TAIPEI: The United States will donate 750,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses to Taiwan as part of the country's plan to share shots globally, US Senator Tammy Duckworth said on Sunday (Jun 6), offering a much-needed boost to the island's fight against the pandemic.
Taiwan is dealing with a spike in domestic cases but has been affected like many places by global vaccine shortages. Only around 3 per cent of its 23.5 million people have been vaccinated, with most getting only the first shot of two needed.
Speaking at Taipei's downtown Songshan airport after arriving on a brief visit with fellow Senators Dan Sullivan and Christopher Coons, Duckworth said Taiwan will receive 750,000 doses as part of the first tranche of US donations.
"It was critical to the United States that Taiwan be included in the first group to receive vaccines because we recognise your urgent need and we value this partnership," she said at a news conference. She did not give details of which vaccines Taiwan would get or when.
Taiwan has complained about China, which claims the democratically ruled island as its own, trying to block the island from accessing vaccines internationally, which Beijing has denied.
Standing by Duckworth's side, Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu thanked the United States for the donation and strong message of support from the senators' visit.
"While we are doing our best to import vaccines, we must overcome obstacles to ensure that these life-saving medicines are delivered free from trouble from Beijing," he said.
China has offered Taiwan Chinese-made vaccines, but the government has repeatedly expressed concern about their safety, and in any case cannot import them without changing Taiwanese law which bans their import.
The senators will also meet with President Tsai Ing-wen to discuss security and other issues.
US senators and congressmen visit Taiwan routinely in normal times, but coming in the middle of an upswing in infections on the island when its borders remain largely closed to visitors is a strong show of support.
Unusually, they also arrived on a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III freighter, rather than a private jet as is generally the case for senior US visitors.
Taiwan's vaccine arrivals have been gathering pace.
Japan delivered to Taiwan 1.24 million doses of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine on Friday for free, in a gesture that more than doubled the amount of shots the island has received to date.
LONDON: Finance Ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) rich nations reached a landmark accord on Saturday (Jun 5) backing the creation of a global minimum corporate tax rate of at least 15 per cent, an agreement that could then form the basis of a worldwide deal.
Such a deal aims to end what US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has called a "30-year race to the bottom on corporate tax rates" as countries compete to lure multinationals.
WHY A GLOBAL MINIMUM TAX?
Major economies are aiming to discourage multinationals from shifting profits - and tax revenues - to low-tax countries regardless of where their sales are made.
Increasingly, income from intangible sources such as drug patents, software and royalties on intellectual property has migrated to these jurisdictions, allowing companies to avoid paying higher taxes in their traditional home countries.
The G7 accord feeds into a much broader, existing effort. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has been coordinating tax negotiations among 140 countries for years on rules for taxing cross-border digital services and curbing tax base erosion, including a global corporate minimum tax.
The OECD and G20 countries aim to reach consensus on both by mid-year, but the talks on a global corporate minimum are technically simpler and less contentious. If a broad consensus is reached, it will be extremely hard for any low-tax country to try and block an agreement.
The minimum is expected to make up the bulk of the US$50 billion to US$80 billion in extra tax that the OECD estimates firms will end up paying globally under deals on both fronts.
HOW WOULD A GLOBAL MINIMUM WORK?
The global minimum tax rate would apply to overseas profits.
Governments could still set whatever local corporate tax rate they want, but if companies pay lower rates in a particular country, their home governments could "top-up" their taxes to the minimum rate, eliminating the advantage of shifting profits.
The OECD said last month that governments broadly agreed on the basic design of the minimum tax but not the rate.
Tax experts say that is the thorniest issue, although the G7 accord creates strong momentum around the 15 per cent-plus level.
Other items still to be negotiated include whether investment funds and real estate investment trusts should be covered, when to apply the new rate and ensuring it is compatible with US tax reforms aimed at deterring erosion.
WHAT NEXT
A G20 meeting scheduled for Venice next month will see whether the G7 accord gets broad support from the world's biggest developing and developing countries.
Much still needs to be ironed out - including the metrics that will determine how and to which multinational companies the tax will be applied.
The G7 communique left open what will happen in the meantime to digital services taxes on big technology companies in various jurisdictions, which the United States wanted to be scrapped as soon as a deal was in place.
It said only that there should be "appropriate coordination between the application of the new international tax rules and the removal of all Digital Services Taxes".
Any final agreement could have major repercussions for low-tax countries and tax havens.
The Irish economy has boomed with the influx of billions of dollars in investment from multinationals. Dublin, which has resisted European Union attempts to harmonise its tax rules, is unlikely to accept a higher minimum rate without a fight.
However, the battle for low-tax countries is less likely to be about scuppering the overall talks and more about building support for a minimum rate as close as possible to its 12.5 per cent or seeking certain exemptions.
SHANGHAI: For Chinese couple Ren and Fu (not their real names) in Shanghai, having a second child is akin to buying a sports car.
Can they afford its RMB1 million to 2 million (S$207,300 to S$414,600) price tag? Yes. But is it necessary? “After some thought, it seems that it’s not,” said the wife Ren, who works in advertising.
“Another factor is that both of us don’t really like children.”
It is more the sacrifices that come with having children, Fu chimed in. “Over the course of nurturing a child, you’re continually giving, and you don’t get much of a return,” the finance industry worker told the programme Money Mind.
“You give your time and money and a lot of capital … For this investment, one is enough.”
The couple, in their late 30s, got married in 2009 and had a son three years later.
Their nine-year-old son. (Image courtesy of "Ren")
Their sentiments, born of living in a frenetic and expensive metropolis, are not uncommon among China’s young urban dwellers and are a key obstacle to the country’s push to increase its birth rate, cite analysts.
Beijing announced this week that married couples may have three children, up from two, the limit allowed since 2016. Before that, the one-child policy had been in place since 1979 over fears of a population explosion.
The three-child policy comes after China’s latest census showed that its population had increased by 5.38 per cent over the past decade — the smallest increase since the 1950s — to 1.41 billion.
Its 12 million births last year were also the lowest on record since 1961. The fertility rate was 1.3 children per woman, well below the replacement rate of 2.1.
China’s population increased to 1.412 billion in 2020, but its birth rate has declined.
If the experience of Ren and Fu is any indication, it may be a challenge getting couples to even have a second child.
The one-child policy was still in place when the university sweethearts first met. Soon after they married, couples were allowed to have two children if one party in the marriage was an only child.
While that condition no longer applied later on, Ren said households with more than two children typically belonged either to the uppermost or lowest classes of society.
The wealthiest can hire nannies to care for their children, while the poorest are willing to have more children because they “don’t have much capital”.
WATCH: Why Chinese millennials are stopping at one child — and it’s a problem for China (4:20)
But for middle-income urbanites who work and have parents to look out for, one child is all they have energy for, Ren said.
She and her husband did not plan to have a second child from the start. To do so now would mean “we might have to push back our retirement by 10 years”, she added.
Fu mentioned other considerations, like property prices.
Middle-income families in Shanghai typically live in homes that are less than 100 square metres. At RMB80,000 to RMB100,000 per sq m, they may not be able to afford a larger space to grow their families, he said.
The average entry-level income for Shanghai’s white-collar families is around RMB5,000 to RMB10,000, he cited.
“Another point is the majority of couples in Shanghai are both working,” he added.
“I’m not sure if Singapore has this ‘9-9-6’ saying — that means working from 9am to 9pm for six days (a week). In Shanghai, it could be from 9am to 12am or 1am and for seven days.”
The couple are content with having one child. (Image courtesy of "Ren")
He thinks the Chinese are “not against” having more children, but systemic issues and mindsets stand in the way.
“A bigger part of the problem is how to adjust the economic structure and how to allow people to stay at home more and not keep earning money,” he said.
‘INTERESTING’ CHOICES LIE AHEAD
China’s official Xinhua news agency said the three-child policy will come with measures such as lower educational costs, and more tax and housing support.
Without going into details, it also said Beijing will guarantee the legal interests of working women and clamp down on “sky-high” dowries.
China is trying to get its people to have more babies.
Observers also suggested ways the country could address its population challenges and maintain economic growth: By rethinking its retirement age and the continued development of large cities; tapping technology; and working with small and medium enterprises to raise productivity.
China’s talent pool is deepening as more people graduate from universities. But its “insanely young retirement age” — women at 55 and men at 60 — means a “huge waste of human capital”, said Hang Seng Bank (China) chief economist Wang Dan.
She foresees another “interesting policy debate” in the next five years: Whether the country still wants to focus on developing large cities, where “people tend to have fewer children than in smaller cities and counties”.
“One risk associated with population decline is the housing market in some parts of China, because in the past 20 years, there’s been this build-up of residential housing in many of the mid-sized and small-sized cities,” she told Money Mind.
Ms Wang Dan.
While the biggest cities are growing, “we’re seeing more and more shrinking regions, especially in the north-east and in the west, so the authorities need to figure out a way to stabilise the housing market in these regions”.
There is also a labour shortage in manufacturing, she noted, although this can be mitigated by robots and greater automation.
Intensifying the use of technology in manufacturing under the Made in China 2025 plan and being a world leader in artificial intelligence by 2030 are already among the country’s goals, cited venture capitalist and Active Creation Capital founder Daniel Tu.
But more vocational schools could be built, and “one obvious area” where investment is needed is the healthcare industry, said Wang.
“China is lacking in its elderly care and healthcare in general, so it could learn so much from countries like Singapore, South Korea and Japan.”
WATCH: The full segment — Demographic time bomb: How will China’s ageing population impact Asia? (6:45)
The next decade may see another economic shift if businesses can cater for single women, she added. Their earning power will “partially compensate the lower consumption due to the low fertility rate”.
Whether China succeeds in raising its birth rate remains to be seen. Ren said the government has already tried to encourage a family-friendly society in some ways.
It set up zones in public places where children can play. It delayed school dismissal timings so that working parents can pick their children up, and does not charge school fees at public schools, she cited.
“No one wishes for the population number to decline, but everyone has their own choice,” she said.
“This is the attitude of the people now: Basically, get married if you find someone suitable; if there’s no one suitable, just stay single. It’s not a big deal — at least in the advertising circle, the culture is very diverse.”
Watch this segment of Money Mind here. New episodes every Saturday at 10.30pm.
TAIPEI: Major Taiwanese chip packager King Yuan Electronics said on Friday (Jun 4) it will halt production on the island for two days after several employees contracted COVID-19, the first time the pandemic has hit the global chip hub, as case numbers climb.
The rare uptick in infections in tech heavyweight Taiwan, which has been a model for how to control the pandemic, has triggered worries that a further outbreak could exacerbate a chip supply crunch that has hit global industries from auto to electronics.
Hsinchu-based King Yuan, one of the island's major chip packaging and testing firms, counts global tech giants including Intel and Samsung Electronics among its biggest clients.
Starting Friday evening, King Yuan will halt production at factories across Taiwan for 48 hours for disinfection, the company said in a stock exchange filing.
King Yuan said it expected the halt to hit 4 per cent to 6 per cent of its output in June and will impact up to 6 per cent of its revenue this month, adding it saw no significant impact to its business this year.
Sixty-seven employees mostly from the Philippines and working at a King Yuan factory in the northern city of Miaoli tested positive, Taiwan's health ministry said, adding it was planning to test more than 7,000 people there.
To stop outbreaks from spreading into other tech companies, Taiwan's government has set up an emergency response team in Miaoli as well as rapid test stations in the major science park in Hsinchu.
Taiwan reported 472 new domestic COVID-19 cases on Friday, including 133 cases added to the totals for recent days as it continues to readjust its infection numbers following delays in reporting positive tests.
That was down from the 583 domestic infections reported on Thursday.
Taiwan has now reported 10,446 cases since the pandemic began, including 187 deaths.
TOKYO: Japan delivered to Taiwan 1.24 million doses of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine on Friday (Jun 4) for free, in a gesture that will more than double the amount of shots the island has received to date.
Taiwan is battling a spike in domestic infections and has vaccinated only about 3 per cent of its population. Japan has agreed to procure more than 300 million doses of coronavirus vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca, more than enough to cover its entire population.
"At the time of the great east Japan earthquake 10 years ago, people in Taiwan sent us a lot of donations promptly. I believe that is etched vividly in the minds of Japanese people," Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said, announcing the vaccine donation.
"Such an important partnership and friendship with Taiwan is reflected in this offer."
The vaccines landed at Taipei's main international airport early afternoon. Taiwan Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said he was "extremely thankful" the shots had arrived at a tense moment in the island's fight against the pandemic, as he reported another 472 new infections.
"I believe it will be very helpful in overall pandemic prevention," he added.
The donation is a triumph for Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who has faced public anger about the slow arrival of vaccines and small protests by the main opposition party, the Kuomintang, outside her offices.
In a live online broadcast from her office, Tsai called on people to understand that it was not only Taiwan facing challenges getting vaccines now, with global supplies tight.
"Taiwan's international situation is very difficult. Even before vaccines are loaded onto the aircraft, there may be variables."
China, which claims the island as its own territory, has offered vaccines, but Taiwan has repeatedly expressed concern about their safety and accused China of trying to block Taiwan's vaccine purchases internationally.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters in Beijing that despite China's goodwill offer of shots, Taiwan had "lied that the mainland obstructed the provision of vaccines" to the island.
"The Taiwan authorities for their own selfish political gains have engaged in political manipulation on vaccine issues," he added.
Though Taiwan's share has not been announced, the island will also get shots under a White House plan for the United States to share 25 million surplus COVID-19 vaccine doses with the world.
Taiwan has received only about 860,000 doses so far, mainly AstraZeneca shots, but also a smaller number from Moderna. It has ordered more than 20 million doses from AstraZeneca and Moderna and is also developing its own vaccines.
In an emailed statement to Reuters, Johnson & Johnson said that it had been in "confidential discussions" with Taiwan about providing its COVID-19 vaccine to the island since last year, but gave no details.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires a single dose, rather than the two-shot regimen of most other COVID-19 vaccines.
Japan approved AstraZeneca's vaccine last month and has contracted to buy 120 million doses. But there are no immediate plans to use the shots, amid lingering concerns raised internationally over blood clots.
SINGAPORE: Singapore will tighten border control measures for travellers from Guangdong amid an increase in COVID-19 cases in the Chinese province, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Friday (Jun 4).
From 11.59pm on Saturday, short-term travellers holding an Air Travel Pass with travel history to Guangdong within the last 21 days will not be allowed to enter Singapore.
Singapore citizens, permanent residents and long-term pass holders who have been in Guangdong will have to take a COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test upon arrival at Changi Airport.
They will also serve a seven-day stay-home notice at their place of residence and take another PCR test before the end of their isolation period.
All other travellers from China do not have to serve a stay-home notice. They are required to take a PCR test upon arrival, and if the result is negative, they will be allowed to go about their activities in Singapore, said MOH.
The Air Travel Pass, announced on Aug 21 last year, allows short-term and leisure travellers to enter Singapore without any restriction on their itineraries.
The pass is open to short-term visitors travelling from Australia (excluding Victoria state), Brunei, mainland China (excluding Guangdong) and New Zealand. Applications from Vietnam and Taiwan were suspended after a spike in COVID-19 cases in the two places.
Guangdong, China's manufacturing and export hub and biggest province by economic output, is the epicentre of the latest COVID-19 outbreak in China, which started in late May.
The province has reported more than 50 local infections in the latest wave. Neighbourhoods have been locked down and anyone leaving the province has to show a negative virus test taken within the past 72 hours.
"As the global situation evolves, we will continue to adjust our border measures to manage the risk of importation and transmission to the community," said MOH.
Travellers should check the SafeTravel website for updates to border measures before entering Singapore, the ministry added.
