I usually stay away from political topics, but this one’s been bugging me, and I figured if anyone could help shed some light, it’s the folks here.
I came across something odd in a gc today: a group called Beiwei (北威) was featured in Liberty Times back in January for running a “2025 Taiwan Economic Outlook Survey”. They surveyed 376 people from business, academia, and industry and came out with a very optimistic outlook for Taiwan’s economy this year. The gc post noted they ran a follow-up survey from April 18–25, supposedly to factor in the U.S. tariff news after President Trump’s announcements.
Here’s the thing: I can’t find any trace of Beiwei anywhere else.
- No website.
- No LinkedIn.
- No mention in any English-language news like Taipei Times or Focus Taiwan.
Just that one Liberty Times article.
That’s a little unsettling. I’m no conspiracy theorist, but in this day and age, when an organization is totally invisible online, it raises fair questions about who they are and what they’re really about. Especially when their first survey paints a very rosy picture of the economy under the new DPP government. It’s enough to make you wonder if there’s something more going on.
I’m not accusing anyone of anything—just trying to practice some healthy skepticism.
Which brings me to you all: has anyone here come across Beiwei before? Maybe in academic circles? Consulting? Government projects?
If so, I’d love to know:
- Who are they really? Are they legitimate researchers or somebody’s political pet project?
- How solid was that January survey? Was it real analysis or more like wishful thinking dressed up in graphs?
- Has anyone actually seen the full report? I’ve looked everywhere I can think of (even checked Taipei Times and Focus Taiwan) and came up empty.
Also, if anyone hears anything about the April 2025 survey results (they’re supposed to come out May or June), it would be great to get a heads-up.
With the way the U.S. tariffs are going—especially with that 25% proposed tariff on semiconductors—I imagine Taiwan’s economy could get bumpy. And a lot of us here have personal or professional stakes in how that plays out.
Other things I’m wondering about, if anyone has insight:
- How are businesses outside of Taipei reacting? (I heard the survey focused a lot on central and southern Taiwan.)
- Are there any serious shifts happening in the export strategies?
- And with Taiwan’s stronghold in AI and chips, are we still looking resilient—or are cracks starting to show?
If anyone has connections in academia, business, or just access to better Mandarin reading skills than I do, your help would be very much appreciated. Even just pointing me toward reputable economic forecasts would be useful. I’m not trying to get wrapped up in politics — I just want to make sure I’m looking at reality, not just campaign-season spin.
Thanks for reading and for whatever you’re willing to share. I know this forum has some really sharp people, and I’m looking forward to learning from you all.
PS: If you’ve seen other surveys or analyses about Taiwan’s 2025 economic outlook (non-political ones especially), please let me know! Knowledge is power—and maybe a little peace of mind, too.
[!memo] FYR this is the original post in the gc that was posted last Friday
煩請協助填答或轉發問卷：「北威2025年經濟展望調查」美國總統川普在今年1月20日上任至今，推出一系列關稅政策，對全球供應鏈與金融市場造成衝擊，對主要以出口創造經濟成長的台灣，更影響深遠。
北威在2025年1月23日發佈的《2025 台灣經濟展望調查報告》，針對學術界、產業界及台商進行經濟展望問卷調查，以最後回收的376份有效問卷做統計分析，當時多數填答者對2025經濟前景普遍持樂觀態度。
然而面對川普上任後國際局勢的快速轉變，北威希望透過本次問卷，再次蒐集各界對當前國內外變局的看法，作為更加了解對台灣經濟前瞻想法，並作為交叉分析經濟情勢之依據。若您尚未回傳填答，希望能麻煩您花幾分鐘時間提供您的看法給我們，另外若能將此份問卷轉傳給朋友，尤其是中南部朋友，亦非常感謝！
調查期間：2025年4月18日至2025年4月25日
點此填寫 ‘‘2025年經濟展望調查’’：北威2025年經濟展望調查
感謝您撥冗填寫及轉傳問卷，謝謝