TAIPEI — Taiwan prosecutors said on Saturday they had searched the offices of Taiwanese printed circuit board maker Unimicron Technology 3037.TW on suspicion that the company falsely labeled some of its China-made products as being from Taiwan.
Prosecutors in the northern city of Taoyuan said they had searched two company locations and questioned 18 defendants and witnesses.
The suspected false labelling of the made-in-China printed circuits could constitute a breach of the law and involve the forgery of documents, the prosecutors said in a statement.
Unimicron did not immediately respond to a request for comment. On Friday night, it said in a statement to the Taiwan stock exchange that prosecutors had searched its offices and that it would fully cooperate.
Taiwan’s government has been cracking down on “origin washing,” whereby companies claim goods are made in Taiwan in an attempt to get preferential tariff treatment when the goods are actually made in China or elsewhere, which could be subject to higher export tariffs.
The White House said this month that the United States is losing annual tariff revenue of about $19 billion to $26 billion on goods, largely from China, that are transshipped through third countries to avoid US import duties.