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日前有媒體接獲投訴指控，刊登「大買家公司惡意倒債、拖欠上億工程款」的報導，大買家股份有限公司對外發表聲明稿澄清，強調公司是台中地區知名量販業者，並為經濟部台中軟體園區開發商，深耕地方多年，一向穩健經營，財務及營運狀況良好，絕無部分報導所指積欠款項，陷入財務漩渦之情事，部分特定媒體指控的內容諸多錯誤與不實。

大買家表示，包商所稱未付尾款部分，是因對方工程有重大瑕疵，在發生工程爭議前款項均已依約付款，只是針對10%尾款及返還保留款部分，與包商尚有爭議存在，絕無包商不實指控之惡質倒債及避不見面等情形。

大買家也表示，報導中指公司對特定廠商積欠款項部分，相關爭議都有法院判決可公開上網查詢，並無拖欠款項等情況，大買家集團子公司亦無欠包商數千萬元，這些指控都是與事實不符。

最後，大買家重申公司一向穩健經營、誠信履約，對於包商都依約辦理驗收及按期付款，雙方如果有意見相左發生款項爭議，也都循法律途徑解決，並尊重法院判決結果，對於包商因工程有瑕疵而利用媒體造謠及不實指控，將依法訴追、決不寬貸。

屋頂電動天窗，原本驗收時可以結果風一吹就開了。 圖／大買家 提供 分享

title: 遭指拖欠上億工程款 大買家公司澄清不實指控


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南美洲國家、巴拉圭佮巴西的交界，佇頂禮拜，發生有人偷走獄的事件，大約欲80个受刑者偷走出去。警方佇咧監獄發見一條地下通道，毋過巴拉圭煞是認為，是監獄的管理人員挑工共ﰀ放走，這逝通道只是，假做偷走的證據。

發生大規模逃獄事件的監獄，位在巴拉圭東部的小城市"佩德羅胡安卡瓦列羅"。走路幾分鐘就是巴西邊界。這個地區除了以廉價的電子產品貿易聞名，也是南美洲重要的跨國販毒路線。1993年創立於聖保羅、號稱巴西最大的黑幫"首都第一司令部PCC"，在這個地區也相當活躍。

也因此，出事的監獄關押了相當多涉及販毒與暴力犯罪的PCC成員。美聯社的報導就指出，逃獄的70多人、以PCC的幫眾為主。

==巴拉圭警員 尼爾森多明蓋茲==
 我們是在早上巡視A區，結果發現所有的牢房門都開著。

警方還發現大約兩百大袋的泥土，和一條挖好的地道，高度與寬度在60到70公分左右。不過巴拉圭內政部長亞齊維多認為，這個地道是用來掩人耳目，多數逃獄的囚犯，是監獄方面開了正門，讓這些囚犯在光天化日下大搖大擺走出監獄。主管獄政的司法部長澤姬莉亞裴瑞斯於是下令，監獄自典獄長以下，所有的官員、警員全數解除職務，並予以收押等候進一步調查。

法新社在2013年就曾經有報導指出，巴拉圭和巴西的邊界，無論是陸地或空中都缺乏巡邏監控，包括警方等執法單位貪腐嚴重，與黑幫勾結裡應外合，也是家常便飯。在這種接近無政府狀態下，擁有2萬到3萬人力的超級黑幫PCC，就成了邊界地區掌控走私販毒、政府視若無睹、民眾聞之色變的闇黑勢力。

記者徐家仁 報導

countries: 巴西 巴拉圭

title: 巴拉圭佮巴西邊界監獄 70外位罪犯逃監


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title: 東非發生25年來上嚴重蟲害 損蕩濟濟農作物


title: 全球上古老糖仔店欲賣 價數喝破千萬

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全世界開上蓋久的糖仔店，佇咧英國。這間店頭已經開1百9十3冬，抑今主人家講，欲拍賣這間百年的老店面，目前價數嘛已經喝甲新臺票1335萬。

[NS]]
 拿著糖果罐，親切跟顧客談笑，這間擺放上百個糖果罐的糖果店，店名叫"英格蘭最古老糖果店"，可是大有來頭。1827年開店到現在，已經193年，不但是英國最老、也是全球最老的糖果店。

==英格蘭最古老糖果店老闆 基斯==
 我遇到我太太時
 當時我17歲 她16歲
 我們最先出遊的地點之一
 就是帶她到糖果店看看
 買些糖果 展現對糖果的熱愛
 現在糖果的歷史和背景仍在持續

店老闆"基斯"，20多年前頂下這間店。他是不折不扣的糖果迷，愛這間店愛到跟太太初次約會的地點，都選在這裡。

==英格蘭最古老糖果店老闆 基斯==
 我最愛的是牛奶牙齒軟體
 加上草莓 香草 裹粉 超棒的
 但賣最好的依舊是大黃草奶油糖

"基斯"接手後，沿用老店的一切。裝潢不變，傳統糖果罐不變，店裡的收銀機，更是維多利亞時期留下來的古董，走進這間店，彷彿走入另一個時空。

==顧客==
 我們一直有來光顧
 這是我孫子
 我親愛的孫子
 他們來的時候 這間店總是這麼可愛
 它帶你回到不同時光

上百種好吃的糖果、加上懷舊風情，讓老店名聲響亮。夏天旺季時，顧客得排上一小時才進得了店裡。但"基斯"今年初決定全心投入競選公職，因此將老店出售。目前市場售價，已喊到39萬9000歐元，約新台幣1300萬元。

==顧客==
 希望新老闆保持原樣
 對 變一點點就好了
 但基本上保持原樣 這樣很棒

老店要易手，顧客不捨又擔心，希望新老闆保留古早味，讓老店百年的甜蜜滋味，延續下去。

記者 徐婉寧 報導


countries: 澳洲 台灣

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Price Hikes by Hand-Shaken Beverage After CNY|繼連鎖速食店漲價 鍋貼.手搖飲店紛跟進

Some fast-food chains and restaurant services of all types have already bumped the prices of its menu items before the Lunar New Year holidays. Now even some chained beverage shops will also up the prices by around NT$5 by March.

The fast-food giant, McDonald's is introducing limited edition products that have consumers lining up. However, a lot of customers complained that McDonald's is getting more and more expensive.

The hourly salary in Australia is AUD$19 and it is just the basic salary. I can buy two meals with AUD$19 and have some money left. If the hourly wage is NT$158 in Taiwan, a set meal could be more expensive than that. So a meal equals an hour of labor. MacDonald's is a bit more expensive in Taiwan than in other foreign countries.

In fact, some fast-food restaurant chains have announced a price increase before the presidential election. Prices rose by an average of 3.4 percent for KFC, single order and set meal has increased by NT$3 to NT$10. The average increase for McDonald's Value Meal is 1.1 percent, around NT$1 to NT$5 increase for some products. However, some of the classic hamburgers have been lowered by NT$5. Other food service restaurants have also increased the price before the Lunar New Year. Starting from Jan. 12, the prices for potstickers from Bafang Yunji have increased about NT$0.5 to NT$0.8 each. Buffet restaurants at 5-star hotels like the Café at the Grand Hyatt Taipei and the Harbour Restaurant have also increased its price by 3 to 8 percent.

The eateries increase their price by NT$5 or NT$10. I think it's a bit too much.

Chained beverage shops are also hiking up their price after the Lunar New Year, including 50 Lan, Qingxin Fuquan and CoCo. Beverage shops in some areas including central and southern Taiwan, are looking at an increase of NT$5 by Mar. 1.

The increase is NT$10 per cup, which exceeds the increase amount of the minimum wage. Most of the store owners can improve from within the organization. They should self-absorb the increase. This phenomenon only reflects the owners disregard the rights of the consumers.

The industry owners said the price hikes after the Lunar New Year are mainly due to the increased labor and material costs. The Consumer Protection Association calls on the Fair Trade Commission to investigate the matter to see if the food industry owners are taking advantage of the matter or if there's a joint price increase.

速食業龍頭"麥當勞"，推出限量商品，吸引大批民眾排隊搶購。不過，多數消費者反映，麥當勞售價愈來愈貴。

民眾表示：「住澳洲一個小時(時薪)，是19塊澳幣，最基本的，然後19塊澳幣，我那邊可以買兩個套餐，還有剩下的錢。可是台灣如果以它上面，一個小時(時薪)158塊的話，一個套餐可能會貴一點點，所以一個小時(時薪)等於一份(餐點)，跟台灣比國外貴一點點。」

其實連鎖速食店，在大選前就宣布調整售價，包括肯德基平均漲幅約3.4%，單點、套餐:漲了3到10元，麥當勞，超值全餐平均漲約1.1%，部分餐點漲1~5元。不過部分經典漢堡類，也同步調降5元。農曆年前餐飲業價格已悄悄漲價， 八方雲集鍋貼，從1月12號起，每顆鍋貼，漲0.5到0.8元，五星級飯店自助餐，像是台北君悅酒店凱菲屋、漢來海港餐廳都已陸續調漲餐費，漲幅3到8％不等。

民眾表示：「小吃店啦，都是五塊錢、十塊錢在調整，我覺得是漲太多了。」

另外，連鎖手搖飲料店，也傳出農曆年後喊漲，包括50嵐、清心福全、CoCo，部份地區，像是"中南部"，飲料價格產品將漲5塊錢，預計3月1號調漲。

台灣消保會執行長 徐邦瀚表示：「這個一漲都是10塊錢，都已經超過這一些(基本工資調漲)幅度，很多他們業者可以做內部改善的部分，他應該要自行去吸收啦，那等於說他這樣子一個漲價，也只能反應出什麼，業者就無視消費者的一個權益。」

農曆年後物價調整，業者都是以人力成本增加，反映成本為由，不過，漲幅是否合理，消保會呼籲公平會調查，是否有業者趁機哄抬，或聯合漲價行為。


title: 及時雨拍化澳洲野火 煞換落冰角.做大水

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澳洲地界，山林內的野火已經燒幾若個月，佳哉頂禮拜，天降甘霖，大雨連紲落真久，也暫時解除火燒的危機。抑毋過摔大雨，嘛產生做大水、落冰雹遮的另外產生的災情，甚至有的所在閣開始絞「沙塵暴」。閣有就是，去予野火燒甲無地通蹛的動物，醫療方面的問題，今嘛予澳洲的政府，真頭疼。

冰雹一顆顆掉落，大小如同高爾夫球一般，澳洲維多利亞省的民眾，紛紛將這般稀奇影像上傳到社群媒體。澳洲東部16號起降下暴雨，雖可望解除數個月以來的野火危機，卻帶來暴雨、洪水甚至冰雹等天災。在墨爾本的一棵路樹被暴風雨擊垮，直接倒在一對情侶的座車上，所幸兩人送醫後沒有大礙。

==受害車主兒子 安迪==
 爸媽正準備回家吃和親戚午餐
 經過這段地方
 然後風雨交加
 一棵路樹直接倒在他們座車前

一場半在戶外的慶生派對，被惡劣天候硬生生打斷。在新南威爾斯省，更是出現沙塵暴吞沒整座小鎮的壯觀景象，風速高達每小時107公里。

澳洲東部16號起下起了暴雨，雖然可望解除數個月以來的野火危機，後續受傷動物的醫療和安置問題卻仍然相當棘手。專家估計約有超過10億隻動物因為野火而死亡。

==野生動物救難隊員 伍德曼==
 很難勉力應付這場罪惡滔天的大災難
 我們從來沒有遇過這種事
 很不幸的是
 大部分的動物就在火場裡被燒死了
 然後就這樣消失

野火燒毀了澳洲10萬多平方公里的叢林，面對慘重損失，澳洲政府宣布投入7千6百萬澳幣，希望能振興觀光產業作為彌補。

記者 林孝儒 報導


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136 New Coronavirus Cases Reported in Two Days|武漢新型冠狀病毒2天增136例 再添一死

Let's take a look at the latest on the 2019 coronavirus outbreak. At 2 a.m. on Jan. 20, Wuhan announced 136 new cases reported on Jan. 18 and 19 and one new death. Beijing, Guangdong and Shenzhen also announced three cases for the first time.

The Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced 17 new coronavirus cases as of the 17th, bringing the total number so far to 62. By 2 a.m. on the 20th, another 136 new cases had been confirmed, including one death. The center says human-to-human transmission cannot be ruled out but it believes the infection is preventable and controllable.

Most of the patients only have mild symptoms right now. Of the 763 patients we have been monitoring, 681 have been removed from the observation list. The outbreak is preventable and controllable through the various prevention and control measures we have implemented.

Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, where patients are being sent for treatment, says many of the patients have not been to Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market and the source of the infection remains unclear.

All of the patients diagnosed with coronavirus-related pneumonia infections are being treated by designated hospitals. All of the patients get a dedicated medical team to treat them with a specific protocol.

There was one suspected case in Shanghai, but the city's health commission has dismissed the reports. However, municipal officials have confirmed two cases in Beijing and one in Shenzhen. The two patients in Beijing have been to Wuhan recently. With the Chinese New Year holiday just around the corner, Taiwan's Centers for Disease Control is on high alert.

19號武漢市衛生健康委員會對外發布，截至17號為止，新型冠狀病毒肺炎疫情，新增17例，來到62例，不過才短短一天的時間，20號凌晨兩點多，官方再宣布，18.19號連續兩天新增136例感染、並新增一例死亡病例，武漢市疾控中心坦言，不排除病毒會有限度人傳人，但認為疫情"可防可控"。

武漢市疾病預防中心控制中心主任 李剛表示：「目前我們已知患者的臨床表現，一般以輕症為主，那麼第二個方面的話，據目前我們追蹤的763名密切接觸者中，目前已經有681名解除觀察，暫未發現相關病例，隨著我們各項防控措施實施和落實，疫情可防可控。」

集中收治新型冠狀病毒肺炎的武漢金銀潭醫院表示，確診病例中，部分並沒有到武漢華南海鮮批發市場的接觸史，因此感染源頭還要繼續追蹤，隨著檢測持續進行，確診病例還會繼續增加。

武漢金銀潭醫院副院長 黃朝林表示：「將確定的新型冠狀病毒感染肺炎，全部收治在我市的定點醫院，採取一人一醫療團隊，一人一診療方案，開展規範診療。」

原本傳出上海也有疑似個案，但遭到上海衛生建康委員會否認，而中國新京報網則在20號清晨報導，向官方求證後，北京確診2宗曾有武漢旅遊史的感染個案，另外深圳也有一例確診，隨著春節到來，疫情可能隨著中國春運擴散，我疾管署也繃緊神經，將加強醫院盡速確診。


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日前宣佈退出王室的哈利王子，有佮王室達成協議了後，禮拜佇一場的募款活動，強調會行佮這步，是萬般不得已。根據英國王室發表的聲明，哈利王子ﰀ翁仔某，對今年3/8開始，就會撤除伊殿下的尊稱。

==英國王子 哈利==
 走到這一步 我感到極度悲傷

哈利王子星期天為他所共同創辦的、服務非洲愛滋病童的慈善團體募款，主動澄清淡出王室，不是出走，而是不得已的選擇

==英國王子 哈利==
 我們希望能繼續替女王 大英國協
 及我的軍方相關團體服務
 在不接受公眾資助的情況下
 不幸地 這不可能

哈利王子夫婦日前突然宣布將退出王室"高階成員"，將在北美和英國兩地居住，引發各界譁然，後來英國女王召開家庭會議，同意尊重兩人的決定，但幾天後，白金漢宮發出四不聲明，包括兩人將失去殿下頭銜，不再代表英國女王伊莉沙白二世，不再屬於王室"工作成員"，因此不能領取用於履行王室職務的公款。在此同時，兩人也必須歸還英國政府240萬英鎊，約新台幣9300多萬元，用在日前翻修新婚別墅的費用。

哈利夫婦婚後曾經談及王室生活的壓力，以及媒體對他們的霸凌，哈利擔心他的妻子將會步上母親的後塵，成為強大壓力下的受害者。哈利強調，他們為了追求更平靜的生活，才會做出引退的決定。不過包括梅根的父親在內，並不是所有人都能接受這些說法。

==梅根父親 托馬斯梅根==
 他們在自貶身價
 他們在敗壞王室門風

==倫敦居民 列維克==
 他們不可能完全過著平民生活
 因為他們有維安人員保護
 他(哈利)仍然是王室成員
 不管他做什麼
 不管他去哪裡
 他還是王室家庭的一分子
 人們也還是這樣看待他們
 不是嗎?

在失去"殿下"的頭銜之後，哈利王子夫婦未來仍將保有薩塞克斯公爵與公爵夫人的稱號，專家估計，兩人每年至少760萬英鎊，約3億台幣的維安費用，最終還是由英國納稅人埋單。

記者 曾惠敏 報導

title: 英國哈利王子退出王室 出面講是萬不得已


title: 武漢新型冠狀病毒2天增136例 再添一死

content_text: 關心2019新型冠狀病毒肺炎的最新疫情。武漢官方今天凌晨兩點多，公布18、19日連續兩天再新增136例感染病例，並且新增一例死亡病例。北京和廣東深圳也首次公布確診三例。 19日武漢市衛生健康委員會對外發布，截至17日為止，新型冠狀病毒肺炎疫情新增17例，來到62例。短短一天的時間，20日凌晨兩點多，官方再宣布18、19日連續兩天新增136例感染、並新增一例死亡病例。武漢市疾控中心坦言，不排除病毒會有限度人傳人，但認為疫情「可防可控」。 武漢市疾病預防中心控制中心主任李剛表示：「目前我們已知患者的臨床表現，一般以輕症為主。第二個方面，據目前我們追蹤的763名密切接觸者中，目前已經有681名解除觀察，暫未發現相關病例。隨著我們各項防控措施實施和落實，疫情可防可控。」 集中收治新型冠狀病毒肺炎的武漢金銀潭醫院表示，確診病例中，部分並沒有到武漢華南海鮮批發市場的接觸史，因此感染源頭還要繼續追蹤。隨著檢測持續進行，確診病例還會繼續增加。 金銀潭醫院副院長黃朝林表示：「將確定的新型冠狀病毒感染肺炎全部收治在我市的定點醫院，採取一人一醫療團隊、一人一診療方案，開展規範診療。」 原本傳出上海也有疑似個案，但遭到上海衛生建康委員會否認。而中國新京報網則在20號清晨報導，向官方求證後，北京確診2宗曾有武漢旅遊史的感染個案。另外深圳也有一例確診。


title: 揭發新疆再教育營 流亡記者：種族滅絕正在發生

content_text:
為讓世人得知新疆再教育營內幕，哈薩克流亡記者巴特爾向中央社記者展示上千份紀錄與訪談。他說，中國政府正在實行「種族滅絕」，要讓少數民族不再能繁衍後代。

巴特爾（Batyr）是為人身安全的化名，他在法國記者之家（Maison des Journalistes）接受中央社記者訪問指出，「這些是集中營（再教育營）信息、這些是被軟禁的、這是被釋放的、這些是死亡的、這是黑工廠的，還有這些是被判刑入獄的」，新疆如今面臨的不再僅是同化政策，「政府就是要種族滅絕」。

「因為進去的人都會被打針，說是預防感冒，年老的打一針，年輕的每個月打一次，其實就是要讓人無法生育，男生再無法勃起，女生則是會停經。懷孕的婦女會被強迫墮胎；一般的婦女也會被騙結紮…我想這應該叫做『軟性屠殺』吧。」

根據獲釋者口述，集中營裡維吾爾族人最多，約占7到8成，哈薩克族人大約2到3成。中國政府如此針對維吾爾族人的原因，巴特爾表示：「第一他們人數多；第2他們信仰堅定，哈薩克族雖也是穆斯林，但大部分並不虔誠；第3因為有哈薩克共和國，所以新疆的哈薩克人對於獨立議題不感興趣，說得難聽點中國還希望我們滾到哈薩克。」

為了搜集失蹤親人的資訊，巴特爾與一群夥伴在2018年初成立「阿塔珠爾特志願組織」（AtajurtKazakh Human Rights）。除了搜集訊息，阿塔珠爾特也聯繫哈薩克共和國外交部要求中國政府釋放人民。巴特爾則建議也聯繫聯合國、人權機構與國際組織，自己也開始進行報導，刊登在哈薩克當地的網路平台。

巴特爾第一篇公開講述新疆情況的文章，描述新疆哈薩克人大規模被抓捕，以及中國政府行徑的文章，使用的筆名Erkin Azat是哈薩克語「自由、自由」之意。這篇引用大量證據的報導引起廣大迴響，而他的一生也從此改變。受關注後，巴特爾接續在推特（Twitter）和臉書（Facebook）發表文章，逐漸有越來越多哈薩克人、維吾爾人和漢人私訊巴特爾，把手邊的證據和資料給他，甚至也有協警向他揭秘，巴特爾因此開始掌握相當份量的集中營口述經歷與照片。

巴特爾表示，共產黨的「再教育營」分3種，第一種是曾接觸「邪教」或極端思想的人，他們會被送到「強管班」，審判後可能移送監獄。第2是「嚴管班」，專關曾經去過被中國列為26個穆斯林「敏感國家」的人。

「然而，這些被中國稱為恐怖主義的國家，卻是中國一帶一路的支持者、依附者，也是在聯合國幫集中營說話的國家。」巴特爾說：「這不是很可笑嗎？這些政府很無能，都已經被中國收買了。」

第3種是不會說漢語的少數民族，他們會被送到「普管班」，上語言課和思想課，至少待7個月才能出來。其中不乏耕田放牧一輩子的老人家，巴特爾就曾訪問過一名連腰都挺不直的70多歲哈薩克族老嫗，只因為不會說漢語被送進「再教育營」。

「阿塔珠爾特志願組織」負責人比拉什（Serikzhan Bilash）2018年3月11日被捕後，為了持續為新疆人權發聲，巴特爾決定離開哈薩克，向法國申請簽證，4月抵達巴黎獲得法國記者之家庇護。

原以為可以安心地在法國記者之家整理新疆受害者數據庫、寫報導，巴特爾的經歷和照片日前卻被法國親中的哈薩克組織「杰標華僑華人聯誼會」查到和公開，讓他暫時必須更加低調。所幸並無資料連結真實身分，他在哈薩克的家人目前也安全無虞。

巴特爾去年12月初曾受邀出席「2020蔡英文總統連任法國後援會」，因為他無法曝光，只能穿上黑色帽T、戴上墨鏡及口罩上台，由於聲音也被相關機構建檔，因此寫了一封信請後援會召集人王建慧代唸。巴特爾在信中控訴中國打壓和控制維吾爾族人，並讓他們在工廠奴隸般無止盡地工作。他寫道：「人們要能夠發出自己的聲音，對侵犯人權者說不，否則我們的後代，將是下一個奴隸。」

巴特爾告訴中央社記者，他拿到難民身分後，最想拜訪的國家就是台灣，想體會民主的氛圍並學習制度如何運作。他還說：「很敬佩台灣前輩冒著坐牢和酷刑的風險，做出了貢獻，才有了今日的民主；如果他們像今天的我們一樣保持沈默，台灣現在可能還在獨裁統治之下。」

references: Facebook Twitter 臉書

countries: 中國 台灣 哈薩克 法國


title: 中壢、桃園兩監理站揮毫贈春聯　送平安順暢

content_text:
▲中壢監理站舉辦揮毫贈春聯活動。（圖／中壢監理站提供）

記者楊淑媛／桃園報導

平安是福，更是回家唯一的路！新竹區監理所中壢、桃園監理站，今年首度舉辦揮毫贈春聯的活動，民眾反應熱絡。書法家宋良銘說，中壢監理站舉辦揮毫贈春聯的活動，不僅可發揚書法文化，也可提升藝術氣息，期望揮毫揮出「安」打，並藉由春聯送出平安，祝福民眾過年返鄉路途平安又順暢。

▲▼中壢監理站舉辦揮毫贈春聯，送民眾平安和交通順暢。（圖／中壢監理站提供）

中壢監理站站長吳金全20日表示，該站首度舉辦揮毫贈春聯的活動，在充滿溫馨歡樂的年節氛圍下，期新春帶來有別以往的藝術氣息，同時結合相關監理業務宣導，傳遞交通安全資訊，持續提升用路效率，讓大家行得平安順暢、快樂過好年，歡迎民眾同來共襄盛舉！

吳金全特別提醒，過年期間千萬不要酒後駕車及疲勞駕駛，並隨時留意大型車視野死角及內輪差、保持與大型車的安全距離，平時做好車輛保養的工作，上路前記得檢查煞車、燈光及輪胎等設備是否正常。

桃園監理站站長林正郎表示，該站邀請書法名家夏武興現場揮毫，讓宣導春節疏運、汽燃費、高齡駕駛宣導等相關資訊及漂書，能在充滿藝術氣息及濃厚的年味中進行，民眾一睹書法大師風采、共襄盛舉春聯揮毫、歡喜收到交通安全宣導資訊，吉祥物「一路」「平安」大人小孩都喜愛，傳達交通安全知識，以持續提升整體用路安全。

►我沒有遲到，是時間遲到了！

taiwan-subdivisions: 桃園 中壢 新竹


title: 梧棲兄弟接連身亡！僅存小弟心驚驚…台中海線深夜「送肉粽」

taiwan-subdivisions: 梧棲 梧棲區 和美 福興 彰化 鹿港 伸港 線西

content_text:
我們想讓你知道…台中市梧棲區大庄里陳姓三兄弟，老大及老二因財務問題在住家死亡，剩下最小的弟弟住在裡頭，為求平安，請來彰化法師舉辦「送肉粽」。

圖文／CTWANT

台中市梧棲區大庄里陳姓三兄弟，老大及老二2人於10年內去世，家屬為求平安，特別請來彰化地區的法師舉辦沿途「送肉粽」的習俗，並請附近民眾盡量迴避，由於許多民眾害怕這項習俗，大庄里里長楊維萍特別在臉書公告「送肉粽」的時間及路線，引發民眾關注。

據了解，台中市梧棲區大庄里陳姓三兄弟，老大及老二因財務問題，分別於10年前及去年底都在住家去世，依照習俗必須要請法師舉辦沿途「送肉粽」並念佛經，才能求家中平安，否則家中可能還會陸續有人死亡。

大庄里里長楊維萍說，早期「送肉粽」習俗只在彰化鹿港、福興、和美、伸港和線西一帶，但近年來台中市海線地區偶爾也有舉行。

台灣民俗專家、台中教育大學台灣語文學系副教授林茂賢指出，「送肉粽」習俗因仿效作用才逐漸從彰化地區傳開，原因可能是道士、法師為增加工作機會，將習俗慢慢擴展到其他地區；但最主要的還是一般人擔心「抓交替」的「恐懼感」，才仿效這項習俗，以求心安。

更多 CTWANT 報導

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►「2020愛妳愛妳」～超殺新年禮盒來了！


content_text: 陸軍航特部空運作戰隊20日馳援臺中梨山森林火災滅火救援任務，派遣CH-47SD運輸直升機，自臺中新社基地起飛，前往德基水庫汲水，再至目標區執行空中灑水；共計來回汲水15趟次，投放7萬5000公升水量，有效控制延燒面積，順利完成任務。 《詳全文...》

taiwan-subdivisions: 新社 臺中

title: 馳援梨山森林火災　CH-47SD直升機投放7.5萬公升水量


title: 容忍陳水扁、陳師孟？　蔡英文：總統並不是隨心所欲

content_text:
▲總統蔡英文。（圖／記者林敬旻攝）

記者陶本和／台北報導

針對前總統陳水扁、監察委員陳師孟的爭議，被外界認為總統蔡英文有高度的容忍性。對此，她20日接受媒體專訪時說，做總統並不是隨心所欲，有些是總統應做決定，但有些事不能，也不能干預。

對於陳師孟請辭一事，蔡英文解釋，監察委員是總統提名，但必須要經過立法院行使同意權，因此並沒有所謂總統可以批准辭呈一事。

蔡英文強調，監委是有任期制的，所以希望任期到什麼時候，陳師孟能夠做到任期，至於陳師孟最後的決定，總統就只能尊重。

另外，陳水扁這次並不只是參與政治，甚至也積極參與選舉，被外界認為早就超過保外就醫的紅線，可是遲遲未見法律規範的處理。蔡英文則坦言，有一些事情是總統可以做決定，有些事情是總統不能做決定的，有時候連明示、暗示的都不可以，主管機關是法務部。

談起政治，蔡英文表示，這種政治的事情，會引起大家討論，但卻不是事情的本質，事情的本質是憲政體制下，當憲政機關發生職權扞格的時候，必須有一套機制自己把那條線畫出來，不會發生職權行使上的衝突。

people: 陳水扁 蔡英文


content_text:
軍聞社／記者周力行桃園20日電

春節將屆，國防部長嚴德發20日以董事長身分，前往國家中山科學研究院慰勉，並代表蔡英文總統肯定該院同仁為提升整體國力與三軍部隊防衛戰力所付出的努力與貢獻。

嚴部長指出，中科院在國防科技中扮演領頭羊角色，各方面成效均攸關國家整體戰力與國軍防衛實力，因此藉由各項武器裝備的科研、委製與量產，帶動各軍種的進步，進而提升三軍聯合作戰戰力，支持防衛構想，為重中之重。

嚴部長表示，科技研發為高度困難的工作，不免遭遇窒礙與挑戰，但相信憑藉中科院成軍以來豐富的經驗，全體同仁必定能群策群力，運用智慧克服難關；同時，同仁們一步一腳印的耕耘付出，都將直接反映在國防戰力上，期許大家來年在既有的基礎上繼續努力，完成各項計畫工作。

嚴部長進一步表示，「國防自主」是國家當前重要政策，過去我國防衛戰力需靠外購，如今「自己的國家自己救」不再是口號，我們可以靠自我的科研實力與能量，強化國防安全；其次，國防自主能夠帶動國內的產業，以國防帶動經濟，造就民生經濟的繁榮。

「大家所做的，是提升整體國力的事情」，嚴部長強調，今年6月高教機即將執行首飛任務，期勉中科院掌握各項工作節點，如期如質完成任務，將中科院亮麗的成績與科技實力展現在國人面前。

最後，嚴部長再次強調「保防安全」的重要性，提醒中科院為國防科技重鎮，是敵人情蒐的重點，執行各項任務務須提高警覺，以「如臨深淵、如履薄冰」、「凡事做最壞的打算」的心態面對，確遵各項資訊安全規範，防杜敵人滲透；另外，新年假期將屆，期間停工復工應依照相關規範，確保院區安全，並預祝全體同仁新春愉快，院運昌隆。

people: 嚴德發 蔡英文

taiwan-subdivisions: 桃園 中山

title: 高教機今年6月即將首飛　嚴德發：自己的國家自己救


content_text:
▲總統蔡英文。（圖／記者林敬旻攝）

記者陶本和／台北報導

總統蔡英文在第一任期推動「年金改革」，但掀起軍公教團體的反彈，20日接受專訪時，被問及是否會有微調可能時表示，改革確實讓一些人受到影響，但整個社會認為是應該支持的事情，取捨間如何維持平衡，會再來看一下整個情況。

蔡英文表示，這次選舉會考量817萬票選民的期待，也會考慮到552萬票選民的期待，這次年金改革確實讓一些人受到影響，但對整個社會而言，大家都認為這是一個應該支持的事，取捨間如何維持平衡，會再來看一下整個情況。

蔡英文說，基本上不能偏離年改的主要的方向，因為大多數人都認為這是一個必須要做的事情，而對於受到影響的人所受到的衝擊，她也一再表達對他們的歉意。

對此，總統府晚間也補充說明，總統意指會思考在政策執行同時，如何擴大社會溝通與規劃相關配套等，來緩解政策可能的衝擊，而並無改變年改政策之意。

總統府表示，在接下來的回應中，蔡英文更嚴正表示，不能偏離年改的主要的方向，可見年改政策目前並無變動之考量，期盼各界轉述報導時，勿產生誤解。同時，在專訪中，總統也再次表達對於受到年金改革影響的人的歉意，感謝他們在年金改革過程中所做的犧牲。

title: 年金改革微調？　蔡英文：會再來看一下整個情況


title: 厚植高山地區救援能量　陸軍前進武嶺高寒地救援訓練

content_text:
軍聞社／記者卓以立臺北電

陸軍特種作戰訓練中心刻正執行「高寒地救援訓練班」施訓，學員不僅要在地形險峻的奇萊山區，執行各項高寒地救援任務，近期面對武嶺低溫降雪，對官兵更是一大考驗。

「高寒地救援訓練班」主要培養學員具備高山上自救與救人的能力，冬季進行訓練，讓學員在嚴苛的環境中施訓，磨練意志力；本週訓練課目，學員要在不同的地形環境，架設滑輪拖拉系統，實施傷患吊掛。

近年來，複合式災難頻傳，國軍自民國105年起開辦「高寒地救援訓練班」，培訓官兵垂直地障攀降繩索技術、高山醫學、野外急症處置、方向地形判斷、高寒地野外求生、滑輪拖拉系統架設與傷患吊掛、特殊地形環境通過、特殊地形救援等能力，以培育國軍災害防救能量守護國人。

此次參與高寒地救援訓練班的學員，有來自特訓中心、特戰指揮部、花防部、機步333旅、陸軍5支部等50餘位官兵。在經過前3週的基礎訓練考評淘汰後，僅有32位學員拿到前進武嶺的門票，接受第2階段高寒地區實地訓練。

該班隊期末綜合鑑測都會安排前往奇萊山區進行綜合演練，結合嚴苛的氣候與陡峭地形，以仿真情境驗證學員受訓所學，厚植高山地區救援能量。

taiwan-subdivisions: 臺北 山上


title: 淡出王室首發聲 哈利：極度難過但別無選擇

content_text:
日前宣布要淡出王室的英國哈利王子，在週末和王室達成「四不協議」之後，在一場慈善團體的募款活動上，首度打破沉默，表示走到這一步他非常難過，但是別無選擇。根據英國王室的聲明，哈利王子夫婦在今年3月8號之後，會失去殿下頭銜、不能使用公帑，但還是會保留薩塞克斯公爵和公爵夫人身分。

哈利王子星期天為他所共同創辦的、服務非洲愛滋病童的慈善團體募款，主動澄清淡出王室，不是出走，而是不得已的選擇：「我們希望能繼續替女王、大英國協及我的軍方相關團體服務，在不接受公眾資助的情況下，不幸地，這不可能。」、「走到這一步，我感到極度悲傷。」

哈利王子夫婦日前突然宣布將退出王室高階成員，將在北美和英國兩地居住，引發各界譁然，後來英國女王召開家庭會議，同意尊重兩人的決定，但幾天後，白金漢宮發出四不聲明，包括兩人將失去殿下頭銜，不再代表英國女王伊莉沙白二世，不再屬於王室工作成員，因此不能領取用於履行王室職務的公款。在此同時，兩人也必須歸還英國政府240萬英鎊，約新台幣9300多萬元，用在日前翻修新婚別墅的費用。

哈利夫婦婚後曾經談及王室生活的壓力，以及媒體對他們的霸凌，哈利擔心他的妻子將會步上母親的後塵，成為強大壓力下的受害者。哈利強調，他們為了追求更平靜的生活，才會做出引退的決定。不過包括梅根的父親在內，並不是所有人都能接受這些說法。梅根父親托馬斯梅根說：「他們在自貶身價，他們在敗壞王室門風。」

倫敦居民列維克認為：「他們不可能完全過著平民生活，因為他們有維安人員保護，他(哈利)仍然是王室成員，不管他做什麼，不管他去哪裡，他還是王室家庭的一分子，人們也還是這樣看待他們不是嗎？」

在失去殿下的頭銜之後，哈利王子夫婦未來仍將保有薩塞克斯公爵與公爵夫人的稱號，專家估計，兩人每年至少760萬英鎊，約3億新台幣的維安費用，最終還是由英國納稅人埋單。


content_text:
▲李亞軒（左）／吳芳嫺 。（圖／資料照）

記者林育正／綜合報導

李亞軒和吳芳嫻靠著在澳網外卡賽搶進會內賽，其實兩人從去年開始合作，已拿下12連勝，將在澳網挑戰16種子，前球后「網壇卡卡」珊德絲（Bethanie Mattek-Sands）和凱寧(Sofia Kenin)。

20歲的吳芳嫻原本和陳佩萱一同闖蕩ITF層級賽事，去年夏天和李亞軒開始合作，兩人在搭檔的第3站賽事京都女網賽就順利奪冠，隨後更在WTA 125K的台北海碩盃爆冷奪冠，接著又在澳網外卡賽奪冠取得會內賽資格，兩人攜手合作至今已經12連勝。

而2019年年末吳芳嫻並沒有進行太多休息，她先是和李珮琪在孟買捧冠，再和香港選手張瑋桓在香港捧冠，光是2015年就拿下5座冠軍，帶著個人16連勝邁向澳網。

一連串的連勝，也讓吳芳嫻成為近一年排名上升最快的台灣選手，的雙打世界排名已經來到146名，暫居國內第5。搭檔李亞軒雖然以單打為主，在2019年打下兩座ITF冠軍，但學姊帶學妹的表現，已展現1+1大於2的效應。兩人的對手，將是手握5座大滿貫雙打冠軍的前球后珊德絲，以及凱寧的美國組合。

►保持青春的秘密都在Her和她！

countries: 美國 香港 台灣

title: 澳網／吳芳嫻搭李亞軒12連勝中　首次大滿貫挑戰前球后


title: 為「解散統促黨」提案槓上民進黨 徐永明發文引論戰

content_text:
時代力量黨團今提案「聲請司法院憲法法庭解散統促黨」卻被否決，黨主席徐永明（見圖）質疑民進黨多數立委投反對票是「不積極處理」統促黨的問題。（資料照）

2020-01-20 23:11:00

〔即時新聞／綜合報導〕時代力量黨團今天在立法院院會提案「聲請司法院憲法法庭解散統促黨」，黨主席徐永明質疑民進黨多數立委投反對票是「不積極處理」，綠委林靜儀指出：「是否違法，不是立法院說了算。」徐永明事後再發文解釋，引發網友論戰。

徐永明在臉書稱，時力今審查總預算時提出主決議，要求內政部聲請司法院憲法法庭依照《憲法增修條文》第5條與《政黨法》第26條等規定解散統促黨。他提到，結果占多數的民進黨投下反對票，但有國民黨立委投贊成票，「國民黨也支持移送統促黨，民進黨再不積極處理，很難對民眾交代！」

林靜儀則在臉書回應指出，對於統促黨，無論再怎麼討厭、是否違法，都不是立院說了算，她也強調，有罪、違憲與否，在法治國家都不能有罪推定，一定要經過調查、蒐集相關事證，更不是用多數可以表決通過的。

徐永明事後再度發文，表示有人刻意扭曲成時代力量要「立法院」移送統促黨，然後把時力扣上讓司法問題政治化的大帽子。他強調提案是請「內政部」蒐集相關事證後，由「內政部」聲請憲法法庭審理。

徐永明強調，若今天這項提案通過了會有兩種情形，第一是內政部檢附證據提出聲請，由憲法法庭審理；第二是內政部沒有蒐集到證據，然後告訴立法院，因為沒證據所以無法遵照提案辦理。無論是何種情形，都是內政部要交代清楚的事，直言「民進黨團實在沒有反對的理由。請執政黨不要選前狂餵芒果乾，選後就吐到垃圾桶」。

文章一出引發網友熱議，力挺徐的網友表示，「委員這戰力太高了」、「dpp看到時力就反對，已經沒有是非了」、「報告委員，這條貼文有聲音」、「沒有統促黨，芒果乾哪裡賣得掉？」。

反對徐的網友則認為，「既然內政部已經在做，已是現在進行式，你時代力量提這個案是要脫褲子放屁、做什麼秀啊」、「秀場天王信用破產怪不得人啊，我比較相信胡博硯教授的說法」、「請主席下一個會期請你們家三席立委提案解散國民黨」、「時力法盲很厲害 沒救了」。

相關新聞請見：「解散統促黨」提案該不該反對？時力創黨黨員點出關鍵

反駁徐永明！林靜儀：統促黨有罪無罪不能靠表決

聲請憲法法庭審理統促黨？李俊俋：有些莫名

people: 徐永明 林靜儀 李俊俋

references: 網友 臉書


title: Han Remained Silent to FB Posted Picture |臉書貼特勤人員合照惹議 韓低調不回應

references: 臉書 Facebook

content_text:
Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu resumed his duties as mayor after the presidential election is over. Han, together with artist Chen chen, who is acting as the Charity Ambassador, visited elderly residents living alone this morning. When asked about the recent picture posted on his Facebook page thanking the special agents, Han refused to address the issue.

(Mayor, did you thank the people at the National Security Bureau?) (Keep going) thank you. (Mayor, will you prosecute Ku Ling?)

Some people from the crowd saw their chance to get his autograph, and Han obliged every time. He remained silent when asked about writer Ku Ling's statement on the impeachment. However, the Kaohsiung City Government did issue a statement stressing that Kaohsiung only had an NT$1.4 billion deficit last year compared to the proposed NT$6.5 billion and asked Ku Ling to apologize publicly or face prosecution.

高雄市長 韓國瑜 vs. 記者：「（市長昨天有感謝國安局的人員嗎？)（加油！加油！)謝謝，謝謝。（市長會告苦苓嗎？)」

面對民眾要求合照、簽名，韓國瑜來者不拒，但針對作家苦苓指控罷免韓國瑜，可替市府省下1200億，韓國瑜不只不回應，也隨即搭車離去。高雄市府則發出聲明，強調韓國瑜執政一年，高雄市去年的決算金額的歲差短，僅舉債14億多，比原先編列預算要舉債65.46億，少了50億左右，痛批苦苓抹黑韓國瑜，要求立刻公開道歉，否則提告。


title: 經濟衰退景氣ﰴ 印度婚禮規模攏變細

content_text:
逐年11月，到隔轉年2月，一向攏是印度人結婚的大月，抑往過印度人婚禮的風俗，是講攏著愛辦甲誠奢颺。毋過這幾年，因為印度的經濟成長嘛漸漸有較慢，目前結婚的場面，已經無以早遐爾豐沛。

婚紗店內，人潮擁擠，不少準新娘跟家人，湊在自己喜歡的婚紗前，討論試裝。每年的11月到隔年的2月，向來是印度人的結婚旺季，不少人對印度婚禮的印象，一向是連辦很多天，並且有上百上千賓客參加，就連新郎新娘都會穿著豪華禮服，陪著賓客連鬧很多天。但今年因為印度經濟不景氣，許多婚禮規模明顯出現縮水現象。

==婚紗店業者 哈利阿尼==
 過去婚禮可能會舉辦為期一星期
 但現在已經轉變成
 一天或是一天半的婚禮

從2016年11月起，印度總理「莫迪」，宣布為了掃黑金、去貪腐、打偽鈔，而廢除500跟1千盧比舊鈔後，印度國內就出現嚴重的現金荒。過去幾年，印度盧比匯率貶破歷史新低、稅收增加不及預期，讓民眾開始對消費，出現警戒。

而印度2019年第3季的、GDP國內生產毛額成長率，更降至4.5%，成為6年來新低，失業率也創下40多年來新高，讓民眾從日常必需品、到千載難逢的慶祝活動等，所有事情上的花費，都傾向緊縮開銷，就連人生大事的婚禮，都不再鋪張浪費。

==準新娘 潘賈米雅==
 考慮到目前的市場情況
 印度正在出現衰退
 因此 考慮到這階段才剛開始
 我們有意識地 試圖將(結婚)成本
 有效降低20%到30%

根據統計，印度的婚禮產業，每年能有400到500億美元的市場，折合台幣約1兆2千億到1兆5千億元。而印度婚宴，向來是當地衡量雙方家族社會地位的標準，但經濟不景氣的現況，讓許多中產階級，轉而抑制消費、將金錢儲蓄起來。

==婚紗店業者 馬寧德瑟希==
 整個家庭都在夢想
 "有一天 我的孩子將要結婚"
 他們一直為了那一天在儲蓄準備
 但是 在廢除貨幣後
 這部分遭受了重大挫折
 原本該是2千人的婚禮規模
 現在已經減少到7百 8百人

目前印度富裕階層，也找到其他縮減開銷的方式，就是讓準新人們，遠離印度到其他國家去結婚。因為在國外辦喜事，就算只邀請不到200位賓客，也不會太失禮，還能節省不少婚宴步驟跟開銷。

記者 陳詩童 報導。


people: 韓國瑜 柯文哲

countries: 緬甸 台灣 芬蘭 中國

content_text:
Stop Asking Me Questions About Han: Ko Wen-je|韓勤跑市政欲緩解罷免壓力? 柯:別問我

Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je and a Taipei City Government delegation are continuing their tour of Europe. With regards to Kaohsiung City Mayor Han Kuo-yu visiting fish markets before the Chinese New Year holiday to see how production and sales are going and whether that could ease an impeachment motion against him, Ko said everyone should stop asking him questions about Han. He then changed the topic to how wonderful his policy of Taipei City Government personnel starting the workday at 7:30 a.m. is. As for Myanmar's recent statement reiterating its support of the one-China principle and belief that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the People's Republic of China's territory, Ko said Taiwan does not need to identify itself using other people's definitions.

During his tour of Europe, Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je has been taking in the sites but also spending a lot of time giving the media his take on current events. Asked about Kaohsiung City Mayor Han Kuo-yu's recent visit to a fish market, Ko shrugged it off as something Han should be doing anyway and started talking about his policy of holding daily office meetings at 7:30 a.m.

Stop asking me questions about Han Kuo-yu. But it's like this: In general, every mayor or magistrate probably visits wholesale markets before Chinese New Year. So honestly speaking, if I just start the day half an hour earlier, I can save at least 15 minutes every day from the time wasted (sitting in traffic). So, that's why I discovered that 7:30 meetings are pretty good.

Ko's wife recently criticized the Democratic Progressive Party for only talking about "Taiwan's impending doom" and not doing anything to protect people's livelihoods. Ko denied this was her paving the way for a presidential run by him in 2024.

He was then asked about Myanmar's recent statement reaffirming its commitment to the one-China principle. Ko said Taiwan can set its own identity.

I'm guessing Myanmar would say this because it recently took aid or loans from China. Taiwan's identity doesn't need to be based on other people's definitions. So, we can define for ourselves who we are. Strengthening national power has always been the most basic condition for a country seeking to exist in the international community.

Five lawmakers from Ko's Taiwan People's Party will enter the legislature in February. The party is looking for caucus assistants and has been criticized for offering a monthly salary of just NT$35,000. Ko says he hopes to raise the salary by hiring as few assistants as possible.

參觀芬蘭阿黛濃藝術博物館典藏的古典藝術品，再到Oodi中央圖書館參訪，台北市長柯文哲汲取國外經驗，充實市政，但也不忘天天回應時事，維持媒體聲量。對於高雄市長韓國瑜春節假期前，一早到魚市場關心產銷，被外界解讀藉由實際行動，緩解罷韓壓力。看在自豪每天早上7點半上班開晨會的柯文哲眼裡，只是該做的事。

台北市長 柯文哲表示：「韓國瑜的事，拜託不要問我，不過是這樣啦，一般大概每個縣市首長，在過年前，都會去視察批發市場。所以老實講，我只要早半個鐘頭，每天可以省下至少15分鐘，在馬路上浪費(塞車)的時間，所以後來發現七點半開會還不錯。」

至於太太陳佩琪在臉書批評民進黨賣芒果乾，豈可護國保民，被解讀在為柯文哲2024舖路，雖然柯文哲撇清，陳佩琪講的話和2024沒有關係，但針對近期中緬聯合聲明，緬甸重申奉行一中政策，引起國內朝野撻伐，柯文哲強調，只有台灣可以定義自己是誰。

台北市長 柯文哲表示：「我猜緬甸會講這個，應該是它最近是有拿中國的援助，或是有去貸款。台灣是誰，不需要別人來定義它，所以還是只有我們自己，可以定義我們是誰，厚植國力，本來就是任何一個國家，在國際上求生存，最基本的條件。」

而身為民眾黨主席的柯文哲，二月將領軍五位準立委入國會，最近徵求黨團助理，開出的薪資條件三萬五起跳，被嫌低於行情，柯文哲表示希望達到最低聘用助理員額的標準，雇用少點人，拉高薪水。未來民眾黨是否為國會帶來新氣象，將會是新會期各界關注焦點。


title: 全球最古老糖果店求售 喊價破千萬

content_text:
全球最老的糖果店要出售了。英國的「英格蘭最古老糖果店」，1827年開業至今，已經193年。不過由於老闆要競選公職，決定出售糖果店。目前它在市場上的售價已達39萬9千英鎊，約新台幣1335萬。 拿著糖果罐，親切跟顧客談笑，這間擺放上百個糖果罐的糖果店，店名叫「英格蘭最古老糖果店」，可是大有來頭。1827年開店到現在，已經193年，不但是英國最老、也是全球最老的糖果店。
糖果店老闆基斯說：「遇到我太太時，當時我17歲、她16歲。我們最先出遊的地點之一，就是帶她到糖果店看看，買些糖果，展現對糖果的熱愛。現在糖果的歷史和背景仍在持續。」 店老闆基斯20多年前頂下這間店。他是不折不扣的糖果迷，愛這間店愛到跟太太初次約會的地點，都選在這裡。 基斯說：「我最愛的是牛奶牙齒軟體，加上草莓、香草、裹粉，超棒的。但賣最好的依舊是大黃草奶油糖。」 基斯接手後，沿用老店的一切。裝潢不變，傳統糖果罐不變，店裡的收銀機，更是維多利亞時期留下來的古董。走進這間店，彷彿走入另一個時空。
有顧客表示：「我們一直有來光顧。這是我孫子，我親愛的孫子。他們來的時候，這間店總是這麼可愛。它帶你回到不同時光。」 上百種好吃的糖果、加上懷舊風情，讓老店名聲響亮。夏天旺季時，顧客得排上一小時才進得了店裡。但基斯今年初決定全心投入競選公職，因此將老店出售。目前市場售價已喊到39萬9000歐元，約新台幣1300萬元。 顧客說：「希望新老闆保持原樣。對，變一點點就好了。但基本上保持原樣。這樣很棒。」 老店要易手，顧客不捨又擔心，希望新老闆保留古早味，讓老店百年的甜蜜滋味，延續下去。


countries: 芬蘭 中國 加拿大 美國 台灣 尼泊爾

content_text: 中國新疆維吾爾自治區，昨晚地牛翻身，許多民眾嚇得跑到室外。這起地震規模6.4，震源深度只有16公里。當地政府指出，地震導致3人受傷，其中1人傷勢嚴重。 監視器畫面強烈晃動，民眾驚慌地從室內往外跑。中國新疆維吾爾自治區，當地時間19日晚間9點27分發生芮氏規模6.4的地震，震源深度只有16公里，屬極淺層地震。震央所在的伽師縣搖晃猛烈，商店貨架上的物品被搖到散落一地。而主震發生不久，晚間10點多，附近的阿圖什市又發生規模5.2、震源深度只有14公里的餘震。當地政府已派人前往了解災情。 而在尼泊爾喜馬拉雅山安納布爾納峰，當地時間17日傳出雪崩，地點在海拔約3230公尺處，附近就是安納布爾納峰基地營，造成至少7人失蹤。 尼泊爾旅遊局人員塔帕表示：「很不幸地有7人失蹤。4名南韓人、3名尼泊爾嚮導。」 目前已有30人脫困，先前傳出受困的3名台灣登山客也平安獲救。當地政府正持續搜救失蹤7人，但因天候不佳，搜救工作一度受阻。 另外，美加上週末也面臨惡劣天氣。美國中西部和東北部，受炸彈氣旋影響，17日開始降下暴風雪，有地區氣溫更低到零下32度。 暴雪導致機場航班取消、道路受阻。愛荷華州還出現民眾等待警察救援時，差點被打滑車輛撞到的驚人一幕。美國國家廣播公司NBC指出，這場暴風雪和低溫，影響當地約1億人。 加拿大東部紐芬蘭省，同樣遭到暴風雪侵襲。大雪狂掃紐芬蘭省首都聖約翰，當地街道到處可見陷入雪中、動彈不得的車輛。 當地居民說：「來這26年了，從來沒有封閉道路過。希望不會再來一次了。」 當地政府已在17號宣布緊急狀態，要求商家停止營業，並禁止車輛上街，警告民眾不要輕易外出。加拿大聯邦政府也派出200名軍人待命，確保災情發生時盡快救援。

title: 新疆規模6.4強震 震源深度僅16公里


taiwan-subdivisions: 蘭嶼 望安 綠島 七美

content_text:
Japan’s Norihiko Dan to design offshore airports

NEW LOOK:The designer of Taoyuan’s renovated Terminal 1 has been tasked with designing new airports in Penghu, Green Island and Orchid Island
Civil Aeronautics Administration Director-General Lin Kuo-hsien speaks at a ceremony yesterday to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the agency’s founding.Photo courtesy of the Civil Aeronautics Administration
The government has again recruited Japanese architect Norihiko Dan to design new airport terminals in four of the nation’s outlying islands, Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) Director General Lin Kuo-hsien (林國顯) said yesterday at a ceremony to mark the agency’s 73rd anniversary.

Dan was in charge of the renovation of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Terminal 1 as well as the design of the Tourism Bureau’s Siangshan Visitors Center in Nantou County’s Sun Moon Lake.

Dan is to design the airport terminals in Penghu County’s Cimei (七美) and Wangan (望安) townships, and Taitung County’s Green Island (綠島) and Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼), Lin said.

This would fulfill the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ (MOTC) policy goal of incorporating aesthetics into the design of public infrastructure, he said.

These terminals would become new tourism gateways showcasing the characteristics of these localities, he said, adding that construction is to begin next year.

Lin also presented progress reports on the upgrading of the nation’s four international airports: Taoyuan airport, Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport), Taichung International Airport and Kaohsiung International Airport.

After 12 years of planning, the CAA has submitted the expropriation plan for land near Taoyuan airport to the Ministry of the Interior (MOI), he said, adding that the key would be for the airport’s third runway construction project to secure the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Committee’s approval in the first quarter of this year.

The MOI has said it would not approve the land expropriation plan without an EIA approval for the runway.

Last week, the EIA committee asked the CAA to provide more supplementary information on the land expropriation plan.

The plan would give the airport access to more than 1,000 hectares, which would cost NT$157.5 billion (US$5.26 billion), he said.

To fund the acquisition, the Civil Aeronautics Administration Operating Fund would be used as collateral to secure a bank loan of about NT$100 billion, he said, adding that the northern part of the land is to be used to construct the third runway.

Should everything proceed smoothly, the CAA would start expropriating the properties from private owners in March, he said.

Songshan airport, as the airport in the capital, should have a bigger capacity to serve more passengers, and the CAA would discuss with the Taipei City Government issues related to noise control and flight schedules, he said.

Taichung airport, which is jointly used by civil carriers and the air force, is important because Mandarin Airlines (華信航空) and other airlines are using it as an operation base, Lin said.

The MOTC had previously stipulated a development plan for Taichung airport that was estimated to cost NT$28.5 billion, and would have been completed in 2035, Lin said.

However, the MOTC and the Executive Yuan have asked the CAA to expand the scale of development and extend the plan to 2040.

“Because the military also wants to quickly hand over its property in the airport’s Yangsi District (陽西), we are working on a new development plan through which the airport can serve up to 10 million passengers annually,” he said.

The relocation of the air force base at Taichung airport would cost more than NT$70 billion.

As for Kaohsiung aiport, the government has hired a US architect to design a new mega-terminal serving domestic and international passengers, with construction costing more than NT$55.3 billion, he said.


title: Mixed reaction to KMT boss’ call for committee overhaul

content_text:
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Acting Chairman Lin Rong-te speaks at a news conference on Wednesday last week.Photo: CNA
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Acting Chairman Lin Rong-te (林榮德) said he would urge all Central Standing Committee (CSC) members older than 60 to step down tomorrow, a call that has received a mixed reaction from other KMT members.

The committee is scheduled to meet tomorrow.

Lin, who turns 61 this year, told the Chinese-language China Times in an interview published on its Web site on Sunday evening that he would be resigning from the committee.

The departure of older members would allow younger KMT members to join the decisionmaking body, the newspaper cited him as saying.

As acting party chairman, he hopes to create a new platform for reforming the KMT, so his replacement could lead the party in exploring its future policies, he said.

Hopefully, KMT mayors, county and city councilors, and legislators would make up 80 to 90 percent of the CSC membership, he said.

Lin became acting chairman on Wednesday last week after former chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) stepped down to take responsibility for the party’s drubbing in the Jan. 11 elections.

A new chairperson and Central Standing Committee are to be elected on March 7.

KMT Acting Secretary-General William Tseng (曾銘宗) yesterday told reporters that he strongly supports Lin’s idea, but the way in which it should be carried out should be “subtler.”

“Hopefully, we would able to reach an agreement with relatively senior committee members who do not have public support, so that they would forgo committee elections in the future,” he said at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.

During tomorrow’s meeting, he also hopes to get a plan passed to establish a reform committee that would consist of the party’s mayors, county commissioners, legislators and councilors, as well as members who can represent the younger generations and academia, he said.

The KMT’s reform plans should cover four key areas: restructuring its decisionmaking body, its cross-strait stance and finances, and recruiting younger members, he said.

The KMT spends more than NT$200 million (US$6.68 million) annually, so it must reduce expenditures and increase its revenue, he said.

Lee Cho-ping (李昭平), who resigned from the CSC last week, agreed with Lin’s proposal to have older members step down.

The party must reform completely and allow its younger members to take on more responsibilities if it is to improve, he said.

However, CSC member Lu Hsueh-chang (呂學樟) said the key to reform should be passion, not age.

KMT regulations state that anyone who is a Central Committee or Central Advisory Committee member can take part in the CSC election, and there is no ban on those older than 60 from running, Lu said.

KMT legislator-at-large nominee Yen Yu-lan (葉毓蘭) said that Lin’s proposal could constitute age discrimination.

The party should include as many people as possible in its reforms, instead of “viewing things in black and white,” she told reporters in Taichung.

Additional reporting by Lin Liang-sheng and Chang Ching-ya

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people: 呂學樟 曾銘宗 葉毓蘭 吳敦義 林榮德


title: Epidemic response command center set up

content_text:
An undated photograph shows a public health notice prepared by the Nantou County Government on the novel coronavirus 2019.Photo courtesy of the Nantou County Government
Taiwan yesterday set up an epidemic response command center to contain the spread of a new coronavirus, which was first discovered in Wuhan, China.

With the novel coronavirus 2019 (2019-nCoV) infection spreading to other Asian nations and many people expected to return from China during the Lunar New Year holiday, the Executive Yuan yesterday afternoon approved a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) plan to establish a level 3 National Health Command Center, CDC Director-General Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) said.

The command center, led by Chou, is to be in charge of holding cross-ministerial discussions to improve preventive measures against “severe pneumonia with novel pathogens” in the nation.

Taiwan currently has 44 million surgical masks and 1.9 million N95 masks, more than enough to meet demand, Chou said.

The CDC urged passengers returning from Wuhan or nearby areas who have a fever, cough or other illnesses, to report to the CDC’s airport quarantine stations regardless of whether they have taken medicine to relieve the symptoms.

People who develop a fever or respiratory symptoms within 14 days after returning from Wuhan or nearby areas should also report it to the CDC’s hotline (1922), wear a surgical mask and seek immediate medical attention.

A new confirmed case of a passenger from Wuhan detected with “severe pneumonia with novel pathogens” was reported on Sunday, CDC Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) said yesterday.

The boy had a fever and diarrhea when he arrived from Wuhan, Chuang said.

He was not exposed to livestock and had not visited the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuham, but his symptoms met the clinical definition for severe pneumonia with novel pathogens that necessitated a mandatory report to the CDC, Chuang said.

The boy tested negative for influenza viruses and also negative for 2019-nCoV in the first test, and he is to undergo a second test for the 2019-nCoV today, he added.

Another case reported on Saturday showed negative results for 2019-nCoV in two tests and was found to be an influenza type A (H3N2) virus infection, he said.

Separately, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said that ministry officials overseeing airports, seaports, airlines and tourism have been asked to be on alert and work closely with the CDC on inspection and quarantine efforts at border controls to prevent the spread of the virus from China.

The Civil Aeronautics Administration on Sunday officially notified Taiwanese airlines, as well as those in China, Hong Kong and Macau offering flights to and from Taiwan, that they should broadcast information onboard about the virus before landing in the nation, the ministry said.

All Taiwanese airlines and five Hong Kong and Macau-based airlines have started airing such information on board, it added.

Shandong Airlines (山東航空) said it would start broadcasting such information on Thursday next week, the ministry said, adding that other Chinese airlines are waiting for the instructions from headquarters on when the broadcast would be available.

For flights arriving from Wuhan, both the jet bridges and flight arrival areas would be sterilized after all cabin crew have disembarked from the plane, the ministry said.

The Tourism Bureau has also informed the Travel Agents’ Association, the Association of Tour Managers and other travel associations that it has issued a “yellow” alert for areas surrounding Wuhan per instructions from the Mainland Affairs Council, meaning that the public should beware of their own safety and reconsider whether the trip is necessary, the ministry said.

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content_text:
England have set the template for how they want to play Test cricket by hitting a big score early that allows them to then dictate the game, captain Joe Root said after his side won the third Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth yesterday.

England scored 499-9 declared after winning the all-important toss at St George’s Park before bowling their hosts out twice to record an innings and 53-run victory.

“I thought it was a brilliant template for us moving forward as a team with big first-innings runs and we really drove the game from that point onwards,” Root said. “It was brilliant start by the openers, and then the [203-run] partnership between Ollie [Pope] and Ben Stokes, who just continued the magnificent form that he has been in from the start of the series.”

“That’s great to see, but to also see another two youngsters in this game really step up to the plate and make massive contribution is exactly what we are after at the moment in our development as a team,” he said. “It fills the whole group with massive confidence.”

Pope, 22, was hailed by Root as “smart,” while 22-year-old spinner Dom Bess, who took five wickets in the first innings, also won plaudits.

“We’ve got a really clear way of how we’re trying to play the game, everyone knows what their role is in the side and it’s about making sure that when you get your opportunity to effect the game, you go and do it,” the skipper said.

“We executed that brilliantly the last two games,” he added, as England head to the final Test in Johannesburg, which starts on Friday, with a 2-1 series lead after also winning in Cape Town.

“By no means are we the finished article, but we are heading in the right direction,” Root said. “We have a group of players who are willing to learn and we are very clear of the direction we want to take. If it continues we will continue to get the results I’m sure.”

Meanwhile, Sout Africa captain Faf du Plessis denied rumors of retirement, saying he would continue to lead the struggling team.

“There are a lot of rumors about retirement,” he said after his side’s seventh defeat in eight Test matches. “I think I have been pretty clear that I have committed myself to Cricket South Africa until the T20 World Cup [in Australia in October and November].”

“Definitely,” he said when asked whether he was under more pressure than at any other time of his career. “I’m not a robot.”

“It’s a tough time, but there’s no running away from it,” he said. “There’s no escape. I’m the leader of the team. It [pressure] comes with the job description. There was a time when it was nice and easy, and everything was going our way as a team. We had a strong team and a high success ratio. Now we are on the bottom side of that wave. We’ve got to go back to the office and work again.”

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title: Root finds right recipe as England take series lead


title: KMT must look inward if it wants to survive

content_text:
Following a fierce campaign battle over the past six or seven months, the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) performance was less than ideal, as it was defeated in the presidential and legislative elections on Jan. 11.

The young generation of party members now have the responsibility to face the concerns of the next generation.

To do so, we must review the party’s political direction and cross-strait policy to determine whether it is capable of aligning itself with public opinion and taking Taiwanese forward.

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) upheld its policy of protecting Taiwan against China while campaigning, but what exactly was the KMT’s discourse?

In the past, young KMT members repeatedly urged the party leadership and KMT Central Standing Committee to review its policy on the “1992 consensus” — the view that there is “one China, with each side having its own interpretation [of what China is],” which has been used by the party as a magical “political talisman.”

The older generation’s only response to these calls was to recall the glory of 1992 cross-strait negotiations and share stories of the situation during the talks.

While the KMT was unwilling to face up to the reality of today’s situation, People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜), when campaigning for president, said that even if the pan-blue camp expressed its opposition to Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula loudly and resolutely, the three-decade old “1992 consensus” is outdated and unworkable.

However, the KMT is holding on hard to the “1992 consensus” as if it were as precious as an ancestral tablet, and has absolutely no intention of discussing whether the position is still legitimate.

The DPP, on the other hand, has been able to gradually conceal its pro-Taiwanese independence party platform and adjust its political position by saying that it is protecting Taiwan against China, while leaning toward the political center by using the national title “Republic of China, Taiwan.”

This raises the question of whether the KMT has the courage to adjust its discourse just as the DPP has done.

The KMT’s position used to be that it was fighting communism, as the Chinese Communist Party’s rule caused hardship for Chinese. Faced with China’s growing national strength and international clout, this is a position that will be difficult to maintain.

As China is the world’s second-largest economy, the KMT’s continued insistence that it will retake the Chinese mainland and unify China is nothing but an unrealistic joke.

It is our obligation to face up to the next generation.

If the KMT really wants to continue to exist over the next 20 or 40 years, it must look inward and try to determine whether the party and its cross-strait policy will be able to develop in step with public opinion.

Allen Tien is chairman of the KMT Youth League.

Translated by Eddy Chang

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content_text:
The crime-fighting app

that caused an Italian

phone-hacking scandal

‘Exodus’ gave access to a smartphone’s microphone, camera, files and encrypted messages, and prosecutors and even a spy agency used it — but eSurv employees allegedly spied on unwitting Italian citizens
After successfully creating a healthcare app for doctors to view medical records, Diego Fasano, an Italian entrepreneur, got some well-timed advice from a police officer friend: Go into the surveillance business, because law enforcement desperately needs technological help.

In 2014, he founded a company that creates surveillance technology, including powerful spyware for police and intelligence agencies, at a time when easy-to-use encrypted chat apps, such as WhatsApp and Signal, were making it possible for criminal suspects to protect telephone calls and data from government scrutiny.

The concept behind the company’s product was simple: With the help of Italy’s telecoms, suspects would be duped into downloading a harmless-seeming app, ostensibly to fix network errors on their smartphones.

The app would also allow Fasano’s company, eSurv, to give law enforcement access to a device’s microphone, camera, stored files and encrypted messages.

Fasano christened the spyware “Exodus.”

“I started to go to all the Italian prosecutors’ offices to sell it,” said Fasano, a 46-year-old with short, dark-brown hair and graying stubble. “The software was good. And within three years, it was used across Italy. In Rome, Naples, Milan.”

Even the country’s foreign intelligence agency, L’Agenzia Informazioni e Sicurezza Esterna, came calling for Exodus’ services, Fasano said.

However, Fasano’s success was short-lived, done in by a technical glitch that alerted investigators that something could be amiss.

They followed a digital trail between Italy and the US before unearthing a stunning discovery.

Authorities found that eSurv employees allegedly used the company’s spyware to illegally hack the smartphones of hundreds of innocent Italians — playing back phone conversations of secretly recorded calls aloud in the office, according to legal documents.

The company also struck a deal with a company with alleged links to the mafia, authorities said.

The discovery prompted a criminal inquiry involving four Italian prosecutors’ offices. Fasano and another eSurv executive, Salvatore Ansani, were charged with fraud, unauthorized access to a computer system, illicit interception and illicit data processing.

Already, the unfolding story of eSurv has renewed questions about the growing use of spyware. It has also brought attention to the largely unregulated companies that develop the spyware technology, which is capable of hacking into a device that nearly everyone carries in a pocket or purse, often storing their most sensitive information.

The demand for such technology has been driven in part by the rise in popularity of encrypted smartphone apps and the reality that it is getting harder for law enforcement to glean evidence without the assistance of Silicon Valley giants, such as Apple, which is at loggerheads with the FBI over access to an iPhone used by an accused terrorist.

In the past few years, spyware developers, such as Israel’s NSO Group and Italy’s Hacking Team, have been criticized for selling their products to repressive governments, which have used the technology to, among other things, track advocates and journalists.

Both companies have said they sell their equipment to law enforcement and intelligence agencies to fight crime and terrorism.

What makes the allegations against eSurv so astounding is that, if true, the company became involved in the spying itself — and did so right in the heart of Europe.

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title: Ronaldo fires Juve clear after Inter held by Lecce

content_text:
Cristiano Ronaldo of Juventus, third right, scores against Parma in their Serie A match at the Allianz Stadium in Torino, Italy, on Sunday.Photo: AP
Cristiano Ronaldo on Sunday struck twice as Juventus beat Parma 2-1 to pull four points clear of Inter at the top of Serie A.

Inter’s title push hit another stumbling block after a 1-1 draw at lowly US Lecce, while Ante Rebic fired city rivals AC Milan to a last-gasp 3-2 win over Udinese.

Ronaldo broke through just before halftime to score in a seventh consecutive league game, then almost set up a second for Aaron Ramsey, but the Wales international rattled the post.

Andreas Cornelius scored with a towering header to get seventh-placed Parma back level 10 minutes after the break, but the visitors hardly had time to celebrate before Ronaldo broke through again after latching onto a Paulo Dybala cross for his 11th goal in seven games to bring his league tally this season to 16.

“It was important that we win tonight,” Ronaldo said. “[SS] Lazio won, Inter drew, so it was important to take advantage. Parma pushed forward in the end, we got a little nervous, but we managed to get the result.”

The eight-time reigning champions have a four-point cushion on Inter, who have won only two of their past six league games and are now also under threat from Lazio, who are just two points behind with a game in hand after hammering UC Sampdoria 5-1 on Saturday.

Antonio Conte’s side had looked set to take maximum points from his hometown team, where he started his career in the 1980s, when Alessandro Bastoni headed the away side in front with 18 minutes remaining, but Marco Mancosu grabbed a precious point for the southerners five minutes later.

“For me there’s always great emotion,” Conte said of his return to Lecce. “Coming back to the Stadio Via del Mare means going back 30, 35 years. I spent my childhood as a ball boy here. There will always be this attachment, but I am a professional and I try to do this job better.”

Lecce — just one point above the relegation zone — were coming off a four-match losing streak, but had held Juventus by the same scoreline back in October last year.

“Congratulations to them, even if conceding this goal leaves a bitter taste in the mouth,” Conte added.

Croatian forward Rebic hit a brace, including the stoppage-time winner against Udinese that snatched a dramatic win that gave troubled AC Milan back-to-back league victories, moving them up to eighth, two points from the UEFA Europa League spots.

Star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic got his first start at the San Siro after scoring the previous weekend at Cagliari.

The 38-year-old Swede did not get to celebrate in front of the home crowd, but he has provided a confidence-boost for the seven-time European champions, who have taken seven points in three matches since his return.

“The arrival of Ibrahimovic has given us even more depth and conviction, which has helped us,” Milan coach Stefano Pioli said.

Former Liverpool and Chelsea attacker Fabio Borini, who left Milan on Tuesday last week, scored his first goal on his debut for new club Hellas Verona in a 1-1 draw at Bologna.

AS Roma bounced back from back-to-back league defeats with a 3-1 win over struggling Genoa that put them back in the top four, three points in front of fifth-placed Atalanta BC ahead of their match against SPAL yesterday.

Cengiz Under opened the scoring after just five minutes and the match looked as good as won a minute before halftime when a cross from Leonardo Spinazzola bounced in off Genoa’s David Biraschi.

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content_text:
The world’s billionaires have doubled in the past decade and are richer than 60 percent of the global population, the UK-based charity Oxfam said yesterday.

It said poor women and girls were at the bottom of the scale, putting in “12.5 billion hours of unpaid care work each and every day,” estimated to be worth at least US$10.8 trillion a year.

Governments are “massively under-taxing” rich individuals and corporations, and underfunding public services, the organization said.

“Our broken economies are lining the pockets of billionaires and big business at the expense of ordinary men and women. No wonder people are starting to question whether billionaires should even exist,” Oxfam India head Amitabh Behar said.

“The gap between rich and poor can’t be resolved without deliberate inequality-busting policies,” Behar said ahead of the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, where he is to represent the international charity.

Oxfam’s annual report on global inequality is traditionally released just before the forum opens in the Swiss Alpine resort, which is scheduled for today.

The new report, Time to Care, has some astonishing statistics.

“The 22 richest men in the world have more wealth than all the women in Africa,” it said.

If the world’s richest 1 percent paid just 0.5 percent extra tax on their wealth for 10 years, it would equal the investment needed to create 117 million new jobs in elderly and child care, education and health, Oxfam said.

Oxfam’s figures are based on data from Forbes magazine and Swiss bank Credit Suisse Group AG’s Global Wealth report, but they are disputed by some economists.

The organization has repeatedly defended its analysis and challenged such accusations, although it says the Global Wealth report suffers from poor quality of data and may even underestimate the scale of wealth disparities.

The numbers show that 2,153 billionaires now have more wealth than the 4.6 billion poorest people on the planet.

Women and girls are burdened in particular because they are most often care givers that keep “the wheels of our economies, businesses and societies moving,” Behar said.

They “often have little time to get an education, earn a decent living or have a say in how our societies are run,” and “are therefore trapped at the bottom of the economy,” he added.

“Across the globe, 42 percent of women cannot get jobs because they are responsible for all the caregiving, compared to just 6 percent of men,” the Oxfam report said.

It estimated that unpaid care work by women added at least US$10.8 trillion a year in value to the world economy — three times more than the tech industry.

“It is important for us to underscore that the hidden engine of the economy that we see is really the unpaid care work of women. And that needs to change,” Behar told Reuters in an interview.

Additional reporting by Reuters and Bloomberg

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title: Billionaires now richer than 4.6bn people: Oxfam


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HK airport passenger total drops, first time since 2009

Pro-democracy protesters stage a sit-in in the arrival hall of Hong Kong International Airport on Aug. 12 last year.Photo: AP
Hong Kong International Airport’s passenger numbers fell for the first time in a decade last year, as months of anti-government protests deterred people from coming to the territory.

The airport handled 71.5 million passengers last year, a decline of 4.2 percent from a record 74.6 million the previous year, the Airport Authority of Hong Kong said in a statement.

That meant Hong Kong slipped behind Shanghai and Guangzhou, which processed 76.1 million and 73.4 million domestic and international passengers respectively.

The government and protesters remain at loggerheads in Hong Kong after more than six months of unrest that has damaged businesses from aviation to retail and hospitality.

The airport was at one point in August paralyzed after demonstrators staged a sit-in and blocked people from traveling.

Hong Kong also saw its dominance in international traffic ebb as numbers climbed 4.3 percent to a record 70.6 million at Incheon, which serves South Korea’s capital, Seoul.

Inbound traffic to Hong Kong plunged 48 percent last year to 35.66 million, the first decline since 2009, the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department said.

Separately, Hong Kong has racked up a 10th year as the world’s least-affordable housing market, highlighting the inequality that has helped fuel months of protests.

The territory topped Vancouver and Sydney as the most unaffordable housing market last year, according to a report yesterday by urban planning policy consultancy Demographia.

Hong Kong’s median property price declined slightly to 20.8 times median household income last year, compared to 20.9 times the year before.

The median multiple dropped in all of the 10 cities except Toronto.

Melbourne remained the fourth-most unaffordable housing market, while Toronto and Auckland climbed to sixth place.

The Demographia study covered 309 metropolitan markets across eight countries as of the third quarter of last year.

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Chiefs, 49ers seal Super Bowl spots

FIFTY-YEAR WAIT ENDS:The Chiefs overcame a 10-point deficit to advance a year after they suffered an agonizing home overtime 37-31 defeat to the New England Patriots
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, front, scores a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans in the American Football Conference Championship game at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Sunday.Photo: AFP
Patrick Mahomes on Sunday ended the Kansas City Chiefs’ 50-year wait for a return to the Super Bowl, while the San Francisco 49ers routed the Green Bay Packers to also advance to the NFL showpiece.

Mahomes helped the Chiefs overturn a 10-point deficit to complete a convincing 35-24 win over the Tennessee Titans to take the American Football Conference Championship at Arrowhead Stadium.

The reigning NFL Most Valuable Player threw for three touchdowns and danced into the end zone for a superb individual score as the Chiefs successfully neutralized the threat posed by Titans running back Derrick Henry.

It is the first time the Chiefs have advanced to the Super Bowl since their victory over the Minnesota Vikings in 1970.

“I’m lucky to be a part of this team with all these guys — it makes my job a lot easier,” said Mahomes, who finished with 294 yards passing and 23 completions.

The win came one year after the Chiefs suffered an agonizing home overtime loss to the New England Patriots at the same stage of the playoffs.

“It’s amazing, to be here to do it at Arrowhead, these people deserve it. We’re not done yet,” Mahomes said. “We’re going to get it.”

Mahomes said the Chiefs — who had fought back from 24-0 down to rout the Houston Texans the previous weekend — had to keep their cool after falling behind early on against the Titans.

“We just stayed with the process. It was like last week, we just stuck with the game plan and knew it was going to work out,” he said.

Henry had few complaints after being restricted to a relatively paltry 69 yards and one touchdown after 19 carries.

“They just had a great game plan, man,” Henry said. “They were coming off the ball, those guys were being physical. They played a great game today on defense and you know their offense, we know the type of offense that is: explosive, can score at any moment. We just came up short. All the credit to them and good luck to them.”

In Santa Clara, California, the 49ers clinched the National Football Conference Championship with a 37-20 rout of the Green Bay Packers that was more one-sided than the scoreline suggested.

Niners running back Raheem Mostert rushed for four touchdowns and 220 yards as the run-oriented San Francisco offense punched hole after hole through a porous Packers defense.

The game was effectively over by halftime after Mostert crossed for three of his four touchdowns in the opening two quarters as San Francisco opened up a 27-0 halftime lead.

“I just woke up like it was any other game,” Mostert said.

“It was just one of those games where once we all got in the groove we were like: ‘Hey, let’s keep it riding, keep it rolling,’ and that’s what we did,” he said.

It was another disappointing outing for Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who once again fell short in his pursuit of a second career Super Bowl title.

Rodgers acknowledged that the defeat had stung as he faces up to the realization that at 36, he might have only a limited number of opportunities to reach the Super Bowl again.

“It’s a little raw right now for sure,” he said. “It definitely hurts [more] than earlier in your career, just because you realize how difficult it is to get to this spot.”

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title: Chiefs, 49ers seal Super Bowl spots


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Nomura Holdings Inc plans to hire dozens of private bankers in Hong Kong and Singapore in a bid to extend its wealth management push from Japan and China to the rest of Asia.

The Tokyo-based firm, which has already outlined aggressive plans for China, aims to grow the assets it manages from those two hubs by five times to US$50 billion by March 2026, said Yuji Hibino, a senior managing director in charge of the business for Asia excluding Japan.

He wants to almost double the number of relationship managers to 100 in three years, from 57 as of last month.

“Asia has bigger potential for future growth compared to Japan,” Hibino said in an interview in Singapore. “We would like to look for more opportunities.”

Japan’s biggest brokerage is chasing the growing ranks of rich Asians to boost its wealth operation, which has dodged the waves of job cuts undertaken to restore profitability at its overseas securities business.

Nomura started hiring for the Asia wealth business last year with 10 net additions, Hibino said.

“We also look at inorganic opportunities,” he said, while adding that the company is not currently in any talks about acquisitions.

Nomura, focused on serving clients worth more than US$20 million, currently manages about US$10 billion in Asia excluding Japan.

The 10 largest firms in Asia each oversee more than US$50 billion, according to data compiled by Asian Private Banker that excludes Chinese firms operating on the mainland.

Hibino’s responsibilities do not extend to Nomura’s new joint venture in China, where it has also started hiring experienced private bankers. It is among a handful of global firms to receive securities licenses as part of the country’s opening up of its financial sector.

Nomura expects to expand headcount at the Chinese venture from about 100 now to 500 by 2023, when it aims to start offering investment banking services.

It is restructuring its retail business at home to concentrate more on high net-worth individuals.

Outside of Japan, its Asia wealth operation is currently concentrated in Hong Kong and Singapore.

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title: Nomura seeks dozens of bankers for Asia wealth drive


title: Samsung names new smartphone unit head

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Samsung names new smartphone unit head

ANNUAL SHAKE-UP:The South Korean giant’s reshuffling of its executive ranks often correlates with how divisions are doing; it left leadership of three key units unchanged
Samsung Electronics Co has appointed Roh Tae-moon the head of its smartphone division, tasking a veteran executive with oversight of the world’s largest mobile devices business.

Roh, who was formerly the unit’s No. 2 executive, was to take over the top job from Koh Dong-jin as of yesterday.

Koh remains head of the South Korean conglomerate’s IT and mobile communications division, but hands the reins of smartphones over to a lieutenant credited with building up the marquee Galaxy line of smartphones and tablets.

Roh, a two-decade veteran of Samsung, is regarded internally as an engineering maven who is meticulous about phone features.

Samsung’s shares yesterday climbed as much as 2.5 percent in Seoul.

The largest maker of mobile phones, displays and memory chips shakes up its executive ranks each year, with the extent of the changes often correlated to how its businesses are doing.

This month, the company reported preliminary earnings that showed operating income declining by about one-third from a year earlier.

“Roh is known to be a person who expanded Samsung’s original design manufacturing policy for low to mid-range smartphones,” CIMB analyst Lee Dohoon said. “Samsung may now gradually follow Apple in focusing on design and developments. Though it’s expanded outsourcing for production, Samsung will keep a tighter rein on quality control to protect its brands.”

The company is likely try to keep expanding its market share in Asia and Europe this year while closest rival, Huawei Technologies Co (華為), is struggling to protect its market share in the wake of sanctions by US President Donald Trump’s administration, Lee added.

Samsung is racing to secure an early lead in 5G wireless smartphones as well as foldables, both of which are to take centerstage during its annual Unpacked event in San Francisco on Feb. 11.

The company’s mainstream flagship device — whose name is rumored to be the Galaxy S20, a change in naming scheme — is also likely to be unveiled at that event.

Its devices accounted for 54 percent of the global 5G smartphone market as of November last year, after it shipped more than 6.7 million Galaxy 5G smartphones last year, the company has said.

Separately, Huawei last week said that it shipped more than 6.9 million 5G phones last year.

Roh was also to assume responsibility for repairing the mobile division’s reputation.

Under Koh’s leadership, Samsung suffered from major quality issues at least twice: In 2016, Samsung killed off the Note 7 for good after models tended to burst into flames, while last year, it also had to delay the Galaxy Fold by several months after review models exhibited issues with displays that were easily peeled off.

Those debacles were widely seen as a result of the company’s rushing phones to market to try and steal a march on Apple Inc and Huawei.

Away from smartphones, the chiefs of three key Samsung divisions — semiconductors, consumer appliances and electronics and IT services — remained the same.

That ensures stability given vice chairman and heir apparent Jay Y. Lee is defending himself in court over graft allegations, raising the possibility of a potential leadership vacuum.

Samsung also promoted several presidents in its latest restructuring, including Cheun Kyung-whoon, who now heads networking.

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US bank JPMorgan Chase & Co said it plans to buy a building in central Paris to house up to 450 staff in coming years, as it relocates some services from London after Britain’s exit from the EU.

The expansion is expected to make the French capital, where it currently has 260 staff, its second-largest base in Europe behind London, which has 10,000 staff, JPMorgan said.

The bank is to initially transfer sales teams, followed by trading staff, depending on the timing of Britain’s full withdrawal from the EU, JPMorgan France chief executive officer Kyril Courboin said.

“Paris is going to be the second pole for our market activities in Europe,” he said. “London will still be number one because we are only transferring euro activities.”

That reflects a wider trend of banks shifting selected activities to euro-zone cities ahead of Brexit, without calling into question London’s dominance as Europe’s premier financial center.

An acceleration in the Brexit process, with Britain now due to leave the EU on Jan. 31 and negotiate a new relationship with the bloc during the rest of this year, had prompted JPMorgan to go ahead with relocation plans, Courboin said, adding that political reforms to labor law and the fiscal environment had encouraged it to favor France.

The building purchase was announced on Sunday as part of the “Choose France” drive, an annual event created by French President Emmanuel Macron.

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title: JPMorgan to buy Paris building for London euro teams


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Minister of Science and Technology Chen Liang-gee, second left, deputy ministers Shieh Dar-bin, left, and Hsu Yu-chin, second right, and Vice Minister Tsou Yu-han pose for a photograph at a news conference at the ministry in Taipei yesterday.Photo: CNA
The Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) plans to set up new semiconductor research centers to boost industrial applications of space technology, quantum computing and artificial intelligence (AI), Minister of Science and Technology Chen Liang-gee (陳良基) said yesterday.

Taiwan’s semiconductor industry last year generated revenues totaling NT$2.6 trillion (US$86.78 billion), and that figure is projected to reach NT$5.2 trillion or even NT$6 trillion in the next decade, he told a news conference in Taipei.

While Taiwan’s semiconductors are world-leading, talent cultivation in the sector should be improved, especially when the nation’s space technology, quantum computing, AI technology, smart medicine and machinery, and autonomous driving technology sectors all rely on better chips, he said.

After promoting the semiconductor “moonshot” program for nearly two years, the ministry is considering establishing new semiconductor research centers across the nation to create clusters of professionals, he said.

However, the government could do more to increase the basic research budget, Chen said.

In 2018, funding for basic research made up 7.3 percent of the nation’s total research and development funding (including that of companies), the lowest ratio since 2009 and lagging behind South Korea, Japan, the US and the Netherlands, ministry data showed.

While the ministry hopes to increase the basic research budget to NT$29.7 billion this year, up from the NT$25.7 billion approved by the legislature last year, it is unlikely to gain the legislature’s support, he said.

The government plans an average of NT$120 billion every year for technological research and development, with 30 to 35 percent going to basic research and nearly 65 percent to applications, he said.

By comparison, the research and development funding of private firms totals NT$450 billion every year, of which only a few percent is used to support academic research, he said, expressing hope that companies would devote more funding to academic research.

Over the past two years, Chen has traveled to several cities in the US and Europe to recruit young academics.

Ministry data yesterday showed that 27 academics previously studying overseas have been recruited by Taiwanese institutions.

A Japanese academic was recruited by a natural science department. The other 26 are Taiwanese, including seven who are joining natural science departments, 10 joining engineering departments, seven joining life sciences departments and two joining humanities departments, ministry data showed.

Chen said he plans to visit Houston, Boston, Chicago and Seattle in late March to recruit talent.

Describing himself as the longest-serving technology minister — Chen assumed office in February 2017 — and the first tech minister to have obtained his doctorate from a local university, Chen said he hopes his experience will encourage more young people to make breakthroughs.

Asked what his next move would be after the new Cabinet members are sworn in on May 20, Chen said that he would prioritize his academic research, especially in the semiconductor field.

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title: Ministry planning chip research centers


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The Thai baht was Asia’s best-performing currency last year, while this year’s winner looks to have been already decided: the Indonesian rupiah.

The currency of Southeast Asia’s most populous nation has rallied for seven straight weeks as the bumper yields offered by local government bonds enticed carry traders and the central bank said it would allow further gains.

Indonesia’s local-currency bonds offer yields of between 5 and 8 percent, an alluring prospect for investors looking to place carry trades, which seek to capitalize on the difference in interest rates between two nations.

If they are brave enough to execute the trades without hedging the currencies, investors stand to reap even greater rewards if the rupiah keeps rising.

MONETARY POLICY

Just as important as the yield allure has been the tolerant attitude of the Indonesian central bank.

Whereas policymakers generally seek to limit currency gains to support exports, Bank Indonesia on Jan. 10 said that it would refrain from limiting the rupiah’s strength as long as it reflected the improving economy and volatility remained manageable.

That is not to say the rupiah is a one-way bet.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo last week said that rapid gains in the currency could hurt exports and undermine efforts to rein in the nation’s current-account deficit.

“If the rupiah appreciates too quickly, we should be cautious,” Widodo said.

A possible hiccup also awaits this week in the form of a central bank policy decision.

While 24 of 27 economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted that Bank Indonesia would leave interest rates on hold, three are forecasting a 25 basis-point cut to 4.75 percent.

An easing, or a hint in that direction, would help restrain further rupiah gains.

CHINA’S YEAR

Meanwhile, Gavekal Capital says that the Year of the Rat, which begins next week, is lining up to be a strong year for the yuan and Chinese government bonds.

Gavekal Capital, a fund manager with about US$1.5 billion of equities and bonds under management, forecast that bonds of the world’s second-largest economy would deliver a 10 percent return this year, given both the strengthening yuan and the relatively high yields.

“Where else in the world can you get 10 percent return on a fairly minimal risk government bond market?” Gavekal Capital chief executive officer Louis-Vincent Gave said in an interview while on a visit to the Norwegian capital, Oslo.

Part of that return would be driven by the strengthening yuan, which is to be stoked by both easing trade tensions and the fallout from the unrest in Hong Kong.

The yuan has appreciated about 4 percent against the US dollar since hitting a low in September last year.

‘PHASE ONE’ DEAL

Part of the “phase one” trade deal signed last week in Washington includes commitments by both nations to avoid competitive currency devaluations.

While the two-page currency chapter was met with skepticism, Gave said that the signals out of China are that it is content with a stronger currency.

As the nation also opens up its US$45 trillion market this year and Hong Kong unrest persists, China would take further steps to promote its financial centers, Gave said.

This year will “be a very strong renminbi [yuan] year,” he said. “With the Chinese not only pushing up the renminbi, but also opening up capital controls at the same time in a bid to promote Shanghai relative to Hong Kong.”

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title: Rupiah set to take baht’s crown as strongest currency


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AI ‘needs to be regulated,’ Alphabet boss Pichai says

BRUSSELS SPEECH:Big tech firms need to be given a say as governments draft AI policies, because ‘we all need to work together,’ Sundar Pichai told an event
Alphabet Inc chief executive officer Sundar Pichai yesterday urged the US and EU to coordinate regulatory approaches on artificial intelligence (AI), calling their alignment “critical.”

In a rare public speech in Brussels at an event hosted by the European economic think tank Bruegel, Pichai, who is also chief executive officer of Google LLC, said “there is no question in my mind that artificial intelligence needs to be regulated,” but that “we don’t have to start from scratch” with entirely new rules in some cases.

Tech giants need to be given a say as governments formulate AI regulatory policy, he said.

“All of us have to do this together,” he said. “I think going it alone won’t work for anyone

The comments came weeks before the EU is set to unveil its plans to legislate the technology, which could include new legally binding requirements for AI developers in “high-risk sectors,” such as healthcare and transport, according to an early draft obtained by Bloomberg.

The new rules could require companies to be transparent about how they build their systems.

Later in the day Pichai was due to meet with EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, who is responsible for more than 8 billion euros (US$8.9 billion) of antitrust fines levied against Google, and oversees the bloc’s digital policies, including the plans to legislate AI, as well as European Commission First Vice President Frans Timmermans, who is spearheading the EU’s fight against climate change.

Alphabet has battled intense regulatory pressure in Europe for years. It is challenging the EU’s multibillion-dollar antitrust fines and has sought to fight off copyright and other forms of platform regulation emanating from Brussels in the past few years.

Pichai cautiously welcomed plans for rules that take “a proportionate approach, balancing potential harms with social opportunities.”

Facial recognition technology and so-called deep fakes — or manipulated audio and video clips — are two areas where AI could be used destructively, and companies have a responsibility “to get this right,” he said.

Google has released open datasets to help researchers build better tools to detect fakes, but has chosen not to offer general-purpose facial recognition application programming interfaces, he said.

Pichai touted the company’s recent developments in AI, including a Google Health algorithm that can spot breast cancer more accurately than doctors and other research for accurately predicting the weather as well as advancements by its self-driving vehicle unit, Waymo.

He said existing rules such as Europe’s privacy legislation, the General Data Protection Regulation, and regulation for medical devices, such as AI-assisted heart monitors, would serve as strong foundations for governing AI in some areas, but governments need to establish regulations covering self-driving vehicles.

Google has come under intense criticism over how it handles users’ privacy with some of its AI projects.

Google faces a US federal inquiry after the Wall Street Journal in November last year reported how it collects the healthcare data from millions of Americans to design new AI software.

It is also facing scrutiny over the methods it uses for training algorithms that run Google Assistant.

Additional reporting by AFP

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title: Oil jumps amid unrest in Iraq, Libya

content_text:
Oil jumps amid unrest in Iraq, Libya

WEEKEND DISRUPTIONS:The double-whammy put focus back on supply risks, with one analyst saying that an escalation in Iraq’s stoppage would hurt more than in Libya
Oil prices yesterday jumped back above US$65 a barrel as supply disruptions in Iraq and Libya reignited concerns over the market’s vulnerability to geopolitical risk in key production regions. Futures rose more than 1.7 percent in London and New York.

Iraq on Sunday temporarily stopped output at an oil field, with supply from a second site threatened as unrest escalates in OPEC’s second-biggest producer.

In Libya, the country’s oil production almost ground to a halt after armed forces shut down a pipeline, halting output from the nation’s biggest field.

The double-whammy of disruptions in two key producers has jolted focus back to supply risks as oil markets continue their dramatic start to the year.

Brent crude has swung in an US$8-a-barrel trading range as initial fears that the US killing of a top Iranian general threatened Middle East exports gave way to confidence that the world had an adequate supply cushion.

“It’s a very nervous time for oil traders at the moment,” said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney, adding that “any escalation, particularly in Iraq,” would be a much more significant risk than the news out of Libya. “We remain on high alert.”

Brent crude added as much as US$1.15, or 1.8 percent, to US$66 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange and traded at US$65.67 as of 2:53pm in Singapore.

West Texas Intermediate futures climbed as much as US$1.19, or 2 percent, to US$59.73 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, before easing to US$59.19.

Libya’s oil production will be limited to 72,000 barrels per day once its storage tanks are full, state-run National Oil Corp (NOC) said, down from more than 1.2 million barrels per day on Saturday.

That is the lowest level since August 2011, data compiled by Bloomberg showed.

The output plunge started when an eastern military commander, General Khalifa Haftar, blocked exports at ports under his control, NOC said on Saturday.

The company declared force majeure, which can allow Libya — home to Africa’s largest-proven oil reserves — to legally suspend delivery contracts.

This is a policy-related disruption,” said Edward Bell, director of commodity research at Dubai-based bank Emirates NBD PJSC. “There could be a pretty quick turnaround if there’s a political solution.”

Separately, security guards in Iraq seeking permanent employment contracts blocked access to the al-Ahdab oil field, prompting a production halt, according to an official who could not be identified.

The Badra field is also at risk of closure.

Oil prices surged earlier this month after Iran retaliated for the US killing of Iraqi general Qassem Soleimani before retreating back to where they were in the middle of last month as the market shrugged off the threat of further disruptions.

OPEC members have spare production capacity after cutting supply to prop up prices, while non-OPEC output is expected to climb this year, adding a buffer to potential outages.

“Prices are likely to remain capped, given the market’s reactive nature to fade geopolitical risk quickly,” AxiTrader Asia-Pacific strategist Stephen Innes said in a note.

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content_text:
Outlook for Fulgent Sun remains positive: Taishin

A SHOO-IN?With higher shipments and better control of operating expenses, the company’s revenue this year is forecast to increase by 15 to 20 percent, Taishin said
The outlook this year for shoemaker Fulgent Sun International Holding Co (鈺齊國際) is expected to remain positive, thanks to product mix optimization, bigger economies of scale and effective cost control, Taishin Securities Investment Advisory Co (台新投顧) said.

The company’s strong growth momentum is likely to continue this quarter after it reported record-high revenue and operating profit in the final quarter of last year, Taishin said in a report.

Fulgent Sun supplies sports shoes and functional outdoor shoes to global brands on a contract basis.

The company on Wednesday last week reported revenue of NT$3.46 billion (US$115.5 million) for the fourth quarter of last year, up 28.42 percent from the same period the previous year.

Operating profit surged by 93.82 percent year-on-year to NT$530.97 million, with gross margin and operating margin improving to 23.5 percent and 15.3 percent respectively, the company said in a statement.

While net profit increased 92.3 percent year-on-year to NT$371.42 million, that was a 8.5 percent quarter-on-quarter decline due to foreign-exchange losses.

“Due to rapid depreciation of the US dollar at the end of the fourth quarter, foreign-exchange losses were as high as NT$67.217 million. Although most of the losses were unrealized, it still shaved about NT$0.39 from earnings per share, resulting in earnings per share of NT$2.14 last quarter, down from NT$2.44 the previous quarter,” the statement said.

For the whole of last year, revenue increased 27.5 percent year-on-year to NT$12.84 billion, operating profit grew 74.6 percent to NT$1.46 billion and net profit advanced 72.2 percent to NT$1.28 billion, or earnings per share of NT$7.81.

Gross margin improved by 1.7 percentage points to 19.7 percent and operating margin rose 3 percentage points to 11.3 percent, the company said.

Fulgent Sun operates three plants in China, two in Vietnam and one in Cambodia, accounting for 34 percent, 42 percent and 24 percent of last year’s production capacity respectively.

As the company continues to add capacity to its facilities outside China, it expects its average tax rate to decline due to a zero rate in Cambodia, Taishin said in the report.

With increased shipments to clients and better control of operating expenses, revenue this year is forecast to increase by 15 to 20 percent year-on-year, while earnings per share are expected to rise to NT$9.52, Taishin said.

Meanwhile, fellow contract shoemaker Feng Tay Enterprises Co (豐泰企業) is this year expected to post an 8.1 percent year-on-year increase in revenue, Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co (元大投顧) said in a client note.

Yuanta attributed the growth to an increase in average selling prices, a better product mix and a bigger sales contribution from basketball shoes, driven by Nike Inc’s robust sales growth as well as the Air Jordan 1.

Feng Tay on Jan. 10 posted revenue of NT$73.94 for last year, up 14.63 percent year-on-year.

Operating profit was NT$8.37 billion and net profit NT$6.24 billion, or earnings per share of NT$8.49, the company said.

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title: Delta Electronics, GKN Automotive to collaborate

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Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) is collaborating with UK-based GKN Automotive Ltd to develop new-generation three-in-one eDrive systems for battery electric and hybrid vehicles, the two companies said in a statement yesterday.

The nation’s biggest power and thermal solutions provider is to provide inverters to be integrated with GKN Automotive’s eMotor and gearbox systems, the statement said.

The collaboration is to focus on the development of two new integrated eDrive families for applications across torque classes for the next generation of hybrid and electric vehicles, it said.

These would cover a large portion of the future eDrive market, which is projected to be worth more than ￡12 billion (US$15.59 billion) by 2030, the firms said, citing a forecast from IHS.

The collaboration would significantly enhance their technical capabilities and accelerate time to market, the statement added.

“The eDrive market continues to accelerate as manufacturers are required to meet increasingly stringent emissions regulations demanding technological progression and speed,” GKN Automotive chief executive officer Liam Butterworth said in the statement.

“Our collaboration with Delta represents a significant milestone in the expansion of our portfolio of scalable, integrated 3-in-1 eDrive solutions and our capabilities in rapidly bringing new cost-competitive technologies to market,” he added.

The companies did not disclose the investment amount, but the Financial Times on Sunday reported that they would invest about ￡100 million annually.

The new 3-in-1 eDrive units would be available within three years in a multitude of vehicle types, from A-segment city cars to D-segment executive sedans and SUVs, supporting a range of torque outputs from 2,000 netwon-meters (Nm) to 3,800 Nm, with nominal power outputs of between 80 kilowatts to 155 kilowatts, the joint statement said.

GKN Automotive had produced more than 1 million eDrive units as of July last year, the statement said.

The company supplies eDrive systems for electric or hybrid vehicles to BMW AG, Mitsubishi Motors Corp, Jaguar Land Rover, PSA Peugeot Citroen, Porsche AG and Volvo Cars Corp, the statement added.

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By Lin Hui-chin
and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writer
An unhealthy diet composed of mostly high-sugar or deep-fried foods could triple the risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a US study has suggested.

“A threefold higher incidence of late AMD was observed among participants with a Western pattern score above, as compared with below, the median,” the study said.

The study, conducted by a research team from the State University of New York, identified “Western” (unhealthy) and “prudent” (healthy) dietary patterns after examining the lifestyles and medical records of 15,000 participants.

A “Western” diet is characterized by more consumption of red meat, deep-fried food, desserts, eggs, refined grains, high-fat dairy products and sweetened beverages, whereas a “prudent” diet is not, it said.

Although no significant associations were observed between either dietary pattern and early AMD, a “Western” pattern could triple the risk of late AMD, it said, adding that balanced nutrition could improve people’s immune systems and reduce the risk of oxidizing reactions caused by retinal inflammation.

Taipei Veterans General Hospital ophthalmologist Chiou Shih-hwa (邱士華) said that 15 percent of Taiwanese over the age of 65 develop AMD, which causes retinal degeneration and irreversible vision loss.

Past research had identified a link between unhealthy diets and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, commonly known as “bad” cholesterol, which causes blood vessel impairment around the eyes, Chiou said.

More research is needed to determine the association between diet and AMD, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital deputy dean Lai Chi-chun (賴旗俊) said, adding that most research links the condition to smoking, genetics, hypertension, aging and exposure to strong light.

The study was published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

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title: Unhealthy dietary habits might raise AMD risk: study


title: Rising inequality eroding trust in capitalism: survey

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Rising income inequality is undermining confidence in capitalism around the world, according to a survey conducted by public relations firm Edelman ahead of the gathering of business and political leaders in Davos, Switzerland.

Among those surveyed in the report published yesterday, 56 percent thought that capitalism was doing more harm than good, despite another year of solid economic growth and near-full employment in many developed nations.

The stark finding could cause a stir among the business executives and political leaders as they make their way to the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.

“We are living in a trust paradox,” said Richard Edelman, the CEO of Edelman, which has been conducting its survey of trust for 20 years.

“Since we began measuring trust, economic growth has fostered rising trust,” he said.

Although that relationship between economic growth and faith in the system remains in developing areas such as the Middle East and Asia, the survey found that rising inequality in many rich countries has contributed to a weakening in trust in capitalism.

“Fears are stifling hope, and long-held assumptions about hard work leading to upward mobility are now invalid,” Edelman said.

Corruption, corporate misbehavior and fake news are eroding trust, he said, as are fears over automation in the workplace, a lack of training, immigration and the gig economy.

The survey showed that 83 percent of employees globally were concerned about their jobs.

Business and non-governmental organizations are the institutions that people most trust to deal with global issues, a blow to governments riven by populist and partisan politics, it showed.

Climate issues are among the most important, and business leaders can no longer brush aside consumer concerns as brands can be quickly tarnished if they are deemed to be unethical, it said.

“There is a growing risk of brands getting sucked in and CEOs have a mandate from customers and employees to act,” Edelman said.

The survey involved 30-minute online interviews in 28 countries from Oct. 19 to Nov. 18 with more than 34,000 people worldwide.

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Foreign direct investment (FDI) approved by the government last year fell from a year earlier, but still hit the fourth-highest level on record because of investments in the local semiconductor and renewable energy sectors, the Investment Commission said yesterday.

Approved FDI was US$11.20 billion, down 2.14 percent year-on-year because of a high comparison base, the commission said.

However, it was the fourth-highest amount since FDI was first recorded in 1953, trailing only US$15.3 billion in 2007, US$13.9 billion in 2006 and US$11.4 billion in 2018.

Despite the year-on-year decrease, the number of approved applications rose 13.73 percent from a year earlier to 4,118, commission data showed.

The biggest approved investment was US$2.12 billion by US chipmaker Micron Technology Inc, while Alphabet Inc, the parent company of search engine giant Google, invested US$835 million in its local operation, the commission said.

With the nation promoting offshore wind power development, Germany’s Yunlin Holding GmbH, Denmark’s Orsted Wind Power TW Holding A/S, Australia’s Macquarie Corporate Holdings Pty and Dutch firm JERA Formosa 2 BV proposed investing a combined US$1.8 billion.

Approved FDI from China was down 57.97 percent year-on-year to US$97.18 million, but the number of applications approved by the commission were up 1.42 percent year-on-year to 143.

Since June 30, 2009, when the government lifted a ban on investment from China, 1,371 applications committing to US$2.28 billion in investment have been approved, the commission said.

Meanwhile, the commission last year approved US$6.85 billion in foreign investment not including China, down 52.07 percent from 2018.

Much of the decline came in investment to non-Asian destinations, especially in holding companies in the Caribbean.

However, outbound investment in nations targeted by the New Southbound Policy rose 16.16 percent year-on-year to US$2.79 billion, largely in Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand and Australia.

The government’s New Southbound Policy promotes exchanges with ASEAN and South Asian nations, as well as Australia and New Zealand, in a bid to reduce Taiwan’s economic reliance on China.

The commission said the increase in investment in those nations was due to caution about the Chinese market amid a trade dispute between Washington and Beijing.

That was also reflected in China-bound investment approved by the commission, which fell 51 percent year-on-year to US$4.17 billion, the fourth consecutive annual decline, the commission’s data showed.

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title: FDI at fourth-highest level on record