Chen Chien-jen to serve as Academia Sinica headStaff writer, with CNAThe Presidential Office yesterday announced the appointment of former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) as the next Academia Sinica president, serving a five-year term from June 21, 2026 to June 20, 2031. Former vice president Chen Chien-jen is pictured in an undated photograph. He also served as the vice president from 2016 to 2020 and as premier from 2023 to 2024. Founded in 1928, Academia Sinica has earned a reputation for being Taiwan’s top national academic institution. It currently has 24 institutes and nine research centers located in three research sections: the Mathematics and Physical Sciences Division, Life Sciences Division, and Division of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Younghwaru: Korean-style Chinese food in TaiwanServing diaspora upon diaspora here in Taipei, this gritty student spot features jammy noodles, spicy soups and some seriously good Korean fried chickenBy Hollie Younger / Staff reporterDown in Taipei’s student hub surrounding National Taiwan University (NTU), cheap and filling eats are a dime a dozen. Photo: Hollie YoungerServing Korean-style Chinese food, the original restaurant opened in Seoul in the 1970s, and the owner’s daughter brought a branch to Taipei just a few years ago. The Korean fried chicken. That said, we’ve already opted for a heaping pile of their Chinese-style Korean Fried Chicken (NT$460), or kkanpunggi. But sometimes an outrageously sized and outrageously well-priced plate of Korean fried chicken is just the thing on a chilly December evening.

Premier League begins year with goal-shy drawsAFP, LONDONManchester City FC trail Arsenal FC by four points at the top of the Premier League after failing to end Sunderland AFC’s unbeaten home record in a 0-0 draw on Thursday, while Liverpool FC were also held by Leeds United FC. City had won eight consecutive games to end last year and cut the gap on the Gunners to just two points. Manchester City defender Josko Gvardiol, center, leaps for the ball against Sunderland’s Lutsharel Geertruida, right, in Sunderland, England, on Thursday. “It’s a mystery,” City manager Pep Guardiola said on his side’s inability to score. Crystal Palace FC manager Oliver Glasner said his depleted side are in “survival mode” after a 1-1 draw against Fulham FC extended their winless run to six games.

Taiwan secure Premier12 2027 spotEXPANSION: Next year’s tournament is to grow from 12 participants to 16 for the first time, with the four additional slots to be filled in two qualification tournamentsStaff writer, with CNATaiwan, the defending champions of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier12, have secured a spot in next year’s Premier12 tournament following the release of the latest official world rankings. Taiwan ranked second in the standings updated by the WBSC on Wednesday. Taiwan had 5,112 points, second only to Japan (6,676 points), and followed by the US, South Korea and Venezuela. Team Taiwan celebrate with the trophy after winning the WBSC Premier12 baseball tournament in Tokyo on Nov. 24, 2024. The WBSC said it would announce details regarding the second qualification tournament at a later date.

Kim Ju-ae’s mausoleum visit fuels succession talkAFP, SEOULNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s daughter, Kim Ju-ae, has made her first public visit to a mausoleum housing her grandfather and great-grandfather, state media images showed yesterday, further solidifying her place as likely next in line to run the nuclear-armed dictatorship. Kim Jong-un is the third in line to rule in the world’s only communist monarchy, following his father Kim Jong-il and grandfather Kim Il-sung. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, front, third right, and his daughter, Kim Ju-ae, center, visit the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun to mark the new year in Pyongyang in a picture released by state media yesterday. It could be “interpreted as reporting to the ‘eternal leaders’ Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il that she is being presented as his successor,” he said. On Thursday, footage showed Ju-ae accompanying her parents at New Year celebrations in Pyongyang.

EDITORIAL: Migrant labor rules reform urgentA labor broker last week was fined more than NT$10 million (US$318,279) for illegally charging migrant workers job-placement fees. Reports by labor rights groups and international organizations have found migrant workers paying US$5,000 to US$6,600 to secure jobs in Taiwan, often before they even arrive. When migrant workers are already deeply indebted upon their arrival, their ability to refuse unreasonable demands or seek help is severely constrained. As birthrates remain low, migrant labor has become essential across sectors ranging from manufacturing to hospitality and port operations. The nation’s growing dependence on migrant labor makes reform increasingly urgent.

Over 200 attack drones were launched onto Ukraine in the night,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram, saying energy infrastructure in seven regions across Ukraine had been targeted. Meanwhile, Russia accused Ukraine of killing at least 24 people, including a child, in a drone strike on a hotel and cafe in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine. Firefighters stand near a residential building on fire following a Russian drone strike in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, yesterday. Moscow on Monday accused Kyiv of trying to strike a residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin. A senior Russian military chief handed to a US military attache what he said was part of a Ukrainian drone containing data that proved that the Ukrainian military had targeted the residence.

BYD surges, but Chinese EV market faces pressureBloombergBYD Co (比亞迪) last year met its full-year sales target and likely surpassed Tesla Inc to become the world’s largest maker of electric vehicles (EVs) — a milestone overshadowed by a challenging outlook for the Chinese auto market in the year ahead. The Chinese EV giant’s Hong Kong-listed shares rose on the first day of trading for the new year, gaining as much as 2.3 percent yesterday. The Shenzhen-based automaker delivered 4.6 million vehicles last year, up 7.7 percent from 2024. BYD and its rivals face growing pressure in the coming year as China scales back some incentives supporting EV purchases. The company’s total sales could grow to 5.3 million units next year, analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg showed.

The government is waiting for a wrap-up meeting to conclude the talks, Kung told reporters before the ministry’s weekly business briefing. Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin speaks at the legislature in Taipei on Dec. 1. Robust artificial intelligence (AI) demand supporting semiconductors and AI servers shipments was the top economic driver, while some traditional industries face structural challenges, he said. The main challenge for traditional industries lies in oversupply in China, which has fueled price competition amid persistently weak domestic demand in China, he said. The government aims to use the special budget to improve the resilience of traditional industries over the next two years, he said.

Gold and silver open the new year with advancesBloombergGold and silver advanced as trading began in the new year, building on their best annual performances since 1979. Bullion rose to US$4,375 an ounce, while silver gained more than 2 percent. A worker displays a 1kg gold bullion bar at the ABC Refinery in Sydney on Aug. 5, 2020. Silver rallied even harder than gold last year, hitting records and blowing through levels that until recently had seemed unthinkable to all but the most enthusiastic of market watchers. In addition to the factors that aided gold, silver has also been a beneficiary of sustained concerns that the US administration could eventually impose import tariffs on the refined metal.

Surveillance of digital generationBy Tenzing NyidonSocial networks have become the primary venue for youngsters in Asia to reveal their characters, construct relationships and participate in international discussions. For millions of young people living in areas where the state heavily monitors activities — like China, Myanmar and Vietnam — online digital expression is dominated by censorship, continuous surveillance and the possibility of punishment. The tactics not only show inventiveness, but also the difficulties that minority youth might encounter when digital platforms are used as a means to boost state powers. Tibetan diaspora youth living in India, Nepal, Europe or North America have much more digital freedom compared with those in Tibet and China. Asia’s young digital generation is the main driver of culture and politics in the 21st century.

Bullying with the use of tourism has failedBy Rath Wang 王健智China’s attempts to hold its tourists hostage have yet again failed, Japan being a case in point. Taiwan is familiar with this bullying tactic: In hindsight, hysterical outbursts from Beijing helped Taiwan to control the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. China’s ban gave Tsai the mandate to diversify Taiwan’s tourism industry from reliance on Chinese visitors. This is a lesson that Japan has already learned from, as it focuses on tourism from nations other than China. He is a producer and host of political talk shows and podcasts, and has worked on political campaigns and advocacies in Taiwan, Japan and the US.

Shares close at new high; TSMC breaks recordsStaff writer, with CNAShares in Taiwan closed at a new high yesterday, the first trading day of the new year, as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) continued to break records amid an artificial intelligence (AI) boom, dealers said. Ta Ya Electric Wire & Cable Co (大亞電線電纜) rose 1.45 percent to close at NT$38.50 and rival Walsin Lihwa Corp (華新麗華) close at NT$32.90, up 3.46 percent. In the financial sector, E. Sun Financial Holding Co (玉山金控) rose 1.04 percent to close at NT$34.10, while Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) and Fubon Financial Holding Co (富邦金控) lost 0.79 percent and 0.52 percent to close at NT$75.20 and NT$95.60 respectively. “The TAIEX is likely to challenge 30,000 points as foreign institutional buying continues until TSMC’s investor conference,” Huang said. Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$12.02 billion of shares on the main board yesterday, TWSE data showed.

The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for Taiwan’s manufacturing sector rose 3.9 points last month to 55.3, the third straight month of expansion and the fastest pace since June 2024, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中經院) said yesterday. Photo: CNA“The pickup reflects a broad-based recovery in manufacturing activity, driven primarily by Taiwan’s central role in the global AI supply chain,” CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei. Supplier delivery times lengthened further, while inventories returned to growth, underscoring both rising demand and tightening supply conditions, it said. However, firms in food and textiles, basic raw materials, and machinery equipment remain more cautious, pointing to a prolonged, uneven expansion. The non-manufacturing index edged down to 54.6 last month from 55.8 a month earlier, but stayed firmly in expansion territory, CIER said.

The collapse of Germany’s coalition government in February last year could provide a reference point for how a no-confidence motion and early elections could be held to seek a renewed public mandate. The German parliament elected in 2021 was meant to serve a full term until September. His original calculation was to push through several key bills before later proposing a motion of no confidence, ostensibly to avoid dissolving parliament right before Christmas and disrupting the holiday atmosphere. The elections that followed allowed a new government to form with an updated mandate from the public. This same constitutional right to seek a no-confidence vote is well within the arsenal of Taiwan’s blue and white-camp legislators, who claim to disagree so resolutely with Cho’s refusal to countersign legislation.