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The Tai-Ex opened up 164-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 16,376 on turnover of 6.7-billion N-T.
The market lost ground on Wednesday, to close below the 16,300-point mark, as the semiconductor sector and other tech stocks followed a downturn on Wall Street overnight.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing led the tech sector's downturn, while large-cap old economy stocks weakened after showing some resilience (恢復力) during the previous session.
The Water Resources Agency has introduced tougher water restrictions from today due to shortages in some parts of the island - meaning industrial water usage (運用、使用) in certain areas has now been cut by up to 11-per cent.
Under the new measures, Tainan and Chiayi County will be placed on an orange alert, which limits total water use and reduces water supplies.
While Changhua, Yunlin and Nantou counties as well Kaohsiung have been placed on a yellow alert, meaning users in those areas will see their water pressure lowered.
The Water Resources Agency says it's also requiring industrial users in Hsinchu, Miaoli and Taichung to reduce water usage by 11-per cent and to cut industrial water usage by 7-per cent in Chiayi County and Tainan.
Culture Minister Lee Yung-te has overseen a groundbreaking ceremony for the first phase of a renovation (修復，翻新，整修) project at Taipei's Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall.
According to Lee, the government has earmarked 1.6-billion N-T for the renovation project.
Lee says the first stage of the project includes work on the Zhongshan Park, where the memorial is located and that is slated to be completed by the end of next year.
The second stage of renovation work will be focusing on the memorial building itself and see major upgrades to the hall's auditorium and other facilities.
Australia's laws forcing Google and Facebook to pay for news are ready to take effect.
Parliament today passed amendments to the News Media Bargaining Code agreed between Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday.
The changes would give digital platforms one month's notice before they are formally designated (指定的) under the code.
That would give those involved more time to broker agreements before they are forced to enter binding arbitration arrangements.
In return for the changes, Facebook agreed to lift a ban on Australians accessing and sharing news.
Google has already struck deals with major Australian news businesses in recent weeks.
US company Moderna says it is ready to begin trials for its booster COVID-19 vaccine shot, which aims to boost immunity (抵抗力) against the virus variant first identified in South Africa.
As Jagruti Dave reports, it comes amid concerns that current vaccines are less effective against the 501.V2 strain.
Saudi Arabia's royal court says Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman underwent a ``successful surgery'' for appendicitis (盲腸炎) today, and left the hospital soon after the operation.
The 35-year-old Prince Mohammed had laparoscopic surgery at a hospital in the Saudi capital of Riyadh in the morning.
The royal court announced that the prince "left the hospital in health and wellness", without providing further details.