Hotels report a surge in room, dining cancelations
Hotels report a surge in room, dining cancelationsBy Hsiao Yu-hsin, Tsai Tsung-hsien and Wang Shan-yan / Staff reportersExcept for Taitung, hoteliers across the nation have reported an increase in cancelations of room and dining reservations during the first weekend of the winter break, as the COVID-19 outbreak at the Taoyuan General Hospital spreads. Hotels near the Alishan National Forest Recreation Area in Chiayi County also saw their booking rate fall by 20 percent during the same period. Hotels in Taoyuan bore the brunt of the losses, as people have called to cancel room and restaurant reservations. Most of the cancelations were for reservations for days before Lunar New Year’s Eve, Taoyuan Hotel Association chairman Chiu Chao-ching (邱照進) said. “Group travelers mainly stay in three-star hotels, whereas independent travelers mostly stay in five-star hotels.
Source:Taipei Times
January 25, 2021 15:56 UTC
Hualien Archeological Museum ‘an inspiration’
Hualien Archeological Museum ‘an inspiration’By Wang Chun-chi and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Hualien Archeological Museum opened to the public on Sunday, giving a permanent home to 800,000 artifacts, including a 1,240kg stone trough considered the pride of the museum and a jade burial pendant that inspired its logo design. To house the museum, the Hualien County Government received a NT$72 million (US$2.54 million) grant from the Ministry of Culture to renovate Shoufeng Township’s (壽豐鄉) Fengtien Market (豐田市場), which was originally built in 1984. A 1,240kg stone trough, discovered at the Yuemei archeological site in Shoufeng Township, is pictured in an undated photograph. It is one of the main attractions at the Hualien Archeological Museum, which opened on Sunday. The Hualien County Cultural Affairs Bureau said that entry is free during the soft opening, while operating hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 9am to 5pm.
Source:Taipei Times
January 25, 2021 15:56 UTC
Agencies to list China-made gear
Agencies to list China-made gearSURVEILLANCE: Local government agencies that fail to list all of the China-made information security products that they use would be asked to explain their conductBy Lee Hsin-fang / Staff reporterCentral and local government agencies have been ordered to list all of the China-made information security products they are using by the end of this month and replace them by the end of this year as part of the government’s efforts to prevent the leaking of sensitive government information, Executive Yuan officials said yesterday. However, a comprehensive survey is needed to identify the agencies that are using computers and information security products manufactured in China that have yet to reach retirement age, they added. On Dec. 18 last year, the Executive Yuan sent an official document to government agencies nationwide on the principles of handling information and communication security products. All government agencies have been asked to make a list of Chinese information and communication products that are still in use or have been purchased. The Executive Yuan has yet to decide if public school teachers would be banned from using China-made smartphones or connecting their smartphones to government systems, as some teachers have expressed reservations about the policy.
Source:Taipei Times
January 25, 2021 15:56 UTC
Taoyuan cancels school activities
School facilities will not be available for winter camps or any other activities, such as volunteer group or student club meetings, Cheng said, after the city on Sunday recorded two more cases in the COVID-19 cluster that started at Taoyuan General Hospital. Workers sanitize plastic screens and furniture inside the employee canteen at Taoyuan City Hall yesterday. Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan City Government via CNAThe 5,000 include patients who were discharged from the hospital from Jan. 6 to 19, and their close contacts, the CECC said. City government officials said that most of the 5,000 are people who live in Taoyuan, with an estimated 500 in New Taipei City, more than 40 in Taipei and two in Keelung. Hon Hai said that employees at its Taoyuan factory have been advised to avoid traveling outside the city, and that it has suspended its shuttle bus service between its factories nationwide.
Source:Taipei Times
January 25, 2021 15:56 UTC
Waiting on a deal
New Intel CEO commits to manufacturingFOCUS ON FOUNDRIES: An analyst said that some investors would be disappointed because they were expecting a larger announcement of a partnership with TSMC Intel Corp’s incoming chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger on Thursday pledged to regain the company’s lead in chip manufacturing, countering growing calls from some investors to shed that part of its business. “I am confident that the majority of our 2023 products will be manufactured internally,” Gelsinger said. “At the same time, given the breadth of our portfolio, it’s likely that we will expand our use of external foundries for certain technologies and products.” He plans to provide more details after officially taking over the CEO role on Feb. 15, but Gelsinger was clear that Intel is sticking with its once mighty
Source:Taipei Times
January 25, 2021 15:56 UTC
TAITRA plans electric vehicle show
TAITRA plans electric vehicle showBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterTaiwan’s electric vehicle (EV) industry has “three years left” to build its own brand, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) chairman James Huang (黃志芳) said at a news conference in Taipei yesterday, announcing that the council is to hold an electro-mobility trade show in October. “We are looking ahead to 2035 because that is when many countries will be phasing out fossil fuel vehicles,” Huang said. Photo: Lin Jing-hua, Taipei TimesThe council’s goal is to encourage local firms to build a “connected ecosystem centered on EV and autonomous-driving technology,” Huang said. The first edition of the 2035 E-Mobility Taiwan Show would help to spark that development and feature local manufacturers and “international investors from Wall Street and Silicon Valley,” he said. The government must support the EV industry in the same way it supported the semiconductor industry in the past,” he said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 16:05 UTC
Help promised for Taiwanese if ailed by Chinese vaccine
Help promised for Taiwanese if ailed by Chinese vaccineBy Chen Yu-fu and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerTaiwan would provide medical assistance to people if complications arise from taking Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. “No Taiwanese businesspeople wanted to get that vaccine,” a source told the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) on condition of anonymity. “China makes forms that Taiwanese businesspeople have to fill out. Taiwanese working in China should weigh the risk of vaccines carefully and take all precautions to protect their health, he said. When asked whether the government would set up a “travel bubble” for the Lunar New Year holiday for people who have received a Chinese vaccine, Chiu said: “This is not the time to think about” traveling.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 16:00 UTC
Languages Act readiness queried
In the act, “national languages” are defined as the natural languages used by ethnic groups in Taiwan, as well as Taiwan Sign Language. He asked whether enough teachers would be available to teach “national languages” at junior and senior-high schools when they become mandatory next year. The lack of teachers is the “biggest problem” with making “national language” classes mandatory for junior and senior-high school students, Cheng said. The definition of “national languages” in the act is wide-ranging, he said, adding that it is important to clarify which languages are to be options. In theory, languages such as Dutch, Spanish, Japanese and Cantonese could also be considered “national languages,” Ho said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
TSMC plans record capital spending
After investing US$17.24 billion last year, TSMC this year plans to spend US$25 billion to US$28 billion on manufacturing equipment and new facilities, including a fab in the US. Photo: Hung Yu-fang, Taipei TimesThe larger-than-expected capital spending prompted speculation that TSMC might use it to cope with new CPU orders from Intel Corp, rather than demand for smartphone application processors from Apple Inc.“We don’t comment on specific customers or areas. Our capital expenditure is based on long-term demand and the industry mega-trends of 5G and HPC,” TSMC chief executive officer C.C. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) said that strong demand for 3- and 5-nanometer chips in HPC applications gave the chipmaker confidence to boost capital spending at such a significant rate. This quarter, revenue would grow 1.57 to 2.52 percent to US$12.7 billion to US$13 billion, from US$12.68 billion last quarter, the company said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
No Cabinet reshuffle planned: Su
No Cabinet reshuffle planned: SuNO SHELF LIFE: Premier Su Tseng-chang said he faced a choice between doing something for his government or being an ornament, and that he chose the formerBy Lee Hsin-fang and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerPremier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday said that there is no plan for a Cabinet reshuffle any time soon. Su made the remark at a news conference at the Executive Yuan in Taipei marking the second anniversary of his Cabinet. Premier Su Tseng-chang speaks at the Executive Yuan in Taipei yesterday. The government had not “ambushed ” the public on the issue of US pork imports containing traces of ractopamine, he said. The government is closely monitoring pork imports after the new rules went into effect on Jan. 1, Su said, adding that he has personally inspected the screening processes.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
DGH says alterations to KMT’s pig vehicle illegal
DGH says alterations to KMT’s pig vehicle illegalBy Cheng Wei-chi and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Directorate-General of Highways (DGH) yesterday said that alterations to a vehicle that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) made were illegal after the party unveiled a truck featuring a pig’s face to promote its referendum drive opposing imports of pork containing traces of ractopamine. The ears and snout attached to the exterior of the truck are clearly illegal alterations according to Article 16 the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例), the DGH said. Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei TimesIf someone reports the vehicle, personnel would recall it for inspection in accordance with the law, the DGH said. However, it is allowed as a display, as long as it is never driven on a road, it said. According to its records, the original color of the vehicle is not pink, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
Hundreds more hospital workers to be given tests
Hundreds more hospital workers to be given testsBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterThe Central Epidemic Command Center yesterday said it would test up to 400 more employees at the hospital where the nation’s two latest domestic cases of COVID-19 worked, although the center did not expect the results to reveal new cases. 838, a physician in his 30s who works at a hospital in northern Taiwan, and case No. 839, a nurse at the same hospital who is also the physician’s girlfriend — were confirmed by the CECC on Tuesday. Fifty-four contacts of the pair outside the context of the hospital were tested for COVID-19 and had returned negative results, he said. The 300 to 400 additional tests — all medical or administrative personnel — would be performed today and tomorrow, Chen said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
Taoyuan urged to crack down on animal traps
An amendment to the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法) passed 10 years ago stated that no animal traps may be manufactured, sold, displayed, imported or exported without explicit permission from the central government, the group told a news conference in the city. Veterinarian Wu Chia-ying tends a wounded palm civet cat in Taoyuan in an undated photograph. Taoyuan City Councilor Chen Jui-sheng (陳睿生) said the lack of legal restrictions against owning traps, and the absence of any punitive measures, makes it difficult for the government to enforce the law. Chen said he is mulling proposing an ordinance to ban ownership of animal traps in the municipality. The illegal sale of animal traps is punishable a fine of up to NT$75,000, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
Rise in construction costs slows presale price trend
Rise in construction costs slows presale price trendBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterPresale housing project prices gained modestly across northern Taiwan last quarter due to higher construction costs, with healthy demand and low interest rates also lending support, the Chinese-language Housing Monthly (住展雜誌) reported yesterday. While Yilan is popular among tourists, it is less attractive for housing investment due to long travel times to Taipei, Ho said. Presale housing prices in Keelung saw a 2.4 percent increase quarterly and yearly to a record of NT$216,000 per ping, spurred by upscale housing projects, Ho said. In Taipei, presale housing prices increased 1.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to NT$886,000 per ping, or 4.5 percent annually, he said. Housing prices in New Taipei City rose 1 percent to NT$407,000 per ping, or 3.8 percent annually, Ho said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
Full Wang revenue last month surged to NT$1.04bn
Full Wang revenue last month surged to NT$1.04bnBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterTaichung-based Full Wang International Development Co (富旺國際開發) reported that revenue for last month surged to NT$1.04 billion (US$36.5 million), thanks to the sale of an industrial property in Taoyuan and profit recognition from a new housing complex in central Taiwan. The land in Taoyuan generated NT$910 million in revenue, while a recently completed apartment complex contributed the remaining sum, it said. Full Wang International Development Co chairman Lin Cheng-hsiung is pictured on July 12, 2014, in Taipei. Photo: Lin Mei-feng, Taipei TimesFor the whole of last year, combined revenue totaled NT$3.2 billion, nearly doubling the level in 2019, Full Wang said. Sales of residential properties and industrial plots accounted for 74 and 25 percent of the company’s revenue respectively, Full Wang told an investors’ conference last month.
Source:Taipei Times
January 14, 2021 15:56 UTC