EZ News 06/28/23

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. **Tai-Ex opening ** The Tai-Ex opened up 18-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 16,906 on turnover of 2-billion N-T. The market ended the trading day in negative territory again on Tuesday, following a steep decline in tech stocks on Wall Street overnight. Market watchers say investor sentiment this week will likely remain muted as they await the release of the latest U-S inflation data - which is due out on Friday. **Military Planning 'Anti-Takeover' Drill at Taoyuan Int. ** Defense officials say Taoyuan International Airport will suspend commercial air traffic for one hour late next month for a military anti-takeover drill. It will be part of the live fire phase of this year's Han Kuang exercises and will be the first time that such a drill will have ever been staged at the airport. The exercise has been set for July 26 and officials say it's likely to last less than an hour in order to avoid lengthy disruption (擾亂) to air traffic. According to defense officials, all major airlines will be informed of the event and an international air traffic broadcast will also be issued. **TAITRA Opens Taiwan Trade Center in Dallas ** And, The Taiwan External Trade Development Council has opened an office in Dallas, Texas. According to council chairman James Huang, the office has been opened to support Taiwanese businesses operating in the state at a time when the American south is fast becoming a manufacturing hub (中心). The opening of the Taiwan Trade Center in Dallas was attended by five U-S representatives - who all touted their belief in the need to boost commercial ties between the U-S and Taiwan. The opening of the center means the External Trade Development Council now has three offices in the United States. Pakistan IMF Close to Bailout Deal A senior official with the International Monetary Fund and Pakistan’s prime minister are indicating a deal could soon be reached on a much-needed $6 billon bailout package for the impoverished (貧困) south Asian country. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke with Kristalina Georgieva, the managing director of the IMF on Tuesday, according to a government statement. Later, the IMF’s mission chief to Islamabad released a statement suggesting the sides were close to reaching an agreement. Talks between Pakistan and the IMF stalled in December, after the global lender delayed the release of a crucial tranche of $1.1 billion from the bailout **Scientists: Climate Change Made US Heat Dome More Likely ** With temperatures near 40 degrees Celsius in some parts of the US, scientists have found human activity is making these extreme (極端) weather events more likely. Southern US states have been under a heat dome for the last few weeks. Nick Harper reports from Washington. **Klimt Painting Most Expensive Artwork Ever Sold in Europe ** A late-life masterpiece (傑作) by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt is now the most expensive artwork ever auctioned in Europe. "Lady with a Fan", sold at Sotheby’s on Tuesday for about the equivlanet of $108.4 million US dollars in London. The sale price exceeded the presale estimate of $80 million. It also beat the previous European auction record of $104.3 million for Alberto Giacometti’s sculpture “Walking Man I” at Sotheby’s in 2010. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. -- Hosting provided by SoundOn