Taiwan tightens belt on Lunar New Year banquets

In many Chinese-speaking societies, the Lunar New Year is the time of the year for year-end parties. They are held in the days leading up to the New Year, which begins on Sunday.

Taiwan has maintained this age-old tradition and its companies are known for throwing lavish parties.

These are not just celebrations, but a chance to thank employees for the past year of hard work.

But this year, many of Taiwan's government agencies and businesses are cutting costs, by either cancelling or scaling down their celebrations.

Cindy Sui reports from Taipei.