No plan to raise capital-gains tax: Japan PM KishidaReuters, TOKYOJapanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida yesterday said that he would not seek to change the country’s taxes on capital gains and dividends, as he intends to pursue other steps for better wealth distribution, such as raising wages of medical workers. Kishida, who has vowed to rectify wealth disparities, previously said that reviewing those taxes would be an option in addressing income gaps. Kishida’s new stance indicates his concern about jitters in the stock market caused by the prospects of higher tax levies. “I have no plan to touch the financial income tax for the time being... Kishida’s Liberal Democratic Party makes no mention of reviewing taxes on capital gains and dividends in a draft campaign platform for the Oct. 31 general elections obtained by Reuters.

Taiwan signs MOUs with two states in the USARIZONA, NEW MEXICO: The deals are to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the semiconductor industry, as well as the information and communications industry The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday signed memorandums of understanding (MOU) to deepen bilateral trade cooperation with Arizona and New Mexico during a virtual ceremony at the opening of the 10th US Business Day in Taipei. The annual event is hosted by the ministry and the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會), with this year’s being held at the Taipei International Convention Center yesterday and today. Taiwan-US business cooperation and partnerships are at their best right now, TAITRA said in a statement. Seminars and symposiums are being held at the event under the Taiwan-US Trade Forum, a platform designed for Taiwan to

National Day: Sun Yat-sen’s ROC founding deserves respect, Chu saysBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterThe two sides of the Taiwan Strait in their interactions should respect Sun Yat-sen’s (孫逸仙) founding of the Republic of China (ROC) 110 [sic] years ago, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. Chu made the remarks at a flag-raising ceremony at the KMT headquarters in Taipei to mark Double Ten National Day. Over the past 110 years, the ROC has remained unshakable in the midst of turmoil, said Chu, who assumed the role of KMT chairman on Tuesday last week. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu, second right, former president Ma Ying-jeou, second left, and other KMT members wave national flags during the KMT’s Double Ten National Day flag-raising ceremony in Taipei yesterday. A responsible ruling party should respect public opinion and defend the ROC, he said.

CECC reports zero local and seven imported casesCAUTION: People who were not infected with COVID-19 recently do still pose a risk to people with compromised immune systems, a hospital deputy superintendent saidBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported seven imported COVID-19 cases, but no locally transmitted infections or deaths. The cases were Taiwanese, Burmese and Indonesian nationals, who arrived from Myanmar, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore between Sept. 27 and Friday, the CECC said in a news release. However, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital deputy superintendent Chiu Cheng-hsun (邱政洵) said that contract tracing should be conducted for such cases. Contact tracing would also help confirm that the cases have not recently had contact with an infected person, he added. To end the standoff, the deputy superintendent reportedly ordered staff to vaccinate the 42.

FEATURE: Generalization of EU states risky: observersBy Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterWhile Taiwan is improving relations with central and eastern European countries, it should not generalize about countries that have varied political contexts, but find different ways to promote Taiwan’s culture, observers said. A notice from the Chinese Ministry of Justice to Taiwanese writer Lin Wei-yun about documents from a Polish court are displayed during Lin’s interview with the Taipei Times and the Liberty Times on Thursday last week. Because if you discuss the relations between Taiwan and the EU or the US, you cannot take China out of the picture,” she said. “Still, we should not generalize about the CEE countries when it comes to their relations with Taiwan [or] China. They have different history, interests and political realities, which inform their choices also on the international stage,” she said.

Sigurd UTC approved to invest NT$2.9bnINCENTIVE PROGRAMS: The InvesTaiwan Service Center had as of Friday approved 1,015 applications from Taiwanese firms to invest a total of NT$1.36 trillion locallyBy Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporterThe InvesTaiwan Service Center last week approved an application by Sigurd UTC Corp (矽格聯測) to invest NT$2.9 billion (US$103.4 million) to add clean rooms and expand the smart production lines at its plants in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區), the Ministry of Economic Affairs said. The investment by Sigurd UTC, which focuses on chip packaging technology development and wafer testing services, comes as more semiconductor companies are expanding manufacturing capacity thanks to increasing demand. Sigurd UTC was known as UTAC Taiwan Corp (聯測科技) before it was acquired by Sigurd Microelectronics Corp (矽格), which announced the NT$4.62 billion purchase in January and completed the deal in April. Sigurd UTC has production facilities at the Hsinchu Science Park and receives orders from integrated device manufacturers, pure-play wafer foundry firms and fabless design firms, the company’s Web site says. Sigurd UTC was one of six local companies that the InvesTaiwan Service Center last week approved to join the government’s three major investment incentive programs, the ministry said.

EDITORIAL: Realistic threat assessment neededMany countries have expressed concerns over security in the Taiwan Strait, but neither China’s threats nor the government’s warnings seem to affect most Taiwanese. Previous crises, such as in 1976 or 1996, mainly affected Taiwan’s outlying islands, while posing less of a threat to Taiwan proper, he said. Should Taiwan continue to place itself, or be placed, in the center of an international discourse about China’s military actions? Asking these questions does not amount to downplaying China’s military threat to Taiwan. Chang said that finding political explanations behind every Chinese aircraft deployment is not feasible and that the government only publicizes Chinese aircraft movements, while not regularly reporting those of aircraft or vessels of other nations’ militaries.

Fourth Aussie rules football player had CTE before deathAP, MELBOURNEA former captain of a championship-winning Australian rules football team yesterday became the fourth league player to be posthumously diagnosed with a debilitating neurological disease linked to head trauma and concussions. The Victorian Football League was the forerunner to the Australian Football League. Weideman’s family yesterday revealed the findings of the Australian Sports Brain Bank’s report. Former Richmond midfielder Tuck was assessed as having the “worst-seen case” of CTE when results were revealed by the brain bank in January. No alcohol or illicit drugs were found in his system on the day of his death and he was posthumously diagnosed with CTE.

Webb pitches SF past Dodgers‘BACKYARD’ BASEBALL: Webb was met with a rousing ovation in the eighth when he waved his pitching hand and walked off the field after outpitching the DodgersAP, SAN FRANCISCOLogan Webb on Friday pumped his fists as he set down a star-studded Los Angeles Dodgers lineup all game long, then raised his pitching hand in appreciation after a masterful post-season debut. The San Francisco Giants’ Logan Webb walks off the field after being relieved in the eighth inning of Game 1 of their National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Friday. “He’ll calm me down.”Kris Bryant and Brandon Crawford also homered to back a combined five-hitter by Webb and a pair of relievers. Webb waved his pitching hand walking off to a rousing ovation in the eighth after a two-out single by Mookie Betts. Kike Hernandez had five of Boston’s 20 hits, including a homer and three doubles, becoming Boston’s first player with four extra-base hits in a post-season game.

Kaohsiung centenarians receive visit from mayorBy Fang Chih-hsien and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writerKaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) on Thursday visited three centenarians in the city, including 102-year-old Wang Te-yung (王德永), whose lifelong passion for photography is apparent in the many photo albums he plans to pass on to his grandchildren. Wang, who lives in Fongshan District (鳳山), was born in northeast China. Centenarian Wang Te-yung, left, takes a photograph of Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai, right, at Wang’s home in Kaohsiung’s Fongshan District on Thursday. Wang shared some of his photo albums with Chen, even taking out his camera to snap a photograph of the mayor. According to the Kaohsiung Social Affairs Bureau, there are 376 centenarians in the city; 148 men and 228 women.

Retired Yilan postal worker honored for exemplary lifetime achievementsSENIOR CITIZENS’ DAY: Wu Wen-ching was honored before the Double Ninth Festival for going above and beyond the call of duty for his compatriotsBy Tsai Yun-jung and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerA 72-year-old man in Yilan City Thursday received a commendation from the mayor after being twice recognized this year as an exemplary elder. Yilan Mayor Chiang Tsung-yuan, second left, and retired postal worker Wu Wen-ching, second right, hold a commendation that Chiang presented to Wu on Thursday. Wu started working at a post office following the end of his military service as a conscript in 1969, and retired from postal work in 2014. Wu said he remembered well what he wrote on behalf of the woman: “I received the letter you sent. He found a Japanese-speaking elder to translate the letter and successfully delivered the letter to the recipient.

Runners fight heat in desert raceAFP, ERRACHIDIA, MoroccoFor the survivors who cross the finish line of the 35th Marathon des Sables, the six-day, 254km slog across the sands have brought heat exhaustion, blisters, diarrhea and joy. Competitors run down a sand dune during the fifth stage of the Marathon des Sables in the southern Moroccan Sahara on Friday. There are heatstrokes, which associated with high temperatures also cause hallucinations, even comas,” he said, adding that he had counted nine runners who had fallen into comas. Every evening, runners lie on their backs and stretch out their legs, offering their blistered feet for treatment. On Thursday’s 86.2km fourth stage, race leader Rachid Al Morabity finished in 8 hours, 46 minutes, 16 seconds at an average speed of 9.23kph.

Hornet attacks on local trails prompt advice for hikersBy Jake Chung / Staff writerThe Council of Agriculture (COA) has shared ways to deal with hornets in the wild, as hornet activity peaks between July and November, coinciding with hikers hitting the trails due to cooling weather. Late last month, a hornet attack near New Taipei City’s Sandiaoling (三貂嶺) killed one person and injured three, while another incident earlier this month hospitalized a family of five after an attack on a trail in New Taipei City’s Dacukeng (大粗坑) area. Many attempt to shoo away hornets, which is a serious mistake, the COA wrote on Facebook. If an attack occurs in an area with a crowd, the people should disperse, it added. People who develop boils or aggravated wounds should ensure that their wounds are covered to avoid infection, it added.

US court reinstates Texas abortion banAFP, WASHINGTONA US federal appeals court ruled on Friday that Texas could resume its ban on most abortions, two days after another court suspended the ban. The decision by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily suspended Wednesday’s ruling, effectively reinstating a ban on most abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected. On Wednesday, US District Judge Robert Pitman issued a preliminary injunction halting the enforcement of the Texas law, saying it contravened the landmark 1973 US Supreme Court ruling in Roe v Wade, which enshrined a woman’s legal right to an abortion. Protesters take part in the Women’s March and Rally for Abortion Justice at the State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on Saturday last week. If the court were to overturn Roe v Wade, every state would be free to ban or allow abortions.

OECD hails ‘victory’ as holdouts join global tax reform‘HISTORIC MOMENT’: A 15 percent global tax on corporations is to take effect in 2023, but Oxfam called it a capitulation to tax havens such as IrelandAFP, PARISA global push to enact a minimum international tax on big corporations moved closer to reality on Friday as one of the last holdouts, Hungary, agreed to join a reform that now counts 136 countries. “Today’s agreement will make our international tax arrangements fairer and work better,” OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said. The OECD said Kenya, Nigeria, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are the last holdouts among 140 countries that have negotiated the tax. It was a step “to ensure that the international tax rules reflect today’s global economy,” association vice president Christian Borggreen said in a statement. Instead it was written by them,” Oxfam tax policy expert Susana Ruiz said.