ECONOMY
Taiwan 12th in gold reserves
Taiwan ranked 12th in global gold reserves in the first quarter of the year, according to a Forbes report, citing data from the World Gold Council (WGC). Taiwan had 423 tonnes of gold reserves, equivalent to about US$28 billion, Forbes reported on Friday last week. The US had the most gold reserves in the world, with almost as much as the combined total of the next three countries on the list, the magazine reported. According to the WGC data, the US had 8,133 tonnes of gold reserves, worth about US$579 billion. It was followed by Germany with 3,352 tonnes (US$238 billion), Italy with 2,451 tonnes (US$174 billion) and France with 2,436 tonnes (US$173 billion). Rounding out the top 10 list were Russia, China, Switzerland, Japan, India and the Netherlands, the WGC data showed. Gold reserves are critical for the economic stability of a country, acting as a reliable store of value, particularly during financial uncertainties, the magazine said.
Photo: Bloomberg
SEISMICITY
Two quakes jolt Hualien
An earthquake, which measured 4.8 on the Richter scale, struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 9:27am yesterday, followed by a magnitude 4.4 earthquake a minute later, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the first earthquake was at sea, 21.2km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 5.4km, CWA data showed. The temblor’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, was highest in Hualien County, where it measured 4 on the nation’s 7-tier intensity scale. The second earthquake’s epicenter was also at sea, 21.2km south-southwest of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 6.1km. Its intensity was highest in Hualien County, where it measured 4. No immediate damage or injuries were reported.
CRIME
Police investigate death
Yilan County police are investigating the case of an absconded Thai migrant worker who died and whose body was allegedly dumped at a dam last week by his employer, wife and two friends. Police said it launched an investigation after it was contacted on Tuesday by the Thailand Trade and Economic Office. Relatives of the man, who was in his 30s, contacted the office after being notified that he had died, police said. The relatives, who live in Thailand, provided information including the license plate number of the man’s boss. Police summoned the employer, surnamed Lin (林), who admitted the man died on Monday afternoon last week. According to police, Lin said he did not report the death because he had been employing the man, who had illegally overstayed his visa. Lin said he, along with the man’s wife and two Thai friends, disposed of the man’s body at a dam. The man’s wife said he had become ill recently and did not seek medical attention because of his undocumented status, police said. After the man’s death, the wife contacted Lin to ask for help and they decided to dispose of his body, it said. Based on Lin’s account, police were able to locate the man’s body, which did not have any signs of external injury. Police are waiting for an autopsy to determine cause of death. They have referred Lin, the man’s wife and two friends to Yilan prosecutors on suspicion of abandoning of a corpse. Lin would also face penalties for illegally employing a foreign worker, police said.
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
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