Taiwan's military is preparing for President-elect Lai Ching-te's inauguration later this month by rehearsing a 21-gun salute. Repairs to Taipei's metro system following last month's earthquake are estimated to cost over US$12 million. And enrolment at Taiwan's high schools has fallen by 20% over the past five years, with vocational schools particularly at risk of closure if the trend continues. Also:
- Residents of a city in the north of the Philippines find themselves divided over the joint military exercises currently taking place with the U.S. along their coast.
- Taichung is the most dangerous city in Taiwan for cyclists, with close to 3,500 incidents resulting in injury last year, including 22 deaths.
- The search continues for a missing German academic who is believed to have been in Taroko National Park at the time of last month's earthquake.