Headline News
Taiwan and EU seek closer trade ties
The 28th Trade Consultation Meeting between Taiwan and the European Union was held November 25 in Brussels. The annual meeting was presided over by Taiwan’s Economic Vice Minister Wang Mei-hua and Mauro Petriccione, deputy director-general of the European Commission’s Directorate General of Trade.
Wang expressed the need to sign a bilateral investment agreement to create better investment environments for both parties. She hopes that European companies pursue investments or technical cooperation with Taiwanese partners in areas such as offshore wind farms, the smart machinery industry and circular economy.
Wang and Petriccione also agreed to set up a biannual meeting for an intellectual property rights (IPR) working group starting in 2017. EU officials have been impressed by Taiwan’s IPR protection efforts and many European firms feel comfortable investing in Taiwan because of it, the Vice Minister stated.
Taiwan’s APEC delegation successful
Taiwan and the US have announced their intention to jointly support the creation of a sub-fund on women and the economy under the umbrella of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). The plan was unveiled by James Soong, First People Party Chairman and leader of the Taiwanese APEC delegation, and US Secretary of State John Kerry on November 18.
During the APEC summit Soong also met with mainland Chinese President Xi Jinping, to whom he expressed hope for continued trade and economic exchanges. The interaction was welcomed by President Tsai and Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, with the latter stating that it would be beneficial for the harmonious development of cross-strait relations.
Soong led the Taiwanese APEC delegation as representative of President Tsai Ing-wen and was congratulated for his successful representation of Taiwan’s interests during the meeting, achieving the main objectives set out for the delegation.
Climate
Taiwan achieves realistic participation in UNFCCC
Taiwan has achieved realistic participation at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Marrakech, Morocco, November 7-18.
Even though Taiwan is not a UN member, it still held talks with over 35 countries on global climate issues and these exchanges progressed smoothly, said Executive Director Chien Huei-chen of the Environmental Protection Administration’s Office of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Management.
Chien added that Taiwan “participated in the event by a technical approach”, obtaining fruitful results. These include generating concrete and sustainable measures and setting up a joint-calculation mechanism for carbon dioxide emissions verifiable by third parties.
Sport
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying world No. 1
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying emerged as victor at the 2016 Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open Badminton Championships on November 27. She grabbed the title by defeating India’s Pusarla V. Sindhu in the final with scores of 21:15 and 21:17. It was the second time in her career winning the Hong Kong Open.
Tai was still ranked third worldwide before the tournament, but the women’s singles badminton title secured her place as the No. 1 player in the world under the Badminton World Federation. The position was previously held by Olympic champion Carolina Marin of Spain.
Tourism
Taiwan fifth most-favored tourism country
Taiwan has been ranked the fifth most-favored country or area as a travel destination on November 23 by Agoda.com, one of the world’s largest hotel booking sites. The top spot was taken by Thailand.
Taipei was the seventh most favored city to tour, according to the latest Agoda study. The city came behind Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bali and Tokyo.
