Taiwan News
Date: 2016-03-01
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Share dealings in leading biotechnology firm OBI

Pharma were the subject of an investigation into alleged insider trading, reports said Tuesday.

The company recently made headlines because of an attempt to develop a breast cancer drug and because of investment by a brother of President-elect Tsai Ing-wen.

The Shilin District Prosecutors Office reportedly received an anonymous tip alleging illegal activities in the company’s shares and decided there was reason enough to start an investigation.

Around February 21, trading in the shares of OBI Pharma was stopped on four different days as their price fell by the maximum limit of 10 percent. The market value of the company slumped by NT$37.2 billion (US$1.1 billion) during those days, but somebody reportedly made a profit on the fall through insider trading, reports said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-03-01
By: Chia Lee, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Ministry of Labor (MOL) announced Tuesday its latest survey on labor demand, in which the demand is projected to increase by 19,334 people in April, the lowest since 2009.

The survey was conducted Jan. 11 to Jan. 29 in a bid to understand labor demand among Taiwan businesses with over 30 staff members.

Of the 3,010 effective respondents, 18.17 percent plan to hire new employees, and 4.28 percent expect their personnel number to decrease. The number of new recruits is forecast to increase by 19,334, which shows a 57 percent plunge year-on-year and the lowest in seven years, according to the MOL.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/03/01
By: Huang Chiao-wen and Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, March 1 (CNA) The annual Taipei International Cycle Show will kick off Wednesday, with organizers saying they expect the four-day event to break last year’s record by generating more than US$560 million in business opportunities.

Peter Huang (黃文榮), president and CEO of the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), said Tuesday that the bike industry remains resilient and competitive, even though Taiwan is struggling with slow exports.

The exhibition, to be held in the Taipei World Trade Center Nangang Exhibition Hall and TWTC Exhibition Hall 1, will showcase the strength of Taiwan’s bike manufacturers, Huang said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Mar 02, 2016
By: Jonathan Chin / Staff writer, with CNA

The new government will seek to improve the profitability and sustainability of

the nation’s agriculture sector by introducing major reforms, promoting safe agricultural products and boosting exports, president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday.

Tsai made the remarks at a news conference during her tour of Chiayi, where she visited the county’s agricultural cooperatives in Singang (新港) and Taibo (太保) townships, accompanied by Chiayi County Commissioner Helen Chang (張花冠) and Chiayi Mayor Twu Shiing-jer (涂醒哲).

Tsai said that her administration would promote “a new agricultural paradigm” to raise the incomes of farm workers with a focus on protecting their rights, increasing the sector’s potential for development and promoting environmental sustainability.

Major policy changes would include the introduction of a farmer’s insurance scheme and subsidies for preserving green lands on agricultural properties, she added.     [FULL  STORY]

Forbes
Date: February 29, 2016
By: Jonathan Webb

Elementum, a supply chain risk company, believes that the iPhone 7 supply

chain experienced a near miss earlier this month. On Feb. 6, an earthquake at 6.4 on the Richter Scale shook an electronics hub in Southern Taiwan, which lies at the heart of Apple AAPL -0.24%’s supply chain. A bigger tremor, on a different day, could have had the iPhone 7 operation in tatters.

Facilities for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC), Apple’s sole supplier for the A10 processor integral to its forthcoming iPhone 7, were impacted. Fortunately stocks of delicate wafers, which are central to semiconductor production, survived relatively unscathed and only 1% of deliveries were expected to be disrupted. But some orders face delays of 10 – 50 days. The sensitive machinery to produce them however escaped undamaged.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-02-29
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

On Monday Japan’s Sharp Corporation announced it has appointed Toshihiko Fujimoto, formerly chairman of its electronics unit, to the post of “head of strategic alliance” to lead the negotiations with Taiwan’s Hon Hai / Foxconn Technology Group and oversee their subsequent cooperation.

Fujimoto will directly report to Sharp Chief Executive Officer Kozo Takahash.

Hon Hai Group Chairman Terry Gou has worked for months to take over Sharp, fighting off a competing offer from a Japanese bidder, Innovation Network Corp. of Japan.

Hon Hai offered a package worth in excess of 600 billion yen with most of the money going into Sharp through the purchase of additional shares. Only hours after Sharp’s board approved its offer on Feb. 25, Hon Hai said it had received new information from Sharp and wouldn’t go through with the deal until it had resolved the issues.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/02/29
By: Sunrise Huang and Kuo Chung-han

Taipei, Feb. 29 (CNA) A luminous fiber developed by the Taiwan Textile

Research Institute (TTRI) named “Lumi Long” is ready for commercialization after seven years of research, the institute said.

The fiber was called “Lumi Long” because it can glow in the dark for a long period of time, said Bai Chi-chung (白志中), president of the TTRI.

It can glow for six hours after absorbing sunlight or light from a fluorescent lamp for 10 minutes without any extra electricity or heat, according to the TTRI website.

The fiber is washable and safe for the human body and can be applied to clothes, accessories, hats, scarves, underwear, socks and slippers, the TTRI website said.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/02/28
By: Huang Chiao-wen and Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, Feb. 28 (CNA) Software engineer has become the top-ranked dream job in Taiwan this year among those seeking to change jobs after the Lunar New Year holiday, replacing “civil servant” in past years, according to an online analysis by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

Being a civil servant has long been seen as a secure job with a stable income, but the relatively high benefits for public servants have drawn public criticism more recently, limiting interest in pursuing a government job, a report on the analysis said.

The analysis was aimed at identifying the 10 most-wanted jobs among Internet users seeking to change jobs after receiving their year-end bonus and relaxing during their Lunar New Year holiday, which fell from Feb. 6 to 14 this year.     [FULL  STORY]