Asia

European companies in China have been able to minimise the effect from the tariff war between Beijing and Washington, although some are considering relocating their businesses, the EU Chamber of Commerce said Monday. The world’s two biggest economies have been entangled in a lingering trade war for over a year, which has weighed on the […]

Olympic champion Joseph Schooling vowed to “fix” his physique after winning only one individual gold medal at the Southeast Asian Games, less than eight months before his title defence at Tokyo 2020. The 24-year-old Singaporean famously beat his idol, US legend Michael Phelps, at the Rio 2016 Olympics in the 100m butterfly final, but finds […]

China on Monday defended its vast network of re-education camps in Xinjiang and said it would continue “training” residents, following explosive government document leaks detailing surveillance and control of the region’s Uighur population. Rights groups estimate more than a million Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities are held in the facilities, which reports describe as […]

REFILES to add picture, video tag Thousands rallied in support of Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar Saturday, on the eve of her departure for the UN’s top court to defend Myanmar against charges of genocide against Rohingya Muslims. The raucous rally in the capital Naypyidaw came as China’s foreign minister arrived for a visit […]

by Su Xinqi Among the sea of faces on Hong Kong’s streets on Sunday were more than one hundred people wearing quirky over-sized animal masks — a band of activists bringing popular protest internet memes to life. Hong Kong’s democracy movement is largely leaderless and organised online. LIHKG, a local Reddit-like web forum that serves […]

Qatar has postponed to next year the opening of Education City stadium, its second newly built venue for the 2022 football World Cup, FIFA said on Saturday. The venue was due to be inaugurated when it hosted the semi-final of the Club World Cup between Liverpool and an as yet undetermined side on December 18. […]

The loss of oxygen from the ocean due to climate change risks “dire effects” on sea life, fisheries and coastal communities, a global conservation body said Saturday. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said that around 700 sites had been identified globally with low oxygen levels — up from only 45 in […]

by Abhaya SRIVASTAVA / Jalees ANDRABI Indian police on Friday shot dead four gang-rape and murder suspects, prompting celebrations but also accusations that they were extrajudicial executions. The men, who had been in custody for a week over the latest rape case to shock India, were shot in the early hours during a re-enactment of […]

by Su Xinqi Hong Kong pro-democracy activists on Friday vowed to hold another massive rally over the weekend and warned the city’s pro-Beijing leader not to think a recent lull in violence means public anger is weakening. The semi-autonomous financial hub has been battered by six months of increasingly violent protests pushing for greater democratic […]

by Anuj Chopra with Luc Olinga in New York Saudi Aramco on Thursday priced its long-awaited IPO at the high end of the target range, raising $25.6 billion and giving the energy giant a valuation of $1.7 trillion in the world’s biggest stock sale. Aramco priced its initial public offering at 32 riyals ($8.53) per […]

Beijing and Washington are “maintaining close communication” over a much-anticipated phase one trade deal, China’s commerce ministry said Thursday, reiterating that tariffs must be reduced as part of any agreement. Hopes had risen that the two sides were close to reaching a mini deal, but comments from President Trump and recent US legislation backing Hong Kong pro-democracy […]

China on Thursday denied posing a threat to other countries, insisting it is a “peaceful power” after NATO members signed a statement acknowledging the “challenges” posed by Beijing for the first time. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday that the alliance had to jointly tackle China’s growing military capabilities, which include missiles that […]

Global equities mostly retreated Tuesday after US President Donald Trump warned there was no deadline for doing a trade deal with China. The announcement added to trade uncertainty already stoked by Washington’s re-imposition of metal tariffs on Argentina and Brazil and threats of steep levies for French merchandise. In Britain for a NATO summit, Trump […]

A man and woman have been rescued after surviving two weeks in Australia’s arid outback on little more than vodka, groundwater and biscuits, but a third person is still missing, police said Tuesday. The three friends set out to explore the country’s vast sun-baked interior near Alice Springs on November 19 when their car became […]

An amazing moment was captured on video in Malaysian waters when a whale shark came up to a boat to seek help and thanked the fishermen for freeing it from a rope around its body. And it appears that it thanked the men with several swishes of its tail before diving back in the water. The incident […]