Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/22
By: Chen Cheng-wei and Frances Huang

Taipei, April 22 (CNA) The average wage for the first two months of this year fell from a year earlier as employers doled out lower year-end bonuses before the Lunar New Year holiday in the wake of an economic slowdown, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said Friday.

According to the DGBAS, the average wage stood at NT$67,425 (US$2,087), down 2.69 percent from a year earlier after employees on average received year-end bonuses equal to 1.54 months of their salary, down from an average of 1.69 months of their salary seen a year earlier.

The DGBAS said that due to slower business, employers here gave about NT$4,950 less in year-end bonuses this year than a year earlier. The latest year-end bonuses were the lowest in three years in terms of the number of months paid, the government agency said. In 2014 and 2013, year-end bonuses doled out by employers here were equal to 1.55 months of wages and 1.44 months, respectively, the DGBAS data showed.     [FULL  STORY]

CONSERVATIVE OUTLOOK:The market researcher expects the manufacturing sector’s revenue to contract this quarter, before rising by 0.87 percent next quarter

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 23, 2016
By: Lisa Wang / Staff reporter

The manufacturing sector is expected to return to growth only from next quarter,

as a stagnant global economy and intensifying competition continue to stifle demand, the Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK) said yesterday.

IEK originally expected the manufacturing sector to recover from a recession this quarter.

Now, the Hsinchu-based market researcher expects the sector to see revenue shrink by 0.48 percent this quarter, before picking up and posting an annual growth of 0.87 percent next quarter.

For the whole of this year, IEK forecasts sector revenue growth of 0.11 percent to NT$17.79 trillion (US$550.26 billion), down from the 0.96 percent increase to NT$17.94 trillion it estimated three months ago.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/21
By: Tsai Yi-chu and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, April 21 (CNA) Chen Tain-jy (陳添枝), who has been named head of the

National Development Council (NDC) in Taiwan’s incoming government, said Thursday that China’s policy toward Taiwan after the new government takes office May 20 will have a huge impact on the island.

Chen, a professor at National Taiwan University’s Department of Economics, was addressing a forum on strategies by Taiwanese businesses to gain footholds in Asia and expand globally.

The Taiwanese businesses tend to pursue short-term gains, focusing on three major markets, the United States, Japan and China, mainly because of their uncertainty about Taiwan’s future, Chen noted.

Most Taiwanese businesses are trying to guard against any potential risks and detrimental effects of China’s policy toward Taiwan after the new government takes office, he said.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/20
By: Bernie Chiu and Kuo Chung-han

Taipei, April 20 (CNA) Electronic machines designed to issue value added tax

(VAT) refunds to foreign visitors will go into operation at nine airports and seven seaports in Taiwan on May 1, Finance Minister Chang Sheng-ford (張盛和) said Wednesday.

The machines will eliminate the need for eligible foreign travelers to queue up at airports or seaports to obtain VAT refunds, the ministry said.

Under Taiwan’s regulations, foreign visitors who spend at least NT$2,000 (US$62) in a single day on purchases at an authorized Tax Refund Shopping (TRS) enterprise are eligible to a 5 percent VAT refund within 30 days of the purchase.

The VAT refund machines will become operational at the start of May at Taoyuan International Airport, Taipei Songshan Airport, Kaohsiung International Airport, and at airports in Hualien and Taitung in the east, Taichung in the central Taiwan, Tainan and Chiayi in the south, and Magong in the offshore Penghu County.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/19
By: Pan Chih-yi and Elaine Hou

Taipei, April 19 (CNA) A Taiwanese video and image design company has developed an advanced car safety system that allows for a wider scope to monitor driving safety, which is being showcased at a security manufacturing trade show that kicked off Tuesday in Taipei.

The system, developed by Hi Sharp Electronics Co., can be connected to a central control system and integrated with cloud computing technologies, the company said.

This system can not only be used to monitor an individual vehicle but can also be used to monitor many vehicles simultaneously, the company said.

In the event of a car accident, the detailed data collected on the system can be used to better help the police with the investigation, it said.     [FULL  STORY]