Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News.
**Tai-Ex opening **
The Tai-Ex opened down 50-points this morning from Friday's close, at 14,478
on turnover of 2.5-billion N-T.
The Tai-Ex fell by just over 200-points on Friday, after joining other
regional markets and followed Wall Street lower as plans by the U-S Fed for
more interest rate hikes rattled (使…不安) investor sentiment.
**Incumbent KMT Chiayi Mayor Wins Reelection **
Incumbent Chiayi City K-M-T Mayor Huang Min-hui has won re-election in
delayed election.
Huang beat her main rival Lee Chun-yi, of the D-P-P by nearly 30-percentage
points.
Huang declared victory just 75 minutes after the polls closed.
According to the Central Election Commission, Huang finished with 63.8-per
cent of the total votes, to Lee's 35-per cent.
Three other independent candidates combined (合計的) for the remaining
1.2-per cent of the total votes cast in the election.
The election was delayed three weeks because of the death independent Huang
Shao-cong, who died of a heart attack on November 2.
Huang's victory means the K-M-T keep control of 14 of Taiwan's 22 cities and
counties.
**Lunar New Year TRA Ticket Sales to Begin Midnight Wednesday **
The Taiwan Railways Administration says ticket reservations for the Lunar New
Year holiday will begin this week.
Bookings for tickets on the Eastern Trunk Line will open at midnight
Wednesday, while reservations for the Western Trunk Line will be available
from midnight on Thursday.
According to the rail network operator, additional services will be added to
the regular schedule from January 18 through 30.
A total of 287 trains are to be added to meet the expected high demand (需求)
over week-long Lunar New Year holiday.
The holiday begins on Friday, January 20.
**NKorea Claims Test Satellite Fired **
North Korea says it fired a test satellite in an important final-stage test
for the development of its first spy satellite.
The North’s state media says today the test was done to assess ((評估) the
satellite's photography and data transmission systems.
It also released black-and-white photos showing Seoul and another South
Korean city as seen from space in an apparent attempt to show the North is
pushing to monitor its rival with its advancing technologies.
A security analyst said the images weren't so impressive for military
reconnaissance but that improvements in the North's capability were
expected.
**US COVID Hospitalization Rates Rising **
The White House COVID coordinator says there's been a substantial (重大的)
increase in cases and hospitalizations since Thanksgiving.
AP correspondent Julie Walker reports.
**UN Food Program Director to Step Down **
The executive director of the United Nations World Food Program says he will
step down at the end of a six-year term heading the world’s largest
humanitarian organization.
David Beasley served one term as South Carolina’s governor from 1995 to
1999.
He was appointed to the U.N. post in 2017 by then U.S. President Donald
Trump.
Beasley term was extended (延長) under the Biden administration for an extra
year.
The World Food Program won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020 for fighting hunger.
Beasley says the process to select his successor has already begun.
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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