Mail carrier’s dangerous dog list helps solve attack caseBy Chen Kuan-bei and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writerThree dogs that attacked a woman in her 70s in Pitou Township (埤頭), Changhua County, have been identified thanks to a mail carrier’s list describing dog attacks in the area. Police said they interviewed locals and analyzed surveillance footage from the area around the attack that left the woman with more than 200 bite wounds, compiling a list of 10 potential dogs with aggressive tendencies. However, due to conflicting eye-witness accounts, it was difficult to confirm any specific dog as the culprit and the investigation hit a bottleneck, police said. Investigators cross-referenced the list with surveillance footage and identified the three dogs responsible for the attack, police said. Mail carriers know the distribution of dogs on local streets better than anyone, Changhua Post Office director Kuo Pai-hui (郭白慧) said.

Visas for WTO summit ‘riddled with errors,’ ministry saysBy Ben Blanchard / Reuters, TAIPEIVisas for Taiwan officials to attend a WTO summit in Cameroon were "riddled with errors," leaving Taiwan unable to attend, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, after initially complaining they ​had been listed as coming from China. Last week, the ministry said it ​had complained to the WTO and Cameroon that the African country had listed the island as "Taiwan, ​province of China" in pre-travel documentation issued by Cameroon. The Cameroon foreign ​ministry did not respond to a request for comment. A WTO spokesperson said that following engagement by its director ‌general, ⁠new visas were issued on Friday last week in line with Taiwan's request. Taiwan says it is the first time it has not attended a WTO ministerial conference since becoming a member 25 years ago.

KMT lawmakers seek to codify parental leave payBy Fion Khan / Staff writer, with CNAChinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators have proposed amendments to the Employment Insurance Act (就業保險法) to codify the current 80 percent parental leave allowance into law and provide full-pay subsidies for disadvantaged families that would be funded in part by the government. For many families, taking leave not only reduces income, but also creates staffing pressures for small and medium-sized enterprises, he said. He urged the Ministry of Labor to introduce comprehensive subsidies for replacement labor to ease the burden on businesses. Since parental leave has been made available on a daily basis, more fathers are encouraged to participate in childcare, Niu said. In January and last month, 1,237 men applied for parental leave, accounting for 44.3 percent of applicants, significantly higher than last year’s 27.8 percent, he said.

China has ‘no right’ to criticize Ko Wen-je ruling: MACBy Hollie Younger / Staff writer, with CNAChina has “no right” to criticize Taiwan’s democracy after former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was yesterday sentenced to 17 years in jail and deprived of his civil rights for six years on corruption-related charges, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said today. The Taipei District Court made the ruling yesterday, finding Ko guilty of accepting millions in bribes related to the Core Pacific City redevelopment project during his second term as Taipei mayor from 2018 to 2022. Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng speaks at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei on May 21 last year. Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei TimesChina’s Taiwan Affairs Office swiftly issued a statement criticizing the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration. China should not attempt to use this case to further “united front” work and the office’s remarks only reveal its own weaknesses, Chiu said.

HIMARS procurement in danger due to blocked budget: ministryBy Lee Wen-hsin and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writerA deal with the US for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) that expires on Monday is in danger, as Washington remains inflexible and the relevant budget has not yet been passed by the Legislative Yuan, Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) said today. The Legislative Yuan on March 13 authorized the Executive Yuan to sign four LOAs from the US for M109A7 self-propelled howitzers, Javelin anti-armor missiles, TOW 2B missiles and HIMARS. The payment deadline for the HIMARS LOA is Monday next week, Hsu said. The issue is that the relevant procurement budget has not been passed by the Legislative Yuan and the special defense budget has not passed its third reading, Hsu said. The ministry has openly and transparently communicated with legislators about the rationale behind the special defense budget and is willing to discuss any feedback on the budget’s scale, Hsu said.

Household gas, LPG prices to be frozen next month: CabinetStaff writer, with CNAThe Cabinet has adopted a series of measures in response to the impact of Middle East tensions on global energy markets and prices, including keeping household natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices unchanged next month. Photo: CNAAt the meeting, the vice premier said that household natural gas and LPG prices are closely tied to dining and restaurant costs and that to stabilize prices, she instructed state-run oil supplier CPC Corp, Taiwan to keep next month's prices for household natural gas and LPG unchanged. She also directed the Ministry of Economic Affairs to coordinate with major domestic suppliers to stabilize LPG prices. In a post-meeting statement, the Cabinet said domestic oil and natural gas reserves currently exceeded statutory requirements, with natural gas supplies fully secured through May. Imports of non-Middle Eastern natural gas would be increased starting in June, it said.

NTU looking to bring in outside talentTALENT SCOUTING: The university is investing substantial funds in its future to bring in the kind of researchers that would keep the college internationally competitive National Taiwan University (NTU) plans to invest NT$2 billion (US$62.6 million) to launch two programs aimed at attracting and retaining top research talent, university president Chen Wen-chang (陳文章) said yesterday. The funding would support the “Palm Grove Scholars Project,” which targets academics aged 40 to 55. Up to 20 scholars would be selected, each receiving as much as NT$10 million annually, Chen said. The initiative is designed to attract leading researchers to Taiwan and strengthen NTU’s global competitiveness by fostering a more research-friendly environment and expanding international collaboration, he said. NTU is also introducing a “Hong Hu” chair grant, which would provide PalmBy Rachel Lin and Jake Chung

China bans runners over ‘obstructive’ marathon behaviorAFP, BEIJINGA runner who stopped during a marathon in China to pose doing the splits and another who hoarded energy gels have been banned for two years, the local athletics association said yesterday. The incidents happened during Sunday’s marathon in Sichuan Province’s Chengdu and were widely shared online. A runner who stopped during a marathon in China to pose doing the splits has been banned for two years. The male runner, surnamed Zhang, had “illegally taken a large quantity of race supplies for personal use,” the association said. Previous incidents also included marathon runners jumping on rental bikes and taking shortcuts.

War hits global economy with OECD seeing 4.2% US inflationBloombergThe conflict in the Middle East is reviving the specter of inflation and hobbling the global economy just as it was showing signs of strengthening at the start of the year, the OECD said yesterday. OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann speaks during a press conference at the OECD Headquarters in Paris, France, on June 4 last year. Without the conflict, the OECD said it could have revised up its global growth forecast by 0.3 point for this year. For the US, the OECD expects inflation to jump to 4.2 percent this year, from 2.6 percent last year. Its price outlook for this year is 1.2 percentage point higher than in December, also because the labor market remains tight with slowing net migration and tariffs are adding upward pressure.

Chip selloff deepens after Google touts memory breakthroughBloombergMemory chip stocks extended their losses yesterday after Alphabet Inc’s Google publicized research that could allow more efficient use of the storage needed for artificial intelligence (AI) development. Memory companies have been on a tear in recent months as the rapid development of AI infrastructure triggered a spike in chip prices, driving up profit and stocks. Visitors walk near a logo of Google at an AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, India, on Feb. 17. Photo: Bhawika Chhabra, ReutersSK Group chairman Chey Tae- won recently said that the memory chip crunch will last until 2030. “If models can run with materially lower memory requirements without losing performance, the cost of serving each query drops meaningfully, resulting in more profitable AI deployment,” he wrote.

China curbs exports of fertilizerChina is clamping down on fertilizer exports to protect its domestic market, industry sources said, putting an additional strain on global markets that were already grappling with shortages caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran. China is among the largest fertilizer exporters — shipping more than US$13 billion of it last year — and it has a history of controlling exports to keep prices low for farmers. Shipments through the war-blocked Strait of Hormuz account for about one-third of the sea-borne supply. This month, Beijing banned exports of nitrogen-potassium fertilizer blends and certain phosphate varieties, sources said. The ban, which has not

Super Micro Computer logos are pictured at Computex Taipei, one of the world’s largest computer and technology trade shows, in Taipei on May 30, 2023. Other defendants in the civil lawsuit are Super Micro CEO Charles Liang (梁見後) and chief financial officer David Weigand. Super Micro has said it is cooperating with the US government, and the alleged criminal conduct violates its policies. Neither Super Micro nor Nvidia was criminally charged, and Nvidia is not a defendant in the shareholder lawsuit. Wednesday’s lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for Super Micro investors between April 30, 2024, and March 19.

Acerpure aims to double revenue from NT$990mBy Meryl Kao / Staff reporterAcer Inc’s (宏碁) home appliance subsidiary Acerpure Inc (宏碁智新) yesterday said that it aims to double its revenue from last year’s NT$990 million (US$30.03 million), driven by demand for large appliances in Southeast Asia and India. From left, Acerpure Inc president Stanley Kao, chairman Andrew Hou and chief financial officer Hsu Wan-ju pose for a photograph in Taipei yesterday. The company plans to establish a subsidiary in Indonesia, with Taiwan remaining its primary design and production base, he said. The company plans to pursue organic growth as well as mergers and acquisitions to support stable expansion, he said. Acerpure plans to list its shares on the Taipei Exchange next month.

2,642 flu vaccine doses recalled over discolorationStaff Writer, with CNAThe Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Thursday ordered the suspension and recall of 2,642 doses of a government-funded influenza vaccine after a discolored vial was discovered at a clinic in New Taipei. Local health bureaus have been instructed to notify contracted medical institutions to halt use of the GSK batch, seal stocks, and inspect remaining inventory for any visual abnormalities. Since this season’s government-funded flu vaccination program began on Oct. 1, 2025, three adverse events have been reported: Guillain-Biarre syndrome (GBS), systemic urticaria, and fatigue with muscle pain requiring hospitalization. In 2018, Sanofi flu vaccines were found to contain suspended particles, while in 2024, a single discolored dose of a domestic Adimmune vaccine led to the disposal of the entire remaining batch. Taiwan procured about 6.83 million doses of publicly funded flu vaccines for the current flu season, supplied by multiple manufacturers, including Adimmune Corp. and GSK Taiwan.

Natural mosquito control encouraged over chemical useBy Esme Yeh / Staff reporterPeople are advised to prioritize source reduction and physical control measures over using chemical controls to get rid of mosquitoes, National Chung Hsing University entomology professor Lee Hou-feng (李後鋒) said yesterday. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of EnvironmentIt would be illogical for people to seek to kill all mosquitoes through chemical control measures while unintentionally breeding them because of water accumulations, he said. Therefore, reducing mosquito breeding rates via source control is more important than killing them, Lee said. Electric mosquito repellent liquids and mosquito coils could also be used as repellents in a well-ventilated space, as they could drive away insects or knock them unconscious, he said. Protector-type controls include anti-mosquito sprays and mosquito repellent hangers, which could be worn or applied to the human body, he said.