Taiwan’s EVA Air ranked 8th in world’s safest airlinesStaff writer, with CNATaiwanese airline EVA Air was ranked No. 8 on the world’s safest full-service airlines for 2026 by AirlineRatings.com, while Starlux Airlines was ranked 11th, the airline rating website announced Tuesday. EVA Air President Sun Chia-ming (孫嘉明) said the carrier has been ranked among the world’s safest airlines for the 13th consecutive year, adding that the recognition is an affirmation of its employees’ commitment to safety culture and adherence to standard operating procedures. EVA Airways Corp aircraft are pictured at Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) in an undated photograph. The top 10 safest full-service airlines (as opposed to low- cost airlines) are Etihad of the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific, Australia’s Qantas, Qatar Airways, Emirates of the UAE, Air New Zealand, Singapore Airlines, EVA Air, Virgin Australia and Korean Air, according to AirlineRatings.com.

Tax revenue falls short of target for 1st time in 5 yearsBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterTaiwan’s tax revenue last year fell short of the government’s full-year budget target for the first time in five years, as sluggish property and auto transactions dragged on collections despite record inflows from equity trading and income taxes, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The category achieved just 79 percent of its budget target, one of the weakest performances among major revenue items, Liu said. Individual income tax revenue climbed to NT$867.8 billion, up 4.7 percent from 2024, supported by higher wage withholding and increased dividend distributions, the ministry said. Securities transaction tax revenue surged to a record NT$292.8 billion, rising 1.6 percent from a year earlier, it said. Inheritance and gift tax revenue also far exceeded expectations last year, with execution rates of 177 percent and 145 percent respectively, reflecting large-value cases and accelerated wealth transfers.

Interview: Trumpf expanding its Taiwan facilitiesSEMICONDUCTORS: The German laser and plasma generator company will expand its local services as its specialized offerings support Taiwan’s semiconductor industries Trumpf SE + Co KG, a global leader in supplying laser technology and plasma generators used in chip production, is expanding its investments in Taiwan in an effort to deeply integrate into the global semiconductor supply chain in the pursuit of growth. The company, headquartered in Ditzingen, Germany, has invested significantly in a newly inaugurated regional technical center for plasma generators in Taoyuan, its latest expansion in Taiwan after being engaged in various industries for more than 25 years. The center, the first of its kind Trumpf built outside Germany, aims to serve customers from Taiwan, Japan, Southeast Asia and South Korea,By Lisa Wang

Environmental Impact Assessment: Assessing the environmental efforts of local governmentsA recent report by an environmental NGO grades Taiwan’s municipalities on achieving net zero — at least those who were willing to participateBy Steven Crook / Contributing reporterThe central government sets the nation’s environmental strategy and directs the push for net zero. The country’s local governments aren’t powerless, however. However, in 2021 — the only year in which all of Taiwan’s cities and counties took part — both metropolises slipped to “good,” trailing four other local governments. In July 2024, the Changhua County Government implemented some of the country’s strictest trash-processing rules. “Hualien County and Kaohsiung City have serious river pollution and their budgets could be increased,” TEPU notes in its report.

Delta Electronics posts record-high Q4 revenuePOWERING UP: PSUs for AI servers made up about 50% of Delta’s total server PSU revenue during the first three quarters of last year, the company saidBy Meryl Kao / Staff reporterPower supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) reported record-high revenue of NT$161.61 billion (US$5.11 billion) for last quarter and said it remains positive about this quarter. During the first three quarters of last year, AI-related power supply units (PSUs) accounted for 23 percent of the company’s total revenue, a sixfold increase from a year earlier. PSUs used for AI servers made up about 50 percent of its total server PSU revenue during the period, company data showed. This year, AI data center-related products are expected to remain a key revenue driver for Delta, especially advanced power solutions, high-voltage power products and advanced heat-dissipation products, the official said. The company can also supply heat-dissipation products used in data centers, from liquid-to-air to liquid-to-liquid cooling systems, they added.

With Venezuela raid, US tells China to keep away from AmericasBeijing’s bet on relations with Caracas might backfire, although Donald Trump’s China policy has concessions and assertive new stancesBy Michael Martina, Trevor Hunnicutt and David Brunnstrom / Reuters, WASHINGTONAmong the many goals of the US military operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Jan. 3 was to send China a message: Stay away from the Americas. The Venezuela operation appeared to tilt US policy in a more hawkish direction. Those systems did little to impede a raid that US officials boasted had been conducted without any losses. “They are also noticing how China’s diplomatic assurances to Iran and Venezuela resulted in zero meaningful protection when the US military arrived,” Sobolik said. “Beijing wants Washington to accept that Asia is in China’s sphere and no doubt hopes that the US will get bogged down in Venezuela,” Russel said.

President Lai thanks Canada for its supportReutersPresident William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Canada for its support during recent Chinese military drills and praised the deepening of ties between the two sides, shortly ahead of a visit to China by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. President William Lai, center, meets with members of a parliamentary delegation from Canada at the Presidential Office in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNA“Bilateral relations continue to deepen and yield fruitful results,” Lai said at the Presidential Office in Taipei. Melissa Lantsman, deputy coleader of Canada’s Conservatives, told Lai that Taiwan is a trusted partner. In a statement on Monday, the two Liberal Party members — Helena Jaczek and Marie-France Lalonde — said they would end their trip to Taiwan early.

Chip demand fuels recovery in machine exportsBy Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporterThe nation’s machinery industry showed a strong recovery last year, with full-year exports rising 9.1 percent year-on-year to US$31.859 billion, the Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry said in a report on Monday. It came as machinery exports continued to grow significantly last month, increasing 14.3 percent year-on-year and marking the 11th consecutive month of growth since February last year, the association said. Taiwan’s machinery exports comprise mainly inspection and testing equipment, electronic equipment and machine tools. Exports of inspection and testing equipment increased 15 percent to US$5.484 billion, and those of electronic equipment rose 10.2 percent to US$5.456 billion, while exports of machine tools fell 9.6 percent to US$2.004 billion last year, association data showed. For the whole of last year, exports to the US increased 16 percent to US$8.34 billion and those to China rose 5 percent to US$7.18 billion, association data showed.

EDITORIAL: Invisible hands at workOn today’s page, Masahiro Matsumura, a professor of international politics and national security at St Andrew’s University in Osaka, questions the viability and advisability of the government’s proposed “T-Dome” missile defense system. A rational, robust debate over the specifics, not the scale or the necessity, of the government’s proposed national defense budget is precisely what should be happening in the legislature. Instead, through a series of obfuscations, distractions and delays, the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) are preventing any review of the national defense budget. The visible hands behind the obstructionist behavior are KMT Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文), KMT legislative caucus leader Fu Kun-chi (?) That is, we might be seeing the effect of another pair of invisible hands at work.

Japan can no longer afford strategic confusionIf Japan wants to preserve its strategic autonomy, it must explain convincingly why it cannot and should not fall under China’s influenceBy Taniguchi TomohikoIt is not too dramatic to say that Japan has only 12 years left to secure its future. A crucial first step is to recognize that Japan’s post-World War II strategic framework has become obsolete. While the principles Japan upheld throughout the post-war period were not inherently mistaken, restraint now carries growing strategic costs. The US, Japan’s strategic guarantor since the end of the war, is no longer the country it once was. The result has been a narrowing of debate over Japan’s strategic choices, delaying necessary decisions.

Taiwan and US flags are pictured next to a stack of US$50 bills in an illustration yesterday. Taiwan and the US are scheduling a final wrap-up meeting, after which they would publicly announce the details of the deal, the office said. In the first phase of Taiwan-US trade talks from April to the end of July last year, both sides negotiated tariffs, trade barriers, economic security, procurement and supply chain issues, the office said in previous statements. Taiwan earlier concluded trade discussions with the Office of the US Trade Representative, then continued to discuss Section 232 tariffs and TSMC’s investment plans with the US Department of Commerce, the New York Times said. TSMC has three fabs at various stages of development in Arizona under a previous US$65 billion investment commitment.

Prices of 8-inch wafers to rise 20 percentSIZE MATTERS: TSMC started phasing out 8-inch wafer production last year, while Samsung is more aggressively retiring 8-inch capacity, TrendForce saidBy Lisa Wang / Staff reporterChipmakers are expected to raise prices of 8-inch wafers by up to 20 percent this year on concern over supply constraints as major contract chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and Samsung Electronics Co gradually retire less advanced wafer capacity, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. Global 8-inch wafer capacity slid 0.3 percent year-on-year last year, although 8-inch wafer prices still hovered at relatively stable levels throughout the year, TrendForce said. TSMC started phasing out 8-inch wafer production last year and plans to halt operations at some of its 8-inch wafer fabs next year, while Samsung is more aggressively retiring its 8-inch wafer capacity, the researcher said. Against that backdrop, contract chipmakers are considering raising 8-inch wafer prices by 5 to 20 percent this year, a larger scale than last year when supply started showing signs of slowing down, TrendForce said. Meanwhile, increasing demand for power chips used in artificial intelligence (AI) servers and front-loading demand for chips used in consumer electronics are boosting factory utilization of 8-inch fabs, TrendForce said.

G7, allies discuss cutting reliance on China for rare earthsReuters, WASHINGTONFinance ministers from the G7 and other major economies on Monday met in Washington to discuss ways to reduce dependence on rare earths from China, including setting a price floor and new partnerships to build up alternative supplies, ministers said. The participating countries and the EU account for 60 percent of global demand for critical minerals. However, China dominates the supply chain, refining between 47 and 87 percent of copper, lithium, cobalt, graphite and rare earths, the International Energy Agency said. Last week, China banned exports of items destined for Japan’s military that have civilian and military uses, including some critical minerals. He said rare earths and critical mineral supplies would be a central topic under the French presidency of the G7 this year.

APEC Shenzen visit was smooth, safe: ministry officialStaff writer, with CNAA Ministry of Foreign Affairs official yesterday said that a delegation that visited China for an APEC meeting did not receive any kind of treatment that downgraded Taiwan’s sovereignty. Department of International Organizations Director-General Jonathan Sun (孫儉元) said that he and a group of ministry officials visited Shenzhen, China, to attend the APEC Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting last month. Department of International Organizations Director-General Jonathan Sun speaks to reporters in Taipei yesterday. Sun yesterday confirmed that Taiwan’s plan to attend the APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting in Shenzhen from Feb. 1 to 10 has not changed. Over the past year, Taiwan has been in talks with China to make sure the APEC host guarantees Taiwan’s “equal, dignified and safe involvement” in APEC meetings and activities in Shenzhen.

KMT must correct stance on ChinaBy Tommy Lin 林逸民Early in the new year, then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was deposed by US forces; the country is now on the path to normalization. By the end of last year, Russia, Iran and Venezuela together accounted for more than 40 percent of China’s oil imports. To show support for Somalia, Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) had planned to visit the country on Friday, in what would have been the first visit by a Chinese foreign minister in more than 30 years. The KMT should wake up to the international situation: China no longer has a future, and it is time to return to the right path. If Cheng insists on going her own way, other KMT members must have the courage to correct the course and restore order.