South Korea yesterday unveiled an ambitious plan to dramatically increase the production of environmentally friendly cars by 2020 as part of global efforts to cut carbon emissions and curb climate change.
Under the policy goals released by the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the annual output of “green cars” like hybrid and electric-powered vehicles would increase sharply from 80,000 this year to 920,000 over the next five years.
Seoul eventually hopes such vehicles would account for 20 percent of all cars sold in the domestic market, compared with the current share of just 2 percent.
The issue of vehicle emissions has taken on a higher public profile recently in South Korea as a result of the scandal involving the Volkswagen Group and faked emissions standards.
Last month, the South Korean Ministry of Environment ordered the German automaker to recall 125,500 diesel vehicles sold in the nation and fined the company more than US$12 million.
The energy ministry said the new green car policy would help Seoul cut carbon emissions by 3.8 million tonnes over the next five years.
It vowed to invest 150 billion won (US$127.5 million) to help local carmakers like Hyundai Group improve the range of battery-powered cars and eventually drive down prices. Hundreds of new electric charging stations are to be built across the nation — with a target of 1,400 by 2020, compared with the current 400.
“Environmentally friendly cars ... will account for 50 percent of the global auto market by 2030,” the ministry said.
South Korea has been slow to adopt green car technology, with consumers turned off by high prices and a lack of charging stations. However, Hyundai —South Korea’s largest automaker — has been seeking to expand its presence in the global green car market that is currently dominated by Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp.
Hyundai, which forms the world’s fifth-largest carmaking group along with its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp, plans to triple its number of fuel-efficient car models to 22 over the next five years.
The US dollar was trading at NT$29.7 at 10am today on the Taipei Foreign Exchange, as the New Taiwan dollar gained NT$1.364 from the previous close last week. The NT dollar continued to rise today, after surging 3.07 percent on Friday. After opening at NT$30.91, the NT dollar gained more than NT$1 in just 15 minutes, briefly passing the NT$30 mark. Before the US Department of the Treasury's semi-annual currency report came out, expectations that the NT dollar would keep rising were already building. The NT dollar on Friday closed at NT$31.064, up by NT$0.953 — a 3.07 percent single-day gain. Today,
‘SHORT TERM’: The local currency would likely remain strong in the near term, driven by anticipated US trade pressure, capital inflows and expectations of a US Fed rate cut The US dollar is expected to fall below NT$30 in the near term, as traders anticipate increased pressure from Washington for Taiwan to allow the New Taiwan dollar to appreciate, Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) chief economist Lin Chi-chao (林啟超) said. Following a sharp drop in the greenback against the NT dollar on Friday, Lin told the Central News Agency that the local currency is likely to remain strong in the short term, driven in part by market psychology surrounding anticipated US policy pressure. On Friday, the US dollar fell NT$0.953, or 3.07 percent, closing at NT$31.064 — its lowest level since Jan.
The New Taiwan dollar and Taiwanese stocks surged on signs that trade tensions between the world’s top two economies might start easing and as US tech earnings boosted the outlook of the nation’s semiconductor exports. The NT dollar strengthened as much as 3.8 percent versus the US dollar to 30.815, the biggest intraday gain since January 2011, closing at NT$31.064. The benchmark TAIEX jumped 2.73 percent to outperform the region’s equity gauges. Outlook for global trade improved after China said it is assessing possible trade talks with the US, providing a boost for the nation’s currency and shares. As the NT dollar
The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) yesterday met with some of the nation’s largest insurance companies as a skyrocketing New Taiwan dollar piles pressure on their hundreds of billions of dollars in US bond investments. The commission has asked some life insurance firms, among the biggest Asian holders of US debt, to discuss how the rapidly strengthening NT dollar has impacted their operations, people familiar with the matter said. The meeting took place as the NT dollar jumped as much as 5 percent yesterday, its biggest intraday gain in more than three decades. The local currency surged as exporters rushed to
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