Vice Premier Shih praises exemplary contributions of ex-ROC Central Bank governor

2018/03/01

The expertise, perseverance and pragmatic approach of former Republic of China (Taiwan) Central Bank Gov. Perng Fai-nan in supporting the country’s economic development over the past two decades will be remembered forever, Vice Premier Shih Jun-ji said Feb. 26.
 
 Perng is a pillar of the nation whose legacy will live on, Shih said. Under his astute leadership, the central bank responded effectively to a myriad of challenges, he added.
 
 According to Shih, these include the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and subsequent global high-tech bubble, the magnitude 7.3 Jiji Earthquake of Sept. 21, 1999, and outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2002. By providing sufficient liquidity and stabilizing the foreign exchange market, the central bank helped soften the blow on Taiwan and accelerate the country’s economic recovery, he said.
 
 Shih credited Perng for playing a key role in ensuring the competitiveness of the country’s exports through reducing the volatility of the New Taiwan dollar against the greenback, adding that he pioneered the country’s flexible monetary policies and initiated Taiwan’s floating exchange rate management system.
 
 According to Shih, the country’s gross domestic product per capita nearly doubled to US$24,331 under Perng’s stewardship. In addition, broad money supply, or M2, surged 162 percent to NT$42.7 trillion (US$1.46 trillion) and annual consumer price increases hovered at 0.89 percent.
 
 At the same time, Taiwan banks’ average nonperforming loan ratios dropped from 11.27 percent in 2001 to 0.28 percent, reflecting the strong fundamentals of the local banking industry.
 
 As the country’s longest-serving central banker, Perng earned a bevy of international plaudits for his farsighted financial policies. These include a lifetime achievement award at the Central Banking Awards by London-based Central Banking Publications last month; Central Banker of the Year, Asia award by London-headquartered The Banker magazine in 2009; and a record 14 “A” ratings in the annual survey of central bank leaders by New York-based Global Finance magazine.
 
 Shih also praised Perng’s successor Yang Chin-long for his wealth of experience in banking and economics. It is expected Yang will seamlessly transition from deputy to governor and maintain the central bank’s forward-thinking and innovative approach, he said.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/news.php?unit=6&post=130036)