The economic impact of SARS might be more critical than the emergency generated by the Asian financial crisis of 1997, head of the nation's top think tank said yesterday at the Legislative Yuan, citing a report.
Academia Sinica president Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) told lawmakers that researchers at the Institute of Economics have been working on a series of projects related to the effects of the disease outbreak on Taiwan's economy and people's social behavior.
Lee said a report conducted by these researchers shows the magnitude and the speed of the effect on Taiwan's economic activities since the SARS outbreak early last month are higher than those of the Asian financial crisis, the Sept. 21 earthquake in 1999 and the two international oil crises in the late 60s and early 70s.
The report gives a detailed analysis of Taiwan's economic growth, the structure of the job market and the manufacturing industries.
The report also analyses the interdependence of the economies on either side of the Taiwan Strait, the impact of globalization, and the nation's medical services, according to Lee.
To get a better understanding of how the disease is spreading and of the effectiveness of the government's preventive measures, researchers of the institute's "Geographic Information System" project are integrating related reports from the Taipei City Government and the Center for Disease Control, Lee said.
He added that all life science-related departments of the institution are working on projects related to SARS.
The research includes methods of detecting the disease, research on infection paths and the development of vaccines and a possible cure.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last