The China Post
Date: January 17, 2017
By: The China Post news staff

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwanese electronics firms rushing to develop virtual reality (VR) are

reportedly in the market for software talent with an eye for aesthetics.

VR headsets are emerging as a hot tech toy worldwide, and local industry sources have said it’s no easy feat to create a comfortable VR experience for consumers.

At the moment, the majority of VR content available on the market carry a refresh rate of only 30 to 60 images per second, which means users of VR headsets tend to feel dizzy several minutes after wearing the device.

A minimum refresh rate of 90 images per second is needed to prevent the sensation of dizziness, a VR software engineer said, citing a recent study.

The engineer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that whether a VR user feels dizzy hinges on the VR software rather than hardware.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: January 16, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI — President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) believes textiles should be at the heart of Taiwan’s thinking in

developing new global trade arrangements and strategies, the Presidential Office said in a statement Sunday.

The statement cited Tsai as saying that during her recent visit to four of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in Central America, she found the textile sector in Central America to have considerable development potential.

They also had the benefit of having free trade agreements with the United States that could be advantageous for Taiwanese manufacturers in the region.

With Taiwan Textile Federation Chairman Chan Cheng-tien (詹正田) to propose a new strategy for the global development of Taiwan’s textile sector, “this is the time to begin thinking about new arrangements and new strategies, starting with the textile sector,” Tsai said, according to the statement.

Tsai made the remarks at a luncheon with over 800 Taiwanese expatriates in San Francisco on Jan. 14 local time.   [SOURCE]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/01/15
By: Liao Jen-kai and Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, Jan. 15 (CNA) Vietnamese budget carrier VietJet Air opened a new route Sunday that links Ho

Chi Minh City in Vietnam with Taichung in central Taiwan.

The airline will operate four flights a week between the two destinations — every Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday — with a one-way flight time of three and a half hours, according to the airline.

At the ceremony for the airline’s maiden flight on the route at Taichung Airport, Chen Sheng-shan (陳盛山), head of the Tourism and Travel Bureau of Taichung, said the new route is VietJet Air’s fifth route to Taiwan and Taichung its fourth destination on the island.

He said he hoped that with the new flights more international travelers will use Taichung Airport as the gateway to central Taiwan.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: January 16, 2017
By: The China Post news staff

The Uber vs. taxi debate resurfaced on the internet over the weekend after two incidents involving

Taiwanese taxi drivers brought into question the quality of service — and safety — of some yellow cab drivers.

A taxi driver was detained in Taipei on Sunday after he admitted to drugging three Korean passengers and sexually assaulting one of them during their tour of Taiwan last week.

The case came only few days after a Japanese tourist said she had been conned by a Taiwanese taxi driver during her trip to the country last month.

On her blog, the woman said she was forced to pay the driver NT$1,200 for taking her on a 40-kilometer ride from New Taipei’s Jiufen to Taipei Main Station, though she had originally wanted to go only to the closest station.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/01/14
By: Tien Yu-pin and Frances Huang

Taipei, Jan. 11 (CNA) A newly announced small investment scheme to make expensive stocks and other

securities more accessible to retail investors could have loopholes, according to brokerages.

Securities sector insiders said ill-intentioned majority shareholders of a listed company could take advantage of the loopholes to dump their shares.

To be launched on Jan. 16, the small investment scheme allows retail investors to own expensive stocks such as smartphone camera lens supplier Largan Precision Co. (大立光), which closed at NT$4,240.00 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) on Friday.

Stocks in Taiwan are usually sold in minimum blocks of 1,000 shares, meaning investors would have to spend at least NT$4.24 million (US$134.200) to buy Largan stock, an amount often out of the reach of most individuals.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: January 14, 2017
By: Christine Chou

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan-based Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (鴻海) and its Japanese subsidiary

Sharp are considering building a liquid crystal display (LCD) plant in the United States, an unidentified Sharp executive was quoted Friday as saying.

The plan is “on the table,” the executive said, according to a Nikkei report. “We will make a decision carefully.”

Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn, reportedly told incoming U.S. President Donald Trump it would invest in and create new jobs in the U.S. as part of a joint investment with its Japanese alliance partner SoftBank Group.

The plan was proposed by SoftBank chief Masayoshi Son, the Sharp executive said.

A joint venture between Hon Hai and Sharp announced in December will see the construction of an US$8.8 billion factory in China to produce LCDs in order to meet expected rising demand in Asia for large-screen televisions and monitors.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/01/14
By: Han Ting-ting and Frances Huang

Taipei, Jan. 14 (CNA) Formosa Petrochemical Corp. (台塑石化), a privately owned fuel supplier in Taiwan, said Saturday it will cut its gasoline and diesel prices next week in response to a fall in international crude oil prices this week.

Concerns over a global supply glut reemerged this week, prompting Formosa Petrochemical to lower its gasoline prices by NT$0.3 (US$0.009) per liter and its diesel prices by NT$0.4 per liter next week, effective 1 a.m. Monday.

After the price cuts, fuel prices at Formosa Petrochemical gas stations islandwide will fall to NT$22.4 per liter for super diesel, NT$24.9 per liter for 92 octane unleaded, NT$26.4 per liter for 95 unleaded and NT$28.7 per liter for 98 unleaded.

This past week, Formosa Petrochemical raised its diesel prices by NT$0.1 per liter but its gasoline prices remained unchanged.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: January 14, 2017
By: CNA

TAIWAN — Former Foreign Minister James Huang (黃志芳) has been named chairman of Taiwan’s main

trade promotion body, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), the Executive Yuan said Saturday.

Cabinet spokesman Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) said Premier Lin Chuan (林全) approved Huang’s appointment on Friday, but he did not give further details.

Huang, who currently heads the New Southbound Policy Office under the Presidential Office, will succeed Francis Liang (梁國新), who took over as Taiwan’s representative to Singapore last month.

The 58-year-old Huang went into business in 2008 after stepping down as foreign minister when a new administration came in.

“You probably don’t know that I once was in business overseas,” Huang said on a previous occasion, explaining that he worked hard to learn Vietnamese and that he had many ideas on how to promote trade.    [FULL  STORY]