Vice President Vincent Siew said Tuesday that the inking of the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China will help create extra 12,700 jobs in Taichung and upgrade industries in the area. Speaking at a forum with the local business community, Siew said that the June 29 clinching of the trade deal with China is set to benefit 2,800 local companies out of a total of roughly 15,000 factories in the central Taiwan area. The establishment of the ECFA is also expected to help local enterprises achieve an additional combined production value of NT$26.1 billion, he added. 'With the signing of the ECFA, economic interaction between Taiwan and China is going to be institutionalized and normalized, helping Taiwan avoid marginalization in the face of increased regional economic integration,' he explained. Taichung Mayor Jason Hu, who hosted the forum and also visited Malaysia to promote the area's agricultural specialties July 20, capitalized on the upside of the ECFA, pointing out that the president of a southeastern Asian country has approved visits by his ministers to Taiwan in the wake of the ECFA signing. Based on the groundwork laid by the ECFA, Singapore also announced a plan last week to initiate two-way talks about a free trade-like economic cooperation agreement with Taiwan. 