TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Tariff negotiations with the US are on hold due to the US government shutdown, Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said during a Legislative Yuan interpellation session on Tuesday.

Cho said negotiations were in the final stage, but noted that the US government shutdown has delayed many other matters, CNA reported. Both countries want to finalize the agreement as soon as possible, he said. A 20% tariff on Taiwanese goods took effect on Aug. 7.

When asked whether there would be results by the end of the year, Cho assured lawmakers that the government would push for progress and that developments should be seen soon.

Executive Secretary of the Office of Trade Negotiations Hsu Chung-chin (徐崇欽) recently said that after the fifth round of in-person negotiations in late September, both sides held a fruitful follow-up virtual meeting. He said Taiwan and the US are now exchanging and reviewing written documents. Once a consensus is reached, they can move on to final consultations to finalize a bilateral trade agreement.

Economic Minister Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said that since the US Supreme Court has not ruled on the legality of President Donald Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose tariffs, releasing a contingency report prematurely could affect negotiations. Once a ruling is announced, the MOEA will submit a report within two weeks.

If the US establishes a tariff refund mechanism later on, Taipei will seek to protect the interests of Taiwanese companies, Kung said.