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The Tai-Ex opened down 262-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 16,190 on turnover of $6.2-billion N-T.
The Tai-Ex followed other regional markets and gained ground on Thursday, after Wall Street rallied overnight on the back of the U-S Federal Reserve chairman announcing that America's central bank is in no hurry to withdraw support for the economy.
Two additional lines scheduled to be part of the Taichung M-R-T system have now completed early-stage reviews.
Completion of the reviews comes despite operations on the city's Green Line M-R-T remaining suspended following the discovery of safety issues shortly after it started carrying passengers in November of last year.
However, the city's Transportation Bureau says problems with the Green Line have not affected plans for the Blue and Orange lines and the two new lines are expected to greatly enhance (提高；增加；增強；增進) the performance of the system.
The 24.8-kilometer Blue Line will run parallel to Taiwan Boulevard, while the 29.2-kilometer Orange Line is being planned to help passengers traveling to and from Taichung International Airport.
The Environmental Protection Administration is warning that the poor air quality affecting much of the west of Taiwan will continue until at least tomorrow.
The statement comes after winds shifted on Thursday and are now blowing in from the east - which creates conditions that trap pollutants (污染物，污染物質) in the lower atmosphere and the slow wind speeds are making matters worse.
Thirteen monitoring stations flashed red for "unhealthy" on Thursday in northern and central parts of the island.
And today, red air quality alerts remain for parts of New Taipei, Taichung, Changhua, Yunlin, Chiayi, and Tainan, signaling "unhealthy" levels of air pollution.
Air quality levels are expected to improve in the north and center as northeasterly winds on strengthen tomorrow and Sunday.
However, the air quality will remain poor in the south.
Two dogs belonging to the musician Lady Gaga have been stolen after her dog walker was shot in Los Angeles.
The popular singer is offering (提出；提議) a five hundred thousand dollar reward for information about the dogs.
Ira Spitzer reports from California
New data from Mexico's government shows losses for the annual monarch butterfly migration.
The number of monarch butterflies that showed up at their winter resting grounds (地域，場地) in central Mexico decreased by about 26% this year, and four times as many trees were lost to illegal logging, drought and other causes.
The government commission for natural protected areas said the butterflies' population covered only 2.1 hectares in 2020, compared to 2.8 hectares the previous year and about one-third of the 6.05 hectares detected in 2018.
Illegal logging in the monarchs wintering rounds rose to almost 13.4 hectares, a huge increase from the 0.43 hectare lost to logging last year.
Experts blamed the drop on ``extreme climate conditions,'' the loss of milkweed habitat in the United States and Canada, and deforestation in the butterflies' wintering grounds in Mexico.