■ Oil prices will not rise: Hwang
Minister of Economic Affairs Morgan Hwang (黃營杉) stated categorically yesterday that "it is not possible" for state-run Chinese Petroleum Corp (CPC, 中油) to increase fuel prices again following price hikes as recently as mid-April.
Maintaining stable consumer prices is a national economic policy, Hwang said, suggesting that CPC make efforts to tap new resources and economize on expenses instead of taking more money out of consumers' pockets.
The company has to operate based on the interests of the country and its people, he said.
■ COA details rain damage
Agricultural losses resulting from several days of torrential rain amount to NT$1.15 billion (US$35.3 million), according to the latest tallies released by the Council of Agriculture yesterday.
The amount includes NT$922.97 million in crop damage, affecting 25,478 hectares of cropland.
The most severely damaged crops were rice, watermelons, grapes, peaches, pears, persimmons, tangerines, spring onions and peanuts. Livestock damage amounted to NT$20.61 million, while fishery and forestry damage amounted to NT$4.85 million and NT$1.31 million, respectively, the council said.
■ NT gains on greenback
The New Taiwan dollar gained ground against its US counterpart on exporter demand and foreign inflows yesterday. The NT dollar rose NT$0.04 to close at NT$32.620, on turnover of US$9.37 billion.
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