Ministry seeking Honduras relations
Ministry seeking Honduras relationsNO PRECONDITIONS: The ministry is approaching Tegucigalpa with openness and pragmatism, as Honduras must fully examine the repercussions of switching tiesBy Huang Ching-hsuang and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writer and CNATaiwan is willing to restore diplomatic relations with Honduras without setting preconditions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, after the new government in Tegucigalpa signaled interest in resuming formal ties. Ministry spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said Taiwan acknowledges an earlier statement by Honduran Vice President Maria Antonieta Mejia Sanchez indicating that the country is exploring a resumption of normal bilateral relations. The ministry is to deal with Honduras’ proposals with openness and pragmatism, without setting preconditions, he said. The logo of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is pictured in this undated photograph. The Nasry administration is to decide on a course of action that best serves Honduras’ national interests, Meija said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
Taking a break
Taipei Zoo home to rare, seasonally appropriate critterTaipei Zoo welcomes the Lunar New Year this year through its efforts to protect an endangered species of horse native to central Asia that was once fully extinct outside of captivity. The festival ushering in the Year of the Horse would draw attention to the zoo’s four specimens of Przewalski’s horse, named for a Russian geographer who first encountered them in the late 19th century across the steppes of western Mongolia. “Visitors will look at the horses and think that since this is the Year of the Horse: ‘I want to get to know horses,’” said zookeeper Chen Yun-chieh, who has beenBy Fabian Hamacher, Ann Wang and Yi-Chin Lee
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
Taipei, Nvidia sign contract for Beitou HQ
Taipei, Nvidia sign contract for Beitou HQEXPANSION: The project is expected to create more than 10,000 jobs, and the city would support Nvidia if it wishes to expand into a plot allocated to a schoolBy Kayleigh Madjar / Staff writer, with CNAThe Taipei City Government yesterday announced that it has officially inked a deal with Nvidia Corp to build the company’s Taiwan headquarters in the Beitou-Shilin Technology Park. “Taipei is Nvidia’s home,” Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) told reporters while presenting the signed contract to reporters. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an displays a contract signed between the Taipei City Government and Nvidia Corp to reporters in Taipei yesterday. Shin Kong Life previously had a contract with the Taipei City Government for development rights to the desired T17 and T18 plots. In October last year, Shin Kong Life relinquished the rights, prompting the city to reimburse the insurer NT$4.4 billion in royalties.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
FDA urges a ‘3-5-2’ food safety formula
FDA urges a ‘3-5-2’ food safety formulaAVOIDING ILLNESS: Leftover food should be reheated to a core temperature of 70°C or higher to kill most bacteria that might have grown during storage, the FDA saidBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday offered a “3-5-2 formula” — three tips for reheating food safely, five food sanitation and safety guidelines, and two types of food to avoid — to ensure food safety and prevent foodborne illnesses during the Lunar New Year holiday. With the long holiday approaching, families are likely to gather for a traditional reunion dinner and other festive feasts, and leftovers are frequently reheated for subsequent meals, but there are risks of food poisoning if food is stored or reheated improperly, the FDA said. The food safety “temperature danger zone” is roughly between 7°C to 60°C, it said, adding that food poisoning bacteria can quickly grow to unsafe levels or even produce toxins when food is kept in this temperature range, so people should remember three key points for reheating food safely. The FDA suggested that people keep in mind five principles for food sanitation and safety. The FDA said that people should avoid two types of foods — drinking untreated mountain spring water, and eating unknown plants and animals.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
MRT attacker’s jail sentence extended to seven years
MRT attacker’s jail sentence extended to seven yearsStaff writer, with CNAThe High Court yesterday increased the prison sentence of a 44-year-old woman to seven years for attacking a high-school student with a box cutter on the Taipei MRT in 2024, raising the penalty of four years and six months imposed by a lower court. A security drill is conducted at the Taipei City Hall MRT station on Dec. 26 last year. Cheng fought back and, with the help of other passengers, restrained Wang, preventing more serious injuries, the court said. While her mental condition warranted a reduced sentence under the Criminal Code, the High Court said the original ruling failed to adequately reflect the severity of the attack and its broader social impact. However, it applied Paragraph 2, Article 19 of the Criminal Code, allowing for a reduced sentence due to her diminished capacity, the High Court said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
Taichung officials impeached over ASF
Taichung officials impeached over ASFBy Fang Wei-li, Su Chin-feng, and Jason Pan / Staff reportersThe Control Yuan yesterday impeached four Taichung City Government officials for their roles in an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak in October last year. The four impeached officials included former Agriculture Bureau director Chang Ching-chang (張敬昌), former Environmental Protection Bureau director Chen Hung-yi (陳宏益) and former Taichung City Animal Protection and Health Inspection Office (APHI) director Lin Ju-liang (林儒良). Photo: Fang Wei-li, Taipei TimesThe three officials were dismissed by Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) in November last year following the city government’s preliminary investigation, and were therefore referred to in the report as former officials, although they were in charge during the outbreak and the period leading up to it. Chou Pai-chun (周百俊), section chief at the APHI under Lin, was the fourth official to be impeached. Taiwan also lost its “ASF free” status, leading to a loss in confidence in the government’s disease response capabilities, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
Budget boycott could halt railway construction: bureau
Budget boycott could halt railway construction: bureauBy Jonathan Chin / Staff writer, with CNAThe Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party’s (TPP) budget boycott would shutter railroad construction from April, potentially putting contractors out of business, the Railway Bureau said yesterday. Railway Bureau Director-General Yang Cheng-chun holds up documents while speaking to reporters at a news event in Taipei yesterday. Asked whether the proposed high-speed rail projects meant the bureau had “given up” on the conventional rail operated by Taiwan Railway Corp, Yang said this concern was unfounded. The daily ticket count of Taiwan Railway numbered 660,000 last year, up from 460,000 in 2007, when its high-speed rail counterpart launched its first trains, he said. The bureau believes that extending the high-speed rail line is the more efficient solution that would also facilitate regional growth and development, Yang said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
Taipei deputy mayor throws in hat
Taipei deputy mayor throws in hatBy Chen Chih-cheng, Liu Wan-lin and Jake Chung / Staff reporters, with staff writerOn the heels of Taipei City Government inking the land lease deal with Nvidia Corp for its Taiwan headquarters, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Shu-chuan (李四川) announced his plans to resign by the end of this month in preparation to run for New Taipei City mayor. Lee said he has verbally informed Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) of his intent to resign by the end of the month. Lee said he was thankful for the support shown to him by New Taipei City residents in polls and, as a New Taipei City resident, he felt he should act in response to such encouragement. Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Shu-chuan speaks at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. KMT New Taipei City Councilor Chiang Yi-chen (江怡臻) said Lee was among the best candidates to help New Taipei City grow.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
Lawmaker’s former staff detained in corruption probe
Lawmaker’s former staff detained in corruption probeBy Sam Garcia / Staff writer, with CNAProsecutors yesterday ordered independent Legislator May Chin’s (高金素梅) former office director, Chang Chun-chieh (張俊傑), to be detained over alleged fraud and illegal imports of COVID-19 tests, while Chin’s questioning was postponed over health issues. Chin reported feeling unwell after she arrived at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office early yesterday morning for questioning. Independent Legislator May Chin, right, arrives at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office early Wednesday morning for questioning. Chang Chun-chieh , the former director of legislator May Chin’s office, is detained over alleged fraud and illegal imports of Covid-19 tests. Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei TimesChin and Chang are suspected of fraudulently claiming assistant allowances using other people’s names during Chin’s time in office, prosecutors said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
EVA Airways to launch direct Washington flights
EVA Airways to launch direct Washington flightsEFFICIENT TRAVEL OPTION: The airline has also launched a new group tour service called ‘Nine-Day Eastern US Highlights’ in collaboration with Taiwanese travel agenciesBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterEVA Airways yesterday announced that it would launch a direct flight service from Taipei to Washington on June 26, with four flights to be provided each week at the initial stage. “North America has long been a key strategic market for us,” EVA Airways president Clay Sun (孫嘉明) said. An EVA Airways plane is pictured in an undated photograph. Today’s announcement supports Washington Dulles’ position as the international gateway to Washington,” she said. In addition to the US capital, EVA Airways’ nonstop gateways in North America include Los Angeles; San Francisco; Seattle; New York; Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas; Chicago; Vancouver; and Toronto.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:17 UTC
MSCI adjusts Taiwan’s weighting in three indices
MSCI adjusts Taiwan’s weighting in three indicesStaff writer, with CNAGlobal index provider MSCI Inc has raised Taiwan’s weighting in one of its major indices, but cut the weighting in two others after a regular index review. MSCI yesterday said in a statement that it has upgraded Taiwan’s weighting in the MSCI All-Country World Index by 0.01 percentage points to 2.41, and downgraded the country’s weighting in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, the most closely watched by foreign institutional investors, from 21.18 percent to 21.15 percent. In addition, the index provider cut Taiwan’s weighting in the MSCI All-Country Asia ex-Japan Index by 0.06 percentage points to 24.06 percent, it said. Weighting changes for other emerging markets in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index were limited, MSCI data showed. Among the 83 constituents, MSCI said Hon Precision Inc received the largest weighting upgrade of 0.39 percentage points, while Eclat Textile’s weighting marked the steepest cut, down by 0.11 percentage points.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:14 UTC
Bithumb says system flaws led to US$40 billion error
Bithumb says system flaws led to US$40 billion errorReuters, SEOULSouth Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb yesterday said that serious flaws had left its internal system susceptible to potential sabotage and failed to prevent an erroneous transfer of more than US$40 billion in assets last week. The nation’s second-largest virtual asset exchange said it accidentally gave away about 620,000 bitcoins to customers during a promotional event, instead of 620,000 won (US$428), triggering a 17 percent slump in bitcoin’s price. A Bithumb exchange office in Seoul is pictured on Friday last week. Photo: Bloomberg“We are acutely aware of the deficiency in internal system control,” Lee told a parliamentary committee hearing on the incident that took place on Friday last week. Lawmakers expressed dismay at the failure of government and corporate oversight in the nation’s virtual assets market, which is one of the most active in the world by trading volume.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:14 UTC
Taiwan may work with US on rare earths: Kung
Taiwan may work with US on rare earths: KungCOLLABORATION: Taiwan and the US could jointly find solutions to weaknesses in supply chain resilience for critical materials, focusing on mining and initial refinementBy Meryl Kao / Staff reporterTaiwan is likely to purchase rare earths from the US in the future, and is also in talks with Australia and Canada to strengthen global rare earth supply chain security, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday. At the time, Kung said the two sides would establish working groups to advance cooperation in areas including artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, critical materials and drone supply. A mining/crushing supervisor at MP Materials displays crushed ore before it is sent to the mill at the MP Materials rare earth mine in Mountain Pass, California, on Jan. 30, 2020. The rare earth supply chain can broadly be divided into three stages — mining, initial separation and refining — and Taiwan’s international cooperation would focus mainly on mining and initial separation, Kung said. The ministry previously estimated annual domestic rare earth demand at about 1,500 tonnes, and expects the ITRI refining capabilities to supply about one-third of that amount, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:14 UTC
Regular wage growth hits highest in 26 years in 2025, beating inflation
Regular wage growth hits highest in 26 years in 2025, beating inflationStaff writer, with CNAGrowth in the average monthly regular wage in the local industrial and service sectors rose 3.09 percent to NT$47,884 (US$1,512) last year, the highest in 26 years beating inflation, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday. After adjusting for inflation, the average real regular wage grew 1.40 percent to NT$43,690 last year, indicating that growth was above inflation, the DGBAS’ data showed. DGBAS Census Department Deputy Director Tan Wen-ling (譚文玲) said the higher regular wage came after an increase in the minimum wage. The nation’s consumer price index growth eased to 1.66 percent last year, below the 2 percent alert level set by the central bank, ensuring both the average regular wage and earnings beat inflation, she added. The median monthly regular wage rose 3.03 percent to NT$38,406 last year, while after being adjusted for inflation, the real median monthly wage also rose 1.35 percent to NT$35,042, the DGBAS said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:14 UTC
Irons end Red Devils’ win streak
The Irons kept one Manchester United fan who has vowed not to cut his hair until the Red Devils win five consecutive games waiting as they boosted their chances of survival, despite the setback of Sesko’s stoppage-time strike. Manchester United’s Benjamin Sesko, left, scores against West Ham United in their English Premier League match at the London Stadium on Tuesday. West Ham moved to within two points of safety with Spurs now just five points above the relegation zone in 16th. Archie Gray briefly leveled for Tottenham after halftime, but Jacob Ramsey quickly restored Newcastle’s lead as they secured just a third away league win of the campaign. Joao Pedro’s opener and a Cole Palmer penalty had the Blues on course for a fifth consecutive league win since Liam Rosenior took charge.
Source:Taipei Times
February 11, 2026 17:14 UTC