National Science Council officials made the decision when President Ma Ying-jeou met with more than 100 top executives of the high-tech enterprises at the three science parks in north, central and southern parts of the island.

Lowering the administration fee was among the 11-point request list drawn up by the executives for government assistance to help them tide over the global economic slowdown.

Ma also agreed to consider the suggestion of including the issue of avoiding the double taxation on corporate profits in Taiwan and China into the new round of negotiations between Taipei and Beijing.

Executives complained that they have to pay taxes twice when they remit earnings from China back to Taiwan.

Another major issue on the list was the need of government help in dissuading financial institutions from recalling their loans from companies that have been battered by reduced orders.

There were other proposals brought up by entrepreneurs, including the postponement of the implementation of the No. 10 Basic Financial Statements that require major changes in showing the value of inventories in corporate financial statements. Some of the executives said now is not the right time to enforce the new accounting regulations. President Ma voiced his personal sympathy and said the government might have to give further consideration on the controversial issue.

The Cabinet-level Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has reiterated that the new rules' implementation is irreversible, saying it is good for the health of corporate finance in the long term.

NSC Vice Chairman Wu Dang-chieh, who was accompanying the president at the meeting, explained that the enforcement of the new accounting criteria was already postponed for one year.

Based on two extensive surveys of executives, the corporations could face financial losses reaching only about NT$9.8 billion if the new accounting practice is enforced, Wu said.

Some foreign equity investors in Taiwan expressed opposition to further postponement of the rules because the move could heighten investors' concerns that some enterprises could have concealed certain problems they do not want to be exposed under the new accounting rules.

The second risk the government faces will be weakened public confidence because of the open contradictory actions by the government, they warned.

The new rules require the adoption of "net realizable value" in calculating the value of inventories, or equivalent to current sale prices deducted by sale cost and product processing cost. This is different from the current practice of gauging the replacement cost, or cost of reproduction, of the past.

The rules also require the itemized comparison in calculating the loss of inventory value, a practice that could possibly raise the amount of losses on the financial books.

This is different from the old method of "aggregate cost comparison" that enables the offsetting of losing items with profitable items.

Other requests sought by the executives included the reduction in electricity costs, levying the income tax on bonus stocks distributed to employees based on the face value of the stocks, scrapping the income tax on employees who take part in buying back the firms' own shares from the open market, and not conducting additional environmental impact evaluation on individual enterprises after they have already passed evaluation in the zones that are placed under overall restrictions.

Some executives said they do not expect Ma to immediately agree to all of their requests that need coordination among different government agencies.

But it was nice to let the national leader know what help they need most at present, they said.