People sending small parcels or express mail to the US would have to pay more in postage starting on March 8 due to a decrease in flights to the country and because the US Postal Service has raised delivery costs for small packages, Chunghwa Post said yesterday.
Airlines have since last year dramatically reduced international flights as many countries have imposed strict border control measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the postal company said, adding that this has caused air transport fees to major destinations during peak times to be four times higher than in 2019.
The US in July last year raised the delivery rates for small packages and announced that it would adjust the delivery charges for packages and express mail annually, Chunghwa Post said.
Photo: Cheng Wei-chi, Taipei Times
“For years, we have not adjusted postage for international mail and packages. However, the operational cost has drastically risen to the point that it has threatened the sustainability of the nation’s postal service,” the company said in a statement.
In view of rising operational costs, Chunghwa Post said that it would begin charging an emergency surcharge for international mail and packages, adding that any postage adjustment plan and the countries affected by it would be announced at least one month before the change takes effect.
Postage adjustments, which are calculated based on the number and weight of packages and mail, would mainly involve raising the price for lighter packages but reducing it for heavier packages, it said.
The new postage price for a small air parcel to the US, for example, would cost NT$130 if it weighs 100g or less, up from NT$53. However, the postage price for an air parcel weighing 500g would drop from NT$253 to NT$238.
Postage prices for mail and packages to be delivered through express services would increase across the board, with additional costs ranging from NT$100 to NT$500, depending on the weight, the company said.
For details about the new price scheme, visit Chunghwa Post’s Web site at www.post.gov.tw.
The first of 10 new high-capacity trains purchased from South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem arrived at the Port of Taipei yesterday to meet the demands of an expanding metro network, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. The train completed a three-day, 1,200km voyage from the Port of Masan in South Korea, the company said. Costing NT$590 million (US$18.79 million) each, the new six-carriage trains feature a redesigned interior based on "human-centric" transportation concepts, TRTC said. The design utilizes continuous longitudinal seating to widen the aisles and optimize passenger flow, while also upgrading passenger information displays and driving control systems for a more comfortable
Taiwan's first indigenous defense submarine, the SS-711 Hai Kun (海鯤, or Narwhal), departed for its 13th sea trial at 7am today, marking its seventh submerged test, with delivery to the navy scheduled for July. The outing also marked its first sea deployment since President William Lai (賴清德) boarded the submarine for an inspection on March 19, drawing a crowd of military enthusiasts who gathered to show support. The submarine this morning departed port accompanied by CSBC Corp’s Endeavor Manta (奮進魔鬼魚號) uncrewed surface vessel and a navy M109 assault boat. Amid public interest in key milestones such as torpedo-launching operations and overnight submerged trials,
Quarantine awareness posters at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport have gone viral for their use of wordplay. Issued by the airport branch of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, the posters feature sniffer dogs making a range of facial expressions, paired with advisory messages built around homophones. “We update the messages for holidays and campaign needs, periodically refreshing materials to attract people’s attention,” quarantine officials said. “The aim is to use the dogs’ appeal to draw focus to quarantine regulations.” A Japanese traveler visiting Taiwan has posted a photo on X of a poster showing a quarantine dog with a
Taiwan’s coffee community has launched a “one-person-one-e-mail” campaign, calling for people to send a protest-e-mail to the World Coffee Championships (WCC) urging it to redesignate Taiwanese competitors as from “Taiwan,” rather than “Chinese Taipei.” The call followed sudden action last week after the WCC changed all references to Taiwanese competitors from “Taiwan” to “Chinese Taipei,” including recent World Latte Art champion Bala (林紹興), who won the World Latte Art Championship in San Diego earlier this month. When Bala received the trophy, he was referred to as representing Taiwan, as well as in the announcement on the WCC’s Web site, until it
RSS