EZ News 09/20/24

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 204-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 22,246 on turnover of $6.6-billion N-T. The market gained more than 360 points on Thursday to close above the 22,000 point mark as investors reacted positively to moves by the U-S Federal Reserve to cut interest rates for the first time in four years. Investors rushed to pick up large-cap stocks across the board, led by the bellwether electronics sector, which managed to rebound from a wobbly (變來變去的) start to the trading day. Cabinet OKs Amendments to Halve Amusement Taxes The Cabinet has passed an amendment to the Amusement Tax Act. The move will reduce tax rates on most entertainment activities by at least half, with the exception of (除了) golf. Amusement taxes are levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement facilities or activities and collected by local governments. The Ministry of Finance says the amendments are aimed at assisting local governments to develop local cultural events and competitions, boost regional economic development and retain financial autonomy. EU China Pledge Increased Dialogue European Union and Chinese trade representatives have agreed to intensify (強化) efforts to resolve a dispute over electric vehicles. The EU has imposed tariffs of up to 35 percent on electric vehicle's from China accusing Beijing of imposing unfair subsidies and flooding the European market. William Denselow reports from Brussels. Rwanda Begins Mpox Vaccination Campaign The African health agency says that Rwanda has started a vaccination campaign against mpox with 1,000 doses it obtained from Nigeria. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention says vaccination started Tuesday targeting seven districts with high-risk populations who neighbor Congo. Congo has been at the epicenter (震央) of an outbreak on the African continent, where nearly 3-thousand new mpox cases and 14 new deaths have been recorded in the last week. This brings the total number of cases to over 6-thousand, with 738 deaths since the beginning of the year. Italy Churchill Portrait Returned to Canada A ceremony at the Canadian Embassy in Rome has marked the successful recovery of a stolen photo portrait of Winston Churchill, known as “The Roaring Lion,” after a two-year search. Italy's police handed over the portrait to the Canadian ambassador to Italy, who praised the cooperation between Italian and Canadian investigators that led to the recovery. The 1941 portrait of the British leader was taken by Ottawa photographer Yousuf Karsh. Canadian police say it was stolen from the Fairmont Chateau Laurier hotel in Ottawa sometime between Christmas 2021 and Jan. 2022, and replaced with a forgery (偽造品). The original was found to have been sold at auction and the Italian buyer has returned it. 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