TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Foreign investment in research and development in Taiwan has reached a record NT$24.3 billion ($796.24 million) so far this year, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said Thursday (Sept. 1).

The new figure amounted to an eight-fold increase from the same period in 2018, according to the premier. The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) emphasized the role of the semiconductor industry, with foreign R&D investments totaling NT$30 billion over the past five years.

About 30 multinational corporations now maintain R&D centers in Taiwan, including nine companies such as chipmaker Micron Technology, pharmaceutical giant Merck and Co., and NXP Semiconductors from the Netherlands, which only moved in during the past two years, CNA reported.

Moves in international supply chains following the trade war between the United States and China, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, all contributed to the rise in investments, according to the Cabinet.

Su named the openness and rule of law in Taiwan, its strategic position in the Asia Pacific, the advanced level of the local semiconductor industry, and the presence of subsidies, talent, and tax concessions as elements attracting foreign interest in opening R&D centers in Taiwan.