Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Hsin-yi (林信義) left for Vietnam yesterday to attend an annual conference on promoting trade and economic cooperation between Taiwan the two countries.
This was the eighth consecutive year that major trade organizations in the two countries have jointly organized the meeting to boost bilateral economic ties.
Lin headed a delegation of economic ministry officials, including Vice Minister Chen Ruey-long (陳瑞隆) and senior business executives to attend the conference.
During his visit, Lin will also tour a Hanoi industrial park developed by Taiwan business groups and meet with Taiwan investors in Vietnam, including I-Mei Foods Co Ltd (義美食品), to gain a better understanding of their operations there. Lin is scheduled to return to Taipei tomorrow.
Despite the absence of formal diplomatic ties, Taiwan-Vietnamese economic relations have been growing steadily. Taiwan is now Vietnam's fourth largest trading partner.
With their geographic proximity and similar cultural backgrounds, ministry officials said, the two countries should have many new opportunities to cooperate in the future.
According to ministry tallies, two-way trade between Taiwan and Vietnam amounted to US$2.12 billion last year, with Taiwan exporting US$1.66 billion worth of goods to Vietnam while importing US$460 million worth of Vietnamese products.
Taiwan mainly exported semi-finished textile goods, leather, footwear parts and processing machines to Vietnam, while raw materials, farm produce and semi-finished products formed the bulk of imports from Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Yin Chi-ming (
According to ministry officials, stops on the trip will include Los Angeles, Silicon Valley and New York as well as Ottawa.
The delegation will meet with multinational companies such as IBM Corp, Corning Inc, Cisco Systems Inc, Nortel Networks Corp and Alcatel, officials added.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique