Three months ago, Taitra, a Taiwanese trade promotion organization opened a branch in Tel Aviv, despite Israel's tiny share of Taiwan’s trade volume.
In early September, James Huang, chairman of the Taiwan Trade Promotion Organization (TAITRA) and former foreign minister, visited Israel. He came with a delegation of 23 students who participated in as program at Tel Aviv University and visited at the Taiwan trade center that opened in Israel this June.
The volume of trade between Israel and Taiwan reached only $1.5 billion in 2018, and is Taiwan's 36th largest trading partner. Therefore, the opening of the trade branch in Tel Aviv in June was a bit surprising. "Our center in Tel Aviv is different from our other branches," says Huang. "The Tel Aviv office does not focus on trade. Israel is not a big trade market. For regular trade, we would not open the office. "The two countries are very innovative and I wanted to promote their cooperation - I saw the establishment of the center in Israel as an opportunity for cooperation. The trade center here should basically be called Taiwan Trade and Innovation center. Its purpose is not to trade, but to encourage business cooperation." This is Huang's third visit to Israel. "After the first visit earlier this year, I decided to open the office in Tel Aviv, and in less than six months the office opened." On his last visit, the center’s staff diligently worked on the Taiwanese delegation at the DLD Innovation Festival in Tel Aviv. Indeed, at the events took place this month, a large delegation of Taiwanese companies participated. The delegation was joined by 23 students participating in a program called "CEO Class." In Israel, they had to deal with the cultural differences between Israeli “Chutzpah” and the traditional Taiwanese society, where hierarchy plays a key role. Taiwan is not always encouraged to ask questions or disagree with their manager, this is exactly what Huang seeks to give to the students who accompanied him.
TheMarker, 25/09/2019 - https://www.themarker.com/wallstreet/.premium-1.7897943
