TAIPEI/BEIJING, April 4 (Xinhua) -- The 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan announced by U.S. President Donald Trump has triggered broad concerns about the move's impact on industries and ignited strong criticism of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities' policies toward Washington.

Following the recent announcement of the U.S. tariff policy, social media accounts held by Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te and Cho Jung-tai, chief of the island's executive body, were flooded with criticism from local internet users.

"32 percent? Aren't you good friends with the United States?" one post read, laced with sarcasm. Another comment asked, "Do you expect this result? What do you plan to do?" There was also a response that read, "We should not always comply with the United States unconditionally."

While semiconductors are temporarily exempt from the current tariff policy, industry analysts warned that they could still be taxed separately in the future, while industries such as AI servers are expected to take a major hit.

Taiwan-based Business Weekly noted that AI servers and relevant components are Taiwan's largest export category to the United States, but are not included in current tariff exemptions.

Taiwan's exports of AI servers and relevant components accounted for nearly half of the island's total exports to the United States in 2024. The exports of integrated circuits stood at 7.4 billion dollars last year, accounting for only 6.65 percent of Taiwan's total exports to the United States.

Trump's new tariff policy has intensified concerns about industrial hollowing-out in Taiwan, especially after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) recently announced an additional 100-billion-dollar investment in the United States.

The Taipei-based China Times commented that despite TSMC's move, Taiwan still faces a 32-percent tariff, indicating that Washington remains unsatisfied.

Hsu Shih-hsun, former dean of the Department of Agricultural Economics, Taiwan University, called the current situation "highly ironic," arguing that the DPP authorities' trade policy, which abandoned the most stable market of the mainland, had clearly backfired.

"The DPP authorities shifted the focus away from the mainland market to the United States, expecting a trade agreement with Washington to offer tariff reductions. Now, not only is that expectation shattered, but higher tariffs are being imposed instead," he said.

"The 32 percent tariff is just the beginning," warned Hsu Chiao-hsin, a lawmaker with the Chinese Kuomintang party, on her Facebook page.

"The DPP authorities have always stood by the U.S. side and fully cooperated. Yet, the tariff pressure on Taiwan remains enormous. Clearly, in the eyes of Washington, Taiwan is not seen as an ally, but rather an easy target to exploit for profit," she commented.

Since coming to power in 2016, the DPP authorities have sought to decouple Taiwan's economy from the mainland and instead pursue closer economic and trade ties with the United States.

Behind the DPP's trade and economic policies, which are entirely aligned with Washington, lies its attempt to gain U.S. support for its separatist agenda, said Zhu Songling, a Taiwan studies professor at Beijing Union University.

"The DPP authorities naively believe that unilaterally conceding Taiwan's economic benefits can secure commitments from the United States. However, such a calculation will only end up stimulating Washington's appetite," Zhu said.

He added that the DPP authorities, willingly serving Washington's strategy to contain China, will ultimately exhaust their value under political extortion and economic exploitation. "In the end, Taiwan's 23 million people will be the ones who suffer from the DPP authorities' misguided strategy," he warned. Enditem

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