Accidental ‘crying horse’ toy wins hearts in China
Accidental ‘crying horse’ toy wins hearts in ChinaReuters, YIWU, ChinaAt Yiwu International Trade City, China’s largest wholesale market, customers crowd into a small shop searching for an unlikely bestseller ahead of the Lunar New Year. They are looking for a red plush horse with a downturned mouth, a gold bell around its neck and eyes that appear to shy away from a viewer’s gaze. Photo: ReutersCalled the “crying horse” by online users, the toy was designed as a happy-faced Lunar New Year decoration, but a manufacturing mistake turned its smile into a frown. “People joked that the crying horse is how you look at work, while the smiling one is how you look after work,” Zhang said. “This crying horse really fits the reality of modern working people.”
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
Why AI is unlike previous tech booms
Unlike previous tech cycles, these investment requirements would not fade as the industry matures and might even intensify. The third area where AI departs from previous tech revolutions is in the weakness and fragility of network effects. Earlier tech platforms grew within largely siloed markets: Google dominated search; Amazon focused on retail. Historically, equity incentives enabled tech companies to hire and retain talent, acquire intellectual property, and expand through mergers and acquisitions. In this sense, AI more closely resembles the capital-intensive industries of the mid-20th century than the asset-light tech models of the past few years.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
Japan, US plan to build synthetic diamond plant
Japan, US plan to build synthetic diamond plantReuters, TOKYOA plan to build a synthetic diamond plant in the US is a prime prospect in Japan’s US$550-billion investment package, as the allies push to expand production of a material vital to chip and high-precision manufacturing, sources said. Photo: Reuters“The United States wants to accelerate domestic production of synthetic diamonds,” one of the sources said. The synthetic diamond project involves Element Six, a part of De Beers Group, the world’s leading diamond company, the source added. Also likely to figure in the first batch of projects is a large-scale power-generation project, involving Japanese industrial conglomerate Hitachi Ltd, the sources said. A major infrastructure project involving construction of a data centre linked to Softbank Group also remains a finalist, Reuters reported this month.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
TrendForce expects slide in global notebook shipments
TrendForce expects slide in global notebook shipmentsBy Lisa Wang / Staff reporterGlobal notebook computer shipments are expected to slide 9.4 percent annually this year, as PC vendors face price hikes for CPUs and memory chips, which elevate manufacturing costs, market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said in a report on Monday. As PC vendors make slim margins, rising costs of components are a substantial financial burden, TrendForce said. Photo: Reuters“Memorychip prices continue to be high, and unstable CPU supplies are adding uncertainty to the notebook computer market in the short term,” the report said. PC vendors would have to adjust their product lineups and reschedule shipments to cope with higher CPU costs, it added. PC vendors stepped up notebook computer shipments in the fourth quarter last year, as they have been grappling with memorychip price surges since the second half of last year, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:14 UTC
Consumer confidence reaches nine-month high
Consumer confidence reaches nine-month highStaff writer, with CNATaiwan’s consumer confidence improved this month to a nine-month high as uncertainties were eased after Taipei and Washington agreed verbally to a deal on tariffs on Jan. 15, a survey released yesterday by National Central University (NCU) showed. The CCI measures sentiment over the following six months across six factors: consumer prices, the domestic economic climate, the stock market, durable goods purchases, employment prospects and family finances. NCU Research Center for Taiwan Economic Development director Dachrahn Wu (吳大任) said the lower tariff gave a big boost to sentiment in non-tech industries, because it placed Taiwan on an equal footing with the nation’s major competitors. However, Wu said that, as part of the deal, Taiwan pledged to move some of its semiconductor supply chain to the US through large investments, and the impact of that would have to be watched. Also this month, the home-buying index jointly compiled by NCU and Taiwan Realty rose 2.32 points from a month earlier to 94.95, the university added.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:14 UTC
India and EU ink free-trade agreement
India and EU ink free-trade agreement‘MOTHER OF ALL DEALS’: Nations are willing to ‘bury the hatchet’ given the ‘atmosphere of uncertainty’ around the policies of US President Donald Trump, a researcher saidBloombergIndia and the EU have agreed on a free-trade agreement, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said yesterday, capping nearly two decades of negotiations. “This free-trade agreement will strengthen confidence of investors, business in India,” Modi said in remarks at an energy event. The pact would boost trade and global supply chains, while improving India’s manufacturing and services sectors, he said. Modi’s announcement comes weeks after India signed trade deals with New Zealand and Oman. Modi is also trying to find new markets for a country Trump once dubbed the “tariff king.”Yesterday’s agreement marked Modi’s fourth trade deal since May last year, also including an agreement with the UK.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:14 UTC
Free ‘H pylori’ tests offered to prevent stomach cancer
Photo: Hou Chia-yu, Taipei TimesH pylori infection is the greatest known risk factor for gastric cancer, said Lee Yi-chia (李宜家), a professor of internal medicine at National Taiwan University Hospital. Sharing his personal experience, Chuang said he was diagnosed with gastric ulcer and H. pylori infection after paying for a gastroscopy in 2014. Seven years later, he was diagnosed with gastric cancer, Chuang added. H pylori can neutralize gastric acid and damage the stomach tissue, leading to gastritis, or inflammation of the stomach lining, he said. If left untreated, it could lead to peptic ulcers, or even progress to precancerous lesions and gastric cancer, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:12 UTC
HIMARS joins first exercises this year
HIMARS joins first exercises this yearDEEP-STRIKE CAPABILITY: The scenario simulated a PLA drill that turned into an assault on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, with the launchers providing fire supportBy Fang Wei-li and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerTaiwan yesterday conducted this year’s first military exercises at Longsiang Base in Taichung, demonstrating the newly acquired High Mobility Artillery Rocket System’s (HIMARS) ability to provide fire support and deep-strike capabilities. The HIMARS are supposed to “fire and leave,” which would significantly increase personnel and equipment survivability, a military official said. Soldiers pose for a photograph with the Taiwanese flag during a drill at a military facility in Taichung yesterday. A HIMARS maneuvers inside a military base during a combat-readiness drill in Taichung yesterday. Soldiers pose for a photograph during a drill at a military facility in Taichung yesterday.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:12 UTC
Trump threatens tariff hike to 25% on S Korean goods
Trump threatens tariff hike to 25% on S Korean goodsBloombergUS President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to hike tariffs on goods imported from South Korea to 25 percent, citing what he said was the failure of the country’s legislature to codify the trade deal the two nations reached last year. Trump in a social media post said the new rate would apply to vehicles, lumber, pharmaceutical products and “all other Reciprocal TARIFFS.”Under the existing agreement, the US president set a 15 percent levy on South Korean exports. Vehicles for export are parked at a port in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, yesterday. Photo: AP“South Korea’s Legislature is not living up to its Deal with the United States,” Trump wrote. South Korean Minister of Finance Koo Yun-cheol subsequently said the government was not intentionally delaying the investment, but was still in the process of selecting projects and completing required procedures.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:12 UTC
Over 90% of foreign firms upbeat on Taiwan: AmCham survey
Over 90% of foreign firms upbeat on Taiwan: AmCham surveyBy Meryl Kao / Staff reporter, with ReutersAbout 92 percent of foreign companies said they plan to maintain or increase investment in Taiwan this year, with the majority saying they remain confident about the local market despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainties and tariff-related risks, the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Taiwan said in a survey released yesterday. Photo: Ben Blanchard, ReutersMore foreign firms in Taiwan are preparing emergency plans as security concerns rise, but actual disruption from tensions with China is very low, the survey showed. AmCham Taiwan said that 206 of its 411 eligible members responded to the survey conducted shortly before China’s most recent war games. The group serves as an important conduit between the foreign, especially US, business community in Taiwan and policymakers in Taipei and Washington. AmCham Taiwan president Carl Wegner said that from speaking to people in Washington, this year looked like a “good year with positive potential” for that deal to be approved.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:12 UTC
Don’t mess with the Wu Sha clan
Wu Ding-guo at Wu Sha residence. Artist rendering of the Wu Sha compound in the 19th century displayed at the Wu Sha Historic Residence. The Wu Sha foundation’s research however indicates the nephew was an imposter, stating “he was not a member of the Wu Sha clan” and describing him as “a political pawn of the then-Qing government.”“Our family has suffered three persecutions,” Wu said, referring to various land seizures during the past 200 years. Wu Ding-guo began pouring resources into this historical research after establishing the Yilan Wu Sha Cultural Foundation in 2013. From that day forward, the Wu Sha clan adopted its creed, “the family best stay out of government.”When I asked Wu Ding-guo about this, he chuckled, “That’s no longer necessarily the case.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 16:05 UTC
Cool off on divisive divorce law
Cool off on divisive divorce lawBy Sandy Chou 周宜勳The Legislative Yuan’s Legal Affairs Bureau has introduced a 30-day cooling-off period for couples contemplating divorce, a concept already adopted by South Korea and China. In April 2009, the legislature amended the law, recognizing that judges can settle divorce proceedings without mediation focused on reconciliation. My doctoral dissertation, published in 2008, was the first large-scale attitudinal survey of Taiwanese and judges on divorce mediation, research that is relevant to the current legislative debate. American feminist academics have argued that mandatory divorce mediation — regardless of whether it aims for reconciliation — is disadvantageous to women. In the US, mandatory pretrial mediation is by no means a tradition, and the aim of divorce mediation has never been reconciliation.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 16:05 UTC
Macronix unveils plans to ease ‘severe shortages’
Macronix president Lu Chih-yuan poses for a photograph at the company’s headquarters in Hsinchu in August last year. “Samsung announced its plans to stop producing and supplying eMMC [NAND flash memory chips]. To fully support the capacity expansion, Macronix plans to delay its development of 3D NOR flash memory chips for about two years, he said. In addition to NAND flash memory chips, the company also saw strong demand for 2D NOR flash memory chips used in AI servers and high-performance-computing devices, he said. Macronix expects its factory utilization rate to rise to about 100 percent this year to satisfy customer demand, Lu said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 16:05 UTC
Benefits of Israel’s pivot in Africa
Benefits of Israel’s pivot in AfricaBy Michele MarescaAt the end of last year, a diplomatic development with consequences reaching well beyond the regional level emerged. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as a sovereign state, paving the way for political, economic and strategic cooperation with the African nation. The diplomatic breakthrough yields, above all, substantial and tangible benefits for the two countries, enhancing Somaliland’s international posture, with a state prepared to champion its bid for broader legitimacy. The new partnership could also generate benefits beyond its immediate scope, particularly for countries that maintain solid relations with both Israel and Somaliland. From the new alliance between Somaliland and Israel, Taiwan could gain significant advantages across multiple sectors.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 16:05 UTC
EDITORIAL: Soft power with Somaliland
EDITORIAL: Soft power with SomalilandThere is a modern roadway stretching from central Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland in the Horn of Africa, to the partially recognized state’s Egal International Airport. Both Somaliland and Taiwan are self-governing states struggling to secure international recognition. Soft power works slowly, sometimes imperceptibly, but over time lays the foundations for the evolution of circumstances by forming recognition of desired narratives. It is helped when the application of the soft power is implemented in good faith and for mutual benefit. Hopefully the application of soft power will continue to aid Taiwan’s.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 16:05 UTC