Hon Hai secures over 54,200 patentsStaff writer, with CNAHon Hai Technology Group (鴻海集團), also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), yesterday said it has secured more than 54,200 invention patents around the world, of which 62.5 percent were granted in the US and Japan. On its Web site, Hon Hai, the world’s largest electronics manufacturer, which assembles iPhones and iPads for Apple Inc, said it has received 17,600 patents in the US, or 32.5 percent of the total, and 16,200 patents in Japan, or about 30 percent. Hon Hai has also acquired more than 11,200 and 5,620 patents in China and Taiwan respectively. A Model T electric bus is pictured at the entrance to Hon Hai Precision Industry Co’s headquarters in New Taipei City’s Tucheng District on Monday last week. Photo: screen grab from FacebookAbout 17 percent of the patents obtained by Hon Hai was in the area of computer accessories, and 14 percent in semiconductors, it said.

COVID-19: Long-haul arrivals to await test resultsSTRATEGY TWEAK: Arrivals to Taiwan testing positive for COVID-19 are to be escorted to an ambulance via a special exit and hospitalized, the health minister saidBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterStarting today, arrivals on long-haul flights must wait for the results of COVID-19 tests before finishing airport entry procedures, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday. Airport staff in protective gear assist passengers in the arrivals hall at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday. “We urge inbound travelers to cooperate with airport staff, and avoid walking around while waiting for the COVID-19 test and for the result,” he added. Another local case is a child who is the son of an infected couple — case Nos. The sixth local case is a friend of case No.

As health concerns increase, automotive gadgets proliferateAFP, LAS VEGASWith personal health a rising priority around the world, the auto industry is on the hunt for new gadgets and accessories to make the vehicle cockpit feel safer for the driver and passengers. The objective is to transform vehicles “into a sort of health cocoon,” Valeo SA chief executive officer Christophe Perillat told a news conference at the Las Vegas trade show. US company Luminar Technologies Inc demonstrates its collision avoidance system at CES in Las Vegas on Wednesday. CabinAir Sweden AB and Marelli Corp also showcased air purification systems that could be installed inside the cockpit or in a cup holder. The company was in Las Vegas to launch the technology for the US, where there are dozens of casualties each year due to hyperthermia.

FEATURE: Taiwan, Hungary form tech partnershipBy Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterTaiwan and Hungary have joined forces to promote autonomous vehicle testing, with Taiwan’s chip industry seen as bringing “added value” to the partnership, experts said. Photo: Taiwan CAR Lab, National Applied Research LaboratoriesWhile the site covers only 1.75 hectares, much smaller than ZalaZone’s 265 hectare proving grounds — the largest in Europe — Hungary sees potential benefits in cooperating with Taiwan. “It is not the size that matters,” ZalaZone research and innovation head Zsolt Szalay told the Taipei Times in a video interview last month. Through the cooperation with ZalaZone, Taiwan would have early access to new EU legislation, allowing local firms to save costs and time when developing new automotive components, he said. Before autonomous vehicles can enter real-world settings, the transport infrastructure, such as traffic signals, should be digitized, he said.

Czech PM’s four-year plan to bulk up Taiwanese tiesBy Yang Cheng-yu and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerCzech Prime Minister Petr Fiala on Thursday approved his government’s four-year administrative plan, which includes measures to bolster partnerships with Taiwan, as well as other democracies in East Asia. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, right, gives a statement to the media in Lany, Czech Republic, on Nov. 28 last year. Photo: AFPThe plan reflects a continuation of former prime minister Vaclav Havel’s foreign affairs policies, which largely focused on strengthening partnerships with fellow democracies. In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday said that it welcomes the Czech Republic’s policies on the region, adding that it looks forward to further deepening ties with the European country. The Czech Republic’s successes in transitional justice and the protection of human rights have ensured its place within European politics, it added.

Sharetea started as a black tea stall on Taipei’s Nanyang Street in 1992 and established Lian Fa in 2004. Photo: CNAIts IPO prospectus showed that it operates 125 Sharetea outlets in the US, its largest market, and 44 shops in Hong Kong, the second-largest. In the first nine months of last year, Lian Fa posted NT$614 million in consolidated sales, up 31 percent from a year earlier. Lian Fa president Lai Po-yu (賴伯宇) said in the statement that Sharetea’s global expansion plan focuses on the US. Lian Fa has signed an agreement with a partner in Kuwait, where its outlet would be the only international hand-shaken beverage brand store, it said.

Revenue at T3EX surges as shipping rates remain highBy Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporterFreight forwarder T3EX Global Holdings Corp (台驊國際) on Friday reported revenue for last year of NT$3.45 billion (US$124.6 million), up 90 percent from a year earlier, and cumulative revenue of NT$36 billion for the year, up 137 percent from a year earlier, on the back of high shipping rates. Port congestion and labor shortages, as well as COVID-19 lockdowns in Southeast Asian countries, continued to push sea freight rates upward, contributing to revenue momentum, the forwarder said. There is still a discrepancy between supply and demand in the sea shipping market,” T3EX said in a statement. The forwarder expects air cargo rates to remain high this year, as the disruption in the sea freight market could prompt more clients to utilize air services, it said. Revenue from its sea freight forwarding operation advanced 137 percent year-on-year to NT$16.2 billion, accounting for 41.8 percent of all revenue, it said.

EDITORIAL: Booster shots should be boostedThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) on Friday announced that people aged 18 or older who received their second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine 12 weeks or more before are eligible for a booster dose to improve immune protection against the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2. The announcement came after many public health and healthcare specialists suggested that the government consider shortening the booster interval for high-risk groups. Calls for earlier booster shots grew as four confirmed cluster infections within quarantine hotels were reported in Taoyuan and Taipei, and the daily imported case numbers continued to rise. Several local government heads also urged the CECC to provide earlier booster doses to front-line workers with higher infection risks. An Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting was held on Thursday, and it recommended shortening the booster dose interval to 12 weeks.

Oil posts third weekly rise on outagesBloombergOil rose for a third straight week as demand remained resilient, while supplies are frayed across the OPEC+ coalition and beyond. Kazakhstan’s biggest oil producer has altered output at the giant Tengiz field following protests, while Libyan production has also been crimped. “The oil market remains very tight and seems like it will go higher,” said Ed Moya, Oanda Corp’s senior market analyst for the Americas. TCO is a joint venture led by Chevron Corp that pumps about one-third of the nation’s oil. A deep freeze in Canada and the northern US has also disrupted oil flows this week.

Taiwan has been on alert as international deliveries have been found to contain meat products that tested positive for African swine fever, the ministry said. A pack of sausages sent from Thailand and intercepted by the Tainan Post Office is pictured in an undated photograph. The ministry also reminded employers to inform their foreign staff about African swine fever prevention laws and regulations. African swine fever is not known to infect humans, but can be fatal to pigs, and an outbreak might devastate the country’s high-value pig farming industry. Migrant workers who have questions about African swine fever should call the 1955 counseling and protection hotline, the ministry said.

CECC reports four more domestic infectionsStaff writer, with CNAThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported 62 new COVID-19 cases, including four domestic infections linked to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport initially confirmed by the Taoyuan City Government on Thursday evening. The domestic COVID-19 cases are a 27-year-old security guard working at the airport’s Terminal 2, two members of the Golden Voice Social Club and the sister of a previously infected social club member. The other seven cases in the cluster are airport janitors, who were confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 earlier this week, the center said. Janitors in protective suits sanitize Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) yesterday. A taxi outside Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) yesterday displays a sign to show that the vehicle had been fully sanitized.

HTC sales rise 20 percent on metaverse enthusiasmStaff writer, with CNATaiwan-based smartphone brand HTC Corp (宏達電), which has entered the virtual reality (VR) business, has benefited from enthusiasm over the metaverse concept to post a more than 20 percent month-on-month increase in sales. A woman uses HTC virtual reality equipment at Taipei Medical University on Nov. 30 last year. HTC Vive Asia-Pacific general manager Charles Huang (黃昭穎) said the Vive Flow is smaller and lighter than its predecessors, which should help the device generate more sales than its counterparts in the Vive headset series. The Vive Flow has an expansive 100-degree field of view, 3.2K resolution, and full 3D spatial audio that can connect to Bluetooth earphones, according to HTC product specifications. Products HTC is featuring include the first inside-out tracking device used by the Vive Focus 3, and healthcare content used by the Vive Flow.

Rising New Taiwan dollar comes with risks, rewardsCOLLISION COURSE: Strong exports prompted currency gains that could hurt trade in the long run, prompting the central bank to consider curbs on further gainsBloombergBuoyed by booming exports, the New Taiwan dollar is rallying in another attempt to crack a level that has held for almost 25 years. Taiwan’s policymakers could slow the currency’s gains as it approaches NT$27.501 per US dollar, a level it last reached in March 1997. The currency’s rise could put Taiwanese bulls on a collision course with the central bank, which frowns on excessive gains that could hurt exports. Still, others said that the central bank might tread lightly in the run-up to the release of the US Treasury Department’s foreign-exchange policy report. After the US raises borrowing costs, the Taiwan dollar is likely to return to the NT$28 level by the end of this year, said Cathay United Bank chief economist Eupho Lin.

CECC cuts booster interval to 12 weeksDIVERSIFY: Fully vaccinated people can choose any brand as a booster, but AstraZeneca recipients should choose a different brand for better COVID-19 protection, the center saidStaff writer, with CNAThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has shortened the interval between getting a second COVID-19 vaccine shot and a booster dose to 12 weeks effective immediately, it said yesterday. A medical worker prepares a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination center in Hsinchu City yesterday. Only a half-dose of the Moderna vaccine would be administered as a booster, in keeping with the company’s recommendation, he added. Chen suggested that people who received two AstraZeneca jabs should choose a different brand as a booster for better protection. New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) also urged eligible residents to take boosters to prevent the spread of the virus.

Military showcases urban terrain training operationMILES FIGHTING: The soldiers, who were divided into ‘attackers’ and ‘defenders,’ wore laser detectors that registered ‘hits,’ with commanders watching the dataStaff writer, with CNATaiwan’s military showcased its urban terrain operational capabilities yesterday in exercises at a mock town inside an infantry training center in Kaohsiung. The exercise took place in a 6,599m2 compound inside the Army Infantry Training Command in Fengshan District (鳳山). The mock town — built to allow simulations of military operations in urban terrain — has 26 buildings. The mock town, which was built decades ago, is regularly upgraded to mimic up-to-date urban environments. Since November 2019, 36 infantry platoons have conducted urban terrain operations at the mock town, with each session lasting two weeks, it said.