Listed firms’ revenue up 11.97%
Listed firms’ revenue up 11.97%SHIFTING DYNAMICS An imbalance in supply and demand during the pandemic resulted in a boost to the shipping industry, while other sectors also benefitedBy Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporterThe combined revenue of companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange last month increased 11.97 percent year-on-year to NT$3.145 trillion (US$113.5 billion), the bourse said on Saturday. The exchange said in a statement that 661 firms reported revenue growth, while 292 reported a decline. The combined revenue of listed firms last grew 14.16 percent from August 2019, before COVID-19 was a factor, it added. Accumulated revenue for the 953 listed firms in the first eight months of the year reached NT$24.1 trillion, up 18.61 percent year-on-year, the exchange said, adding that the increase compared with the same period in 2019 was 16.45 percent. Firms in the shipping and transportation, plastics, and iron and steel industries reported the highest revenue increases during the eight-month period, the exchange added.
Source:Taipei Times
September 12, 2021 15:56 UTC
Credit card spending down 7.5% due to virus, electronic payments up 43%
Credit card spending down 7.5% due to virus, electronic payments up 43%By Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporterCredit card spending in the nation fell for a second consecutive month in July, declining 7.5 percent annually to NT$335.4 billion, as consumers purchased less amid a local outbreak of COVID-19, the Financial Supervisory Commission said. In May, when the outbreak began, credit card spending rose 11.6 percent annually to NT$239.6 billion, data released by the commission on Thursday showed. However, credit card spending declined 9.19 percent to NT$215.3 billion in June, as the outbreak affected private consumption, the commission said. Although July’s credit card spending of NT$335.4 billion was down from a year earlier, it was the second-highest for that month, but the momentum came from tax payments, not regular spending, the commission said. For the first seven months, the nation’s cumulative credit card spending totaled NT$1.77 trillion, up 1.78 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.
Source:Taipei Times
September 12, 2021 15:56 UTC
The UN needs Taiwan: US groups
Taiwan’s outstanding epidemic preparedness from last year, paired with its ability to meet the needs of the global supply chain, demonstrates that “Taiwan can help and is ready to help,” the Southern Californian groups said. Photo courtesy of the Taiwanese American Center of Northern California via CNA“Now is the time for the UN to accept Taiwan and for Taiwan to make a contribution,” they added. Taiwan is a force for good in the world, TECO in Los Angeles Director-General Louis Huang (黃敏境) said. “Not only does Taiwan need the UN, but the UN needs Taiwan, too,” the groups said, adding that the nation’s excellence in technology, healthcare and soft power, as well as its global trade status, can help the global organization. Representatives from eight Taiwanese expat community organizations in Northern California on Saturday issued a similar call at a news conference in San Jose.
Source:Taipei Times
September 12, 2021 15:56 UTC
Typhoon disrupts travel, cuts power to thousands of homes as it barrels north
Typhoon disrupts travel, cuts power to thousands of homes as it barrels northStaff writer, with AFP and CNATyphoon Chanthu yesterday unleashed powerful winds and heavy rain on eastern Taiwan, disrupting travel and cutting electricity to thousands of homes, but sparing the island a direct hit. Police officers remove a fallen tree from a road in Hualien County yesterday. The typhoon was packing sustained winds of up to 162kph, with gusts of up to 198kph, it said. People struggle to keep their umbrellas open among gusts of wind and rain brought by Typhoon Chanthu in Taipei yesterday. In a rare exception to the rule, not a single typhoon made landfall last year, the first time in 56 years.
Source:Taipei Times
September 12, 2021 15:56 UTC
MMA’s Belfort humbles Holyfield with TKO in first
MMA’s Belfort humbles Holyfield with TKO in firstAFP, MIAMIFormer heavyweight world champion Evander Holyfield on Saturday night looked all of his 58 years in a first-round technical knockout loss to mixed martial arts star Vitor Belfort. The American ring great regained his feet only to be sent to the canvas by a combination from Belfort. Holyfield (44-10 with two drawn and 29 knockouts), accepted the Belfort fight on eight days’ notice after Oscar De La Hoya tested positive for COVID-19. Holyfield said he was ready, having been preparing for a proposed comeback bout against Kevin McBride that did not come off. Asked after the fight if he was still interested in making a rematch with his old nemesis Tyson, Holyfield said: “Of course.”
Source:Taipei Times
September 12, 2021 03:22 UTC
EDITORIAL: Time for TECRO to change name
EDITORIAL: Time for TECRO to change nameIf the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in the US could be renamed to include “Taiwan,” the change would support Lithuania’s difficult decision to host a “Taiwanese Representative Office” and prompt other allies to follow suit. Renaming TECRO is one objective that Taiwanese diplomats have been striving for over many years, and it has garnered support from US lawmakers. By comparison, renaming TECRO without changing its status would be less troublesome. Compared with negotiating a trade agreement, renaming TECRO might be a small, symbolic step, but the change could consolidate Washington’s leadership among democratic allies. Beijing is applying political and economic tricks to pressure Lithuania into reversing its decision to host a Taiwanese representative office.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 16:07 UTC
Ohtani hits 44th HR, but falls to Astros
The two-way sensation yielded six runs on a career-high nine hits in 3-1/3 innings. Photo: AP“I feel like they were sitting on my cutters and sliders for the most part,” Ohtani said through a translator. “That’s not a guy you would like to face all the time,” Houston manager Dusty Baker said of Ohtani. In Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Pirates slipped past the Washington National 4-3 to spoil Josh Bell’s return to PNC Park. Retired Mets infielder Todd Zeile on Friday talked about playing in the wake of the attacks on Sept. 21, 2001.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
CDC announces free vaccinations for yellow fever
CDC announces free vaccinations for yellow feverBy Wu Liang-yi and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerPeople can get inoculated against yellow fever for free through the end of November, as health authorities want to use more than 9,000 doses of the vaccine before they expire, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. High-risk countries for transmission of the disease generally require vaccination prior to entry, while some countries require travelers from high-risk countries to be vaccinated prior to entry. Taiwan is not a high-risk country for the disease, but does require vaccination of all arriving travelers from high-risk countries, including people who are only transiting. The yellow fever shot is an attenuated vaccine that takes effect within about 10 days, the CDC said. Those getting vaccinated against yellow fever and COVID-19 should ensure there is at least two weeks between the jabs, it added.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
‘Greater Hsinchu’ plan hinges on Cabinet: source
‘Greater Hsinchu’ plan hinges on Cabinet: sourceBy Lee Hsin-fang and Jonathan Chin / Staff writer, with staff reporterPresident Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) might support a proposal to upgrade “Greater Hsinchu” to a special municipality statues, a senior official said yesterday. On Tuesday, the Cabinet said that it has not discussed the proposal. The threshold would have to be lowered to 1 million to form a “Greater Hsinchu” special municipality, the source said, adding that a new mechanism for changing the nation’s administrative structure might also have to be created. Hsinchu County has more eligible voters than Hsinchu City, with the county being home to sizeable Hakka communities that do not tend to vote for the DPP, they said. “Lin is not trying to boost selfish political interests; he is trying to create a better future for Greater Hsinchu,” they said.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
Taiwan in Time: It’s Fu Pei-mei time
A screen grab from What she put on the table, a movie about the life of Fu Pei-mei. Fu Pei-mei is pictured on her five-minute cooking show, Fu Pei-mei Time. Fu’s last show, Fu Pei-mei Time (傅培梅時間), debuted in 1986, which featured her making five minute-meals five days a week. It was stressful to have to perfect a meal in such a short time on live television, but Fu writes that it was immensely rewarding. The entry read: “In those tougher times, Fu Pei-mei always relieved our hunger and worries, and also encouraged us to pay more attention to what we ate and to enjoy life more.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
CECC reports zero local COVID-19 cases, deaths
CECC reports zero local COVID-19 cases, deathsBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported no new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases or deaths, but confirmed five imported cases: travelers who arrived from Japan, South Africa and Vietnam. The test results indicate that she was recently infected, which matches the conclusion made from contact tracing and her polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results, Lo added. People line up for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) COVID-19 tests at New Taipei City Hospital’s Sanchong branch yesterday. He tested negative for IgM antibodies, but positive for IgG antibodies, indicating a previous infection some time ago, Lo said, adding that the student’ three family members tested negative for COVID-19. A total of 2,984 people associated with the Banciao cluster have undergone COVID-19 testing, and so far 22 have tested positive, 2,001 tested negative and 961 people are awaiting their test results, Chen said.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
Experts comment on US mulling ‘Taiwan office’
Taiwan International Strategic Study Society director-general Wang Kun-yi, third left, chairs a symposium in Taipei yesterday on Taiwan-US relations on the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Biden’s call with Xi was somewhat of a breakthrough, he said, adding that the Financial Times report was therefore surprising. Making the plan public at this time suggests that Biden wants to test Xi’s reaction, Wang Kun-yi said. “However, judging by the very strong response from China with regard to a planned Taiwan office in Lithuania, Beijing is unlikely to just let a name change happen without protest,” he said. However, the KMT does not believe that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) would consider such a proposal, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
Horse trainer charged by racing association in NY
Horse trainer charged by racing association in NYAP, NEW YORKThe New York Racing Association (NYRA) has charged Bob Baffert with detrimental conduct and scheduled a hearing for the two-time Triple Crown-winning trainer to respond to those allegations. Baffert was suspended by the association in May after Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit failed a postrace drug test, and he sued to have the suspension lifted. Horse trainer Bob Baffert watches workouts at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on April 28. “NYRA has a responsibility to protect the integrity of the sport of thoroughbred racing,” NYRA president Dave O’Rourke said in a statement. The rule, which takes effect on Sept. 30, also applies to any trainer directly or indirectly employed, supervised or advised by a suspended trainer.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
Anger at biennial World Cup bid mounting
Anger at biennial World Cup bid mountingAFP, LAUSANNE, SwitzerlandFIFA risks plunging the world of soccer into a new conflict with its proposal to hold the World Cup every two years instead of four, raising the possibility of a divorce with leading clubs and the powerful European leagues. FIFA’s central argument is that a biennial World Cup would create more profits that could be distributed to federations in Africa, Asia and South America, who have a greater reliance on FIFA funds than the wealthy European leagues. So good luck with a World Cup like that,” he told the Times newspaper on Thursday. Major European clubs have opposed it as well. Perhaps sensing it was losing the battle of public opinion, FIFA gathered together a group of illustrious former players and coaches in Doha this week to defend the idea of a biennial World Cup.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC
Wall St down, Apple sinks on ruling
Photo: ReutersThe S&P 500 has risen about 19 percent this year, buoyed by support from dovish central bank policies and reopening optimism. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.78 percent to close at 34,607.72 points, while the S&P 500 lost 0.77 percent to 4,458.58. For the week, the S&P 500 lost 1.69 percent, the Dow declined 2.15 percent and the NASDAQ shed 1.61 percent. Friday was the first time since February that the S&P 500 had dropped for five days in a row. The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and three new lows; the NASDAQ Composite recorded 55 new highs and 47 new lows.
Source:Taipei Times
September 11, 2021 15:56 UTC