Taiwan s Central Bank rejects claims of forex intervention
01/31/2021 09:17 PM
Taiwan s Central Bank. CNA file photo
Taipei, Jan. 31 (CNA) The Central Bank on Sunday clarified that Taiwan s inclusion by the United States in its currency manipulators watchlist last December was not linked to foreign exchange market intervention as claimed in some media reports.
In a press statement posted on its website, the Central Bank said Taiwan was placed on the U.S. Treasury monitoring list because of its trade surplus with the U.S. and the level of its current account surplus, two of the three criteria used by Washington to label an economy a manipulator.
(CNA photo) Taiwan s unemployment rate in 2020 was the highest in four years, but the labor market was still relatively stable compared to other countries as the COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on the global economy, Taiwan s statistics bureau said Friday. Taiwan s jobless rate was 3.85 percent in 2020, the highest since 2017, when the figure was 3.76 percent, according to the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) on Friday. Chen Hui-hsin (陳惠欣), deputy director of the DGBAS census department, said the latest figure was 0.12 percentage points more than in 2019 and 0.14 percentage points higher than in 2018. It was 3.92 percent in 2016 and 3.78 percent in 2015. Unemployment during 2020 peaked at 4.07 percent in May, before gradually falling after that as fear of COVID-19 in Taiwan dissipated, Chen said.
Taiwan s jobless rate in 2020 highest in 4 years
01/22/2021 10:18 PM
CNA file photo
Taipei, Jan. 22 (CNA) Taiwan s unemployment rate in 2020 was the highest in four years, but the labor market was still relatively stable compared to other countries as the COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on the global economy, Taiwan s statistics bureau said Friday.
Taiwan s jobless rate was 3.85 percent in 2020, the highest since 2017, when the figure was 3.76 percent, according to the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) on Friday.
Chen Hui-hsin (陳惠欣), deputy director of the DGBAS census department, said the latest figure was 0.12 percentage points more than in 2019 and 0.14 percentage points higher than in 2018.
MOEA to help vehicle tire makers facing U.S. anti-dumping duties
01/02/2021 08:45 PM
Pixabay image for illustrative purpose only
Taipei, Jan. 2 (CNA) The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) has vowed to assist Taiwanese vehicle tire makers accused of unfair trade practices by the United States who face anti-dumping tariffs.
The Bureau of Foreign Trade (BOFT) under the MOEA said on Friday that it will meet the affected firms in the anti-dumping case and their association as soon as possible to discuss how to secure a favorable decision from the U.S. authorities and reduce the impact of financial punishments.
The move by the BOFT to offer help came after the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) on Wednesday released a preliminary ruling based on its anti-dumping duty investigations, saying passenger vehicle and light truck tire makers from Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam have dumped their products on the U.S. market.
Taiwan addresses water shortages following unusually dry year
01/02/2021 07:43 PM
Tsengwen Reservoir. CNA photo Jan. 2, 2021
Taipei, Jan. 2 (CNA) Taiwan is in the process of adopting several measures to cope with water shortages following a particularly dry year in 2020, while experts suggest that water saving and management, as well as environmental protection should be the focus.
Last year was the first time since 1964 that Taiwan was not hit by a typhoon during flood season which is from May to November, said Wang Yi-feng (王藝峰), deputy director-general of the Water Resources Agency (WRA).
As a result, there was only 661 millimeters of rainfall from June to November, an all-time-low, compared with average annual rainfall in the period of 1,635 mm, WRA data showed.