Taipei, Dec. 9, 2009 (CENS)--In the next five years, domestic enterprises will face three major challenges, the revaluation pressure of NT dollar resulting from a weak U.S. dollar, inflationary pressure triggered by price hikes of petroleum and other raw materials, and cost pressure brought about by carbon-abatement requirement, warned Morris Chang, chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) yesterday (Dec. 8).

Chang made the comment in an interview with local press following a breakfast meeting held by Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (CNAIC).

Despite the gradual recovery of the economy, said Chang, domestic enterprises will have to confront the three challenges, at an extent unseen in the past two or even 10 years.

Chang pointed out that the greenback will continue to weaken in the coming years, leading to fluctuating exchange rate of the NT dollar and erosion of exporters` profits, since they are paid for their shipment in U.S. dollar but have to pay their bills in NT dollar.

Although oil prices have been checked by the global financial tsunami for the moment, they will spike again, fueling inflation, according to Chang.

Chang remarked that the holding of the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference indicates that enterprises will have to face the requirement of carbon-emission abatement and the collection of carbon tax, leading to higher operational cost.

In a conference yesterday afternoon, Chang reiterated that in line with the trend of carbon abatement, enterprises will have to alter their manufacturing processes, incurring extra cost. He anticipated alternative energy and green technology to be an industrial mainstream in the next 30 to 50 years.

In the conference, Stan Shih, founder of Acer Inc., echoed Chang`s comment, saying that with carbon abatement and green manufacturing process having become a trend, brand vendors will emphasize the manufacturing processes of their suppliers, which poses as both a challenge and an opportunity for the latter.

(by Philip Liu)