The Tai-Ex opened up 28-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 17,541

on turnover of $3.2-billion N-T.

Shares in Taiwan continued to feel the pinch as a result of uncertainties

created by the presidential election, giving up earlier gains.

Large cap tech stocks came under pressure, driving the broader market lower

as a whole, while buying rotated to "military concept stocks" amid worries

over cross-strait ties as well as shipping stocks which were boosted by hopes

of growing freight rates (海運運費率) in the wake of the crisis in the Red

Sea.

Democracy movement leader and activist Shih Ming-teh has died at the age of

83,

The Taipei Veterans General Hospital says Shih passed away early this

morning, and his family confirms that today was also his birthday.

Shih was jailed for years in the 60s and 70s for sedition, after calling for

Taiwan's independence from China, and again between 1980 and 1990 for his

role in the Formosa Incident, in which the then authoritarian Kuomintang

regime (政府，政權) cracked down on pro-democracy demonstrations in

Kaohsiung.

He was also the founder of the Shih Ming-Te Foundation, a nongovernmental

organization based in New Taipei's Xizhi District aimed at promoting the

advancement of ethnic reconciliation, national freedom, equality, democracy

and human rights.

Thousands of members of India’s main opposition Congress party and its

supporters have begun a 2-month cross-country march ahead of a crucial

national vote this year.

The march is led by Rahul Gandhi, scion (繼乘人) of the influential Gandhi

family.

This is the second time the Congress party has hit the road in the last two

years to rally support for elections.

India is expected to vote in a national election in April or May, and the

opposition is scrambling to put up a fight against Prime Minister Narendra

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.

Modi and his party remain popular after nearly a decade in power and many

surveys suggest he will win a third consecutive term this year.

The Department of Homeland Security is accusing Texas officials of blocking

federal agents who were trying to save a migrant woman and two children who

drowned.

AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports.

Russian local media say a disgraced (蒙羞) former mayor convicted over

bribery has had his prison sentence cut short after signing a contract to

fight with Russia’s military in Ukraine.

Oleg Gumenyuk, who served as mayor of the far eastern city of Vladivostok

between 2018 and 2021, was convicted last year of accepting bribes worth over

$400-thousand US dollars and sentenced to 12 years imprisonment.

However, his lawyers say he was released after agreeing to fight in Ukraine.

He said that the politician’s whereabouts were unknown, but that the former

mayor was instructed to report to his military unit on Dec. 22nd.

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 _____.

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