This is the conclusion of a study of potential business opportunities for Taiwanese companies under the stimulus program. The study was carried out by the Topology Research Institute (TRi), Taiwan's largest private market-research firm, under commission from the Industrial Development Bureau of the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

According to TRi, the Chinese subsidies are designed to stimulate domestic demand and China and are expected to boost total sales there by NT$3.62 trillion (US$106.47 billion at NT$34:US$1) over the next four years. This will help the mainland keep the growth of its gross domestic product (GDP) above 8%.

TRi reports that the subsidy policy has been extended from the original three provinces and one metropolitan city to a total of 31 provinces and metropolitan cities, and that the scope of product categories eligible for the subsidies has been expanded from the original four (refrigerators, color TVs, washing machines, and cell phones) to encompass computers, motorcycles, water heaters, air conditioners, automobiles, microwave ovens, and induction cookers. More categories are expected to be added in the future.

Taiwanese makers of computers, LCD TVs, and cell phones, as well as providers of OEM/ODM services and parts, are expected to win orders as a result of the subsidy program. The program, says TRi research manager Chang Zui-hwa, is forecast to boost sales of the subsidized products in the Chinese countryside to NT$1.95 trillion (US$57.35 billion) in 2012, compared with NT$550 billion (US$16.18 billion) in 2008, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28.8%. This means that accumulated sales of the products over the next five years are expected to reach NT$3.62 trillion (US$106.47 billion).

TRi predicts that Taiwanese brand-name manufacturers, and their parts suppliers, have the cost-control capability they need to win orders resulting from the subsidy program. It urges the island's makers of appliances, computers, and even motorized vehicles to take advantage of the program to brighten their brand image and penetrate the vast and untapped market in the Chinese countryside.

A total of 21 Taiwanese products were entered in a tender held in the latter part of February by the Chinese government to choose products qualified for its subsidies: 10 from Acer Inc., nine from Asustek Computer Inc., and two from the BenQ Corp.