Two figures indicate that Taiwan's economy remains mired in recession, with its economic fundamentals yet to take a turn for the better. First, a record amount of idle capital is locked in bank vaults. At present, local banks have total deposits of NT$28.3 trillion, while total lending stands at NT$18.2 trillion, leaving NT$10.1 trillion in excess capital. Local banks have been overloaded with money since 2007, when the amount of idle capital was NT$7.2 trillion. The amount surpassed NT$8.6 trillion in 2008 and the figure had surged past the NT$10 trillion mark by the end of 2009. The figures indicate that Taiwan dos not lack money. What Taiwan lacks are investment willingness and opportunities. If the investment willingness remains low, chances for the local economy to take off in the new year will be slim, if not nil. Another bleak sign is declining bank loans to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). When President Ma Ying-jeou assumed office in May 2008, he set a goal requiring local banks to increase NT$300 billion in loans to SMEs within 18 months. But by the end of December, local banks' total loans to SMEs had ironically decreased by an impressive NT$51.8 billion. As SMEs form the bulk of Taiwan's economy, the government should be alarmed by the decrease in bank loans and should study whether the global financial meltdown in the past year has critically hurt local SMEs and whether they can get back on track this year. The government should not harbor the illusion that China can come to Taiwan's relief economically this year because the anticipated benefits from a proposed cross-Taiwan Strait economic cooperation framework agreement will not materialize soon. With this in mind, the government should take pragmatic action to address unemployment and revamp Taiwan's overall investment climate. Otherwise, the country's economic prospects will remain grim even by the end of 2010. 