Promoting Building Modern Economic System

Wang Jiacheng

The report of the 19th CPC National Congress put forward the idea of "implementing the new concept of development, and constructing of a modern economic system", which is an important strategic task for socialism with Chinese characteristics to enter a new era, for China to establish a new goal of building a powerful socialist modernization in a new era, and for China’s new journey to realize the new goal in two steps.

I. We should fully understand the great strategic significance of building a modern economic system.

1. The Strategic arrangement of building a powerful socialist modernization in an all-round way

2. Adapt to the urgent requirements of the stage of economic transition to high quality development

3. The strategic measures to grasp the transformation of contradictions and overall coordination of the layout of the strategic measures

II. We should make great efforts to develop the real economy and establish a high-quality and efficient production and supply system.

1. Speed up the construction of modern industrial system dominated by real economy

2. Adhere to the principle of quality first, and establish an efficient modern production and supply system in an all-round way

III. We should strive to promote efficiency change and establish a low consumption and environmental protection distribution and consumption system.

1. Lay equal stress on production and saving, give priority to saving, and form a modern distribution and consumption network with low consumption

2. Persist in efficiency reform, structural optimization and build an economical and environment-friendly social system

IV. We should strive to promote regional balance and build a regional economic system of coordinated development.

1. Persist in coordinated development and form a balanced system of supply and demand of regional economy at the high level

2. Integrate internal and external development and form an open economic system of win-win cooperation

V. We should take innovation as the first driving force to support the building of a modern economic system in an all-round way.

1. Scientific and technological innovation is the core to promote the formation of a comprehensive innovation system.

2. Management innovation is the lifeblood, and scientific management promotes the establishment of the system in an all-round way.

To sum up, it is of great strategic significance for China to build a modern economic system. Proceeding from the national conditions, the strategic thinking of building a modern economic system in an all-round way can be determined as follows: adhering to the principle of quality first, giving priority to benefit, taking the structural reform on the supply side as the main line, and promoting the quality change, efficiency change and dynamic change of economic development; improving the total factor productivity, focus on building a high-quality and efficient production and supply system; taking reasonable regulation and control of consumption and reduce consumption intensity as the core goal, and focusing on building a low consumption and environmental protection distribution and consumption system; taking the organic integration of production, supply and marketing and safety and stability as strategic measures, striving to build a regional economic development system that is coordinated between supply and demand, taking innovation as the first driving force, take scientific and technological innovation as the core, and striving to promote the formation of a comprehensive innovation system; constantly strengthening the capacity of the state to build a system of innovation, and promote the formation of a modern economic system characterized by "resource-saving and environment-friendly modes of production, lifestyles, and consumption patterns".

To Promote the Structural Reform Initiative and Structural Reform of the Supply Side

Zhang Zheren

The structural reform on the supply side is the main line of China's economic and social development. It is an inevitable choice and a major measure to transform the mode of development, optimize the economic structure, transform the driving force of growth, and realize high-quality development. At the same time, it is also a system engineering that involves a wide range of fields and has a wide range of influence. China has been deeply integrated into the process of economic globalization and the interactive relationship between China and the world has changed profoundly. It is necessary to consider the two factors both at home and abroad as a whole in order to push forward the structural reform on the supply side. From this point of view, the structural reform initiative put forward by China at the 2016 G20 summit in Hangzhou is an important extension and necessary guarantee of supply-side structural reform, and it is of great practical significance to complement internal and external coordination.

I. Structural reform initiatives as an important extension of supply-side structural reforms

(I) The report of the Nineteenth National Congress comprehensively covers structural reform initiatives.

(II) Structural reform initiatives are highly aligned with the direction of supply-side structural reforms.

(III) Structural reform initiatives are broadly similar to supply-side structural reforms.

II. Structural reform initiatives as an important guarantor of supply-side structural reforms.

(I) conducive to creating a sound external environment for supply-side structural reforms

(II) conducive to supporting and matching the important tasks of supply-side structural reform

(III) conducive to promoting supply-side structural reform to adapt to the new situation

III. Ideas and countermeasures for further advancing structural Reform initiatives

(I) Firmly grasp the orientation of "supplementing the inside with the outside"

(II) Stress the key points, combine the actual with the actual, and comprehensively balance and strengthen the guarantee

(III) Focus on the area of infrastructure connectivity

(IV) Sub-focus on innovation and trade and investment facilitation

(V) Promote other priority areas of structural reform in an integrated manner

For the two fields of labor market and promotion of competition, considering that China's basic situation and institutional mechanisms are quite different from those of other G20 countries and have strong particularity, for example, state-owned enterprises, it is necessary to push forward the “actions” in accordance with the deployment system of the 19th CPC National Congress, speed up the upgrading of the labor market and business environment, persist in seeking common ground while reserving differences in "words", and guide it actively and steadily.

The Impact of U.S. “Indo-Pacific” Strategy on Sino-U.S. Relation and BRI

Xiao Ding

At the beginning of December last year, US President Trump signed the first "US National Security Strategy Report" during his term of office and comprehensively expounded his internal and external strategic ideas in the spirit of his campaign slogan "America first." It puts forward four strategic pillars with "America first" as the core, that is, to protect the American people, the land and the American way of life; to promote the prosperity of the United States; to maintain peace with strength; and to enhance the influence of the United States. The report, with a strong sense of geostrategic rivalry, highlights the intent to defend a US-led world order against "revisionist" powers such as China and Russia. The report deals with the Asia-Pacific region, with special emphasis on the so-called "Indo Pacific" concept, and strategically integrates the Western Pacific, Australia and New Zealand with the Indian Ocean, reflecting the changing dimension of US strategic thinking and its focus on shaping and guiding the evolution process of the international strategic pattern.

I. The evolution of the concept of "Indo-Pacific" in the United States and the focal points of strategic concern

The so-called "Indo-Pacific" concept has been around for a long time. In its early years, it existed as a geopolitical concept of marine life. As a geopolitical concept, it began in the early 20th century, and later occasionally appeared in some western academic works. In the 21st century, with the shift of the center of gravity of world economic development to the Asia-Pacific region, especially the rise of China and India, the largest developing countries in recent years, the concept of "Indo-Pacific" is on the rise. From the academic discussion of Australia, Japan, India, the United States and other academic circles, it gradually evolved into a policy declaration of the relevant national governments. The government documents of the United States, Japan, Australia, and India successively adopted the concept of "Indo-Pacific" and gradually downplayed the traditional term "Asia-Pacific."

Compared with the "Asia-Pacific Rebalancing" of the Obama era, the main contents of Trump's "Indo-Pacific" strategy are roughly similar. In addition to strengthening security alliances and partnerships, as well as emphasizing, as always, the major challenges of the Korean nuclear issue, the South China Sea issue, and regional anti-terrorism, there has been a marked change in strategic thinking and focus of attention.

II. The background and strategic considerations of Trump's Indo-Pacific Strategy

The reason why the geostrategic concept of the United States has changed from "Asia-Pacific" to "Indo-Pacific" should not be separated from three backgrounds and strategic considerations.

In 2010, the United States formally put forward the concept of "Indo-Pacific" to promote the development of political and security relations and economic cooperation with India.

"Another key part of the U.S. strategy in South Asia is the further development of a strategic partnership with India, the world's largest democracy and an important security and economic partner of the United States," Trump stressed.  

The United States attaches great importance to developing relations with India, and the strategic considerations behind it are very clear, that is, at a time of great changes in the international strategic pattern, taking the advantage of the rising India’s worries about the construction of "Belt and Road" and the intensification of the Sino-Indian border dispute and to "maintain the balance of power in the pan-Asian region"; regarding India as an important strategic support for the United States in the Indo-Pacific sea passage; seeking to lock the vast sea area from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and a number of sea strategic passageways by the "four-nation alliance" between the United States, Japan, India, and Australia that arises with US-India military and security cooperation, thus helping the United States to move its strategy westward to counterbalance the growing influence of China and Russia (including, to some extent, Iran) on Eurasia and the Indo-Pacific sea passage.

III. Impact on Sino-US relations and the construction of "Belt and Road"

Looking at the 2017 US National Security Strategy Report, we can see that the United States has a very strong sense of global and all-round strategic competition against China and Russia, and in the Indo-Pacific region, the focus is on China. Trump's visit to China and the end of his trip to Asia reflect the US government's and strategic circles' strong sense of being on guard against China, which has not gone away with the warmth of Trump's visit to China and the big economic and trade orders he has signed with China. We should attach great importance to the impact of the future strategic trends of the United States on Sino-US relations, especially on the construction of "Belt and Road," which we are working hard to promote.

Generally speaking, the strategic framework of Sino-US relations is still in place. Although the United States intends to carry out strategic competition with China, it is questionable whether the strength and financial resources of the United States can support the huge economic burden resulting from this in a short period of time. It is still difficult for the United States to extricate itself from the war against terrorism in the Middle East and Afghanistan, and even if it withdraws, it is still unknown whether the results of the war against terrorism can be preserved; in the Indo-Pacific region, potential allies such as India have always stepped on two ships strategically. America's traditional allies and partners also have their own ideas about competing with us. Facing reality, Trump is committed to strategic competition with China, forcing China and Russia to tie up more tightly, and taking the risk of a big strategy of "one on two," which may be the worst course of action. With the expansion and deepening of the "Belt and Road" construction, Eurasia is expected to take the lead in showing some "early harvest" bright spots, and the Middle East and Africa will also share the fruits in this process. The world is changing, and so is the balance of power in the international landscape. The Trump administration is clearly looking in the wrong direction by using so-called "principled realism" to place "cold war thinking" in a new era of win-win cooperation.

Japan’s “Indo-Pacific” Alliance Strategy and Its Impact on China

Ge Jianhua

China and Japan are located in East Asia and coexist in the Western Pacific. They share the same strategic living space and the similar cultural core, which is a community with a destiny of "only a strip of water". The East Asian community with a shared future is an important component of the community with a shared future for humankind. Whether it is China's "Belt and Road" initiative or Japan's "India-Pacific" strategy, they are based on the strategic matrix of East Asia to rebuild their own living environment and the world order in the future, with a certain degree of cooperation space. The deepening of cooperation between China and Japan will not only benefit the two peoples, but also provide important assistance to the building of a community with a shared future for humankind on the platform of "Belt and Road." Recently, with the arrival of the 40th anniversary of the "Sino-Japanese Treaty of Peace and Friendship", with the joint efforts of China and Japan, Sino-Japanese relations have ushered in a turning point. If the Japanese side can clearly understand the direction of China's development and the common strategic interests of both sides, continue to seize this opportunity to improve Sino-Japanese relations, adjust the strategic direction, change checks and balances into cooperation, and seek common development with China, and actively participate in "Belt and Road", the "Indo-Pacific Strategy" can become a prosperous "India-Pacific" strategy and create new development opportunities for Japan.

I. The main contents of the "Indo-Pacific" Alliance Strategy

(I) Constructing a "diamond of democratic security" with trilateral cooperation as the main model

1. The demonstration benchmark of the trilateral relations between the United States, Japan and Australia is the basic axis for building a "democratic security diamond".

2. The fast development of the trilateral relations between the United States, Japan and India is the main wings of the construction of the "democratic security diamond".

3. The quick short steps forward of the trilateral relations between Japan, Australia, and India is the auxiliary wing for building a "democratic security diamond".

4. The "democratic security diamond" has been advanced.

(II) Promoting the Alliance of Maritime Democracies based on democratic values

1. The main contents of constructing the "Alliance of Maritime Democratic Nations"

2. The main measures to build the Alliance of Maritime Democracies

(III) Formulating the "Asia-Africa Development Corridor" for the "Indo-Pacific", "middle power" and "swing countries"

II. The main characteristics of Japan's "Indo-Pacific" Alliance Strategy

(I) Rely on the United States to achieve its strategic objectives

(II) Characteristics of using the sea to control land

(III) Distinct characteristics of security cooperation

(IV) Seeking linkage between the East China Sea and the South China Sea

III. Prospects and dilemmas of the Indo-Pacific Alliance Strategy

(I) Analysis of the prospects of the "Indo-Pacific" alliance strategy

1. The "democratic security diamond" has been advanced steadily.

2. The Alliance of Maritime Democracies follows the trend.

(II) The "Asia-Africa Economic Corridor" from idleness to reality.

(III) The dilemma of the "Indo-Pacific" alliance strategy

Impact of Large Scale Tax Cuts in the United States

Li Changjiu

The largest-scale US tax cut in the past 30 years was passed by both houses of Congress on December 20, 2017, despite the unanimous opposition of Democratic lawmakers. On December 22 President Trump signed the tax cuts. President Trump's greatest achievement-a $1.5 trillion package of tax reform-ended up in a 'shock'. The large-scale tax cuts in the United States will not only aggravate domestic disputes and struggles, but will also trigger a battle among big countries for tax cuts. We should study in depth the impact of the massive US tax cuts on China and take effective policies and measures to deal with it.

The largest-scale tax cuts in the past 30 years and domestic disputes in the United States.

The Trump administration's tax cuts are the largest in the United States since 1986. However, the impact of the tax cut on the economic and social development of the United States and the interests of all classes and groups, there are major disputes in the United States.

How far will China be affected?

Since 2013, the number of administrative fee items set up by the central government has gone down from 185 to 51, a decrease of more than 72%. Among them, the number of enterprise-related fee items has decreased from 106 to 33, a reduction of 69%. The annual social burden can be reduced by more than 320 billion yuan at the central level and over 47 billion yuan at the provincial level. However, some scholars have estimated that in 2014, the number of financial personnel in China reached more than 64 million, and the ratio of financial personnel to the total population of China was 1: 23, which had already reached or even exceeded the average level of some developed countries. Our country still needs to control the administrative organization establishment, thus controls the administrative service expenditure.

I. Reducing the tax burden on high-tech enterprises

II. Continuing to lighten the tax burden on small and medium-sized enterprises

III. Continuing to adjust import and export tariffs

IV. Levying on using natural resources and destroying the environment

V. Narrowing the income gap and the gap between the rich and the poor

In the past 60 years since the founding of the new China, especially in the 40 years since the reform and opening-up, nearly 800 million poor people in our country have been lifted out of poverty and contributed more than 70% to the global poverty reduction, creating a miracle in the history of human poverty reduction. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core, China has made great achievements in poverty reduction by precisely implementing policies and helping the poor. According to statistics from the Poverty Alleviation Office of the State Council, from 2012 to 2016, the number of people living in poverty under the current standards in China decreased from 98.99 million to 43.35 million, with an average annual reduction of more than 10 million. On October 18, 2017, CPC Central Committee General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed in the report of the 19th CPC National Congress that we shall resolutely win the battle against poverty. It is necessary to mobilize the whole party, the whole country, and social forces to persist in precisely helping the poor and eliminating poverty, adhere to the work mechanism whereby the central coordinating province is responsible for the overall responsibility of the city and county, strengthen the responsibility system for the top leaders of the party and the government, and uphold the pattern of aiding the poor on a large scale, pay attention to the combination of poverty alleviation with ambition and intelligence enhancing, carry out in depth the poverty alleviation cooperation between the east and the west, focus on the task of poverty alleviation in the deep poverty stricken areas, and ensure that the rural poor population will be lifted out of poverty under the current standards of China by 2020, and that all the poor counties will have their hats removed.

Mutually Beneficial and Win-win Cooperation

--On the Economic and Trade Relations between China and U.S. in 2017

Zhou Shijian

In 2017, after two consecutive years of weakness, China-US economic and trade cooperation has grown by a large margin, and gratifying phenomena have emerged.

In 2016, the US economy was weak. China's economic growth slowed to its lowest level since 2010. Sino-American economic and trade statistics, whether in terms of total volume, exports, imports, or even trade balance, showed a negative growth in bilateral statistics. According to Chinese statistics, total trade fell by 6.7% during the year, while that of the United States fell by 3.6%. In addition, U. S. exports to China fell for the second year in a row due to a stronger dollar.

China and the United States have also become very important partners in the field of mutual investment.

The Trump administration's decision to send Chinese companies to develop projects in states that are sparsely populated and relatively underdeveloped is a testament to the nation's desire to use its financial, technological and human resources to help Mr. Trump revive the American economy. This also fully shows that the Chinese government is actively making efforts to alleviate the US trade deficit with China.

Trade frictions are not to be feared, dialogue is better than confrontation, and consultation is better than action. China and the United States are the second and largest economies respectively, and each is a pivotal trading partner. In the event of a trade war, both sides are bound to lose, and no one is likely to benefit. Not only that, but it is bound to drag down the development of the world economy, which the people of China and the United States and the people of the world do not want to see. As an old saying goes, cooperation benefits both, while fight hurts both. Only win-win cooperation is the right way.

The Retrospect and Prospect of Sino-Russian Relations

Yu Sui

Because of the closeness and to remain stable both in China and Russia, Sino-Russian relations have become the most valued relations between the two great powers in the world. Stable development, balanced development, sustained development, and deepening development have been the general trend since the establishment of the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between China and Russia. Relations between the two countries have made further progress in 2017, and 2018 is bound to be built on the achievements made by the two countries.

The five summits between the two heads of state dominate the deepening development.

Sino-Russian relations have always been regarded as a model of great-power relations. The development of Sino-Russian relations is characterized by political mutual trust, economic complementarity, cultural intercommunication, military interaction and diplomatic mutualism. Political trust is the foundation. This is reflected more by the frequent meetings between the leaders of the two countries.

President Xi Jinping has met with President Putin 20 times and exchanged letters more than 50 times since taking office as the top leader of the party and state. The heads of state of the two countries met five times in 2017, demonstrated a profound concept of cooperation, reached consensus on a series of major issues, and issued practical instructions to promote the deepening and development of the two countries' relations.

I. the evaluation of the status of the relations between the two countries

II. the specific arrangements for cooperation between the two countries

III. the role of multilateral organizations

IV. the handling of international hot issues

Under the direct impetus of the two heads of state, Sino-Russian relations deepened in many fields in 2017.

Cooperation in economy, science and technology

Cooperation in space

Cooperation in high-speed rail

Cooperation in financial area

Cooperation in humanities

Cooperation in military  

Valuable experience in deepening the development of bilateral relations.

The first innovation: building a strategic collaborative partnership.

The second innovation: signing the treaty of good-neighborliness, friendship and cooperation.

The third innovation: holding the Year of Friendship in various forms.

The fourth innovation: the implementation of "Belt and Road" docking with the Eurasian Economic Union, from a multi-angle, deep-seated joint construction of a community with a shared future for humankind.

Reflections on Sino-Russian Relations in 2018.

In short, in the words of the leaders of the two countries, the current comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between China and Russia is developing in a sustained, rapid, and stable manner, is at its best in history, and is showing a more positive trend. A high degree of political mutual trust and close strategic cooperation is an important symbol of the high level of relations between the two countries. A mature and stable Sino-Russian relationship is not only a guarantee for the two countries' respective security and development, but also an important positive factor and constructive force for safeguarding world peace and stability.

Capricious European Security Situation

Ding Yuanhong

This year's Munich Security Conference was held on February 16 to 17. The report prepared by the organizers of the conference for this year's meeting is entitled "Reining in on the brink of the crisis?" At the opening ceremony, Wolfgang Ishengel, chairman of the Conference, warned that since the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the risk of military conflict among world powers has never been so high, especially the deep mistrust between the United States and Russia. The two sides are almost entirely cut off from each other, raising the possibility of miscalculation in Syria and North Korea. Ishengel believes that this is related to the United States no longer playing the role of "global sheriff".

During the meeting, the participating parties held different positions on a series of international security issues of common concern, such as US-Russian relations, European-Russian relations, the situation in the Middle East, the Iranian nuclear agreement, and the North Korean nuclear issue, with heated arguments and no consensus. Even in the conference which serves as a dialogue platform for NATO member countries, the members’ views diverged. The defense ministers of Germany and France called for European defense integration and reduced dependence on the United States and NATO, while NATO's secretary-general warned that such an approach risked weakening NATO and even discriminating against non-EU members such as the United States.

Because Trump pursues the "America first" policy, abandons the concept of global governance, advocates unilateralism, and insists on advancing European integration and advocating effective multilateralism, the two are sharply opposed in terms of governing principles. As a result, the US-European alliance, the cornerstone of transatlantic relations, has been shaken, and the contradictions between the two sides have developed to the point of being irreconcilable.

As far as China is concerned, despite the bluster of the United States, the groundless accusation that China is challenging US interests, and the characterization of China as a "competitor" of the United States, we will, as always, unswervingly follow the path of peaceful development. We will continue to push forward the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics. With regard to external military threats and even war provocations, our attitude is: first, we oppose them; second, we are not afraid of them. We have full confidence in our just cause.

A Review of Trump Administration’s Middle East Policy

Sun Degang

After the Cold War, no matter the Clinton administration's participation and expansion strategy, the Bush administration's preemptive strike strategy and global anti-terrorism strategy, or the Obama administration's smart power strategy, all take the Middle East region as the main practice object. Since taking office, Mr. Trump has taken an "unusual path" in foreign policy, making his first international trip to the Middle East with visits to Saudi Arabia, Israel and Palestine. The facts that Trump is a "novice" with little experience in Middle East diplomacy, and that his Middle Eastern version of "Trumpism" is far from being formed, coupled with the president's maverick style of doing things, determine that US Middle East policy will be in the process of continuous adjustment. It is difficult to finalize in a short period of time.

I. The readjustment of the Trump administration's Middle East policy

II. Anti-terrorism as the top priority of US Middle East policy

III. The Syrian crisis as the entry point for US Middle East policy

IV. The "Anti-Iran Alliance" as the basis of the US Middle East policy

V. The Palestinian-Israeli peace process as the breakthrough of US Middle East policy

VI. The characteristics of the adjustment of US Middle East policy

VII. Conclusions

Trump's lack of diplomatic experience and understanding of the root causes of the Middle East problem, and his inability to listen to the opinions and suggestions of think-tanks have led to large variables in his Middle East policy, which is reflected in four major areas: attacking the Islamic State, dealing with the Syrian crisis, building a grand alliance against Iran, and launching the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, and the adjustment of which will have far-reaching effects. The countries of the Middle East have become major buyers of arms in the world. Weapons from the West such as the United States, Britain, and France will continue to occupy the market of the GCC countries, Israel, and Turkey, while Russian weapons will crowd into Iran, Syria, Iraq, and Egypt. The arms race in the Middle East and the proliferation of small arms and light weapons will become more prominent. The Trump administration's return to the Middle East will have far-reaching implications for the strategic interests of Russia, Iran, Turkey and Arab states.

The Retrospect and Prospect of Economic Situation in Taiwan from 2017 to 2018

Wang Jianmin

In 2017, Taiwan's economy showed a pattern of "external warm and internal cool," and "trade hot and investment cool." Driven by the increase in external demand, Taiwan's economy has shown an obvious trend of recovery, with an estimated annual economic growth close to 2.6%; the stock market has seen a rare 10, 000-point quotation which has not been seen for many years, with the main industries improved, and corporate profits generally increased. However, economic reform is not progressing smoothly and controversies continue; people's livelihood issues have not significantly changed, and air pollution has become another major challenge after low wages. In 2018, Taiwan's economy will basically continue to improve and grow steadily, but due to the marked rise in international disputes, the island's elections and other factors, new uncertainties have been brought to economic reform and development.

The economy is warming up, showing a remarkable pattern of "external temperature and internal cooling".

In 2017, under the influence of the international economic recovery and the rebound in market demand, Taiwan's foreign trade exports increased significantly, leading to a marked recovery in the economy. According to Taiwan Controller's Office, the economy grew by 2.66 percent, 2.13 percent, and 3.11 percent respectively in the first, second, and third quarters of 2017; the average growth in the first three quarters was 2.64 percent, and the growth rate for the whole year is expected to be 2.58 percent, not only achieving the guaranteed target of 2 percent, but also recording the highest growth rate in nearly three years.

The performance of different industries varies greatly, and enterprise alliance becomes a new trend.

The external economic situation improved, leading the manufacturing boom recovery. From January to September 2017, Taiwan's manufacturing revenue grew at an annual rate of 4.5% to nearly NT $19 trillion, the fastest increase in nearly five years. Among them, electronic components, conductors, optoelectronics and other electronic information industry, achieved outstanding performance, and major enterprise performance significantly improved with increased profits.

The stock market is hot, the car market is up, and the housing market is warm.

In 2017, one of the significant changes in Taiwan's economic development was in the capital market, where the stock market showed "atypic boom". After a stable market in the Taiwan stock market continued for more than a year in 2016, in the background of the economic boom and the general rise in the stock market, there was a small boom in Taiwan's capital market in 2017. After the stock market broke through 10,000 points in August, it continued until the end of the year, setting a record in Taiwan's history of the longest 10, 000 points market.

Overseas investment declined and the effect of the "new southward policy" is evident.

In 2017, Taiwan's economic development is closely related to its policy orientation, resulting in a pattern of "west cold and south hot", "west cold and north hot" and "west cold and east hot". That is, the economic and trade relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, especially the investment of Taiwan businessmen in the mainland or the mainland enterprises' investment in Taiwan, have declined, while the economic and trade relations between Taiwan and the United States, Japan, and the new southward countries have become closer.

Economic reforms are controversial and progress is limited.

Since 2017, the Taiwan authorities have continued to push forward economic and social reforms, but due to insufficient preparation in advance, the wrong direction, constant disputes, and numerous obstacles, the results are not very good. After the DPP came to power, it took the lead in initiating and promoting with all its strength the revision of the "Labor Law", which involved the labor leave system. However, after the completion of the legislation, there were incessant controversies, and enterprises, workers, and citizens all expressed dissatisfaction, resulting in a situation of more losses. The bill had to be readjusted and amended in 2017, involving many disputes such as the length of "shift breaks" and "six days work and one day off", but because it took too much account of the interests of the management and relied too much on the majority advantage in the Legislative Yuan, the forced legislation has caused great controversy. If the legislation is not completed by the end of the year, it is expected that there will not be an ideal amendment in the future, and the dispute over the labour leave system will continue. Although the civil service pension reform, which is controversial and has caused great dissatisfaction among civil servants, has completed the legislation, the pension reform of soldiers and laborers has not yet been completed, and the challenges in the future are even greater.

The problem of people's livelihood is more serious, and air pollution has become a new issue.

Although Taiwan's economy has noticeably revived and recovered in 2017, and the stock market has also been seen a 10,000-point market that has not seen for years, there has been no obvious improvement in people's livelihood issues, wage increases are limited, life pressure is even greater, and Taiwan is facing serious air pollution brought about by "nuclear abandonment". In addition, the deadlock in cross-strait relations continues, and the people are still indifferent and confused about their living conditions, which has become a remarkable portrayal of Taiwan's livelihood issues in 2017.

In 2018, the economy as a whole is still showing a trend of moderate growth.

Although the overall economic performance is expected to be better in the coming year, there are many uncertainties. The increasingly tense international political situation dominated by the Korean Peninsula and the Middle East, the US tax reform and Federal Reserve interest rate increases, the Sino-US trade friction, and the changes in international oil prices will all bring new challenges and impacts on economic growth, development, and financial market stability in 2018. The global economy, which is undergoing a sustained recovery, is likely to be interrupted at any time by major international events. Taiwan 's economy, which is highly dependent on foreign countries for economic growth and development, is bound to be affected.