**Tai-Ex opening **

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

12,933 on turnover of 2.4-billion N-T.

**12 Crew Members Missing from Panama-flagged Freighter **

A Panama-flagged cement freighter has sunk off the coast of Changhua, and 12

crew members are reported missing.

The freighter experienced engine failure east of the Changhua Offshore Wind

Farm in the afternoon yesterday.

Its 17 Indonesian crew members abandoned the ship before it sank later that

evening.

No oil leak was reported.

The Maritime and Port Bureau says five crewmen have been located, while the

Coast Guard has dispatched (派出) ships to search and rescue the remaining 12

missing people.

**Taiwan's fertility rate to fall to world's lowest by 2035: NDC **

The National Development Council is forecasting that Taiwan is set to replace

South Korea as the country with the world's lowest fertility rate in the next

decade.

The NDC predicts that the average number of children women have during their

childbearing (生育) years could fall to a historic low of 0.8 in 2022, and

reach 1.12 by 2035.

That's lower than the 1.18 forecast in South Korea.

In addition, the NDC indicates although the share of the population in Taiwan

aged 15 to 64 is still at its peak, it is set to decline rapidly.

As the median age of the population rises, the low birth rate will cause a

decline in the ratio of the working-age population, leading to a shortage of

workers, while increasing the burden on the younger generations who support

the dependent population.

**India Arrests 9 After Bridge Collapse **

Police in western India have arrested nine people as they investigate the

collapse of a newly repaired 143-year-old suspension bridge.

The collapse Sunday evening in Gujarat state plunged hundreds of people into

a river, killing at least 134.

Security video showed hundreds of people clinging (緊緊抱著) to the broken

structure and trying to make their way to safety.

The pedestrian bridge had reopened just four days earlier after more than six

months of repairs.

Officials said it was overloaded with people drawn to the attraction during

the Hindu festival season.

**US Pelosi Husband Attacker Charged **

Federal prosecutors have charged the man accused of attacking the husband of

US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi with a hammer at the couple's San

Francisco home.

The attack sent Paul Pelosi to the hospital with a fractured skull (顱骨骨折)

although he expected to recover.

Ira Spitzer reports from San Francisco.

**China Module Docks at Space Station **

China’s third and final module docked with its its permanent space station.

Mengtian was blasted into space on Monday from a launch center on the

southern island province of Hainan aboard a Long March-5B Y4 carrier rocket.

Mengtian is the second laboratory module for the space station, connecting to

a core (核心) module where the crew lives and works.

The module is currently populated by two male and one female astronauts.

Monday's launch is uncrewed.

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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