Taiwan’s GDP forecast to grow 4.1%
RARE POSITION: IHS Markit expects exports to increase by about 13 percent this year, as demand for electronics worldwide has recovered significantly since last year
By Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter
Taiwan’s economy might expand 4.1 percent this year, accelerating from a 3.11 percent pickup last year, as its exports would continue to benefit from surging demand for electronics products amid and after the COVID-19 pandemic, global research body IHS Markit said yesterday.
Taiwan has been one of the world’s most resilient economies during the pandemic-triggered recession last year.
Economic indicators at the beginning of this year signal improving growth momentum for its economy over the coming months, as the global economy and trade rebounds, the US-British information provider said.
Highways & Byways: Memories of a deadly earthquake
A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck Tainan in the early hours of Feb. 6, 2016. Here is an account of the shaking and aftermath
By Steven Crook / Contributing reporter
The fingers on both hands aren’t enough to count the seriously frightening tremors I’ve experienced in my 29 years in Taiwan.
The scariest was the 921 Earthquake, which shook the entire country in the early hours of Sept. 21, 1999. The second most terrifying was the earthquake that woke me and countless other Tainan residents up before dawn on Feb. 6, 2016.
Tomorrow will be the fifth anniversary of the disaster, which killed 117 people, all but two of them in a single apartment complex.
Cycling Shorts: Rivers, railways & old streets
Training in New Taipei City’s Pingsi District with Leo Huang before his Bhutan adventure
By Mark Caltonhill / Contributing reporter
Today’s ride was recommended by Leo Huang (黃博駿), a 31-year-old resident of the Sijhih District (汐止) in New Taipei City.
Five years ago, Huang, then a dedicated meat-lover with plenty more beef, pork and seafood dishes left on his “culinary bucket list,” challenged himself to give up meat.
That was hard enough, he says, though he is now part-owner of a vegetarian restaurant that focuses on “showing meat-eaters that tasty alternatives are available.” His new challenge for this year is the Tour of the Dragon, a 255km bike race traversing four mountain passes in Bhutan, all at high altitude.