content_text:
▲川普日前在白宮橢圓辦公室對全國發表演說。（圖／路透）

記者王致凱／綜合報導

美國總統川普在推特上宣布，將於美東時間下午3時（台灣時間凌晨3時）召開記者會，主題將會是「新冠病毒」。另據彭博社報導，川普將宣布美國進入緊急狀態，以便加速遏止新冠病毒傳播。

彭博社引述兩名知情人士說法，川普計畫在13日援引斯塔福德法案，宣布美國進入緊急狀態，為各州和各市政府提供更多聯邦援助。隨著疫情擴散，全美已經有越來越多州長和市長決定關閉學校，並取消公開活動。

title: 快訊／川普急召開疫情記者會　美媒：宣布進入緊急狀態

countries: 美國 台灣


content_text:
▲奧運聖火點燃儀式。（圖／達志影像／美聯社）

記者楊庭蒝／綜合報導

希臘奧林匹斯赫拉神廟於12日正式點燃2020東京奧運的聖火，準備傳遞聖火繞境希臘，但希臘奧委會（HOC）13日宣布，受新冠肺炎疫情擴大影響，將取消東奧在希臘國內的聖火傳遞活動，但仍會如期在19日交付聖火給日本。

希臘奧林匹克委員會聲明表示，因為聖火傳遞活動引來大批觀禮群眾，所以在與衛生部和國際奧林匹克委員會協商後，做出這項具有深遠意義的決定，因為公共衛生是最終考量的重點，而在困難時期，各方都應採取謹慎、合理的態度。

雖然取消了傳遞儀式，但聖火會如期在19日交給日本，東京奧運會首席執行官藤代敏郎表示，「聖火會在20日抵達日本，傳遞活動則會於26日開始，起點選在福島縣。」

根據《華盛頓郵報》報導，聖火點燃儀式12日在奧運發源地赫拉神廟舉行，由希臘女演員喬吉亞（Xanthi Georgiou）利用凹面鏡匯聚陽光點燃聖火，並傳給第一位聖火接力棒，希臘射擊選手安娜（Anna Korakaki）。同時，安娜也是史上第一位聖火接力跑第一棒的女性。

第二棒則由2004年雅典奧運馬拉松金牌得主、日本選手野口水木接下。野口在跑了200公尺後對在場媒體表示看到聖火點燃的瞬間覺得很興奮。當媒體問及日本疫情時，野口也說，希望疫情可以早日平息，相信東京奧運可以如期舉行，但由於希臘奧委會奧委會的決定，聖火傳遞儀式在第2天就被迫取消。

title: 聖火傳遞活動辦一天就取消　希臘奧委會憂疫情擴大急喊卡

countries: 希臘 日本


countries: 中國 丹麥 泰國 印尼 台灣 英國

content_text:
▲王齊麟、李洋。（圖／CFP）

記者謝孟儒／綜合報導

世界羽聯（BWF）超級1000賽全英公開賽，如期在英國伯明罕登場，3組出賽的男雙組合中，僅有世界第7的王齊麟／李洋晉級8強，交手中國組合黃凱祥／劉成，最終雙方大戰三局，麟洋以2比1（18：21、21：18、21：14）逆轉搶下4強門票。

去年初才合拍的王齊麟／李洋，去年首度攜手挑戰全英公開賽，僅在16強止步，不過一年橫掃4冠後，世界排名也衝上第7，成為目前台灣男雙的最高排名，很有很機會首度挑戰奧運，本次參賽在直落二大馬組合王耀新／張御宇後，晉級8強超越過去最佳。

麟洋也成為本屆唯一晉級8強的台將男雙，接著要交手世界排名第21的黃凱祥／劉成，雙方在去年丹麥公開賽交手，麟洋以直落二收下勝利。本次交手第一局，王齊麟／李洋先馳得點4：1，不過被追至8平後被反超落後，麟洋13：17落後未能趕上，雖化解4個局點，仍以18：21先讓出。

第二局王齊麟／李洋3：1，黃凱祥／劉成再追至一分差距，麟洋12：8領先，卻又被對手追至14平後，麟洋連下3分先搶下局點21：18扳平戰局。到了決勝局，雙方緊咬比數都在一分差，王齊麟／李洋11：8，黃凱祥／劉成再度追近一分差，麟洋回穩拉開分差17：13。

麟洋率先搶下賽末點21：14拿下，花了59分鐘上演逆轉勝，成為第一組搶下4強門票的台將，4強將遭遇世界第一的印尼組合吉地安（Marcus Fernaldi Gideon）／蘇卡穆約（Kevin Sanjaya)和大馬組合蘇偉譯／謝定峰對決後的勝方。

稍晚還有男單周天成和王子維內戰，以及前世界球后戴資穎交手泰國磋楚翁（Pornpawee CHOCHUWONG），力拼4強門票。

title: 全英賽／麟洋三局逆轉中國組合　率先殺進4強有望對決世界第一


title: 奧運門票到手　拳擊4金釵健康擺第一

content_text:
▲中華隊返國全程戴口罩。（圖／記者洪偵源攝）

記者洪偵源／綜合報導

拿到4張東京奧運拳擊門票的中華隊，13日返抵國門，受到新冠肺炎疫情影響，之後難有機會出國移訓，且由於情況嚴重，保持健康也成了奧運女將的重要課題。

陳念琴指導教練柯文明表示，全世界選手狀況都差不多，很難有出國移地訓練或者參加比賽的機會，只能先準備好自己，他也會試著從疫情穩定安全的國家，邀請選手來一同集訓。

中華隊返國時，還發生一段插曲，拿到51公斤級門票的黃筱雯，以及教練團的成員曾自強，因為有咳嗽狀況落地時自主通報，一出關就接受檢疫但無大礙。

教練曾自強與劉宗泰都指出，選手拿到奧運門票後，回國應先自主隔離一段時間，曾自強也計畫帶著選手獨立訓練一段時間，目的都是確保選手們能維持健康狀態出賽。

目前中華隊拿到奧運門票的選手為女子51公斤級的黃筱雯、57公斤級林郁婷、60公斤級吳詩儀以及69公斤級陳念琴，亞大區資格賽落馬的選手，5月在巴黎的世界區資格賽還有一次機會能爭取奧運門票。

▲林郁婷。（圖／記者張克銘攝）


taiwan-subdivisions: 民雄 和平 復興 北門

content_text:
▲中學五人制，民雄農工挑戰四連霸。（圖／翻攝自粉專／Wecango365讚出來）

記者顏如玉／台北報導

中學五人制錦標賽高中男子組於11日展開，經過三天小組賽事後，最終8強名單出爐，包括挑戰四連霸的民雄農工、苗縣興華、中市青年、高市瑞祥、北市和平、花縣花工、南市北門及北市復興。

14日高男組8強賽事，早上8點半就由民雄對上興華，接著9點25青年對上瑞祥，10點20和平對上花工，11點15分北門對上復興。

title: 中學五人制／高男14日進入8強　民雄挑戰4連霸先碰興華


taiwan-subdivisions: 新豐 復興 民雄 北門

title: 中學五人制／球場內外都是學習　新豐沒進8強教頭仍滿意表現

content_text:
▲中學五人制，新豐高中沒能挺進8強。（圖／翻攝自粉專／Wecango365讚出來）

記者顏如玉／台北報導

南市新豐高中在本次的中學五人制錦標賽高男全國賽中，與北市復興、民雄農工「兩強」分在同組，最終無緣挺進8強，不過總教練蔡伯恩已經肯定球員的表現，「他們把自己所學的東西表現出來，挑戰自己，我很滿意。」

台南市有傳統足球強權北門高中，一般來說資質最突出的球員會選擇到該校就讀，而比較第二、三線的潛力球員則會到新豐高中，蔡伯恩坦言，「我們那裡某個層面來講，就是提供球員舞台。」

雖然不是頂級球隊，但參與足球就是一種學習，「球場上怎麼變成更好的球員，球場外怎麼變成更好的人，這些都是球員該學習的事。比賽本來就會受到賽制、球運、表現等影響，所以輸贏總是很難說。」

▲中學五人制，新豐高中教練蔡伯恩。（圖／翻攝自粉專／Wecango365讚出來）

即使如此，球員仍努力挑戰自我，把平常所學應用到場上，新豐在本次錦標賽小組賽中，皆僅以1球之差輸給復興和民農，可見實力逐步提升，「我們的球員畢竟起步比較晚，國中都是用11人的方法在打五人，在穩定度上比較不足，但我覺得內容已經打得不錯，我很滿意這次他們的表現。」

結束錦標賽，接下來新豐要幫助高三球員尋求升學管道，並持續加強一二年級的實力，此外還要到國中端招生，蔡伯恩笑說，「這不就是每個基層教練，每年都在努力做的事嗎。」


countries: 美國 沙烏地阿拉伯 俄羅斯

title: 油價殺得血淋淋！怪…這檔原油ETF逆天了

content_text:
近期國際油價不到1個月時間幾乎腰斬，即使反彈至3字頭，不少投資人仍受傷慘重，但元大S＆P原油正2竟出現市場買盤瘋狂湧入，今日盤中一度飆漲近近4成。分析師提醒，原油中長線走勢仍有疑慮，雖不建議殺低，仍應留意風險管控。

國際油價近日直線下探至4年來新低，國內投資人抱著抄底心態，大量資金搶進石油相關ETF，元大投信申請擴大額度已獲得主管機關核准，元大S＆P原油正2（00672L）進行追加額度2000組（1組500張），引發市場搶購熱潮。

受到利多消息激勵，元大S＆P原油正2周五股價由黑翻紅，從早盤低點3.1元，一路攀高至4.85元幾乎觸頂，終場大漲24%，來到4.36元，成交量放大到100.7萬張，為本周第三大巨量。

摩爾投顧分析師張嘉軒指出，由於油價下跌，投資人受傷慘重，但隨著油價已經跌破頁岩油成本，勢必引起美國和俄羅斯、沙烏地阿拉伯的三方協議，因此原油有反彈機會，但因替代能源終將取而代之，中長線走勢仍有疑慮，他雖不建議此檔ETF殺低，投資人仍應留意風險控管。


title: 哭暈…買台積電暴虧要賣？網看完帳單突破盲腸

content_text:
台股周五劇烈震盪，一度狂殺逾700點，而指標股台積電最低跌到272.5元，有網友秀出買台積電的損益，帳面虧損近40萬，急問是否要賣掉？多數人幾乎一面倒說「不用賣」，更有鄉民樂觀表示，「放著啊 政府會幫你抬轎」。

台股13日盤中一度慘跌786點，殺破9700點，滑落至9636點，跌幅高達7.5%，所幸台積電等權值股震盪走高，大盤指數尾盤猛拉近500點，終場收復1萬點大關，收在10128點，跌293.45點，跌幅2.82%。

台積電股價一度暴跌21.5元（或7.31%），來到272.5元，但低接買盤進場，終場僅小跌4元（或1.36%），收在290元。儘台積電股價有撐，但還是再度成為外資提款機，周五持續賣超3.86萬張，略高於前個交易日3.85萬張，為本周外資賣超張數第二大。

有批踢踢網友表示，當初是200出頭多存的台積電，高點賣又買，賺點小價差，但周五台股暴跌，看到台積電帳面虧損近40萬，真的有點傻眼，急問其他人要賣嗎？

多數網友都認為不用賣，還提出不少正面看法，如「就算看衰台灣經濟也不見得要看壞台積電」、「GG都不相信 那台股還能相信誰」、「放著啊 政府會幫你抬轎」、「台積電根本不用賣 有錢就往下買 以後你會感謝我」、「你賣GG會助長跌勢」。

但也有人給了不一樣的建議，「設定好停損 留得青山在不怕沒柴燒」、「看好台積電可以之後再進場 為何不先出?」、「先認損比較好 趁低點在買進」、「要買要等止跌 可以買 不要亂買」、「我覺得這波有機會250」。


content_text:
因應新冠肺炎蔓延，為提供保戶即時的住院醫療保障，南山人壽宣布，自即日起，現售所有住院醫療保險商品，將以附加批註條款的方式，針對法定傳染病，取消30天等待期，提供保戶更即時的住院醫療保障，響應主管機關放寬因應目前疫情，可採免核准方式，提供縮短或取消等待期商品的新規定。

南山人壽產品發展暨精算功能副總經理陳維新表示，這項新措施是將南山現售的所有住院醫療保險商品，包括「南山人壽新終身醫療保險」、「南山人壽全心守護醫療終身保險」等，共計十七張商品，以「法定傳染病排除等待期間」的批註條款的方式，取消法定傳染病三十日疾病等待期的規定，且保戶毋需額外付費。

陳維新進一步解釋，為服務既有客戶，針對附表商品其契約生效日為今(109)年2月13日(含)至今(109)年3月12日(含)間之客戶，則無須申請即可直接適用前述批註條款，希望可以擴大提供更多保戶，更全面、更即時的住院醫療保障，協助民眾一起安心渡過疫情。

國人面對肺炎疫情，多數會採取積極加強環境防護、提升自我免疫力等方式渡過疫情，但在疫情升溫之際，卻也增加更多難以預期的疾病風險，同時更彰顯出醫療保險商品能夠提供風險防護的重要性。

南山人壽秉持一貫「專業」、「信賴」及「關懷」的服務信念，在保戶需要的時刻，提供即時、超越期待的關懷陪伴與服務。

南山人壽表示，目前所有醫療保險商品都已將法定傳染病列入保障範圍，保戶毋須擔心，倘保戶不幸感染，南山人壽除依約給付醫療保險金外，入住負壓隔離病房期間，會比照加護病房給付標準辦理。此外，在住院期間提供最高5日，上限新台幣5萬元的住院關懷預付保險金服務。

(中時 )

title: 陪保戶安渡疫情難關　南山取消法定傳染病等待期


title: 譚德賽隱匿疫情有「前科」 台灣WHO宣導團曾巧遇譚的同胞抗議

content_text:
台灣加入WHO宣達團成員洪子綾（前右），4年前在聯合國總部萬國宮前廣場的三腳椅前，與團員郭歷軒合照。（洪子綾提供）

2020-03-14 00:01:54

〔記者陳鳳麗／南投報導〕世界衛生組織WHO秘書長譚德賽，遲至前兩天才宣布武漢肺炎為大流行性疾病，被許多人罵翻，台灣加入WHO宣達團曾於4年前在聯合國總部前，即巧遇衣索比亞的抗議隊伍，衣國抗議隊伍主要是抗議譚德賽就任WHO秘書長，因譚在當該國衛生部長時隱匿霍亂疫情，造成許多衣索比亞人民死亡。

台灣加入WHO宣達團多年來都到日內瓦，爭取國際認同台灣加入WHO，該團發言人曾琮愷的妻子洪子綾，前兩天因臉書跳出4年前宣達團在日內瓦活動的歷史紀錄，她說：「譚德賽不只隱匿武漢肺炎，原來4年前隱匿疫情的黑歷史，遭自己國家的同胞組團到WHO抗議，也被我們碰到！」。

洪子綾表示，4年前與曾琮愷等人組成的宣達團到日內瓦，當天宣達團結束遊行抗議活動後，在聯合國總部前廣場的三腳椅下方吃便當。才剛開始吃，就有一群黑人一直前來趕人，要宣達團快離開，因為他們借用該廣場進行抗議的時間到了。

當時很納悶，不知對方要抗議什麼，後來問曾琮愷才知，近300名來自衣索比亞的人，是要抗議該國的前衛生部長譚德賽就任WHO秘書長。

洪子綾說，譚德賽在擔任衣索比亞衛生部長時，3度隱瞞霍亂疫情，造成衣索比亞許多人死亡，讓國人承受極大的痛苦，因此才會在譚德賽高升時，千里迢迢到日內瓦抗議。

events: 武漢肺炎 死亡

countries: 台灣 衣索比亞


content_text:
2020-03-13 23:59:36

［記者謝武雄／桃園報導］武漢肺炎疫情嚴峻，衛生福利部桃園醫院與異業合作，運用互聯網技術開發即時監測系統，讓負壓隔離病房疑似個案配戴智慧式手錶，每15分鐘就會量測心跳、血壓與脈搏並回傳至護理站，此外，隔離病房也配備耳溫槍，讓隔離個案利用手機APP定時回報體溫，不僅個案安心、醫院也能掌控狀況。

桃園醫院今天發表這套系統，院長徐永年表示，這套系統是和華碩電腦、遠傳電信合作開發，適用於居住隔離病房疑似病患進行自主管理，除可減少醫護人員接觸外，也能夠透過遠端系統讓醫護人員隨時掌握狀況。

另遠傳電信也提供新一代行動物聯網（Iot）通訊技術，讓隔離病房的個案也能夠透過手機與護理人員進行聯繫，另持續的生理資訊蒐集，能夠使醫護人員能更精確的觀察疑似個案的健康狀況趨勢，準確規劃照護計畫，透過IoT通訊技術，個案也可在隔離病房內追劇，讓14日隔離期不在那麼漫長。

負壓隔離病房護理長羅美惠表示，個案在負壓隔離病房裡，不僅要面對病情的變化，更擔憂自己健康；同時面對寂寥的隔離病房生活，讓心情也跟著憂鬱，透過這套系統，讓在負壓病房隔離的疑似個案，不因為疫情，而讓醫護同仁忽略對他們的關心。

title: 桃醫開發隔離個案監測系統 智慧手錶+app搞定


content_text:
新竹縣政府表示，獲內政部營建署全額補助6150萬元，辦理竹北市縣政九路雨水下水道工程，預計明年3月完工。圖為去年五月豪雨興隆路淹水照。（新竹縣政府提供）

2020-03-14 00:19:35

［記者廖雪茹／新竹報導］竹北市縣政九路一帶，每逢大雨就容易積水、淹水。新竹縣政府表示，經爭取前瞻基礎建設計畫，獲內政部營建署全額補助6150萬元，自今年起至2021年辦理竹北市縣政九路雨水下水道工程，完工後可望有效改善縣政九路地區及興隆路一段的排水瓶頸。

工務處長林鶴斯表示，竹北市縣政九路雨水下水道工程，施工範圍為縣政九路南段（福興路至興隆路段），穿越六家堤防至頭前溪高灘地，工程內容包括新設2公尺×2公尺箱涵長397.2公尺、穿越興隆路一段與六家堤防設置181.7公尺的鋼筋混凝土管、興隆路現有S幹線設置匯流井1座，六家堤防外高灘地設置排水明渠長119.8公尺等。工程預計2021年3月完工，施工期間，興隆路與縣政九路口施作匯流井工程時，東、西向車道會各限縮為1車道，屆時縣府將派員疏導交通，請駕駛人配合改道分流，減少施工時路口發生壅塞情形。

縣長楊文科表示，因氣候暖化及極端氣候現象容易造成瞬間降下豪大雨的情形，加上都市的更新與擴張、綠地減少，下雨後雨水無法快速滲透到地下排除，導致地面逕流水增加，易造成積、淹水情事的發生，所以雨水下水道排水設施建設是非常重要的工作。目前，新竹縣雨水下水道實施率為73.09%，其中竹北市達90.84%。後續縣府將視各鄉鎮實際需要，積極向中央爭取補助經費，加強雨水下水道建設，以提升縣民的生活品質。

title: 獲補助6150萬 竹北縣政九路南段施作雨水下水道

taiwan-subdivisions: 竹北 新竹縣 福興


title: 「為愛而走」35年！德光中學仁愛健行 捐款、淨灘超有愛

content_text:
2020-03-13 20:40:25

〔記者洪瑞琴／台南報導〕天主教德光中學今天舉辦仁愛健行大步走，全校師生、校友及家長3000人，在校長楊惠娜號召下，及家長會長陳佳賸的授旗儀式後，從學校出發，以健行方式勸募基金，還到黃金海岸淨灘，讓學生們從實際行動中體驗付出愛心，共築社會美好。

簡單而隆重的行前儀式，除了神父祈福，也捐贈善款給社福機構，然後帶著神父的祝福走出校門，值此武漢肺炎嚴峻疫情，室內上課拉到戶外徒步健走，儼如「抗疫之旅」。

德光中學說，從1986年開始，學校每年春天固定舉辦仁愛健行活動，這不只是一個健康活動，師長們帶著學生走進自然，走向健康，已進行了35年，成為德光家族每年春季重要傳統。

德光中學說，健行路程全長約近10公里路，今年增設給水站及空瓶回收站，為學生們加油打氣，終點站到黃金海岸，與志工們合力淨灘，希望教給孩子們「取之於社會、回饋於社會」觀念，付出愛是需要行動的。


title: 獨家》柯文哲指示公開議員索資 挨轟箝制監督權

content_text:
台北市長柯文哲未事先和議會溝通，上月15日在市長室晨會中指示台北市資訊局，議員索資在1年後予以上線公開。（資料照）

2020-03-14 00:25:14

〔記者楊心慧／台北報導〕民意代表為監督政府，會先向相關單位索取資料，以利查證、核對、追查問題，不過，台北市長柯文哲未事先和議會溝通，上月15日在市長室晨會中指示台北市資訊局，議員索資在1年後予以上線公開。記者詢問多名議員，他們備感訝異，表示完全不知此事，痛批柯文哲以公開透明之名，行獨裁之實，大開民主倒車，想藉此箝制議員監督權，讓網軍攻擊議員，根本是皇帝獨裁心態。

台北市政府發言人周台竹證實，柯市長主張公開透明，很多東西都會一步步公開透明化，相關細節雖然尚未出爐，整體大方向會朝公開議員索資的方向走。

黃珊珊：落實資訊公開 個資會遮蔽副市長黃珊珊說，這項政策在她任副市長前，柯市長就已做裁示，當時有議員要求資訊公開，如今只是落實政策，柯文哲原打算第一時間全面公開，但因她當過議員，知道公開可能會干擾議員問政，因此建議1年後再公開，且不公開協調會資料，有個資也必須要遮蔽。

對此，各黨團總召說，市府未曾與黨團溝通。民進黨團總召張茂楠說，「索資」是民意代表追查可能弊端的過程，是人民賦予民意代表的責任與義務，市府試圖讓民意代表卻步，甚至可能導致議員因而遭受攻擊與壓力，是不良善、不符合公益的做法。

國民黨議員吳世正認為，柯文哲想公開索資的目的，是想讓網軍攻擊議員，利用輿論箝制民意機關，讓議員不敢索資監督，此舉恐將讓行政權凌駕立法權，民代監督行政機關是民主憲政基礎，柯文哲破壞三權分立，從沒聽過有哪個政府如此不尊重民代監督，利用行政權壓制議員的立法權應用，根本就是皇帝的獨裁心態，讓民主倒退！

民進黨議員簡舒培說，公開索資將嚴重侵害議員質詢權，每位議員索資的方式不同，公開會導致議員長期關心的案件被其他議員收割，關係到議員權益，市府卻未與議員溝通，十分誇張；她認為，市府若要公開，應優先公開市府官員中曾任議員者的索資。

社會民主黨議員苗博雅說，雖支持北市府公開透明的目標，但公開索資可能干擾議員追查弊案，就像檢察官辦案也不會公布追查進度，以避免打草驚蛇；有時議員索資裡會有陳情對象的個資，市府要先想好如何保障民眾個資，議員會索資就是因為這些資料沒有公布，市府若覺得議員索資很煩，可考慮公布公文，這樣議員索資也會少很多。

時代力量議員林穎孟說，公開索資會讓有關單位知悉議員正在追查，恐怕會湮滅證據，市府若要公開須有配套措施，否則將對議員監督權造成衝擊。

知情人士透露，柯文哲去年12月要求各局處統計每位議員的索資，包含議員關心的局處、索資次數等，市府將會以因應數位化、無紙化趨勢，讓議員索資問政更便利為由，建立平台，未來議員索資，市府不再給紙本資料，而是透過線上系統查看，但真正目的是在「公開議員索資」。

而今年2月15日當天，市長已指示資訊局需在6月15日完成索資e化上線，索資保密期限1年，並要求秘書處研訂資訊公開相關事項，也就是說，先將議員索資上網登錄，1年後就會公布索資資料。

台北市議會國民黨團總召應曉薇指出，並未聽聞此事，但柯市長對議員存在太多不信任，像柯文哲之前弄「違章建築爭議處理委員會」，並指議員都在喬違建，她認為，成立委員會公開透明很好，但為何要把議員污名化？北市府應要讓台北市議會議事組知道公開索資，畢竟有些資料有個資問題（如標案資料等）無法公開，需有配套才能做。

台北市議會議長陳錦祥說，盼市府多與議員溝通，尊重議員的意見再執行。

黃珊珊說，將在開議後向議員一一說明，如果議員覺得不行，市府也可以改1年半或是兩年後再公開，一定會和議員充分溝通，從中找到平衡點讓資訊可以透明。

political-parties: 社會民主黨 時代力量

people: 柯文哲 黃珊珊 張茂楠 應曉薇 吳世正 陳錦祥


title: Pandemic hastens slump in memorychip market

content_text:
The global memorychip market is facing a slump earlier than expected, as COVID-19 spreads across the US, Europe and the Middle East, Taipei-based market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said in a report yesterday.

While pointing to an apparent slowdown in China of the coronavirus outbreak, which is now considered a pandemic by the WHO, the global economy remains at a great risk, as the disease increasingly multiplies in other parts of the world, it said.

The rapid proliferation of the pandemic is expected to heavily affect economic and social activities, and subsequently hinder consumer purchasing power, casting a pall over market demand, the report said.

Falling demand for consumer and enterprise electronic devices, such as PCs and smartphones, would inevitably be followed by declining demand for DRAM and NAND flash chips, it said.

Smartphone production is expected to be the hardest hit, with the researcher projecting a 3.5 percent to 7.5 percent decline on an annual basis in smartphone production this year.

Demand for other memory applications, such as servers, is expected to remain relatively stable, with production increasing by 3.1 to 5.1 percent year-on-year, as companies and schools shift to activities online through teleworking and distance learning, TrendForce said.

It added that this demand might be offset by an increasingly cautious approach in spending by enterprise clients.

The average selling prices of DRAM and NAND flash products are expected to continue their upward trend next quarter, with sequential increases of 5 to 10 percent as customer inventory levels remain low, the researcher said.

The real challenge is expected to emerge in the third quarter, as waning consumer demand affects electronics device makers’ efforts to reduce inventories, which would in turn stall procurement of memory products, it said.

As a result, any growth in memory product demand would be curbed, even reversed, TrendForce said.

NAND flash prices are expected to nosedive in the second half of the year, TrendForce said, predicting a 5 to 15 percent plunge in the fourth quarter in a bear-case scenario.

The DRAM market, on the other hand, is unlikely to suffer such a sharp decline due to a pre-existing heavy imbalance between supply and demand, it said, adding that prices would remain flat in a worst-case scenario.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
‘A gift for my country’: Bonifazio of Italy wins fifth stage of Paris-Nice

Niccolo Bonifazio called his victory in the fifth stage of the Paris-Nice race “a little gift for my country,” with Italy plunged into a nationwide lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Powering toward the line, Bonifazio managed to overtake Slovenia’s Jan Tratnik, part of a group of riders who broke away from the peloton soon after the start of the 227km stage, the longest in this year’s race.

Ivan Garcia Cortina of Spain placed second, followed by Slovakia’s Peter Sagan in third.

Italian rider Niccolo Bonifazio of Team Total Direct Energie celebrates winning the fifth stage of the Paris-Nice, 227km from Gannat to La-Cote-Saint-Andre, France, on Thursday.
 Photo: EPA-EFE

“It’s a little gift for my country that is going through difficult times,” said Bonifazio, who lives in Liguria on the Italian Riviera. “My family has to stay at home. They can’t leave.”

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has announced unprecedented measures limiting travel and banning public gatherings across the country in a desperate bid to halt the spread of the coronavirus.

“We’re living day by day,” said Trek-Segafredo rider Vincenzo Nibali, a four-time Grand Tour champion.

“We’re obviously thinking about it,” added Giacomo Nizzolo, winner of Monday’s second stage. “It’s difficult not to, but for the moment, it’s good to be able to compete in a big race like Paris-Nice. We’ll see what we’ll be able to do after this.”

Maximilian Schachmann of Germany retains the leader’s yellow jersey with three days to go in a race that has survived widespread cancelations of major sporting events caused by the pandemic.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text: Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: EDITORIAL CARTOON


title: Tigerair Taiwan posts NT$808 million net profit

content_text:
Tigerair Taiwan Ltd’s (台灣虎航) board of directors yesterday approved a proposal to distribute a cash dividend of NT$3 per share after the company reported a NT$808 million (US$26.75 million) net profit for last year, down 17 percent from a year earlier.

The cash dividend, if approved by shareholders on June 30, suggests a dividend yield of 10.3 percent based on its stock’s closing share price of NT$28.97 yesterday in Taipei trading. That represents a payout ratio of 74 percent based on the airline’s earnings per share of NT$4.04, corporate data showed.

The total cash dividend distribution would be NT$600 million, the budget carrier subsidiary of China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) said in a filing with the Taipei Exchange.

That would be Tigerair Taiwan’s first cash dividend distribution, as the company debuted its shares on the exchange’s Emerging Stock Board in December last year.

The nation’s two major airliners CAL and EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) have not yet announced a cash dividend.

Tigerair Taiwan’s whole-year revenue grew 8.41 percent from a year earlier to NT$9.51 billion, while its net profit declined 17 percent annually from NT$982 million, as it had to pay 20 percent in income tax last year after finally eliminating its accumulated losses, it said.

The carrier’s profit momentum is expected to slow this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as its operations from Taiwan to Northeast Asia have accounted for 79 percent of its revenue in recent years, an analyst said.

The company’s board of directors also approved to pay bonuses totaling NT$10.27 million to its employees, it said in another filing.

The board also appointed CAL director Chen Han-ming (陳漢銘) as its new chairman from yesterday after former chairman Chang Ho-jo (張鴻鐘) resigned on Thursday, it said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
TRANSPORT

TRA hiring healthcare staff

The Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) yesterday said it is seeking to recruit people with healthcare training to assist with its epidemic prevention efforts amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency plans to install 32 infrared temperature sensing devices at 20 train stations by the end of this month and is looking to hire 84 people, it said. The job is open to Republic of China citizens aged 18 or older who pass a standard physical and mental health examination conducted by a hospital, and are verified as not having any contagious disease, a TRA recruitment notice said. Applicants can call the TRA epidemic prevention hotline on or before Friday next week to apply. Successful applicants are to be paid based on the minimum hourly wage of NT$158, the notice said.

LABOR

Program to help part-timers

The Ministry of Labor on Thursday said that it is developing an employment assistance program for part-time workers, many of whom have been affected by the pandemic. The program would match underemployed workers with part-time government jobs that involve no more than 72 hours of work per month, Workforce Development Agency Deputy Director-General Shih Chen-yang (施貞仰) said. It would assist people earning less than the monthly minimum wage of NT$23,800, many of whom are on flexible employment contracts and have been working fewer hours because of the outbreak’s effect on the economy, Shih said. The offer of up to 72 contracted hours in the proposed program reflects the average number of hours part-time employees usually work, she said.

HEALTH

Legislature mulls video calls

If two or more legislators are confirmed to have contracted COVID-19, the Legislative Yuan would use videoconferencing for its sessions, Legislative Yuan Secretary-General Lin Chih-chia (林志嘉) said on Monday. The legislature is making preparations for the worst-case scenario should the outbreak result in legislators or other personnel at the legislature being quarantined, Lin said. If there is one confirmed case of a legislator contracting the virus, those who have had contact with the lawmaker would be required to undergo self-monitoring of their health. In such a scenario, some meetings at the Legislative Yuan would be halted, Lin said. If there are two or more confirmed cases, all meeting rooms would no longer be used and sessions would be held using a virtual format, including videoconferencing, he said. In that scenario, legislators would be asked to attend video conferences using laptops assigned to them.

CULTURE

Taichung restaurant to close

Franky Wu (吳傳治), founder of Taichung’s Banana New Paradise, has announced that the restaurant is to cease operations after 30 years, as the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced business to only 10 to 20 percent of normal weekdays and 30 percent on weekends. Banana New Paradise is a themed restaurant that pays homage to 1960s Taiwan with displays of more than 20,000 cultural items. The restaurant is hosting a phonograph exhibition that is to run until Mother’s Day on May 10 and operations would end after that, Wu said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: Virus Outbreak: Taiwan News Quick Take


content_text:
New way forward for KMT?

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) was elected party chairman on Saturday last week. In the past, Chinese presidents — in their capacity as chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) — would send a congratulatory telegram to a newly elected KMT counterpart. Not this time.

Chiang simply said that whether he received a congratulatory telegram from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) would not affect his push for reform, and that his election could add some new ideas not only to Taiwanese society, but also to the Chinese side.

Chiang should continue in this spirit to completely discard the KMT’s “pro-China” label, and to resolve the boycott by the party’s cross-strait “comprador” faction.

If he succeeds in doing this, given the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) burden of incumbency, the human nature of liking the new, and the possibility of a “pendulum effect,” it would not be impossible for the KMT to regain power in the 2024 presidential election.

Xi’s decision to not send a congratulatory telegram actually allows the KMT chairman to enjoy greater mainstream support, and thus greater room to maneuver.

The policy presentation of the KMT chairmanship by-election is still fresh in people’s minds: Chiang argued that the so-called “1992 consensus” is “a bit outdated,” and that young people do not necessarily recognize the consensus.

He then proposed that the KMT respect Taiwan’s democracy, and try to obtain the public’s authorization before making any adjustment to cross-strait relations. Well said.

The “1992 consensus” has never included “each side having its own interpretation,” something Xi made clear at the beginning of the year. Fortunately the KMT membership elected Chiang as their new chairman, who spoke his mind frankly and without making any “unwise” remarks after being elected.

This is different from the party’s older generation who always curry favor and seek rewards from Beijing, deceiving themselves by upholding the idea of “one China, with each side having its own interpretation” in hopes of scoring political gains.

They are no longer able to fool the public and should step down.

Liu Fu-hua

Taoyuan

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: [ LETTER ]

people: 習近平 江啟臣


content_text:
‘BLACK FRIDAY’:
 Students — emboldened by Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement — have mobilized against Prayuth’s military junta-aligned government

Hundreds of pro-democracy protesters yesterday marched to the Thai National Assembly in Bangkok, wearing black T-shirts to mourn the state of Thailand under an army-aligned government, in the first street protest in several years.

Discontent is seething against the government of Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, a former head of the army, with a progressive opposition party disbanded and the country’s economy faltering as the COVID-19 crisis batters the key tourism industry.

Protesters have met inside university campuses in the past several weeks, but are now edging back onto the streets of the capital, which has played host to rival — and often deadly — rounds of street politics over the past 14 years.

Pro-democracy protesters march toward the Thai National Assembly in Bangkok yesterday.
 Photo: Reuters

Thailand voted Prayuth’s conservative government into power in March last year.

It was the first election since a 2014 coup and held under an army-scripted constitution that critics have said gave Prayuth an unfair advantage.

The boisterous but peaceful “Black Friday” rally, calling for the government to quit, was the latest reflection of his unpopularity.

“Our families are grassroots people and we’re directly affected by government policy and the failing economy,” 22-year-old student leader Thip Ubsorn said.

Thailand’s pro-democracy movements — usually led by students — have often ended in bloody crackdowns by the military.

The powerful military has carried out 12 successful coups in nearly 90 years and remains lodged in the nation’s politics.

However, now students — organized on social media and also emboldened by Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protest movement — are slowly mobilizing once again.

“We’re not scared, we’re a new generation,” one 27-year-old post-graduate student who called herself “B.K.” told reporters. “We’re wearing black to mourn the death of the rule of law, justice and democracy in our country.”

The Thai Constitutional Court last month disbanded the Future Forward Party, a movement popular among millennials, which won more than 6 million votes in last year’s polls. Its stridently anti-military agenda rattled the conservative establishment.

However, the party’s abolition and a ban from politics for its executives, including front man Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, have enraged a public weary of rule by former generals and big business affiliates.

Thailand has one of Asia’s highest income disparities. The effects of the coronavirus outbreak are expected to hammer back growth to less than 2 percent this year.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: Protesters take to streets in Bangkok


content_text:
Ministry of Economic Affairs to help manufacturers with supply shortages

The Ministry of Economic Affairs is to assist companies in traditional manufacturing sectors cope with raw material shortages amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) said yesterday.

“While the current effects are still limited ... some of our local manufacturers may soon run low on [raw materials],” Shen told reporters after a meeting with manufacturing industry representatives, pointing to recent supply chain disruptions across China, where production was suspended last month and January due to the outbreak.

Encompassing most of the secondary sector of Taiwan’s economy, traditional industries — such as food processing, pharmaceuticals, textile, petrochemicals, glass and cement — produce essentials used in housing, dining, clothing and healthcare.

Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin, center, yesterday speaks at the ministry in Taipei after convening a meeting with domestic manufacturing representatives about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on local industries.
 Photo: Huang Pei-chun, Taipei Times

The combined output value of companies in these industries is estimated at NT$5.4 trillion (US$178.75 billion) a year, ministry data show.

The ministry would help accelerate inspections for faster raw materials imports, Shen said.

“Now it’s a question of speed... it [imports and exports] must be quicker,” he said, adding that the nation’s food supply remains stable.

Local manufacturers have also asked the government to loosen regulations on employee working hours, Shen said.

Meanwhile, businesses are raising fears over a potential credit crunch, he said.

Those fears are far from unfounded as a recent drop in crude oil prices sent shock waves across global markets.

Markets from the US to Europe, which have seen a surge in COVID-19 cases, on Thursday experienced one of the greatest declines in decades.

Shen said that “the drop in oil prices should relieve some of the burden [on domestic demand],” but added that high volatility in US and European markets would affect global demand, which needs to be “closely observed.”

In other news, the ministry yesterday said it approved the applications of seven small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in a government plan aimed at stimulating investments in the nation.

The following companies, specializing in plastic recycling, metal components and machinery equipment, are combined to invest more than NT$3.8 billion to expand domestic production: Young Iee Environmental Technology Co Ltd (永溢環保), Jenn Lih Machinery Manufacturing Corp (震勵機械), Fu Lung Aluminum Technology Ltd (福隆鋁業), Long Tai Copper Corp (隴鈦銅器), Sheng-Hsin Machine Industry Co Ltd (勝新機械), Lee Dan Electronic Technology Co Ltd (利電電機) and Gus Technology Co Ltd (格斯科技).

The ministry has to date approved applications from 169 companies seeking to invest a total of NT$78.4 billion as part of the plan.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
Taiwan won a crucial victory this week when Johns Hopkins University reverted to using “Taiwan” on the Web-based dashboard it created to track COVID-19 outbreaks around the world.

The nation’s appellation on the map had been changed on Monday to “Taipei and environs” to align with the WHO’s naming conventions “to achieve consistency in reporting,” the university said, but after a protest from Taipei, it decided to follow the US Department of State’s naming conventions.

Names matter, and the need for such clarity has been made painfully obvious in recent weeks as country after country lumped Taiwan in with China as they imposed travel restrictions on people and flights coming from outbreak-afflicted areas.

It is not just an issue of sovereignty, it is about disease prevention and accurate reporting.

Taiwan’s success so far in combating COVID-19, despite its lack of WHO membership, has been making headlines worldwide, as the virus takes hold in more places. From wire agency reports to British dailies the Guardian and the Independent, the Wall Street Journal, Japanese newspapers, al-Jazeera, Der Spiegel and JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, to name a few, the stories have focused on what an NBC News headline on Tuesday summed up as: “What Taiwan can teach the world on fighting the coronavirus.”

This kind of coverage is invaluable, giving Taiwan a brand-name image for pro-active management, government transparency, harnessing of big data and technology, and a quality health insurance system — as well as its separateness from China. It has done more for Taiwan’s national identity than years of — and millions of New Taiwan dollars spent on — public relations campaigns by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Tourism Bureau and other agencies.

Such coverage is important for another reason, as the Guardian quoted National Taiwan University College of Public Health dean Chan Chang-chuan (詹長權) as saying: “What we learned from SARS was that we need to be very skeptical with data from China. We learned very harsh lessons then and that experience is something other countries don’t have.”

Unfortunately, with the exception of Singapore and Hong Kong, too many nations and the leadership of the WHO forgot something that has been clear for decades: Numbers and statistics from China, be they on agricultural harvests, manufacturing activity, bank loans and financials, or public health issues, cannot be taken at face value.

Even more crucially, the WHO’s obsequious acceptance of China’s statements about what and when it knew about the emergence of the novel coronavirus, and its unctuous praise of Beijing’s response to the Wuhan outbreak now appear to verge on professional malpractice, as stories emerge that Beijing withheld the COVID-19 genome sequence from the WHO for 14 days and that the first person to have contracted the virus did so on Nov. 17 in Hubei Province.

Ensuring a factual timeline about the emergence of a new virus is crucial for epidemiologists trying to track its spread and for scientists trying to develop treatments and vaccines. It is also important because the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other officials are promoting the idea that the virus did not originate in Wuhan or even China, and that it might, as ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian (趙立堅) tweeted on Thursday, have been brought to Wuhan by the US Army, or as his colleague Geng Shuang (耿爽) told a press briefing the same day, have been bioengineered by the US.

The world cannot pretend that such garbage is intended for domestic consumption to ameliorate growing Chinese public outrage at their leaders’ handling of the outbreak. Zhao and Geng are propagandists trying to distort and hide the truth — just as the Chinese government has done so many times before, be it the Tiananmen Massacre, SARS or earthquake casualties, and Beijing cannot be allowed to get away with it.

There is a very good reason Taiwanese government officials continue to refer to COVID-19 as the “Wuhan virus”: It is the truth.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: EDITORIAL: A tale of two nations — and the WHO


content_text:
Virus Outbreak: People are making covers for masks to prolong their use

People are making covers for masks to prolong their lifespan as lines to buy them have become an unwanted routine amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Handmade cotton covers are becoming popular as people seek to resolve the problem of a supply shortage. The practice has prompted civic groups, schools and prisoners with sewing skills to make the accessories or give courses on how to make them with scraps of leftover cloth.

Students in the Department of Fashion Styling and Design at Yu Da University of Science and Technology in Miaoli County made mask covers for charity for elderly people who live alone in remote areas of the county.

Members of the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families’ Yunlin County branch on Tuesday insert masks into covers made by inmates at Yunlin prison.
 Photo copied by Huang Shu-li, Taipei Times

There are no pharmacies linked to the National Health Insurance (NHI) system to sell rationed masks in some remote villages, so residents, many of whom are elderly, have to travel to other towns to buy them, Yu Da University president Leo Huang (黃榮鵬) said on Tuesday.

Some even have to ride a bicycle for more than 10km to buy just three masks, he said.

After hearing about the situation, teachers and students with sewing skills initiated the campaign, Huang said.

Due to high demand amid the pandemic, the government has been requisitioning masks produced in the country and rationing them after supplying hospitals and healthcare workers.

Under the rationing system, which began on Feb. 6, anyone can buy disposable surgical masks on Sundays at designated drugstores and pharmacies by presenting their NHI card, while on the other days of the week, sales are staggered based on the last digit of their national ID number. Purchases are limited to three masks every seven days.

Mask cover making has also been taken up by groups who care for underprivileged people, including in Taichung and Hsinchu County, and in prisons that offer sewing classes.

Minister of Justice Tsai Ching-hsiang (蔡清祥) on Feb. 26 said that several prisons are making covers.

This allow inmates to acquire sewing skills and also helps ease mask demand, Tsai said.

Taichung City Councilor Chiu Su-chen (邱素貞) said that sewing mask covers is not a challenge, as she is fond of needlework.

“Such covers can prolong a mask’s lifespan, but they have to be washed every day,” Chiu said.

Covers should be washed daily and masks used under them changed every two to three days, particularly when the weather is hot, medical experts said.

People should wear surgical masks without a cover in hospitals or places where the risk of virus transmission is high, such as crowded and confined spaces, they said.

Hospitals ask visitors to discard their masks after leaving, given the risk that the virus could spread through airborne droplets on them.

Taiwan Adventist Hospital physician Su Chih-sheng (蘇志盛) said mask covers are a “nice” alternative for people on public transport or those who are in a confined space for a short period, but they are definitely not for medical personnel and people who have symptoms.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

people: 邱素貞 蔡清祥


title: Officials call for calm as markets shake

content_text:
MARKET RESILIENCE:
 Although the stock market has fallen nearly 11 percent in the past two weeks, it fared better than the US, where the Dow fell more than 26 percent

Finance officials yesterday called on investors to remain calm, saying that the National Financial Stabilization Fund would intervene to shore up local shares when necessary.

The request came 45 minutes before the stock market opened, after Wall Street experienced its worst slump since 1987, as business interruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic escalate around the world.

“The stabilization fund can convene extraordinary meetings and unleash capital to support the local bourse when necessary,” Minister of Finance Su Jain-rong (蘇建榮) told a news conference after the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 10 percent on Thursday.

The fund, with NT$500 billion (US$16.55 billion) capital ready to deploy, has activated six times to mitigate massive shocks from abroad and at home that threatened to throw the market into disarray, Su said.

Things have not yet grown out of control, the minister said, adding that COVID-19 infections in Taiwan are quite low and the TAIEX has been relatively resilient, thanks to proactive response measures and healthy economic fundamentals.

The stock market shed 10.82 percent in the past two weeks, milder than a 26.88 percent drop on the Dow, a 29.26 percent retreat in British shares and 32 percent corrections in German and French shares, Su said.

The US and Europe are struggling to tackle the virus’ spread, which appears to have plateaued in Asia, where the number of new infections has significantly declined in China, South Korea and Japan, he said.

Taiwan took quick measures to contain the virus and ease the adverse effects on companies and individuals, the minister said, citing the NT$60 billion relief program and incentives to facilitate capital repatriation and trade rerouting for companies based in China.

The ongoing market rout has made local shares cheaper and more attractive, in light of their generous dividends and low price-to-earnings ratios, lower than stocks in the region and globally, Su said.

Taiwanese exports logged a 25 percent increase last month, while South Korea, China, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan all slipped into contraction, the minister said.

The nation would continue to benefit from order transfers and supply chain realignment resulting from US-China trade tensions and more recently, a slow resumption of work in China owing to COVID-19, Su said.

That outbreak has also affected Taiwan’s economy, but the effects are expected to be temporary and limited to the first half of this year, economists have said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


people: 王定宇 習近平 吳斯懷

content_text:
Wu Sz-huai request for ‘classified’ data unnerves legislators

STAY IN YOUR LANE:
 One DPP lawmaker said that while Wu is a former general, he should focus on the issues concerning his legislative committee

Several lawmakers yesterday expressed concerns about Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wu Sz-huai (吳斯懷) requesting information from the Ministry of National Defense for information — which reportedly included highly classified materials on military units.

Wu, a retired lieutenant general, previously sparked controversy when he reportedly attended an event in China commemorating the 150th birthday of Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) in 2016, when he sat through a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and stood for a rendition of the Chinese national anthem.

The ministry on Thursday confirmed that Wu had requested information, with local media quoting a ranking officer as saying that the requests included materials on cyberdefense units at the new Information and Electronic Warfare Command and troop deployments for all three major branches of the armed forces, as well as updates on combined service units and military operations plans.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wu Sz-huai uses his smartphone at a KMT caucus meeting in Taipei yesterday.
 Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇), who serves on the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, said that while Wu is a retired officer, he sits on the legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee, so he should focus on the tasks and issues concerning that panel.

“In addition to requesting information on cyberdefense units, Wu also inquired about the indigenous submarine development program. His actions are worrying and his motives are certainly questionable,” Wang said on Facebook yesterday.

The pro-independence Taiwan Statebuilding Party issued a statement condemning Wu.

“With the global Wuhan virus outbreak, China has stepped up its misinformation campaign, but Wu has not said a word. Now he wants to access classified information on Taiwan’s cyberwarfare units. We have to ask, is Wu collaborating with China from inside the legislature?” the party said.

While Wu’s requests are within the authority of a legislator, the doubts of the Taiwanese public must first be cleared up, Taiwan Statebuilding Party Legislator Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟) said, asking Wu: “Which side are you on? For whom do you fight?”

“Taiwanese know who we are fighting … that the enemy is China,” he added.

However, several KMT members defended Wu, saying that requesting information from government agencies is within the scope and authority of legislators.

As veteran, it is reasonable for him to request white papers and other reports from the ministry, Wu said, adding that contrary to media reports, he only requested public information, not “classified military materials.”

In a short statement, the ministry said that it had provided Wu with publicly available information, adding that lawmakers are authorized to make such requests in accordance with the legislature’s oversight role.

Additional reporting by CNA

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
TAIEX dips below 10,000, recovers by end of trading

UNEASY INVESTORS:
 Market turnover exceeded NT$300 billion, the highest in a year, and a 77 percent increase on the average turnover last month

The TAIEX yesterday dipped below 10,000 points during intraday trading, as investors worried that escalating COVID-19 infections worldwide could upset the global economy following a 10 percent slump on Wall Street overnight, analysts said.

Stock prices fell 331.29 points, or 3.17 percent, and lost about 780 points in the early trading session, the steepest intraday decline ever.

Prices rebounded slowly to close down 293.45 points, or 2.82 percent, at 10,128.87 points, Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) data showed.

Turnover swelled to NT$302.182 billion (US$10 billion), the highest in more than a year and a 77 percent increase on the average turnover of NT$170 billion last month, it showed.

Foreign institutional investors cut their net holdings by NT$30.23 billion, with the New Taiwan dollar falling NT$0.06 to NT$30.21 against the US dollar in Taipei trading.

The TAIEX joined a sell-off across Asian stock markets, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index falling 1.14 percent, the Shanghai Composite Index dropping 1.23 percent, South Korea’s KOSPI slipping 3.43 percent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 declining 6.08 percent, the data showed.

“That could be attributed to the bearish US equity market, with many investors terrified after seeing the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Thursday plummet 2,000 points, the most severe crash since 1987,” Hua Nan Securities Investment Management Co (華南投顧) chairman David Chu (儲祥生) said by telephone yesterday.

The TAIEX was comparatively calm on Tuesday, the day after the US equity market triggered a break that gave traders and investors a 15-minute pause in trading, Chu said.

However, with the WHO declaring COVID-19 a pandemic, US president Donald Trump’s stimulus plan failing and his announcing travel restrictions from Europe to the US, investors became more nervous, Chu said.

The TAIEX gained some ground later, possibly supported by purchases by government funds, Chu said, adding that the eight state-owned banks bought a net NT$4 billion of local shares.

“Selling pressure from foreign institutional investors has eased, compared with the net NT$54.56 billion they sold on Monday, so the TAIEX is expected to stage a recovery next week,” Xincheng International Investment Consultant (信誠環球投顧) analyst Chang Chih-cheng (張志誠) said.

“However, the rally might not be large, as investors’ concern would not be effectively mitigated until the worldwide spread of the virus is contained,” Chang said.

Although the government says that the TAIEX would remain attractive as many companies delivered dividend yields higher than 4 percent, investors are not likely to remain invested just for the cash dividends, Chang said.

“The virus has disrupted global supply chains and would affect local companies’ profitability in the first half of this year, which is the main concern for investors here,” Chang said.


title: Asian central banks tackle market rout

content_text:
‘MORE AGGRESSIVE’ EASING:
 Policymakers in Asia-Pacific injected funds into the market, but more action might be needed to curtail the ‘crisis of confidence and fear’

Asian central banks yesterday moved aggressively to counter market upset, pumping liquidity into the financial system and discussing emergency action to fight the global economy’s biggest threat since the financial crisis.

The Bank of Korea is considering a special meeting to tackle wild swings in the foreign-exchange market, and Japan offered to provide as much as ￥2.2 trillion (US$20.78 billion) of liquidity in three different operations.

India pledged to use reserves to prop up its currency, which hit a record low yesterday, while China signaled a cut in its reserve ratio.

A Thai investor yesterday monitors an indicator board showing mainly red signs of falling share price data at a stock brokerage in Bangkok. The Stock Exchange of Thailand main index fell 10 percent during the opening trade session.
 Photo: EPA-EFE

Yesterday’s market sell-off follows Wall Street’s worst day since 1987, as investors worry the global economy is plunging into recession.

Policymakers in Asia-Pacific have been acting for weeks to counter the economic blow from the coronavirus outbreak, but are now being pushed to do even more.

“Asian central banks will have to be more aggressive in easing policy and cutting interest rates,” Maybank Kim Eng Research Pte senior economist Chua Hak Bin said. “Conventional monetary policy may not be effective under this crisis of confidence and fear.”

Asian stocks later pared some of yesterday’s early losses, while US futures pushed higher.

Global equities are still heading for their worst week since 2008 after the US benchmark index fell 9.5 percent on Thursday.

Chua said that Asian central banks should coordinate action and unveil a program of buying exchange-traded funds to curb an indiscriminate sell-off across markets and “put a floor to this senseless panic.”

The Bank of Japan agreed to an emergency meeting with the finance ministry and regulators as officials try to calm markets with bond buying.

Australia’s central bank injected A$8.8 billion (US$5.53 billion) in its open-market operations, the most in at least seven years.

Indonesia’s central bank bought 6 trillion rupiah (US$407.18 million) of government bonds to prop up financial markets, adding to 8 trillion rupiah of bonds purchased on Thursday.

China has held its full fire as the increase in domestic virus cases slows, but now is preparing to inject more cash into the world’s second-biggest economy.

The central bank is expected to nudge bank lending by lowering reserve requirements in the days ahead, and a blitz of data on Monday is expected to show how much more stimulus might be needed.

A Reserve Bank of India official on Thursday said that it would tap a record US$481 billion in foreign reserves to keep the rupee stable, while also pursuing long-term repurchase operations and other liquidity tools.

Global central bank action in recent weeks has done little to calm market jitters as the virus fanned out and started to dent economies across Europe and in the US.

The US Federal Reserve and Bank of England surprised with emergency rate cuts, while the European Central Bank on Thursday pledged asset purchases and looser lending requirements.

“During this run-up, there seems to be almost a sense that aspirations of coordinated policies — by design or inadvertently — end up looking like competitive policies,” Mizuho Bank Ltd economics and strategy head Vishnu Varathan said. “Those things are not going to be helpful for the shape of the recovery.”

Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines are scheduled to hold interest rate decisions on Thursday, hours after the US Federal Reserve announces what is widely expected to be another cut to its benchmark interest rate.

Fiscal stimulus is also accelerating as confirmed cases of the virus surge globally. Governments have so far pledged more than US$130 billion in spending, tax breaks and other measures.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
Virus Outbreak: Experts advise regular disinfection of living spaces
By Wang Chun-chung and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer

Keeping living spaces clean and sanitary is an important part of preventing the spread of COVID-19 alongside diligent hand washing and using sanitizer, Taichung Veterans General Hospital physician Chen Po-yan (陳伯彥) said on Monday.

SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is spread through respiratory droplets or through contact with a contaminated surface, Chen said.

Due to the risk of infection through contact with surfaces, hand washing immediately after the removal of outdoor clothing and footwear is important to avoid the risk of spreading the virus in the home, he said.

Bottles of 75 percent ethanol solution manufactured by Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corp are displayed at its factory in Changhua County on Tuesday. After use, the glass bottles can be returned to some shops and convenience stores for a NT$2 refund.
 Photo: Liu Hsiao-hsin, Taipei Times

People are advised to maintain good personal hygiene, and avoid sharing dishes and utensils, as well as regularly cleaning and sanitizing shared areas of the home, he said.

A 75 percent alcohol solution or chlorine solution can sanitize surfaces and kill SARS-CoV-2, but these materials are ineffective against noroviruses and enteroviruses, he said.

Therefore, bleach should be used to clean surfaces, he said, adding that it is especially important to sanitize surfaces that are frequently touched, such as doorknobs, toilet handles and faucets.

A 75 percent alcohol solution renders SARS-CoV-2 cells inactive, Tainan Municipal An-Nan Hospital physician Chen Hung-yu (陳泓毓) said.

However, because bleach and other chlorine solutions contain hypochlorous acid — which destroys protein structures — they can inhibit the virus’ activity, Chen Hung-yu said.

Alcohol-based sanitizers are generally more convenient to carry outside — particularly as they evaporate quickly — and so are best used for sanitizing hands and smaller items, he said.

However, soap and warm water should be used to clean blood or other body fluids from the skin, as alcohol solution is not as effective, he said.

Bleach is best for disinfecting rooms, with a ratio of 500 parts per million (ppm) sufficient for most surfaces, he said, adding that 5,000ppm could be used on particularly dirty surfaces or where blood was present.

Food-grade chlorine (sodium hypochlorite) can disinfect fresh produce, but the ratio should not exceed 100ppm and the chlorine should be washed away before consumption, he said.

Chlorine solutions should be used within 24 hours after mixing, and should be kept away from direct sunlight and high heat, he said.

As bleach and other chlorine solutions can cause skin and respiratory system reactions, contact should be kept to a minimum and avoided entirely for people with allergies, Chen Hung-yu said, adding that the solutions should be applied with a cloth, not sprayed.

People can fight viruses by supporting their immune system through proper sleep, adequate exercise and a balanced diet, he said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


title: Former TRA employees impeached over accident

content_text:
HELD RESPONSIBLE:
 The three former employees were found to have been negligent, in particular the oversight of the Puyuma Express ATP safety system

Former Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) director-general Jason Lu (鹿潔身) and two of his former subordinates have been impeached by the Control Yuan over their negligence that resulted in Puyuma Express No. 6432 derailing on Oct. 21, 2018, while approaching a bend near Suao Township’s (蘇澳) Sinma Station (新馬) in Yilan County.

The accident killed 18 people and left more than 200 injured.

The government watchdog on Tuesday passed a motion to impeach Lu, former TRA Locomotive Department deputy head Liu Tsan-huang (柳燦煌) and former TRA Central Dispatch Center head Wu Jung-chin (吳榮欽).

The Control Yuan found the three former employees negligent in their roles overseeing safety at the TRA, in particular the Puyuma Express safety system, which ultimately led to the tragedy.

The derailment was a combination of a number of factors, including the TRA’s poor management of its train drivers, the disconnection of the central dispatch and remote monitoring system from the Puyuma Express automatic train protection (ATP) system, and various other technical malfunctions, Control Yuan member Lee Yueh-der (李月德) said.

Lu had failed to improve the TRA’s decades-long poor train safety management system during his tenure and also failed to adequately supervise his subordinates, the Control Yuan said.

Liu and Wu were also held responsible as they had approved the delivery of the Puyuma Express trains from the Japanese manufacturer and put them into service without realizing that the ATP system, which prevents it from speeding, was not connected to the TRA’s remote monitoring system, it said.

The absence of the link meant that the central dispatch center had no way of monitoring the train driver and therefore the TRA was unaware that the ATP had been disabled by driver Yu Chen-chung (尤振仲) at the time of the accident, leading to the train speeding prior to its derailment.

The ruling has been sent to the Judicial Yuan’s Public Functionary Disciplinary Sanction Commission, which is to decide on the punishments that should be imposed on the former employees, the Control Yuan said.

Yu, Liu and Wu were in June last year indicted on negligent manslaughter charges by the Yilan District Prosecutors’ Office.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
Virus Outbreak: Recovered patients exceed new cases in South Korea

South Korea — once grappling with the largest coronavirus outbreak outside of China — yesterday saw the number of newly recovered patients exceed fresh infections for the first time as it reported the lowest number of new cases in three weeks.

The country confirmed 110 new infections, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, taking its total to 7,979.

However, 177 fully recovered patients were released on Thursday, it added.

An exhausted medical worker wearing a hazardous materials suit rests on a chair at a hospital in Changwon, South Korea, yesterday.
 Photo: EPA-EFE / Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service

South Korea has an advanced medical system widely available to all and has embarked on a huge coronavirus testing drive.

Its stock market was yesterday caught up in global economic concerns over the pandemic, with trading briefly halted on the Korea Exchange for six minutes after the opening when the benchmark KOSPI fell 126.43 points, or 6.8 percent, to 1707.90.

It was the second consecutive day that trading had been halted on the main bourse.

To curb speculative trading, the South Korean Financial Services Commission announced a six-month ban on the short selling of shares on the KOSPI and KOSDAQ.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in called for “unprecedented measures” to help the world’s 12th-largest economy cope with the outbreak, describing it as “an emergency economic situation.”

The number of new cases in Daegu, the southern city at the epicenter of the country’s outbreak, had declined “dramatically,” along with those in neighboring North Gyeongsang Province, officials said.

Nearly 90 percent of South Korea’s cases have been in the two regions.

However, South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, who is leading the response in Daegu, said that the government “should not be complacent even a bit.”

“The battle against the coronavirus has now become a global fight going far beyond Daegu,” he said.

Each morning, the government announces how many cases were diagnosed the previous day, and figures have this week been significantly less than the 500 to 600 increases the country was confirming early this month, raising hopes that the outbreak is being brought under control.

The 110 new cases announced yesterday were the lowest figure since Feb. 21.

One more person had died, the agency said, bringing the death toll to 67.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
BE PREPARED:
 Pregnant women should take advantage of 10 free prenatal tests, as well as care services, to better manage their health and weight, the agency said

By Wu Liang-yi, Dennis Xie and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writers

About 20 percent of women aged between 25 and 34 are overweight or obese, and the number rises to nearly 30 percent for women aged 35 to 39, the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) said, adding that pregnant women who are overweight have a higher risk of having babies significantly larger than average.

If a woman’s weight is below the advised level during pregnancy, the risk of the baby suffering malnutrition increases 53 percent and that of a preterm birth by 70 percent.

If the woman’s weight is above the level, it increases the risk of fetal macrosomia by 85 percent, research published in JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association showed.

An additional 5kg to 9kg of weight is ideal for women with a pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) of more than 30, the HPA said.

An additional 11.5kg to 16kg is recommended for women with a pre-pregnancy BMI of between 18.5 and 24.9, while an additional 12.5kg to 18kg is recommended for women with a pre-pregnancy BMI lower than 18.5, the HPA said

Losing weight is not recommended during pregnancy, it said.

Pregnant women should take advantage of their 10 free prenatal tests, as well as government-run care services, to better manage their health and weight, it added.

In related news, the HPA said that Taiwanese women are having their first child at an average age of 30.9 years, two years older than a decade ago.

The number of women giving birth aged 35 or over has increased 2.5 times compared with a decade ago, it said.

It said 35 is considered advanced maternal age and the risks of stillbirth, premature birth, miscarriage, infertility, hypertension and gestational diabetes increase significantly, the HPA said.

As a mother’s age increases, the likelihood that the child might be born with a low weight, have abnormal chromosomes or other congenital defects also increases, it said.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that the risk of a woman giving birth to a child with Down syndrome increases with the mother’s age, the HPA said.

The risk of a woman aged 35 to 39 giving birth to a child with Down syndrome is increased by 4.3 times, the HPA said, while for a woman aged 40 or above the risk is increased 13.6 times.

The risks are the same for other chromosomal abnormalities, such as Patau syndrome or Edwards syndrome, it said, calling for women of advanced maternal age to undergo prenatal genetic diagnosis.

Women aged 34 and above, those who can prove they have given birth to a child with chromosomal abnormalities, those whose child is at risk of hereditary disease or those who have a condition that could cause the child to have a congenital defect are eligible to apply to the HPA for genetic diagnosis test subsidies, it said.

Pregnant women should undergo amniocentesis at a hospital and fill out an application form to be entitled to NT$5,000 in subsidies which would be deducted from hospital expenses not covered by the National Health Insurance program.

Women aged 34 years and above comprised 62.4 percent of all applicants of such subsidies in 2018, with 3 percent of fetuses diagnosed with having an abnormality, the HPA said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: HPA warns on pregnancy weight


content_text:
Virus Outbreak: COVID-19 has hit industries, forcing unpaid leave: poll

The spread of COVID-19 has hit industries in Taiwan, leading some companies to enforce unpaid leave, cut down on work hours or even lay off staff, a survey by online recruitment agency 104 Job Bank showed on Thursday.

The survey focused on the virus’ effect on the job market, with multiple responses available for each question.

It showed that 84.3 percent of respondents reported an unaffected work schedule, 5.6 percent said their company had encouraged unpaid leave and 5 percent reported suspension of recruitment despite job vacancies at their company.

Two point four percent reported reduced work hours, 2.4 percent said their work had become part-time and 2.3 percent said staff had been laid off, the survey showed.

Asked about workplace concerns amid the pandemic, 20 percent said catching the virus at work, 22 percent said unpaid leave, 16 percent said layoffs and 14.8 percent said having to take on multiple tasks due to insufficient workers, it showed.

Recruitment appears to be lively, 104 Job Bank vice president Chung Wen-hsiung (鍾文雄) said, adding that as of this month, unfilled job positions on its Web site were 659,000, with a record 34,000 employers looking for staff.

While recruitment is a “long battle” for businesses, the pandemic has not reduced openings for people seeking to change jobs after the Lunar New Year and those who are soon to graduate, Chung said.

The information and communications technology, software and semiconductor industries have a consistent demand for employees, with vacancies up about 5 percent from the same period last year, he said.

The entertainment, transportation, travel and hospitality, and catering industries have been hit harder by the outbreak than the high-tech sector, he said.

Regulations say that corporations must negotiate with labor representatives before reducing work hours and the legal minimum wage of NT$23,800 per month must be paid, he said.

People on unpaid leave can attend training courses provided by their company and get a subsidy of up to NT$18,960 for participating, he said, adding it is also a good time for people to enhance foreign-language proficiency or learn other skills, which can help when changing jobs or negotiating raises.

The survey collected 1,081 valid samples nationwide via online questionnaires from Tuesday to Saturday last week and has a margin of error of 2.98 percentage points.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
Bitcoin drops 32 percent, shows no signs of slowing

Bitcoin is proving to be no haven asset amid the current global market meltdown.

The price of the largest digital currency yesterday continued to swing wildly in Asia as a rout that began in earnest overnight in New York showed no signs of slowing down.

Bitcoin dropped as much as 32 percent to US$3,915, its weakest since March last year, before clawing back most of that loss by midday in Hong Kong, consolidated pricing compiled by Bloomberg showed. Its drop of as much as 50 percent over the past two days is among the biggest ever.

A small toy figure stands on representations of the virtual currency bitcoin in a picture illustration taken yesterday.
 Photo: Reuters

Bitcoin was down 7.8 percent to US$5,280 as of 12:25pm in Hong Kong.

The wider Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index tracking a basket of digital assets hit a historic low in data going back to August 2017, sliding as much as 49 percent over the two sessions. Rival token Ether briefly flipped positive to reverse an earlier 30 percent loss, while XRP pared declines.

“This sell-off has caused cascading margin calls with the vast majority of investors shifting to exposure to cash,” said Wayne Trench, chief executive of digital asset brokerage and exchange operator OSL. “In this situation, correlation converges to 1 and even impacts potential ‘safe havens’ like gold and bitcoin to varying extents.”

Global markets have been rocked in recent weeks by an escalating number of macro headwinds from the intensifying coronavirus outbreak to a shock plunge in oil prices.

US President Donald Trump’s address to the nation on Wednesday, which included curbs on most travel to Europe and unspecified relief spending, spurred further selling in equity markets around the world with the S&P 500 on Thursday sinking the most since 1987.

“What do you want, cash or bitcoin?” Axicorp chief Asia market strategist Stephen Innes said. “Obviously, I want cash.”

Bitcoin is now down about 50 percent from its most recent high last month. The crypto had been on the upswing this year to that point, as investors looked ahead to the so-called “halvening” — a scheduled reduction in the bitcoin mining rate designed to combat price inflation.

“Traders are pulling money out of bitcoin to fund their margin calls on other asset classes,” said Ross Middleton, chief financial officer at crypto exchange DeversiFi. “Perhaps they think that there will be better short-term opportunities to go long other asset classes in the near future.”

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


title: SPORTS BRIEFS

content_text:
CHINA SUPER LEAGUE

Tianjin saved at 11th hour

Debt-riddled Chinese Super League club Tianjin Tianhai were saved yesterday at the 11th hour after a new investor stepped in. A string of lower-league Chinese soccer teams have folded in the past few weeks, and Tianjin were set to become the biggest casualty of what the media have called a “bleak winter.” Tianjin — who were available for free, but are reportedly saddled with vast debt — said in a statement that Beijing-based property developer Vantone Holdings had come to the rescue.

CHINA SUPER LEAGUE

Wuhan side to return home

Wuhan Zall, the soccer team from the epicenter of the coronavirus, are to leave their training camp in the south of Spain to return to China, with their coach saying that they are more at risk in Europe than in their home city. “The problem right now is here, in China it has been practically eradicated,” Wuhan Zall coach Jose Gonzalez told Spain’s EFE news agency on Thursday. The team traveled to Cadiz in the region of Andalusia for a pre-season tour on Jan. 29 and remained there as the spread of the virus became more severe and the start of the Chinese Super League was postponed.

DAVIS CUP

Spain draw Russia, Ecuador

Defending champions Spain are to play Russia and Ecuador in the Davis Cup in November, after the draw was made in London on Thursday. Spain won the first edition of the reformed tournament in Madrid four months ago, when Rafael Nadal powered them to victory with a 2-0 win in the final against Canada. It is to be the second Davis Cup finals in Madrid after last year’s change of format, which spread the tournament of four three-day ties across 10 months. Twelve teams are to compete in the finals at the Caja Magica from Nov. 23 to 29.

ALL ENGLAND OPEN

Lin Dan advances in thriller

Six-time badminton champion Lin Dan on Thursday staved off two match points as he won his first-round match at the All England Open. In what could be the 36-year-old Chinese star’s last All England, the double Olympic gold medalist and five-time world champion defeated Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn, a player half his age, 13-21, 22-20, 21-10 in just over one hour in Birmingham. Lin next faces a familiar foe in Chen Long, the reigning Olympic champion and himself a two-time All England winner, who beat India’s Kidambi Srikanth 21-15, 21-16 in the first round.

ATHLETICS

Javelin champion dies at 97

Dana Zatopkova, the 1952 Olympic javelin champion and wife of four-time Olympic champion Emil Zatopek, died yesterday at the age of 97, the Czech Olympic Committee said. “Czech sport has lost one of its greatest personalities,” the committee said in a statement. Besides the gold from the Helsinki Olympics, Zatopkova won the Olympic silver in Rome in 1960. In 1958, she set the world record of 55.73m at the age of 35. She became the European champion in 1954 and 1958. Zatopkova, who was born on Sept. 19, 1922, shared the same birthday with her husband, Emil Zatopek, the 1948 Olympic running champion over 10,000m, who went on to win the 5000m and 10000m races and the marathon at the Helsinki games in 1952. Emil Zatopek died in 2000.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
YesHealth Group’s Chairman Acquitted of all Wrongful Accusations

Taoyuan, Taiwan, March 14th, 2020 — After almost two years of wrongful accusations against YesHealth Group’s Chairman, Winston Tsai, last month, the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office (THPO) has unanimously ruled that all accusations are to be withdrawn with immediate effect.

In 2018, Mr. Tsai was wrongfully accused of fraud. Subsequently, local newspapers and tabloid magazines published about aforementioned wrongful accusations.

In December 2019, the THPO ruled that the accusations made by the accusing party against Mr. Tsai were wrongful and no prosecution shall commence. The accusing party’s application for reconsideration of the ruling was promptly rejected in February 2020.

“We have always been confident and transparent with all of our business partners and associates about this matter because at the end of the day, we knew we had the most important thing in our corner – the truth”, Mr. Tsai said shortly after the announcement was made. “At YesHealth Group, our actions are guided by honesty and integrity. Therefore, I am very pleased that the truth has prevailed”, he concluded.

YesHealth Group is a mission-driven company that aims to provide fresh, nutritious, and safe vegetables to the world. YesHealth Group is currently the largest vertical farming company in Asia with plans to expand globally. Its vertical farms address climate change and food security challenges through sustainable and environmentally friendly agricultural practices built for the 21st century and beyond. (Advertorial)


content_text:
‘MUTE WHO’:
 The world body has not spoken about what course COVID-19 might take, despite its many experts and plenty of documentation, Chen Shih-chung said

China and the WHO are in the best positions to predict how the COVID-19 pandemic will develop, but most people do not trust Beijing and the WHO remains muted, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said yesterday in response to queries by a foreign delegate.

During the Central Epidemic Command Center’s (CECC) daily news conference, Chen, who heads the center, shared a discussion he had with foreign representatives in Taiwan during a meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that morning.

He briefed them on Taiwan’s quarantine policy and next-stage border control measures, Chen said, adding that they expressed respect for the policies the nation had implemented.

One foreign representative asked him when the global outbreak might peak, but he told them that he could not make a forecast, Chen said.

“While we can see certain changes and trends, a definite end is not in view,” he said.

Only two parties can make such a prediction — China and the WHO, he said.

China has reported the world’s most confirmed cases and knows the most about how the disease arose, but its statements are not trusted by most people, Chen said.

The WHO can also make a judgement, yet it remains muted on the issue, despite having many health experts and a lot of documentation, he said.

His remarks about China and the WHO found agreement among the representatives, he said.

While Taiwan is not in a position to predict the disease’s future, the government would prepare as well as it could with a worst-case scenario in mind, he said.

Although Chen did not name any Chinese or WHO members at the news conference, Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁), an epidemiologist by training, on Wednesday criticized WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and on Thursday said that the world health body’s declaration of COVID-19 as a pandemic was “too late.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement yesterday said that the delegates were from nearly 60 foreign countries and international organizations, and the meeting was attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) and other officials.

Invited by Wu to conduct the briefing, Chen Shih-chung spoke about Taiwan’s border quarantine measures and travel warning standards, and said that the measures would be constantly updated according to the global situation, the statement said.

They lauded Taiwan’s effective and proactive action in containing the disease, its complete and flexible complementary measures, and its willingness to help those in need and share its successes with the world, the ministry said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: Virus Outbreak: Minister points finger at China

people: 吳釗燮 陳時中 陳建仁


content_text:
MILD SYMPTOMS:
 The prime minister’s office said he was in good health, but would remain in isolation with his wife, who fell sick after returning from a trip to the UK

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, has tested positive for COVID-19, his office said on Thursday, while assuring the public that the nation’s leader is fine.

The couple on Thursday announce that they were self-isolating while she was tested for coronavirus after a public event.

“Sophie Gregoire Trudeau was tested for COVID-19 today. The test came back positive,” the office said in a statement, adding that she would remain in isolation and her symptoms were mild.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, leave Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Sept. 11 last year.
 Photo: Reuters

“The prime minister is in good health with no symptoms,” the statement said, adding that he would also be in isolation for two weeks and — on the advice of his doctors — would not be tested for the virus.

It follows several provinces in Canada, which so far has reported nearly 150 cases in six states and one death, unveiling stricter measures to combat the spread of the virus, while sporting events and entertainment galas were canceled.

The prime minister would continue his duties and he would address the country today, his office said.

Justin Trudeau, 48, held several meetings over the phone on Thursday, including with the special Cabinet committee on COVID-19, and also spoke with the leaders of Italy, the US and Britain, his office said.

He was to talk with indigenous leaders yesterday, as well as provincial and territorial premiers, to coordinate Canada’s response to the virus and “limit the economic impact on the country,” the office said.

After experiencing some mild symptoms following her return from the UK, according to an earlier statement, Gregoire-Trudeau immediately sought medical advice and testing.

“Although I’m experiencing uncomfortable symptoms of the virus, I will be back on my feet soon,” she said in a message via the office. “Being in quarantine at home is nothing compared to other Canadian families who might be going through this and for those facing more serious health concerns.”

Most of Canada’s cases have been traced to China, Iran, Italy or Egypt, but seven people who recently returned from the US also tested positive, public health authorities said.

In parliament, Canadian Minister of Health Patty Hajdu urged people to “reconsider going to areas where there are a large number of people, which might include places like churches, community centers, concerts and various sporting events.”

Quebec Premier Francois Legault unveiled the strongest emergency measures yet in Canada, asking all travelers returning from overseas trips or anyone exhibiting flu-like symptoms to self-isolate for two weeks.

A ban on indoor gatherings of more than 250 people was announced, with Montreal’s Saint Patrick’s Day parade — held since 1824 — postponed.

Quebec, which has 13 confirmed cases of the virus, is also considering placing the entire island of Montreal — a population of nearly 2 million — under quarantine.

In Ontario, public health officials announced that public schools would be shut until April 5.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television canceled this year’s Canadian Screen Awards — scheduled to air on March 29 — and the country’s Juno music awards, planned for tomorrow, were also scrapped.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: Virus Outbreak: Canadian leader’s wife infected


content_text:
Lua has a hungry look on her face as she holds her new book on former South African president Nelson Mandela, one of thousands the 12-year-old has amassed for her new library in a poor Brazilian favela.

“I don’t read books. I devour them,” she said in Rio de Janeiro’s Tabajaras neighborhood, a shantytown perched in the hills overlooking the chic districts of Copacabana and Botafogo.

In a small tin-roof room at a local community center, she has amassed a collection of 18,000 books, hoping to help other residents access a world that can be all too remote from Brazil’s impoverished favelas.

Raissa Luara de Oliveira on Tuesday plays a ukulele at the library she founded in the Tabajaras favela in Rio de Janeiro.
 Photo: AFP

“Lua’s World,” she calls the library, a cozy space lined with pillows and full to the brim with carefully arranged rows of books.

Lua, her nickname, means “Moon” in Portuguese.

However, Raissa Luara de Oliveira — her full name — has her feet firmly on the ground.

“At 12 years old, I’ve done more for my neighborhood than you’ve done in your whole term,” she told Rio de Janeiro Mayor Marcelo Crivella in a defiant video she posted online.

The idea for the library was born six months ago, when Oliveira was at a book fair.

“I saw a mom telling her daughter she couldn’t afford to buy her a book for three reals [US$0.60],” she said. “I said to myself: ‘You have to do something.’”

Surreptitiously using her grandmother’s cellphone, she sent out a Facebook post asking for book donations.

Then, pretending to be her grandmother, she sent a message to the vice president of the local community association, asking her to give her a space to create a library.

The woman, Vania Ribeiro, guessed right away that it was Oliveira, but she agreed to the plan.

“If you run it, I’m in,” she replied.

“When I found out she was doing all this behind my back, I scolded her,” said Oliveira’s grandmother Fatima, 60, a seamstress who has raised her since she was a baby.

“After that, I supported her all the way,” said the woman Oliveira calls “Mom.”

Oliveira’s bubbly video message went viral, leading to invitations to appear on a string of TV programs.

Her project is so successful it has been receiving about 1,500 books a week — way more than her small library can hold.

Behind the shelves, she has boxes full of books she wants to donate to similar projects elsewhere in Rio de Janeiro and in Brazil’s poor northeast.

“A boy in Piaui State told me I had inspired him to open a library for the children in his city. I set aside 500 books for him, but we need money to send them. I’m going to make another video to ask for donations,” she said.

The library is a hit with children in the favela.

“I love coming here. I come almost every day. It gives me something to do when I’m not at school,” said 10-year-old Daniel Couto Nascimento, relaxing on a big cushion and reading a comic book. “I used to just spend my time playing football and video games.”

Oliveira was not a reader, either, but when she was nine, a teacher introduced her to Diary of a Wimpy Kid, American author Jeff Kinney’s cartoon novel on the pre-pubescent angst of middle school.

She was hooked.

Now her reading list includes big, serious books on subjects such as racism and religious tolerance.

“I’ve seen my father get slammed against the wall by police just because he’s black,” she said.

“I’ve been called ‘voodoo girl’ online by a guy who claimed my hair is this color because I stole it from Europeans,” she said of her blond-tinged curls.

Attacks like that just inspire her to keep doing what she is doing, she said.

Her next project? Open a shelter for stray dogs and cats in her favela.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: Girl launches favela library in Brazil


title: Gadgets cause insomnia: psychiatrist

content_text:
By Liao Hsueh-ju and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writer

The use of electronic gadgets, such as smartphones and tablets, in bed has a high association with insomnia, medical experts said on World Sleep Day yesterday.

World Sleep Day was initiated by the World Sleep Society in 2008 to increase public awareness about how sleep can affect mental and physical health, China Medical University Hsinchu Hospital psychiatrist Wang Ming-yu (王明鈺) said.

About 4 million Taiwanese — almost one in five — suffer from insomnia, Taiwan Society of Sleep Medicine data show, while the number of sleeping pills prescribed in 2018 exceeded 900 million, according to National Health Insurance Administration data.

The screens of electronic gadgets emit strong blue light, which after entering the retina is turned into neurological signals that create the illusion of daylight in the pineal gland, suppressing its production of melatonin, a hormone secreted at night to help with sleep, Wang said.

Instead of relaxing, the brain continues to operate, causing problematic conditioning in which the brain links the bed to the use of electronic gadgets over time, she said.

People who must use electronic devices at night should use them away from the bedroom and keep it as a place solely for rest, she added.

Users of electronic gadgets at night should turn down the brightness of the screen so that production of melatonin remains at a normal level, Wang said.

Wang’s colleague psychiatrist Chou Po-han (周伯翰) said that besides nighttime exposure to blue light, insomnia can also be caused by anxiety, depression, stress or pain, so it is important to identify the cause and implement the correct treatment rather than prescribing sleeping pills, which could lead to addiction and abuse.

Clinical psychologists Lin Shih-ing (林詩穎) and Hung Ing-tzu (洪櫻慈) said that people who suffer from insomnia, but prefer not to take drugs, could try cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses on adjusting a person’s problematic sleep-related habits and thoughts to improve their sleep.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


title: World’s richest nearing US$1 trillion in losses

content_text:
From New York to Paris, Sao Paulo to Hong Kong, the losses are unprecedented for the world’s wealthiest.

The world’s 500 richest people collectively lost US$331 billion on Thursday, the biggest one-day drop in the eight-year history of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. That pushed the group’s year-to-date losses to US$950 billion.

This week’s collapse marks the end of a decade of soaring markets and cheap money that helped the planet’s wealthiest people amass a record US$6.1 trillion less than two months earlier.

Those gains were obliterated over the past four days as pandemic fears and plunging oil prices sent markets into a nosedive.

Since the first of the year the world’s richest have lost 16 percent of their collective net worth, the index shows.

The market meltdown has affected billionaires from every part of the globe and every industry.

“People right now are afraid,” said Charles Doraine, president of Doraine Insurance Group and a former wealth manager. “Things are being introduced to the world of investing that have never been there before — health risks. This is stuff beyond the market’s normal fears and concerns.”

The anxieties of the super rich are evidenced by a spike in demand for private jets, canceled charity galas and an exodus to secluded second homes.

Global measures to limit the spread of COVID-19 have introduced restrictions rarely experienced by a globe-trotting elite for whom access and services are seldom constrained.

On Thursday, wealthy travelers scrambled to book private flights to the US from Europe ahead of US President Donald Trump’s travel restrictions.

Trump’s rhetoric-laden address to the nation on Wednesday evening did little to calm investors, contributing to a further slide in stocks and trimming the wealth of some of his major supporters.

Oklahoma fracking mogul Harold Hamm on Monday dropped off the index after losing almost half his net worth, squeezed by the tumbling price of oil.

Sheldon Adelson, majority owner of Las Vegas Sands Corp, the world’s largest casino operator, has lost US$11.7 billion since the start of the year as gaming floors emptied and trade shows were canceled. That is more than a quarter of his net worth.

Carnival Corp chairman Micky Arison on Thursday fell six spots on the billionaires index after shares of the world’s biggest cruise operator dropped 31 percent to a 23-year low. The company announced it was suspending all voyages by its Princess Cruises line for two months.

Individuals higher up the ranks sustained staggering one-day losses. Luxury titan Bernard Arnault, chairman of LVMH, lost US$9.5 billion and Amazon.com Inc’s Jeff Bezos’ net worth fell by US$8.1 billion.

A total of 53 billionaires saw their fortunes drop to the lowest since joining the index.

Brazil’s fortunes were particularly hard hit, by plunging stock prices and a weakening real. Guilherme Benchimol, founder of XP Inc, ceased to be a billionaire after shares of the Sao Paulo-based brokerage fell 34 percent below its initial public offering price in December last year.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
CHINA

Detentions in hotel probe

The authorities have taken several people into custody as part of an investigation into the collapse of a COVID-19 quarantine facility that killed 29 people. Officials told reporters that preliminary investigations had shown “serious problems exist in the construction, renovation, and examination and approval” of Xinjia Hotel, Xinhua news agency reported. The hotel in Quanzhou was being used to quarantine suspected coronavirus patients when it collapsed on Saturday. One person previously listed as missing was pulled dead from the rubble on Thursday. Forty-two people survived the disaster. “Those responsible for the accident have been taken into custody,” Xinhua quoted Quanzhou Executive Deputy Mayor Hong Ziqiang (洪自強) as saying, but gave no further details.

NEPAL

Everest permits suspended

The nation yesterday suspended permits to climb Everest over the COVID-19 pandemic, closing off the world’s biggest mountain a day after China halted access from its side. The government has halted climbing on all mountains and stopped issuing tourist visas, Nepalese Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Yogesh Bhattarai said. The Himalayan nations earns millions of dollars a year from Everest permits. “The government has decided to suspend all spring expeditions and scrap permits for the time being. The decision can be reviewed after analyzing the global scenario over the coming month,” Bhattarai said. Last year in spring a record 885 people climbed Everest, 644 from Nepal and 241 from Tibet, with 11 deaths recorded on the mountain. Everest attracts hundreds of mountaineers from all over the world each spring. Nepal has so far confirmed only one COVID-19 case.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.

title: World News Quick Take


title: Cubans using chat groups for basics

content_text:
“Where to find it?” and “Whatever you want” and “What do you need?” These are the names of some of the social media groups catering to thousands of Cubans who are using newly available mobile Internet to grapple with shortages of basic goods.

Armed with Internet access on cellphones that came into general use last year, Cubans are forming online chat groups to share tips about where to find dish detergent, chicken, diesel fuel and other scarce essentials. They do so on WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook.

Without the chat groups, people would have to “spend all day going around the city” looking for things that they need, said Claudia Santander, a graphic designer who administers a dozen WhatsApp groups at no charge.

Graphic designer Claudia Santander holds her mobile phone as people line up to buy goods at a market in Havana on Wednesday.
 Photo: AP

Now, for example, someone can ask about a certain product — toilet paper or milk powder or soap — and another person on the chat might reply within minutes to say which store in Havana, the Cuban capital, is stocking it.

“I’ve been able to sort out” diaper and other purchases since joining several social media groups aimed at locating essential items, said Havana resident Laura Vela, who has a young child.

Some of the groups have waiting lists of people anxious to get the benefits of being a member. WhatsApp limits group chat sizes to 256 people, while other platforms accept thousands.

Shopping through social media is easing life for many, but it might be exacerbating inequality and making things harder for those without Internet connections. Moreover, people get discounts on data if they pay with badly needed US dollars through companies outside Cuba, meaning those without the currency are at a disadvantage.

“A lot of people can’t afford” to buy phone data or a good phone, said Lucia March, a writer.

For those who can, “the usefulness is obvious and it’s something that represents, above all, development and also helps open people’s minds a little,” she said.

Cuba does not have classified ads in official newspapers. Some businesses offer sales on the Internet, but the social media groups help people grapple almost in real time with constant challenges.

Cooking oil might vanish from shelves, but then it returns and there is no flour. One day there is no butter and the next there is no cheese. Many people, particularly those not getting information from a social media network, can spend hours fruitlessly searching for household items.

Cubans have been used to struggling for the basics since the collapse of the Soviet Union, but the situation deteriorated last year after US President Donald Trump escalated sanctions.

The economic woes of Venezuela, a key provider of oil to Cuba, has also hurt the Caribbean country.

As a result, there have often been long lines at shops as well as rationing of products. Many people then turned to social media to try to find what they need.

Cuba began to provide data for cellphones in December 2018 and now has more than 3 million lines in service.

It costs the equivalent of US$5 for 400 megabytes and US$20 for 2.5 gigabytes, although more discounts have become available recently. Average monthly salaries are between US$20 and US$50, although many people receive remittances from relatives abroad.

In recent months, Cuban authorities have started to promote Web sites — www.compraspacuba.com is an example — that allow people to pay in US dollars through Visa and Mastercard for items including flowers, meat, mattresses and air conditioners.

Although the use of such Web sites is not widespread, they could increase inequality between those with access to US dollars and foreign credit cards, and those who do not, or do not have relatives living abroad who can help them out.

Some people have used the Internet to campaign on issues such as the abuse of women or to engage in unofficial journalism, drawing criticism from authorities in the one-party state who have warned against any anti-government activism.

Ted Henken, a Latin America expert at Baruch College, City University of New York, said many Cubans use social media for personal or non-political reasons.

However, the use of social media has broader implications for society because it is “much more free, social and spontaneous,” he said.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.


content_text:
Virus Outbreak: Philippine envoy to UN tests positive for COVID-19

A female diplomat from the Philippines mission to the UN tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, a note sent to UN missions said, making her the first known case at the world body’s New York headquarters.

“As of today, the Philippine Mission is in lockdown, and all personnel are instructed to self-quarantine and to seek medical attention should they develop the symptoms,” Philippine Acting UN Ambassador Kira Azucena wrote in a message seen by reporters. “We are assuming that all of us have been infected.”

According to the online UN directory of diplomatic staff, there are about 12 diplomats at the Philippine mission.

Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro Locsin wrote on Twitter that the diplomat was young, spritely and “doing well,” adding that she had recently returned from Florida.

The sick diplomat represented the Philippines on the UN General Assembly’s legal affairs committee.

Azucena said that the diplomat was last at UN headquarters on Monday for about half an hour when she was asymptomatic.

She came down with flu-like symptoms on Tuesday and visited her doctor.

“She got the call today that she tested positive for COVID-19,” Azucena wrote on Thursday.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that the sick diplomat met with two other diplomats and visited only one UN meeting room, which had been cleaned three times since Monday.

The UN medical services was contacting those diplomats, Dujarric said.

Several UN meetings planned for yesterday had been canceled in the wake of the diagnosis, diplomats said.

The 193-member world body began implementing coronavirus prevention measures at its Manhattan headquarters this week, including closing off access to the public, more regular cleaning and canceling some meetings. Half of the several thousand UN staff who normally work in the building will work from home by next week.

Comments will be moderated. Keep comments relevant to the article. Remarks containing abusive and obscene language, personal attacks of any kind or promotion will be removed and the user banned. Final decision will be at the discretion of the Taipei Times.