"Of all the countries dependent on purchases by China, Taiwan has most to lose as the mainland’s electronics industry becomes more self-sufficient, says Angela Hsieh, an economist at Barclays, a bank
"Hon Hai, which has its eye on Sharp’s research into advanced OLED display screens, is big enough to absorb the struggling Japanese firm, and to keep throwing money at developing its technology.
"past experience shows that it is hard to do this [Taiwanese contractors selling its own branded products] without going into competition with the more famous customers that they rely on. Some Taiwanese firms, including HTC and Asus, have produced branded products—such as phones and notebook computers—only to be deserted by the customers to whom they sell components.
"Taiwan’s president-elect, Tsai Ing-wen, has promised to reshape its economy by 'shifting from an efficiency-driven model to an innovation-driven one.' [So this is what Taiwan has excelled: efficiency] Ms Tsai also wants to reduce reliance on China and promote greater technology ties with America and Japan. The question is how.
Note:
(a) "the island's economics minister, John Deng" 經濟部長 鄧振中
(b) "red supply chain" 紅色供應鏈 (a term coined in Taiwan)