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Taiwan News Quick Take

■ HEALTH

Vaccine stocks fall short

Because of a global shortage in chicken pox vaccines, the nation's infants will be inoculated against chicken pox at the age of 15 months rather than 12 months starting next month, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.

A statement released by the CDC said that although the Department of Health had tried to secure more vaccines from producers earlier this year to avoid shortages, only half the orders made by the department had been filled so far. With insufficient vaccine stocks, shortages can be expected nationwide starting as early as February. This change will be a temporary measure until vaccine stocks return to normal levels, the CDC said. Until then, medical care providers and parents are asked not to inoculate infants under the age of 15 months.



■ EVENTS

MRT prepared for party

With the Taipei 101 firework show expected to attract tens of thousands of people, the MRT will operate all night on New Year's Eve and Xinyi District traffic will be limited, the Taipei City Government said. According to the city's Department of Transportation, all lanes on Shifu Road (between Songshou Road and Songgao Road) and Renai Road will be closed from today to 10pm on Tuesday. Between 7pm and 10pm on Monday, traffic between Xinyi and Zhongxiao E. roads from Songren to Keelung roads will be diverted. The department urged residents who lived within 4.5km of the city hall to walk to the area rather than taking public transportation.



■ EDUCATION

Foreign student numbers up

The number of foreign students studying in Taiwan hit a record high of 17,742 this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The figure was 3,263 more people than last year's 14,479, an indication that the nation is gaining in popularity for foreign students interested in learning Mandarin, the ministry said. This year, 5,259 foreigners from 117 countries are pursuing degrees here. Students from Vietnam comprised the largest group, followed by students from Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and the US. In addition, some 2,300 exchange students from 70 different countries are studying in Taiwan, mostly from Japan, Korea, the US, Germany and France. As of this month, 10,177 foreign students were enrolled at Chinese language learning centers across the nation. These students come mostly from Japan, the US, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam.



■ CRIME

Court to rehear case

The Supreme Court yesterday ordered the Taiwan High Court to rehear an insider trading case involving President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) son-in-law Chao Chien-ming (趙建銘) and Chao's father, Chao Yu-chu (趙玉柱). On June 26, the Taiwan High Court seAntenced Chao Chien-ming to seven years in prison and Chao Yu-chu to nine years and six months. The Chaos were also fined NT$30 million (US$927,000) each. The Taiwan High Court found the Chaos and two other codefendants made more than NT$100 million through insider trading of Taiwan Development Corp (TDC) shares. The Supreme Court yesterday said the Taiwan High Court's ruling was made based on a miscalculation of the profits the Chaos made through the transaction.
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