BBC reporter fleeing China arrives in Taiwan: MOFAAFP, BEIJINGA senior BBC correspondent who had left China after facing legal threats and pressure from authorities over his reporting, has arrived in Taiwan and is in COVID-19 quarantine, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said yesterday. Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Joanne Ou speaks at a news conference at the ministry in an undated photograph. Sudworth’s wife, Irish journalist Yvonne Murray, left the country with him “because of mounting pressure from the Chinese authorities,” her employer, Radio Television of Ireland (RTE), reported. The BBC confirmed Sudworth’s relocation after China’s state-run Global Times reported that he was “hiding” in Taiwan. In the middle of last month, Xinjiang authorities said that Sudworth was the target of a civil lawsuit for producing “fake news” about the region.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Environmental Protection Administration Toxic and Chemical Substance Bureau Director-General Hsieh Yein-rui yesterday presents planned amendments to regulations on explosive substances at a news conference in Taipei. Ammonium nitrate is also used to produce helium, the first chemical restricted by the EPA, Hsieh said. The online sale of the substances would be banned, as well as their unlicensed transportation, storage or sale, he said. The regulations would stipulate fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 (US$1,051 to US$10,514) for breaches when transporting the substances, Hsieh said. The EPA had also found that some aluminum cleaning products sold in Taiwan contained hydrofluoric acid, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
PMI reads 62.7, the ninth month in expansion zoneOVERHEATING RISK: CIER’s president said that prices for oil, raw materials and mass commodities are spiking, and producers might soon pass costs on to consumersBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterThe official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month was 62.7, soundly in the expansion zone for the ninth straight month, with all sectors reporting an uptick in business amid deepening concern over inflation risks, the Chunghua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. “Prices for oil, raw materials and mass commodities are spiking, and producers might soon pass costs on to consumers,” Chang said. The PMI subindex on new business orders was 60.5, while the industrial production gauge was 59.2, CIER’s monthly survey found. Companies in all sectors have rosy expectations, sending the six-month outlook reading to an all-time high of 78.8, Chang said. An upturn in the next six months is likely in the non-manufacturing sectors, including hospitality providers, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Ministry touts the success of vouchersBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterThe government’s Triple Stimulus Vouchers helped boost Taiwan’s retail sector last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday as it unveiled the final tally for the program. The ministry said that 99.6 percent of the vouchers, or NT$64.28 billion (US$2.25 billion), were redeemed by vendors. Premier Su Tseng-chang holds outsized samples of the government’s Triple Stimulus Vouchers at a news conference in Taipei on June 2 last year. Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei TimesAdministration of the vouchers program, including printing and distribution, cost more than NT$2 billion, it said. “We designed the program to minimize the substitution effect and maximize the multiplication effect,” Chen said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
TPP proposes alternative to Su’s children’s plaza planBy Hsieh Chun-lin and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerTaiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers yesterday blasted a plan by the Executive Yuan to spend NT$12.8 billion (US$448.6 million) on a children’s plaza, saying the money could be put to better use on education, social and labor reforms to improve children’s quality of life. TPP caucus convener Chiu Chen-yuan (邱臣遠) and TPP deputy caucus convener Ann Kao (高虹安) made the call at a news conference in Taipei ahead of Children’s Day on Sunday. Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) on Saturday last week unveiled a plan to build a children’s plaza in New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋), where he said children could learn about technology and culture through play. Taiwan People’s Party caucus convener Chiu Chen-yuan, left, and deputy caucus convener Ann Kao hold a news conference in Taipei yesterday criticizing government plans to spend NT$12.8 billion on a children’s plaza. The TPP caucus also issued a news release urging the government to make more efficient use of the budget by focusing on welfare priorities that are more urgent, more inclusive and would benefit more children.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
First flight of Taiwan-Palau ‘travel bubble’ takes offBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporter, with CNA and AFPTaiwan and Palau yesterday launched what is being billed as the Asia-Pacific region’s first COVID-19 “travel bubble,” as the diplomatic allies seek to kick-start their battered tourist industries after successfully keeping infections at bay. Excited Taiwanese tourists arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, checking in five hours before their afternoon flight so that they could be tested for COVID-19. Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr, left, waves as he concludes a news conference at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday following a five-day visit to Taiwan. A group of tourists pose at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday before boarding a flight to Palau as part of the Taiwan-Palau “travel bubble.” Photo: CNADoctors were stationed at the airport in case any passengers tested positive, he said. The “travel bubble” arrangement was first announced by the government on March 17.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Factory activity last month in Japan and South Korea expanded thanks to solid demand at home and abroad, purchasing manager indices (PMI) showed, offering relief to policymakers facing pressure to accelerate a patchy recovery. People work on a wire harness production line at a factory in Huaibei, China, on March 9. China’s factory activity expanded at the slowest pace in almost a year, although underlying economic conditions remained positive. The Caixin/Markit Manufacturing PMI, which focuses on smaller firms, last month dropped to 50.6 from February’s 50.9, missing market expectations. “All the uncertainty really rests with the economies they’re exporting to,” ING Groep NV chief Asia Pacific economist Rob Carnell said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Media personality charged with libel of presidentStaff writer, with CNAThe Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on Wednesday charged media personality Dennis Peng (彭文正) with aggravated libel for accusing President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of having forged her academic credentials. They charged Peng, formerly a journalism professor at National Taiwan University (NTU), for alleging in 2019 that Tsai’s academic credentials were fake. Ho yesterday called a news conference in Taipei, urging prosecutors not to treat defendants differently. Tsai’s academic credentials have been the subject of discussion in local media since Peng raised the issue in a Facebook post in June 2019, when Tsai was seeking re-election. Following months of speculation about Tsai’s academic credentials, the LSE issued a formal statement in October confirming that Tsai “was correctly awarded a Ph.D. in Law in 1984.”
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Evergreen Marine uses two kinds of vessels on its Europe routes, six with capacity of 14,000 TEUs and 11 with 20,000 TEUs. Evergreen Marine Corp president Eric Hsieh speaks at an investors’ conference in Taipei yesterday. Using larger vessels helps shippers reduce fuel costs per unit and enhance profit margins, if the ships are fully loaded, Evergreen Marine said. Evergreen Marine is not responsible for Ever Given blocking the Suez Canal, as the owner is in charge of the vessel, Hsieh said. Apart from the Ever Given, 11 other Evergreen Marine vessels were affected by the blockage, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Tax rebates to continue for efficient appliancesStaff writer, with CNAA proposal to extend tax rebates on energy-saving home appliances for another two years has been approved by the Cabinet and is to be submitted to the legislature for review, Executive Yuan spokesman Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) said yesterday. If lawmakers approve the amendments to the Commodity Tax Act (貨物稅條例), the incentives would continue until June 14, 2023, allowing a rebate of up to NT$2,000 (US$70.09) on new refrigerators, air-conditioners and dehumidifiers if they meet energy efficiency standards, Lo told reporters. A model poses with air-conditioners at an event in Taipei on May 31, 2018. Photo: Wu Pei-hua, Taipei TimesThe continuation of the incentives, which were introduced in June 2019, would encourage more people to buy energy-efficient appliances, the ministry said. If the incentives are extended, refunds can be claimed by people who buy appliances that reach the “level 1” or “level 2” energy efficiency standards specified in a Bureau of Energy rating system.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
New Zealand sweep T20 series against BangladeshAFP, AUCKLAND, New ZealandNew Zealand yesterday beat Bangladesh by 65 runs in a rain-shortened third Twenty20 international in Auckland to claim a series clean sweep. With their innings reduced to 10 overs due to bad weather, Bangladesh were all out for 76 with three balls to spare, well short of the 142 target set by New Zealand. New Zealand’s Adam Milne, right, tries to run out Bangladesh’s Shoriful Islam in the third Twenty20 international in Auckland, New Zealand, yesterday. Bangladesh captain Liton Das said that mistakes cost his side, including a series of dropped catches that allowed Allen to run away with the match. They were starting to rebuild when Astle also claimed a brace, leaving Bangladesh teetering on 37-4.
Source:Taipei Times
April 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Cross-strait forum focused on Tokyo Games: ministryBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterThe Cross-Straits Sports Exchange Seminar on Tuesday focused on how Taiwan and China are preparing their athletes for the Tokyo Olympic Games in July, Ministry of Education officials said, adding that neither side addressed whether Beijing should be allowed to hold the Winter Olympics next year. The annual seminar — over which Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee (CTOC) president Lin Hong-dow (林鴻道) and Chinese Olympic Committee president Gou Zhongwen (苟仲文) presided — was held online this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung speaks to reporters at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday after a meeting of the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee. Sports Administration International and Cross-Strait Sports Division Director Hsu Hsiu-ling (許秀玲) said the seminar was a routine meeting that Olympic Committee leaders and staff members should attend. The seminar focused on preparing athletes for the Tokyo Games and did not touch on issues related to the Winter Olympics next year, she added.
Source:Taipei Times
March 31, 2021 15:56 UTC
Having acquired majority control of Jih Sun Financial, Fubon Financial on Tuesday started to recognize its peer’s profits, but operations integration would take more time, Harn said. Fubon Financial Holding Co’s headquarters is pictured in Taipei on Dec. 20, 2011. Jih Sun Financial would cease to exist at the end of this year, but Jih Sun International Bank (日盛銀行), Jih Sun Securities Co (日盛證券) and Jih Sun Futures Co (日盛期貨) would continue operating until they become part of Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank (台北富邦銀行), Fubon Securities Co (富邦證券) and Fubon Futures Co (富邦期貨) respectively next year, he said. Although some of Jih Sun Bank’s and Taipei Fubon Bank’s branches overlap in some areas, they would not necessarily be closed, Harn said. “Fubon Financial has conducted many small and big mergers and acquisitions over the past 20 years, and we have never had major labor disputes.
Source:Taipei Times
March 31, 2021 15:56 UTC
CTBC Bank to boost stake in Thai financial companyBy Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporterCTBC Bank (中國信託銀行) would increase its investment in LH Financial Group Public Co by acquiring another 2.33 billion shares of the Thai company, CTBC Financial Holding Co (中信金控) said yesterday after its board of directors approved the proposal. The financial conglomerate still needs to obtain the approval of the Financial Supervisory Commission for the investment, CTBC spokeswoman Chiu Ya-ling (邱雅玲) told a news conference in Taipei. The deal, which would cost CTBC Financial NT$3.9 billion (US$136.7 million), would raise its stake in the Thai company from 35.6 percent to 46.6 percent, making it the largest shareholder, Chiu said. A sign displaying the logo of CTBC Bank is pictured outside the company’s headquarters in Taipei on April 13 last year. LH Financial Group focuses on the banking business, with its banking unit, LH Bank, ranking 13th in terms of assets among Thai banks, Chiu said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 31, 2021 15:56 UTC
Chang Hwa Bank looks to recover profit momentumBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterBacked by an improving global operating environment, state-run Chang Hwa Commercial Bank (彰化銀行) yesterday said that it expects its growth momentum to recover this year, after net income tumbled by double-percentage points last year and remained weak in the first two months of this year. Chang Hwa Commercial Bank’s headquarters in Taipei’s Zhongshan District is pictured in an undated photograph. Chou, who served in different positions in another state-run lender, First Commercial Bank (第一銀行), aims to strengthen Chang Hwa Bank’s overseas operations and risk controls. Chang Hwa Bank is seeking to expand its loanbook by 5 to 6 percent this year, led by loans to small and medium-sized enterprises, and mortgage for people with real demand, the bank said. Chang Hwa Bank would be engaged in loans to first-time home buyers, as the central bank’s two recent waves of credit controls are directed at multiple home owners and property investors, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 31, 2021 15:56 UTC