“Bank of Taiwan will continue to focus on mortgage operations to support the government’s efforts to help young people buy a home by offering preferential interest rates,” Lyu said. Bank of Taiwan chairman Joseph Lyu, left, and president Hsu Chih-wen are pictured at a branch in Taipei on Feb. 3. Photo: Chen Mei-ying, Taipei TimesIn addition, the lender would seek to increase housing loans to government employees, military personnel and public school teachers, as these groups have relatively stable income to meet debt payments, he said. The state-owned lender commands a market share of 26.26 percent for housing loans to young people, translating into 85,000 houses, he said. The continued transfer of electronics orders to Taiwan and supply chain realignment would continue to bolster private investment and fuel loan demand, he said.

Lite-On, Delta Electronics report annual growth in consolidated sales last monthBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterElectronic components supplier Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday reported consolidated revenue of NT$14.08 billion (US$496.12 million) for last month, up 4.74 percent month-on-month and 24.42 percent year-on-year. Lite-On’s optoelectronics unit — which contributed 20 percent to sales last month and includes LED components, lighting products, camera modules and automotive electronics — reported a 20 percent annual increase in revenue, the company said. Separately, Delta Electronics Co (台達電), the nation’s leading power and thermal solutions provider, yesterday reported consolidated revenue of NT$25.12 billion for last month, down 6.7 percent month-on-month, but up 29.92 percent year-on-year. The company attributed the annual growth in sales to robust demand for power electronics used in notebook computers and gaming devices. In addition, electronic components, such as passive components that are applied in portable devices and cloud computing equipment, as well as products used in industrial automation, contributed to the sales increase from a year earlier, Delta said.

Elan net profit grows 30%By Lisa Wang / Staff reporterElan Microelectronics Corp (義隆電子), a supplier of touchpad controllers and fingerprint sensors, yesterday reported that net profit last year rose 30 percent to a record NT$3.25 billion (US$114.52 million), thanks to increased demand for laptops amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hsinchu-based company said that the work-from-home and distance-learning trends increased demand for notebook computers, which boosted shipments of its touchpad controllers. Earnings per share last year reached NT$11.14, up from NT$8.57 in 2019, it said in a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange. Elan Microelectronics Corp’s logo is pictured at the company’s headquarters in the Hsinchu Science Park on Aug. 11, 2017. Elan Microelectronics is to release more financial details and this year’s business outlook at an investors’ conference on Tuesday next week.

Taipower urges Taichung to back LNG generatorsBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterTaiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) yesterday continued to urge the Taichung City Government to approve new liquefied natural gas (LNG) generators to further the utility’s emissions-cutting plan of phasing out its coal-fired generators. Taipower’s remarks came as the city government demanded that Taipower decommission four coal-fired plants before constructing the LNG generators, a timetable that the utility has rejected. “It is unreasonable for Taichung to ask for the old generators to be decommissioned before the new generators are built,” Chang said. Construction would take “at least three years” for the generators, and “longer” for the terminal, which would ensure a steady supply of LNG to the generators. “With LNG generators, we can more easily compensate for that volatility.”Asked if Taipower intends to decommission the coal plants once the LNG generators are built, Chang said that they planned to keep the plants “on standby.”“It is an insurance policy to ensure the stability of the system,” Chang said.

Taisugar land set to be developed for industryBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterThe Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) aims to develop 423 hectares of land currently held by Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar, 台糖) for industrial use by the end of the year, the Industrial Development Bureau (IDB, 工業局) said yesterday. The land will be rented to businesses seeking to establish or re-establish manufacturing facilities in Taiwan, Yang said. While many have chosen to set up shop in Southeast Asia on larger land parcels with cheaper labor, the ministry has made a coordinated attempt to provide suitable land to attract manufacturers in Taiwan. The Ministry of Economic Affairs’ InvesTaiwan Service Center provides “matchmaking” services for businesses looking for manufacturing sites, interim spokeswoman Nicole Chen (陳明珠) said. “Whether or not you are a returning Taiwanese business or a foreign business wanting to set up Taiwanese manufacturing, we will help you find a suitable site,” Chen said.

COVID-19: Taoyuan General to resume operationsRETURN TO NORMAL: The Taoyuan City Government is working on an initiative to restore confidence in the city and revive tourism, Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan saidStaff writer, with CNAThe Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Taoyuan General Hospital is expected to resume normal operations on Friday, following the successful containment of a COVID-19 cluster infection at the facility, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said yesterday. Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung speaks at a news conference at the Central Epidemic Command Center in Taipei yesterday. Chen said the hospital would report to the ministry after the Lunar New Year holiday and is likely to resume normal operations on Friday, barring any unforeseen issues. The nation also reported no new COVID-19 infections for a third consecutive day yesterday. Of the total, 859 patients have recovered, nine have died and 69 are in hospital, CECC data showed.

Despite his wiry frame, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Wei-chou (林為洲) is stronger than he looks, and has the credentials to prove it. Chinese Nationalist Party Legislator Lin Wei-chou, 59, lifts himself on a horizontal bar in Taipei on Feb. 6. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Huang Kuo-shu practices calligraphy in an undated photograph. When not in the legislature, KMT Legislator Wu I-ding (吳怡玎) likes to spend her time in the kitchen preparing exquisite meals with knowledge obtained in part from the French culinary school Le Cordon Bleu. The piece is meant to emphasize Taiwan’s determination to participate in global movements and connect with the world, Huang said.

Reminders on pets on public transitHOLIDAY TRAVEL: Only certain types of animals are allowed on trains and buses, and owners are required to place their pets in a sturdy carrier that does not leak With more people hitting the road during the Lunar New Year holiday, transportation authorities issued reminders for people traveling with pets on what types of animals are allowed on public transportation and how they can be transported. The Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) allows cats, dogs, rabbits, small aquatic animals and birds, but they must be brought onboard in a sturdy carrier that does not leak and measures no more than 55x45x38cm, it said. The carrier must be kept under the passenger’s seat at all times during the trip, it said, adding that wheeled pet carriers for cats and dogs are allowed ifBy Kuo Hsuan-huan and William Hetherington

People walk past the headquarters of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the world’s largest semiconductor maker, in Hsinchu on Jan. 29. European Industry Commissioner Thierry Breton, wearing a protective face mask, talks during a presentation before a visit at the Thermo Fisher plant, formerly Novasep, producing COVID-19 vaccines for AstraZeneca in Seneffe, Belgium, on Wednesday. To reach those goals, the European Commission said it would launch a European alliance on microelectronics, which will likely include Europe’s major chipmakers and possibly also carmakers and telecom companies. “If governments are determined to do this, it will take years to break this up, and not months.”One of the biggest hurdles for the EU’s semiconductor plans could come down to financing. “One of the weak points is the access to risk capital in Europe and the implementation of the capital market in Europe,” he said.

Taiwan always willing to help Japan, president saysBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporter, with CNATaiwan is willing to help if Japan needs assistance, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday, after a magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck off Fukushima on Saturday. In a message written in Japanese on her Twitter account, Tsai said she hoped that “our friends in Japan are safe” and that Taiwan is always willing to support and help Japan. “Taiwan will always be there if the Japanese people need us,” the president wrote. Meanwhile, a magnitude 4.4 earthquake shook Taiwan’s southeastern coast at 12:25pm yesterday, the Central Weather Bureau said. Early yesterday morning, a magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck Hualien, registering an intensity of 3 in Tongmen Village (銅門) and 2 in Taroko Gorge and Hualien City.

FEATURE: Legislative Yuan more than its main chamberBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterMost people associate the Legislative Yuan with its debating chamber — a room synonymous with political power, interparty strife and Taiwanese democracy. The Legislative Yuan compound is pictured in Taipei on April 30, 2010. Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei TimesOne of the lesser-known parts of the Legislative Yuan is a bustling, makeshift market just a few steps from the debating chamber. The Legislative Yuan has seen it all in the past 60 years since it moved to its current location in the capital’s Zhongzheng District (中正). During that time, much attention has been paid to its main chamber, a place presented to the outside world in all its theatricality.

Sharp change in weather expected from WednesdayBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterA strong cold air mass is expected to arrive in the nation tomorrow evening, sending temperatures plummeting on Wednesday, when most people return to work after the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday, National Central University adjunct associate professor of atmospheric sciences Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said yesterday. Eastern Taiwan is expected to see periodic showers, while northern Taiwan is forecast to have mostly cloudy and partly sunny weather, and central and southern Taiwan would have mostly sunny and partly cloudy weather, said Wu, a former Central Weather Bureau Weather Forecast Center director. However, the leading edge of a “strong cold air mass” is forecast to arrive tomorrow night, bringing partial rain to northern and eastern Taiwan, he said. The weather is expected to remain dry and cold across the nation from Thursday to Saturday, he said. Due to the cold air mass and the radiative cooling effect in the evening, temperatures might drop below 10°C, so people should be alert to drastic changes in the temperature, he added.

Traffic jams beset travelers on second day of New YearBy Liu Hsiao-hsin and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerPeople traveling southbound along the nation’s freeways were stuck in kilometers-long traffic jams in sections near central Taiwan, the National Highway Police Bureau said yesterday. The worst congestion was on the Sun Yat-sen Freeway (Freeway No. Vehicles drive along the southbound lanes of the Sun Yat-sen Freeway (Freeway No. A bottleneck occurred along the Chiang Wei-shui Memorial Freeway (Freeway No. Separately yesterday, the National Freeway Bureau said the 1986 Web site and mobile app, which aim to help travelers navigate traffic congestion, crashed due to a spike in user traffic.

Holiday food not fit for pets: veterinarianDANGEROUS DELICACIES: Food high in sodium is harmful for the kidneys of cats and dogs, while salty and oily food can cause diarrhea in animals, a veterinarian saidBy Chang Tsung-chiu and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerA Changhua veterinarian urged pet owners not to give food not meant for animal consumption to their pets during the Lunar New Year holiday, citing a number of health issues that animals can develop if fed improperly. People who want to treat their pets during the holiday could give them canned meat-based pet food, Tung said. Pet owners must also intervene if others try to feed their pets, he added. Primo Animal Hospital president Chang Pan-chung (張泮崇) said that binge eating by pets could lead to post-holiday weight gain. Separately, Changhua County vet Lin Ming-yuan (林明源) said pet owners should dress their pets when the temperature drops below 10°C.

Five copper coins minted during the reigns of the Shunzhi, Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong and Jiaqing emperors of the Qing Dynasty are displayed in Taipei on Jan. 24. The silver in each coin is worth NT$600 to NT$700, but with the imprinted design, the coin’s value increases to at least NT$800, Wang said. More than 10 years ago, most coins only cost about NT$800 to NT$1,200, making them a stable investment, he said. Compared with the dramatic price increase for the Guangxu and Yuan Shikai coins, silver coins issued by Japan have remained relatively stable, increasing by only about NT$1,000, Wang said. The run is not limited to silver coins — Qing Dynasty-era copper coins have also experienced a substantial boost in value.