The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) on Wednesday night urged the government to increase spending on healthcare to prepare for an aging society.
Taiwan’s spending on healthcare, at about 6 percent of GDP — which is lower than the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s average of 9 percent — means that people sometimes do not get access to advanced healthcare solutions that are necessary for an aging society with a rising incidence of chronic diseases, ECCT chairman Giuseppe Izzo told a dinner gathering, with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) as a guest.
Izzo suggested additional investments in disease prevention, treatment and preparation for pandemics, as well as a more flexible business model to increase private-sector involvement in healthcare.
The COVID-19 crisis offers a great opportunity to help international companies diversify and strengthen their supply chains by investing in Taiwan, Izzo said.
However, the post-COVID-19 economy and supply chain realignment would need more than capital, he said.
Taiwan needs to support and follow international standards and best practices if it is serious about attracting global firms, he said.
The government can help by stepping up efforts to create a bilingual nation and promote English fluency in education, as well as the public and private sectors, he said.
More could be done to attract a more diverse range of foreign talent, such as simplifying recruitment programs and easing immigration regulations, the ECCT said.
Green energy presents a huge opportunity for Taiwan to provide energy security, reduce pollution and create a whole new high-value industry, the chamber said, adding that technologies, such as hybrids, fuel cells and renewable synthetic fuels, have significant potential.
To compensate for wind and solar fluctuations, smart grids and grid balancing technologies using hydrogen, liquid air or battery storage systems are also necessary, Izzo said.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said its materials management head, Vanessa Lee (李文如), had tendered her resignation for personal reasons. The personnel adjustment takes effect tomorrow, TSMC said in a statement. The latest development came one month after Lee reportedly took leave from the middle of last month. Cliff Hou (侯永清), senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer, is to concurrently take on the role of head of the materials management division, which has been under his supervision, TSMC said. Lee, who joined TSMC in 2022, was appointed senior director of materials management and
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Thursday met with US President Donald Trump at the White House, days before a planned trip to China by the head of the world’s most valuable chipmaker, people familiar with the matter said. Details of what the two men discussed were not immediately available, and the people familiar with the meeting declined to elaborate on the agenda. Spokespeople for the White House had no immediate comment. Nvidia declined to comment. Nvidia’s CEO has been vocal about the need for US companies to access the world’s largest semiconductor market and is a frequent visitor to China.
Hypermarket chain Carrefour Taiwan and upscale supermarket chain Mia C’bon on Saturday announced the suspension of their partnership with Jkopay Co (街口支付), one of Taiwan’s largest digital payment providers, amid a lawsuit involving its parent company. Carrefour and Mia C’bon said they would notify customers once Jkopay services are reinstated. The two retailers joined an array of other firms in suspending their partnerships with Jkopay. On Friday night, popular beverage chain TP Tea (茶湯會) also suspended its use of the platform, urging customers to opt for alternative payment methods. Another drinks brand, Guiji (龜記), on Friday said that it is up to individual
READY TO BUY: Shortly after Nvidia announced the approval, Chinese firms scrambled to order the H20 GPUs, which the company must send to the US government for approval Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) late on Monday said the technology giant has won approval from US President Donald Trump’s administration to sell its advanced H20 graphics processing units (GPUs) used to develop artificial intelligence (AI) to China. The news came in a company blog post late on Monday and Huang also spoke about the coup on China’s state-run China Global Television Network in remarks shown on X. “The US government has assured Nvidia that licenses will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon,” the post said. “Today, I’m announcing that the US government has approved for us
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