20120509 3pm

3PM Intro

Good afternoon. It's time for ICRT news at 3. I'm Mike Woodward.

Wang: Cabinet Gains Tax Could Still be Passed

First, Taiwan news... Legislative speaker Wang Jin-ping says the cabinet's version of a capital gains tax bill could still be passed this week. The statement comes after KMT lawmakers yesterday delayed the screening of the bill until Friday. Speaking to the media today, Wang said that while legislators did not want to deal with the bill yesterday, it will be put on the legislative agenda in the future. Wang added that barring further opposition to the bill, it could still be passed quickly. He also said that since the capital gains tax is a Cabinet proposal, it represents major government policy, and the ruling party's lawmakers will work to support the government's stance. (EG)

TDongfeng To Assemble Vehicles in Taiwan

China's second-biggest auto group, Dongfeng Motor, is expected to conclude a deal under which it will begin assembling vehicles in Taiwan by the end of this year. The move is expected to pave the way for more cooperation in the auto industry between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. Chen Guo-rong, who is Yulon Motor president as well as the chairman of the Taiwan Transportation Vehicle Manufacturers Association, said it will mark a milestone in cross-strait collaboration in the auto industry. Chen made his comments at a celebration to mark the opening of a Taiwan-Hubei week promoting trade and exchanges between Taiwan and the Chinese province. Chen said Chinese carmakers' are ambitious to capitalize on Taiwan's cutting-edge technology and extend their markets. He added Taiwan has won world recognition in the field of auto electronics, which is why Chinese businesses are exploring new partnerships with Taiwan. Chen declined to give more details about the vehicles to be assembled in Taiwan, saying only that most of them are truck-like models that are not manufactured locally. (jm)

kofi and syria

in world news... Special Envoy Kofi Annan to the United Nations Security Council, says the full implementation of his peace plan is the last chance to avoid all out civil war in Syria. The former U.N. Secretary-General also catalogued the continuing human rights violations that plague the country, noting that the use of heavy weapons is down. Kofi Annan told the U.N. panel that the continuing level of violence and abuse is unacceptable. Syria's Ambassador to the United Nations Bashar Ja'afari blamed neighbors for undermining Kofi Annan's efforts. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, says the problem is that Syria has not done enough to stop the violence.

weather

Taiwan weather forecast for tonight according to the Central Weather Bureau, thundershowers likely island-wide this evening with the lows tonite north, center and south respectively: 21, 24 and 25. At the moment Taipei is cloudy with mist and 28, Taichung cloudy and 32, Gauhsiung fairly cloudy and 31.

3PM Outro

That's ICRT News at 3. Thank you for listening. I'm Mike Woodward.