**Tai-Ex opening **

The Tai-Ex opened down 87-points this morning from Friday's close, at 15,514

on turnover of 3.5-billion N-T.

The market closed slightly higher on Friday as large-cap semiconductor stocks

recovered from early losses on the back of ample liquidity, which offset the

impact of disappointing results reported by some major tech companies on Wall

street.

While old-economy and financial stocks were weak as investors awaited the

release of U-S jobs data for more clues about the state of the world's

largest economy in the wake of (在之後) the current rate hike cycle.

**Johnny Chiang Leading Delegation in UK for CPTPP Bid **

Members of legislative delegation are visiting the U-K this week in an

attempt to boost support for Taiwan's bid to the join the Comprehensive and

Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

The delegation is being led by K-M-T lawmaker Johnny Chiang, who heads the

Taiwan-UK Inter-parliamentary Amity Association.

The groups also includes K-M-T lawmaker Ma Wen-chun, Wen Yu-hsia, Wu Si-huai,

Sandy Yu and Wu Yi-ding.

Taiwan's Representative Office in London says it has also organized a series

of (一系列) meetings.

Those meetings include talks with several British think tanks, business

representatives and the heads of the House of Commons' foreign affairs and

defense committees.

**Injuries Reported at Yanshui Beehive Fireworks Festival **

Emergency service personnel in Tainan say 12 people sustained injuries during

last night's Beehive Fireworks Festival in the city's Yanshui District.

Sunday was the conclusion to two-day event that see thousand of people

packing the streets as fireworks are launched from palanquins (轎子).

Officials say of the 12 injuries, one included a man who suffered multiple

burns to some 37-per cent body after failing to wear proper protective

gear, while another was a 13-year-old boy who was hit in the left eye by a

firecracker.

Both of them remain hospitalized.

**US Gov Bickers Over Biden Balloon Response **

There is political bickering (爭吵) in Washington over the Biden

administration’s response to the Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot

down on Saturday.

AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports. ((opens with actuality))

**Pope Planning India Visit Next Year **

Pope Francis is planning to visit India next year and is studying a possible

trip to Mongolia later this year.

Francis outlined his upcoming travel schedule during his flight back to Rome

from South Sudan.

The pope also confirmed that he would be in Lisbon, Portugal for World Youth

Day the first week of August and in Marseille, France on Sept. 23.

Francis spoke to reporters after a six-day visit to Congo and South Sudan,

where he was joined in the South Sudanese capital by the Archbishop of

Canterbury and the moderator of the Church of Scotland.

The Catholic, Anglican and Presbyterian leaders made a joint (聯合的) visit

to push South Sudan’s political leaders to make progress on implementing a

stalled 2018 peace accord that ended a civil war following the country’s

2011 independence from Sudan.

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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