The work of counting the cost of flooding caused by Typhoon Xangsane began yesterday as damage estimates to agriculture and property weighed heavily on the prices of vegetables and real estate. The Council of Agriculture (
Hardest hit was farmland in Taipei County, which suffered losses amounting to NT$606 million and, along with Nantou, Taitung and Hualien counties would see their farmers receive relief funds of NT$100,000 for every hectare of farmland that is washed away and NT$50,000 for every hectare that is submerged.
Also swamped by the storm were the eastern counties of Tainan, Pintung and Kaohsiung, where high losses qualified farmers in these areas to apply for natural disaster relief funds and low interest government loans, according to the Council.
Farmers in Taichung, Changhua, Chiayi, Taitung and Hualien also saw losses high enough to qualify for low interest government loans.
Most of the damage to agriculture was borne by farmland, fish breeding ponds and orchards resulting from flooding and landslides, according to the Council. As a result of damaged and lost crops, wholesale prices for vegetables in Taipei rose by 16 percent and 24 percent in Kaohsiung as supply from Taiwan's premier vegetable growing regions along the east coast had been reduced by approximately 20 to 30 percent, the agriculture council said. However, TV reports said that prices could jump as much as 30 percent in markets across the nation.
Supply should return to normal by the middle of the month or early next month at the latest, said the council.
And while the actual physical damage to houses and property is still being counted, the damage to the long-term market value of real estate in the heavily flooded areas of Hsichi and Keelung were also being calculated yesterday.
Real estate company Evertrust Rehouse (
Keng Hua-shuang, (
"Prices for homes in these areas are already very low," said Keng. This has been compounded by oversupply in the housing market -- there are already 5,300 housing units waiting to be sold in Hsichi, where most of the apartments are new -- and an atrocious history of being hit by floods.
But while thousands bemoan the costs of ruined vegetables and devalued apartments, professional cleaning companies around some of the more severely hit areas like Hsichi and Neihu see the money rolling in from a spike in demand for their after-disaster cleaning services.
An employee at the Lichang Engineering Co, that specializes in cleaning up after floods, said over the last two days his company had cleaned up around 50 to 60 houses in areas in Taipei City and county.
"We help not only to pump out the flood waters but also to clean up the debris," he said. While fees are determined on a case-by-case basis, an average pump-and-clean job on a 20 ping (66m2), single-floor basement might cost on average of between NT$10,000 and NT$60,000, depending on the severity of the flooding.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS