Taiwan voters hit the polls to elect the island's new leader

Voters queue next to a poster of candidates to cast their ballots at a polling station during general elections in Taiwan, Jan 16, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

"People like me can only benefit if we live in a peaceful society with economic opportunities," he said, adding that no matter which candidate wins the election, he or she has to face this reality.

Yang Li-de, a Taipei businessman, said that he expects cross-Straits relations not to return to what it was before 2008 if the DPP wins. "The two sides should not set a ceiling for economic cooperation. I hope the relations can continue to advance."

Since 2008, the two sides have held 11 rounds of talks and signed 23 agreements including lifting bans on direct shipping, air transportation and postal services in 2008, and the long-awaited Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement in 2010. The two sides also lifted the ban on mainland tourists to the island.

About 3.22 million mainland tourists visited the island in 2014 and in the first nine months of 2015 the figure reached 3.11 million.

Wang Chih-ching, a taxi driver in Kaohsiung, has been a long-time supporter of DPP but he admitted that mainland tourists have brought him more business.

"I hope cross-Straits exchanges will not cease and more mainland tourists come to visit after the election," he said.

RISK OF BEING SIDELINED

Business people are concerned about the stagnation of economic cooperation across the Taiwan Straits.

Guo Tai-chiang, chair of Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers Association, said it is not enough to maintain the status quo, specially in economic cooperation between the two sides.

"The industry wants the cooperation to go deeper," Guo said.

The uncertainty of cross-Straits policies is keeping business people on their toes, said Lai Cheng-I, chair of Shining Building Business Co. Ltd.

"We care the most about whether the two sides will continue trade agreement talks," he said.

Yin Chi-ming, chief executive of think tank "National Policy Foundation", warned in an article in Monday's Taipei-based Commercial Times that Taiwan may face the risk of being sidelined in global trade and economic cooperation if cross-Straits relations sour and talks about the follow-up agreements of the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) fail.

With constructive and smooth cross-Straits economic cooperation, Taiwan firms are able to expand global business with the support of the mainland market and they should not give up this advantage, Yin said.

The mainland remained Taiwan's biggest trade partner in 2015 while the island had a trade surplus of $27 billion.

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