The Central Weather Bureau yesterday said it could issue a sea alert for Tropical Storm Kai-Tak today, the season’s 13th tropical storm, as it threatens sea areas near southern Taiwan.
Kai-Tak strengthened to a tropical storm at 8am yesterday. As of 5pm, the center of the storm was located 710km northeast of Manila. It was moving northwesterly at a speed of 13kph. The radius of the storm has reached 100km, packing sustained winds of 64.8kph, with gusts of up to 90kph, the bureau said.
Bureau forecaster Lin Pin-yu (林秉煜) said Kai-Tak’s circumfluence would reach Taiwan tomorrow if the system’s path and speed did not change, increasing the chance of heavy rain in southern, northern and eastern regions.
The bureau said the radius of the storm would sweep through the Bashi Channel and the Hengchun Peninsula before moving toward Fujian Province, China. The storm is expected to come very close to the Hengchun Peninsula on Thursday and could make landfall there, the bureau said.
The bureau said it could issue a sea alert today, which would apply to eastern and southern parts of the country.
Lin said Kai-Tak was not likely to turn into a typhoon by the time it reaches Taiwan, adding that the storm would gradually move away from Taiwan on Friday.
Today, chances for afternoon thundershowers are high in northern, central, southern and northeastern regions. Cloudy to sunny skies are forecast for other regions as well as on the islands of Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu.
In related news, the average price of vegetables has soared to NT$41.82 per kilogram this month as fruit and vegetable supplies were drastically reduced because of the torrential rain brought by Typhoon Saola as well as heavy rainfall earlier this year.
The Taipei City Market Administration Office reported that the average volume of fruit and vegetables was 653 tonnes earlier this month, the second-lowest in the past decade.
The lowest volume on record, 639 tonnes, was set on Oct. 7, 2007, when the nation was hit by Typhoon Krosa.
The office said it would take action to prevent vegetable prices from rising further.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS