Free-trade zone in mainland China may lead to brain drain in Taiwan, say analysts
The opening of a free-trade zone in the mainland province could set off a flight of talent and hollow out the island's economy, analysts say
Fujian's new free-trade zone could be a big draw for Taiwan's businesses but might also lure some of its best and brightest to work on the mainland, according to analysts.
The Fujian FTZ is one of three launched on Monday with the goals of cutting red tape and opening up the economy further to the world. The other new zones are in Guangdong and Tianjin , in addition to the existing one in Shanghai.
Visiting the Xiamen section of the Fujian zone yesterday, Premier Li Keqiang was quoted by People's Daily as saying: "The wheel of streamlining government bureaucracy must first clear the way for business operations to prevent time being wasted."
But, some Taiwan analysts say the zone could drain the island of some of its best talent.
"Taiwan will not only face the risk of hollowing out economically, but will also see a faster brain drain to mainland China now that Beijing has opened three other free-trade zones, with the one in Fujian targeting the island," said Dr Wu Hsin-hsing, a professor of international business at Ming Chuan University in Taipei.
Lin Chien-fu, a professor of economics at National Taiwan University, said that if Taiwan failed to swiftly find ways to tackle the impact of the free-trade zone "it's feared a new wave of mainland fever will take place ,with local firms flocking to grasp the opportunities on the mainland to survive".