With Foxconn founder Terry Gou declaring interest in running for Taiwan president again, commentator Chen Kuohsiang cites examples to show why having a businessman as a political leader may not be a good idea, given the different qualities required for each role.

Commentator Chen Kuohsiang notes that the US’s efforts to counter China is the main driving force behind the redrawing of the global economic map. However, as the US is the sole beneficiary while most of the other countries have supported the US’s cause to their own detriment, conflicts of interests will gradually emerge. In the end, the global economy may polarise into various camps with disjointed supply chains.

Commentator Chen Kuohsiang notes that even after the 20th Party Congress and talks between Chinese and US Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden during the G20 summit, the Chinese economy is not facing an easy time, not least because of Covid-19 controls, the US's trade restrictions and China's stringent policy on private enterprises.

Commentator Chen Kuohsiang notes that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)’s heavy losses in Taiwan’s recent “nine-in-one” local elections show that the people are no longer buying its line of resisting China and protecting Taiwan, as they feel that the DPP has gone too far and attracted trouble with its aggressive stance.

The 20th Party Congress has closed and the CCP leadership has been set. Chinese President Xi Jinping has further consolidated his authority after removing rival factions and promoting those loyal to him. Furthermore, Xi will reign over party ideology with “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” and the “Two Establishes”. Nonetheless, Taiwanese commentator Chen Kuohsiang notes that the system cannot thrive without different views or a self-correcting mechanism.

Years ago, Singapore’s late founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew said that cross-strait reunification was a matter of time and that its fate was sealed a long time ago. Taiwanese commentator Chen Kuohsiang finds such an assessment insightful, concluding that Taiwan would do well to avoid leaning too much towards the US and becoming too reliant on it for security.

Tensions in the Taiwan Strait have intensified after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan visit and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s military exercises encircling Taiwan. Taiwanese commentator Chen Kuohsiang assesses that a war in the Taiwan Strait would have implications for the Asia-Pacific region that go beyond geopolitics.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is enroute to Taiwan for a visit that has kept the Biden administration and both sides of the Taiwan Strait on tenterhooks in past weeks. Whatever happens next, the people of Taiwan may be on the losing end. Taiwanese commentator Chen Kuohsiang explains the implications.

Taiwanese commentator Chen Kuohsiang believes that China’s economy is under threat, with the unravelling of intertwining issues in the financial industry, property sector and government finances that cannot be easily resolved. How will China boost its investment-led economy, push down unemployment rates, and regain consumer and investor confidence?