Monthly Archives: April 2016

MediaTek sales fall in Q1 despite strong showing in March

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-04-09
By: Jackson Chang and Frances Huang, Central News Agency

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) First-quarter sales of MediaTek Inc., Taiwan’s largest integrated circuit designer, dropped more than 9 percent from the previous quarter despite a jump in March but were within its expectations, the company said Friday.

MediaTek posted NT$55.91 billion (US$1.72 billion) in sales for the first quarter, after predicting a range of NT$52.5 billion to NT$57.4 billion.

The figure, however, was 9.4 percent lower than in the fourth quarter of last year due to a slow season resulting from inventory adjustments, said the company, which makes about 60 percent its total revenue from smartphone chips.

In March, MediaTek sales were boosted by strong global demand for smartphones, jumping 61.13 percent from February and climbing 4.59 percent year-on-year to NT$21.34 billion.     [FULL  STORY]

Investment firms seeking to issue ETFs linked to Hang Seng Index series

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/09
By: Tien Yu-pin and Frances Huang

Taipei, April 9 (CAN) Several investment trust companies in Taiwan are

CNA file photo

CNA file photo

seeking to issue exchange-traded funds (ETFs) linked to the Hang Seng Index series in a bid to tap into the fast growing ETF trade in the local equity market, according to the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE).

Fuhwa Securities Investment Trust Co. (復華投信) is one of the companies that have applied for certification of the Hang Seng China Enterprise Index, the Hang Seng China Enterprise Leveraged Index and the Hang Seng China Enterprise Short Index, as it prepares to issue linked ETFs, the TWSE said.

Meanwhile, Fubon Asset Management Co. (富邦投信) has filed an application for certification of the Hang Seng China Enterprise Leveraged Index and the Hang Seng China Enterprise Short Index for future ETF issuance, the TWSE said.     [FULL  STORY]

Founder of Chung Tai Chan Monastery passes away (update)

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-04-09
By: Lu Kang-chun, Jay Chen and Lilian Wu, Central News Agency

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) Wei Chueh, the Buddhist monk who founded Chung Tai Chan Monastery in the town of Puli in central Taiwan, has passed away, the monastery announced early Saturday. He was 88.

The grand master passed away at 10:31 p.m. Friday, the monastery said. His death was due to a regression of marrow regeneration, which resulted in complications.

The monastery was closed Saturday, shutting out buses carrying mainland Chinese tourists.

It plans to have a scripture reciting assembly from April 11-17 in remembrance of the grand master.

Born in Sichuan, China in 1928, Wei Chueh was one of the most important religious figures in Taiwan in recent decades, with more than 1,000 monk disciples and hundreds of thousands of followers in Taiwan and around the world.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwanese women the world’s 11th-longest visitors to PornHub in 2015

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/09
By: Emerson Lim and Y.F. Low

Manila, April 9 (CNA) In 2015, women from Taiwan on average spent 10 29582766minutes and 11 seconds per visit to PornHub, which offers free access to sex videos and pornography online, according to a report released by the pornographic website, which claims to be the largest of its kind in the world.

The “PornHub’s 2015 Year in Review” reveals that 24 percent of the website’s visitors were women last year, with each spending an average of 10 minutes and 33 seconds per visit.

The time spent per visit by Taiwanese women ranked the 11th longest worldwide, behind those from the Philippines, the United States, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Sweden and the Netherlands, the report says.     [FULL  STORY]

Erstwhile KMT rising star questioned over sex videos

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 10, 2016
By: Jason Pan / Staff reporter

Lee Zheng-hao (李正皓), a former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Youth League secretary-general, was on Friday questioned by prosecutors in Taipei over an allegation that he secretly filmed his sexual encounters with several women without their knowledge.

The litigation was filed by a woman and her male friend, surnamed Kuo (郭), who alleged that Lee frequented nightclubs, dated several women at the same time and secretly recorded sexual activities without informing the women.

Kuo posted messages on social media saying that he has records of Lee’s text messages to various women, who claimed they were victimized by Lee’s sexual proclivities.

Kuo also alleged that Lee had engaged in financial fraud during his stint as KMT Youth League secretary-general, accusing him of forging receipts to defraud the party by claiming expenses for the party’s youth programs.

Lee denied the allegations after being questioned by the prosecutors.     [FULL  STORY]

Ko denies report of Beijing pressure

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 10, 2016
By: Sean Lin / Staff reporter

Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday denied media reports that

Taipei City baseball team coach Lu Ming-tsu, second left, presents a gift to Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, center, at a news conference in Taipei yesterday as Highwealth Construction announced its sponsorship of the team. Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times

Taipei City baseball team coach Lu Ming-tsu, second left, presents a gift to Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, center, at a news conference in Taipei yesterday as Highwealth Construction announced its sponsorship of the team. Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times

Beijing has pressured the Taipei City Government to push forward the date of this year’s Taipei-Shanghai forum so it would have an opportunity to reassert the so-called 000“1992 consensus” before May 20 when the incoming Democratic Progressive Party government is to take office.

Ko said the forum would proceed in August as scheduled.

The “1992 consensus” refers to a supposed understanding reached during cross-strait talks in 1992, saying that both Taiwan and China acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
In 2006, former Mainland Affairs Council minister Su Chi (蘇起) admitted he made up the term in 2000, before the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) handed power to the DPP.

On other matters, Ko brushed off a Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) report that said the poor showing of a fundraiser for next year’s Summer Universiade was caused by a lack of mutual trust between the city government and the private sector as a result of Ko’s belligerent attitude toward corporations.     [FULL  STORY]

DPP vows to drive out Taiwan’s ‘economic cold spell’

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/09
By: Sophia Yeh and Y.F. Low

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) on Saturday 1319427adopted a declaration to prove that it has strong governance capability and can lead Taiwan out of its current economic plight.

The party also vowed to drive out Taiwan’s “economic cold spell” when it returns to power on May 20.

The declaration titled “Stabilizing Reforms, Uniting Taiwan” was adopted during a provisional DPP National Congress.

In the declaration, the DPP said it was chosen again by the people on Jan. 16 and given a mandate to govern the country, and also gained a legislative majority for the first time.

The DPP said it is striving to govern the country humbly and fulfill the people’s expectations.     [FULL  STORY]

President visits Pengjia Islet to aver sovereignty

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 10, 2016
By: Staff writer, with AP and CNA

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday visited a small island in the East

President Ma Ying-jeou, foreground, second left, and other officials yesterday make thumbs-up signs at a monument Ma unveiled during a visit to Pengjia Islet. Photo: CNA

President Ma Ying-jeou, foreground, second left, and other officials yesterday make thumbs-up signs at a monument Ma unveiled during a visit to Pengjia Islet. Photo: CNA

China Sea to reassert Taiwan’s sovereignty and its role in the contested region, one of the key issues of his administration that ends next month.

Ma’s visit yesterday to Pengjia Islet (彭佳嶼) — about 56km north of Taiwan proper — was his administration’s second trip to an island in three weeks.

It came four years after Ma last visited Pengjia to propose his East China Sea peace initiative, aimed at addressing territorial disputes between Taiwan, China and Japan over the nearby Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台), known as the Senkakus in Japan.

Pengjia, considered the northernmost part of Taiwan’s territory, is not contested and is home to about 40 residents, a weather station and coast guard facilities.

Ma yesterday toured the weather station and unveiled a monument to maritime peace.     [FULL  STORY]

Court soon to deal with Chen Shui-bian case

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-04-09
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – As calls for a pardon grew louder Saturday, 6746861reports said former President Chen Shui-bian could soon find himself in court again in connection

Chen was sentenced to 20 years in prison for corruption but left jail on medical parole in January 2015 after serving six years. He now lives with his family in Kaohsiung.

A campaign to have him pardoned gained steam Friday, when first Democratic Progressive Party members of the Kaohsiung City Council approved a motion in that sense, which then received the support of Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu. During the afternoon, she took Vice President-elect Chen Chien-jen on a visit to the former head of state.

The Taiwan High Court will hold a session on May 13 to hear the allegations against Chen and his wife, Wu Shu-jen, that they misused special government funds, the former president’s attorney said. The hearing will come exactly one week before DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen is sworn in as Taiwan’s first DPP president since Chen.     [FULL  STORY]

759 people lost ROC nationality in 2015: MOI

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/09
By: Tang Pei-chun and Lilian Wu

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) The number of Republic of China citizens who lost 35141233their nationality reached 759 last year, up 16.41 percent from the previous year, according to statistics released by the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) Saturday.

The ministry said the figure represents a new high since 2011.

About 90 percent of the people, 716, gave up their ROC nationality out of their own volition, followed by 36 who lost their nationality together with their parents, and five people who had become spouses of foreigners, immigrated abroad and became citizens of other countries.

Nearly half of those who lost their ROC nationality — 336 — became nationals of South Korea. They were followed by those who became Japanese and Singaporean, at 137 for each country. The number of Taiwanese who became American nationals meanwhile reached 45 and Germans 30.     [FULL  STORY]