditions, as well as threats and intimidation from employers. Taiwan is one of the few countries where labor brokers are permitted to charge high recruitment fees to migrant workers. Recent reporting on these practices has led to promises of reform from some manufacturers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bengtsen |first=Peter |date=2025-02-01 |title=The bicycle industry's dirty secret |url=https://mondediplo.com/2025/02/11bikes |access-date=2025-03-16 |website=Le Monde diplomatique |language=en}}</ref>

===Transport===
{{Main|Transportation in Taiwan}}
[[File:China Airlines Lineup TPE.jpg|thumb|[[China Airlines]] aircraft lineup at [[Taoyuan International Airport]]]]
The [[Ministry of Transportation and Communications (Taiwan)|Ministry of Transportation and Communications]] of Taiwan is the cabinet-level governing body of the transport network in Taiwan. Civilian transport in Taiwan is characterized by extensive use of [[Scooter (motorcycle)|scooters]]. In March 2019, 13.86&nbsp;million were registered, twice that of cars.<ref>{{cite web |script-title=zh:交通部統計查詢網 |url=http://stat.motc.gov.tw/mocdb/stmain.jsp?sys=100 |website=stat.motc.gov.tw |access-date=6 May 2019 |language=zh |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305093152/http://stat.motc.gov.tw/mocdb/stmain.jsp?sys=100 }}</ref> Both highways and railways are concentrated near the coasts, where the majority of the population resides, with {{convert|1619|km|abbr=on}} of [[Controlled-access highway|motorway]]. Railways in Taiwan are primarily used for passenger services, with [[Taiwan Railways Administration]] (TRA) operating a circular route around the island and [[Taiwan High Speed Rail|Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR)]] running high speed services on the west coast. Urban transit systems include [[Taipei Metro]], [[Kaohsiung Metro]], [[Taoyuan Metro]], [[New Taipei Metro]], and [[Taichung Metro]].

Major airports include [[Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport|Taiwan Taoyuan]], [[Kaohsiung International Airport|Kaohsiung]], [[Taipei Songshan Airport|Taipei Songshan]] and [[Taichung Airport|Taichung]]. There are currently seven Taiwanese passenger airlines, with the largest two being [[China Airlines]] and [[EVA Air]]. There are seven international seaports: [[Port of Keelung|Keelung]], [[Port of Taipei|Taipei]], Suao, [[Port of Taichung|Taichung]], [[Port of Kaohsiung|Kaohsiung]], [[Port of Anping|Anping]], and [[Port of Hualien|Hualien]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.motcmpb.gov.tw/Uploads/PeriodicalDataAttach/d75adc4e-7dbd-4c17-b953-b0dc4ba77efb.pdf|title=2018 Annual Report of the Maritime and Port Bureau, MOTC|language=zh|publisher=Maritime and Port Bureau, MOTC|page=33|access-date=5 October 2022|archive-date=4 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221004231931/https://www.motcmpb.gov.tw/Uploads/PeriodicalDataAttach/d75adc4e-7dbd-4c17-b953-b0dc4ba77efb.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Port of Kaohsiung handled the largest volume of cargo in Taiwan, with about 440 million shipping tonnes, which accounted for 58.6% of Taiwan's total throughput in 2021.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2022/02/15/2003773121|title=Port throughput soars to record|date=15 February 2022|agency=Central News Agency|work=Taipei Times|access-date=5 October 2022}}</ref> The shipping tonnage followed by Taichung (18.6%), Taipei (12%) and Keelung (8.7%).