EDITORIAL: Gou is not a liar-in-training
EDITORIAL: Gou is not a liar-in-trainingHon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) on Monday announced that he will run in next year’s presidential election as an independent candidate, pledging to bring 50 years of peace to Taiwan, double the nation’s GDP growth rate and bring prosperity to the public. Touting finance and business management chops, Gou said the era of “entrepreneurs’ rule” has come and only he has the skills needed in a future president of Taiwan. He also called for unity among “anti-green coalition” opposition party candidates to remove the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) from power. As a political freshman, there are many aspects I still need to learn,” he wrote on Facebook on Friday. Gou also demonstrated his arrogance towards the process in a news conference on Monday.
Source:Taipei Times
September 02, 2023 16:39 UTC
Dell, HP, Foxconn apply for India production aid
Dell, HP, Foxconn apply for India production aidBloombergSome of the world’s biggest tech companies, including Dell Technologies Inc, HP Inc and Apple Inc supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), also known internationally as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), have applied for state aid to manufacture laptops in India. Under Modi’s plan, companies are entitled to cash back of almost 5 percent of factory prices of finished products. The Indian government is trying to replicate the success of incentives it introduced in 2020 to jump-start the local assembly of smartphones. Companies could begin production under the plan by early next year, he added. Apple has yet to apply for incentives to locally assemble its MacBook laptops and iPad tablets, Indian government officials said.
Source:Taipei Times
September 01, 2023 20:09 UTC
Central bank governor among top eight
Central bank governor among top eightCNA, with staff writerCentral bank Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) has earned the fourth “A” grade of his career, in an annual report issued by the New York-based Global Finance magazine. In the Central Banker Report Cards 2023 released by Global Finance overnight, Yang was listed among eight central bankers in the world who received an “A” grade, the magazine said in a statement. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-long attends a media briefing in Taipei on July 29. Photo: Chen Mei-ying, Taipei TimesThis year’s Central Banker Report Cards, published annually by Global Finance since 1994, graded the central bank governors of 101 key countries, territories and districts in the world, including the EU, the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, the Bank of Central African States and the Central Bank of West African States. Yang, who has been working at Taiwan’s central bank since 1989 and became its governor in 2018, received an “A” grade in the annual central banker report in 2019, 2020 and 2022, and an “A-” in 2021.
Source:Taipei Times
September 01, 2023 20:07 UTC
Hypocrisy around radioactivity
Interestingly, some Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politicians had a knee-jerk reaction to Hsieh’s post about the quality of these hot springs. However, these KMT politicians have made two kinds of mistakes, namely word substitution and self-contradiction. Firstly, Hsieh’s post was about hot springs and made no mention of Fukushima at all, yet his critics are determined to conflate these two issues. If so, why is no KMT politician willing to live next door to a nuclear power station? Unfortunately, given an opportunity to teach the public a thing or two about science, these KMT politicians prefer to vilify a particular person based on their own prejudices.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2023 21:43 UTC
Property presales could exceed NT$200 billion in fall
Property presales could exceed NT$200 billion in fallBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterPresale projects and new houses for sale in the coming fall sales season could exceed NT$200 billion (US$6.28 billion) in northern Taiwan, representing a 16.6 percent increase from the same time last year, as developers seek to cash in on preferential lending terms for first-home buyers, My Housing Monthly (住展雜誌) said yesterday. The volume might hit NT$212.2 billion during this fall season, which would be the second highest in eight years, despite recent bans on transfers of presale house purchase agreements and an ongoing economic slowdown, it said. New Taipei City ranks second with NT$65.6 billion worth of new housing, it said, pointing out that Sanchong District (三重) alone underpins 60 percent, or about NT$40 billion. Keelung and Yilan would have NT$1.51 billion and NT$495 million of new housing aimed at local residents, it said. The fall season starts on Sept. 28 and lasts through October.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2023 17:10 UTC
Minister in good wishes to exchange students
Minister in good wishes to exchange studentsBy Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporterMinister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) presented a national flag to 40 students as they are to embark on a 10-day trip to Saint Lucia tomorrow as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ (MOFA) International Youth Ambassador Exchange Program. Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu, center wearing suit, yesterday poses for a photograph with Taiwanese students headed to Saint Lucia for 10 days on an exchange visit. He thanked the program for enhancing the people-to-people relationship between Taiwan and Saint Lucia, adding that the youth ambassadors would be warmly welcomed by locals. Tourism and agriculture are key industries in Saint Lucia, and Taiwan’s technical missions have been assisting locals in planting various crops, it said. The youth ambassadors are to share their trip on the program’s Facebook page, it added.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2023 17:08 UTC
EDITORIAL: China’s information blockade
EDITORIAL: China’s information blockadeFacing a seventh consecutive monthly increase in the youth unemployment rate, the Chinese government on Aug. 15 announced that it would suspend publication of the figures. Chinese academics even estimated that the actual unemployment rate was 46 percent, because young people in rural townships had not been surveyed. Since 2017, China has also stopped sharing its fertility rate data. By covering up unpleasant statistics, Beijing intends to blind its disillusioned citizens and pacify discontented young Chinese, especially as such information could be considered a threat to its rule. The Chinese government has even removed several prominent writers’ social media posts on the country’s unemployment rate or stock market.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2023 16:42 UTC
Raimondo urges US, PRC to ‘step up’ on global issues
Raimondo urges US, PRC to ‘step up’ on global issuesAFP, BEIJINGUS Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo yesterday met with China’s premier, calling for Beijing and Washington to work together to solve issues of global concern. Yesterday she held another round of talks with Chinese officials, meeting Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強) to stress the importance of open communication between the two powers. US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, left, shakes hands with Chinese Premier Li Qiang before their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing yesterday. Raimondo also reiterated the US position that it is not seeking to decouple its economy from China’s. Earlier yesterday, Raimondo met Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), describing the US-China commercial relationship as “one of the most consequential” in the world.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2023 13:16 UTC
US may approve JASSM sale: official
US may approve JASSM sale: officialBy Lo Tien-pin and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe US is likely to approve the sale of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSMs) to Taiwan by the end of this year for use by its Lockheed Martin F-16Vs, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark hours after the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency approved the export of 50 JASSMs to Japan for US$104 million. The ministry in January announced plans to spend NT$4.51 billion to acquire long-range precision weapons for the air force’s F-16 fleet. According to other sources in the military, the long-range precision weapons could be 100km and 380km-range JASSMs, the AGM-84H Standoff Land Attack Missile-Expanded Response and the glide bomb AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon. The Legislative Yuan is scheduled to discuss the defense budget with ministry officials this week.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2023 06:21 UTC
Fighters seek to restore Brazil’s MMA domination
Fighters seek to restore Brazil’s MMA dominationAFP, SAO PAULO, BrazilSelf-described “nerd” Caio Borralho quit his chemical engineering studies to become a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, part of a new generation looking to reinvigorate the sport in Brazil, home of legendary champions. Brazilian UFC middleweight fighter Caio Borralho takes a break during training at an academy in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Aug. 9. Other Brazilian fighters such as former champions Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira and Alex Pereira are also on campaigns to restore the country’s dominance. Now they’re native-born MMA fighters.”Brazil has the second-most UFC fighters of any country, and is its second-largest market, after the US, Galetti said. MMA has become a lucrative business for numerous Brazilian fighters, some of whom have become superstars on the level of Brazil soccer star Neymar.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2023 04:59 UTC
Taipei calls on Beijing to stop military harassment
Taipei calls on Beijing to stop military harassmentINCURSIONS: More than 20 PLA warplanes and warships were detected around Taiwan within a 24-hour period, undermining regional security, the defense ministry saidAgenciesTaiwan yesterday urged China to stop “military harassment” that risked damaging regional security after it said it detected 24 Chinese warplanes near the country. “The People’s Liberation Army’s [PLA] continuous military harassment in the region could lead to a sharp escalation of tensions and worsening of regional security,” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement. “We urge Beijing to take responsibility and immediately cease all unilateral actions that undermine regional stability,” it said. A graphic shows the flight path of a Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s BZK-005 uncrewed aerial vehicle from 6am on Monday to 6am yesterday. The latest Chinese mission happened the same day Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) arrived in Shanghai for annual city-to-city talks.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2023 21:33 UTC
Taipei charges 31 in connection to im.B case
Taipei charges 31 in connection to im.B caseStaff writer, with CNAProsecutors yesterday said that they have indicted 31 people in connection with the collapse of NT$9 billion (US$282.27 million) peer-to-peer lending platform im.B. Five of the 31 had been detained, including Tseng Kuo-wei (曾國緯) and Chang Shu-fen (張淑芬), the couple who founded im.B in 2015, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said in a statement. Criminal Investigation Bureau agents escort Tseng Kuo-wei, center, the founder of peer-to-peer lending platform im.B, in Taoyuan on May 4. Entertainer Sheng Chu-ju (盛竹如), who appeared in advertisements promoting im.B, was not indicted due to a lack of evidence, prosecutors said. A Criminal Investigation Bureau official accused of accepting commissions from im.B would not face criminal charges, prosecutors added.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2023 21:31 UTC
Meet and greet
No ban on Japanese seafood expected: FDAFDA WATCHING: Prior to the releasing of water with tritium, a four-year inspection plan was initiated and the agency would keep monitoring the situation, an official said The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday said it would not ban Japanese seafood and aquatic products, but would continue to monitor the situation, as Japan is to start releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant today. An estimated 1.34 million tonnes of water used for cooling the highly radioactive reactor cores are stored in tanks since a 2011 tsunami crippled the power plant, and Japan plans to release the filtered and diluted water in next 30 years. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear agency, approved the plan last month and said that the water hasBy Lee I-chia
Source:Taipei Times
August 28, 2023 18:36 UTC
EDITORIAL: Expect China’s woes to worsen
This long-term, unbalanced development has led to China’s economic woes, with more economists believing the country is facing a scenario of “balance sheet recession,” as consumers and businesses stop borrowing and investing even though interest rates continue to fall. It took Japan about 20 years to emerge from a balance sheet recession, and it appears much more difficult for China to solve this problem in the short term. China should address the balance sheet recession by repairing the imbalance in its economic balance sheet over a long period of weak demand. China’s economic downturn is likely to continue, and the phenomenon of deflation is reflected in the slump in demand. Another solution to the balance sheet recession is to transfer private debt to the government, and then monetize the debt by printing a large amount of money.
Source:Taipei Times
August 27, 2023 21:39 UTC
BOJ holds course due to inflation: Ueda
BOJ holds course due to inflation: Ueda‘DISAPPOINTMENT’: he BOJ governor said that last month’s economic data for China was ‘on the weak side,’ but the US economy provided ‘some offset’ to JapanBloombergBank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda said that price growth remains slower than the central bank’s goal, explaining why officials are continuing with their current monetary-policy strategy. “We think underlying inflation is still a bit below our target of 2 percent,” Ueda said on Saturday during a panel discussion at the US Federal Reserve’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Powell said in a Friday speech in Wyoming that the US central bank is ready to tighten again if needed to tame inflation. Getting inflation down to 2 percent is expected to require softer labor-market conditions and a period of below-trend economic growth, he said. The BOJ loosened a grip on its yield curve control program last month in Ueda’s first surprise move.
Source:Taipei Times
August 27, 2023 17:38 UTC