Tuesday, 4 Nov 2025

Stay ahead of Asia’s biggest stories. Get our weekly news digest delivered to your inbox – it’s free!

Economy
EconomyShow More

Thrift Sellers Push Back as Indonesia Intensifies Ban on Imported Second Hand Clothing
A Growing Clash Over Thrift Fashion in JakartaIndonesia’s intensifying crackdown on imported…

November 4, 2025

Korean won stays weak despite tariff cuts and 350 billion US deal
Why investors sold the won after a banner trade announcementSouth Korea and…

November 3, 2025

Nike Supplier Cuts 1,800 Jobs in Indonesia After Quality Failures, More Cuts Possible
A manufacturing jolt in TangerangIndonesia’s footwear hub in Tangerang, Banten, has been…

November 2, 2025

Malaysia Unveils Investor Pass Golden Visa With Five Day Processing
A fast track for investors in MalaysiaMalaysia has unveiled a new route…

November 2, 2025

QRIS Drives Indonesia’s Rapid Digital Economy Growth
How a single QR standard reshaped daily paymentsIndonesia has turned a simple…

November 2, 2025
Education
EducationShow More

Children, AI, and the Need for Critical Digital Education
Rethinking protection and participation for kids in a high AI worldAustralia has…

November 2, 2025

Parents Worried About Social Media’s Effect on Youth Financial Literacy
Why social feeds are reshaping kids money habitsParents are increasingly worried that…

November 2, 2025

Survey Finds Most Japanese Teachers Lack Time to Support Truant Students
A school attendance crisis meets a teacher time crunchTeachers across Japan say…

November 2, 2025

Record School Absences in Japan Prompt Calls for Educational Reform
Why the absenteeism spike matters nowJapan has recorded a new high in…

November 1, 2025

China mobilizes retired teachers to narrow the urban rural education gap
Why retired teachers are heading to county schoolsWhen many peers were easing…

November 1, 2025
Entertainment
EntertainmentShow More

Inside the 15,947 drone spectacle that set two world records in Liuyang
A festival sky rewritten by softwareLiuyang in Hunan Province is famous for…

November 3, 2025

Lord of Mysteries Puts Chinese Animation in Direct Competition With Japan
A new contender at the top of animeFor decades, Japan defined the…

November 3, 2025

Tokyo International Film Festival Opens in Hibiya
A star filled opening in central TokyoTokyo rolled out the red carpet…

November 2, 2025

How Hong Kong Can Reclaim Its Halloween Hub Status
Why Halloween still matters for Hong KongHalloween has become a reliable spark…

October 31, 2025

Candles debut as Starbucks Japan rolls out Christmas 2025 goods and drinkware
Holiday cheer lands in Japan with candles and collectiblesStarbucks Japan is ringing…

October 31, 2025
Environment
EnvironmentShow More

Singapore resets food security plan, targets 20 percent fibre and 30 percent protein by 2035
Why Singapore is resetting its food production targetsSingapore has replaced its 30…

November 4, 2025

Bear Encounters Surge Across Japan as Autumn Hiking Season Peaks
Anxiety on the trails as sightings climbJapan’s peak season for autumn foliage…

November 4, 2025

Technology and Community Restore Koh Phangan’s Marine Ecosystem
A new fight for Koh Phangan's watersKoh Phangan is famous for bright…

November 4, 2025

Cebu reels from unprecedented floods as Typhoon Kalmaegi batters central Philippines
Floods swamp Cebu as evacuations surgeAt least 26 people have been killed…

November 4, 2025

Microplastics Detected in Jakarta’s Air and Water
Rain brings plastic particles to JakartaPlastic particles are falling with the rain…

November 2, 2025
Health
HealthShow More

Hong Thai adopts nuclear sterilisation for herbal inhalers after contamination
Immediate move to nuclear sterilisation after FDA alertThailand’s Food and Drug Administration…

November 2, 2025

Social Media Craze Over Carbide Guns Blinds Children Across North India
A Festival Night Turns Into Emergency RoomsDiwali nights usually end with family…

October 29, 2025

Malaysia Closes Some Schools As 6,000 Students Catch Flu Ahead of SPM Exams
Closures Hit As Cases Surge Ahead of ExamsMalaysia is contending with a…

October 15, 2025

Why South Korea’s Anti Aging Boom Is Attracting a New Wave of Medical Tourists
Inside Seoul's glow up boomOn a first visit to Seoul in 2023,…

October 15, 2025

Indonesia suspends problem kitchens and tightens oversight of free meals program after mass poisonings
Crisis tests Indonesia free meals programIndonesia has shut kitchens tied to its…

October 10, 2025
International
InternationalShow More

China issues death sentences for Bai family crime bosses in sweeping crackdown
Why Beijing moved hard against Kokang crime syndicatesA Chinese court has imposed…

November 4, 2025

China’s UN Remarks on Okinawa Target Militarisation, Not Sovereignty
What Beijing's statement means for OkinawaChina used a United Nations human rights…

November 1, 2025

Competing Rules at Sea: Why a South China Sea Code of Conduct Remains Elusive
A test of rules and resolve in the South China SeaConfrontations near…

November 1, 2025

Lukoil agrees to sell international assets to Gunvor after new US sanctions
Why Lukoil is unloading its global portfolioRussia’s second largest oil producer, Lukoil,…

October 31, 2025

Protests, summits and strategy as Seoul hosts rival powers
A capital on edge as rival leaders arriveChants of "No Trump! No…

October 30, 2025
Politics
PoliticsShow More

Takaichi seeks landmark summit with North Korea to resolve abductions
A new opening on a decades old riftJapan's new prime minister, Sanae…

November 4, 2025

BBC urges Vietnam to return passport and let journalist leave as To Lam visits UK
Why this case matters for press freedom and UK Vietnam relationsA Vietnamese…

October 29, 2025

Nusantara at a Crossroads: Money, mandates and the making of Indonesia’s new capital
Funding cuts and a pivot in purposeIndonesia’s new capital, Nusantara, was conceived…

October 29, 2025

Aung San Suu Kyi Spends 80th Birthday in Myanmar Jail
An 80th birthday marked by silence and steel doorsAung San Suu Kyi…

October 27, 2025

China Fourth Plenum charts tech drive, market cleanup, and a sweeping military purge
Why this plenum matters nowChina has closed a consequential political gathering in…

October 25, 2025
Science
ScienceShow More

Sugar in the Streets: Tainan Railway Dig Unearths 19th Century Roads from a Sweet Past
A rare window into Tainan's sugar streetsArchaeologists in Tainan have uncovered a…

November 2, 2025

China closes in on US scientific leadership across AI, quantum, and biotech
A shifting center of gravity in scienceChina is moving toward parity with…

October 30, 2025

Philippines Investigates Source of Radioactive Shipment to Indonesia
How a radioactive shipment linked the Philippines and IndonesiaThe Philippines has launched…

October 18, 2025

ImpacFat launches cultivated fish fat in Japan, linking Singapore science with Tokyo innovation
A milestone for cultivated seafood in TokyoSingapore startup ImpacFat has begun operations…

October 2, 2025

David Baltimore and the Making of a China US Life Sciences Bridge
A scientist who built bridges across bordersDavid Baltimore, Nobel Prize winning American…

September 27, 2025
Society
SocietyShow More

How Japan’s Net Cafes Reinvented Themselves to Survive
Comfort, privacy, and Wi-Fi reshape a shrinking industryInside a small private room…

November 4, 2025

Xinjiang’s Tourism Boom Masks Deeper Issues
A tourism surge meets tight controlAcross China, social media feeds showcase snowy…

November 2, 2025

How the Yamanote Line Shaped Tokyo and Still Sets the Pace at 100
A centennial loop that became Tokyos backboneOn November 1, 2025, the JR…

November 2, 2025

Singapore Leads World in Feeling Safe at Night, Gallup Finds
Singapore’s near universal sense of safetySingapore once again sits at the top…

November 2, 2025

Tradition in the Sky as Myanmar Tazaungdaing Festival Carries On
A festival of light in a time of darknessIn Taunggyi, a city…

November 1, 2025
Sports
SportsShow More

National Games 2025 set to turn Hong Kong into a city of sport and culture
A citywide celebration of sport and cultureHong Kong is preparing for a…

October 31, 2025

IOC tells federations to avoid events in Indonesia after Israeli gymnasts barred
IOC freezes Indonesia as host after Israeli gymnasts denied visasThe International Olympic…

October 23, 2025

How S Vegiyathuman Turned Walks and Runs Into a National Bond
Unity on foot across a diverse nationFor half a century, scenes of…

September 16, 2025

Tokyo Police Boost Security Ahead of World Athletics Championships
A city on alert as global athletics returns to TokyoTokyo has tightened…

September 13, 2025

Singapore to Host 2026 MotoGP Season Launch
A new stage for MotoGP in SingaporeMotoGP will open the 2026 campaign…

September 9, 2025
Technology
TechnologyShow More

Geopolitics upends Wingtech and Nexperia as the Netherlands asserts control
A rare intervention triggers a global semiconductor shockThe Netherlands has taken the…

November 4, 2025

Facial recognition fast lanes widen for Hongkongers as mainland talent gains longer access to the city
What is changing and why it mattersMainland China is expanding facial recognition…

November 4, 2025

Inside the human cost of Xiaomi’s race from phones to electric cars
A death that sparked a debateIn late summer, a 34-year-old retail project…

November 3, 2025

Why Chinas Hsinchu Photo on X Set Off Global Chip Jitters
A photo and a message with global stakesChina's embassy in Washington used…

November 3, 2025

Singapore App CallBridge Enables Deaf People to Make and Receive Calls
A new kind of phone callFor much of his life, Alfred Yeo,…

November 2, 2025
Travel
TravelShow More

Film Your Own Samurai Battle in Kyoto: Inside the New Armor and Action Experience
A cinematic samurai adventure in ArashiyamaKyoto now offers a new way to…

November 3, 2025

Autumn at Ban Gioc Waterfall Jade Water, Golden Rice, and Essential Travel Tips
A season of color and calm in Vietnams border highlandsAs the summer…

November 2, 2025

China’s Low Altitude Tourism Trend Takes Off
A skyward craze reshapes China travelCityfly is the new shorthand across China…

November 2, 2025

Cheaper flights to Sabah and Sarawak on the horizon as Malaysia rallies domestic tourism
Why lower airfares matter nowMalaysians may soon get cheaper flights to Sabah…

November 2, 2025

Konbini Tourism: Japan’s Convenience Store Tours Attract Visitors
Inside Tokyos most unlikely tourOutside Tokyo’s busy Yoyogi Station, a small group…

November 2, 2025

Tuesday, 4 Nov 2025

Stay ahead of Asia’s biggest stories. Get our weekly news digest delivered to your inbox – it’s free!

Economy
EconomyShow More

Thrift Sellers Push Back as Indonesia Intensifies Ban on Imported Second Hand Clothing
A Growing Clash Over Thrift Fashion in JakartaIndonesia’s intensifying crackdown on imported…

November 4, 2025

Korean won stays weak despite tariff cuts and 350 billion US deal
Why investors sold the won after a banner trade announcementSouth Korea and…

November 3, 2025

Nike Supplier Cuts 1,800 Jobs in Indonesia After Quality Failures, More Cuts Possible
A manufacturing jolt in TangerangIndonesia’s footwear hub in Tangerang, Banten, has been…

November 2, 2025

Malaysia Unveils Investor Pass Golden Visa With Five Day Processing
A fast track for investors in MalaysiaMalaysia has unveiled a new route…

November 2, 2025

QRIS Drives Indonesia’s Rapid Digital Economy Growth
How a single QR standard reshaped daily paymentsIndonesia has turned a simple…

November 2, 2025
Education
EducationShow More

Children, AI, and the Need for Critical Digital Education
Rethinking protection and participation for kids in a high AI worldAustralia has…

November 2, 2025

Parents Worried About Social Media’s Effect on Youth Financial Literacy
Why social feeds are reshaping kids money habitsParents are increasingly worried that…

November 2, 2025

Survey Finds Most Japanese Teachers Lack Time to Support Truant Students
A school attendance crisis meets a teacher time crunchTeachers across Japan say…

November 2, 2025

Record School Absences in Japan Prompt Calls for Educational Reform
Why the absenteeism spike matters nowJapan has recorded a new high in…

November 1, 2025

China mobilizes retired teachers to narrow the urban rural education gap
Why retired teachers are heading to county schoolsWhen many peers were easing…

November 1, 2025
Entertainment
EntertainmentShow More

Inside the 15,947 drone spectacle that set two world records in Liuyang
A festival sky rewritten by softwareLiuyang in Hunan Province is famous for…

November 3, 2025

Lord of Mysteries Puts Chinese Animation in Direct Competition With Japan
A new contender at the top of animeFor decades, Japan defined the…

November 3, 2025

Tokyo International Film Festival Opens in Hibiya
A star filled opening in central TokyoTokyo rolled out the red carpet…

November 2, 2025

How Hong Kong Can Reclaim Its Halloween Hub Status
Why Halloween still matters for Hong KongHalloween has become a reliable spark…

October 31, 2025

Candles debut as Starbucks Japan rolls out Christmas 2025 goods and drinkware
Holiday cheer lands in Japan with candles and collectiblesStarbucks Japan is ringing…

October 31, 2025
Environment
EnvironmentShow More

Singapore resets food security plan, targets 20 percent fibre and 30 percent protein by 2035
Why Singapore is resetting its food production targetsSingapore has replaced its 30…

November 4, 2025

Bear Encounters Surge Across Japan as Autumn Hiking Season Peaks
Anxiety on the trails as sightings climbJapan’s peak season for autumn foliage…

November 4, 2025

Technology and Community Restore Koh Phangan’s Marine Ecosystem
A new fight for Koh Phangan's watersKoh Phangan is famous for bright…

November 4, 2025

Cebu reels from unprecedented floods as Typhoon Kalmaegi batters central Philippines
Floods swamp Cebu as evacuations surgeAt least 26 people have been killed…

November 4, 2025

Microplastics Detected in Jakarta’s Air and Water
Rain brings plastic particles to JakartaPlastic particles are falling with the rain…

November 2, 2025
Health
HealthShow More

Hong Thai adopts nuclear sterilisation for herbal inhalers after contamination
Immediate move to nuclear sterilisation after FDA alertThailand’s Food and Drug Administration…

November 2, 2025

Social Media Craze Over Carbide Guns Blinds Children Across North India
A Festival Night Turns Into Emergency RoomsDiwali nights usually end with family…

October 29, 2025

Malaysia Closes Some Schools As 6,000 Students Catch Flu Ahead of SPM Exams
Closures Hit As Cases Surge Ahead of ExamsMalaysia is contending with a…

October 15, 2025

Why South Korea’s Anti Aging Boom Is Attracting a New Wave of Medical Tourists
Inside Seoul's glow up boomOn a first visit to Seoul in 2023,…

October 15, 2025

Indonesia suspends problem kitchens and tightens oversight of free meals program after mass poisonings
Crisis tests Indonesia free meals programIndonesia has shut kitchens tied to its…

October 10, 2025
International
InternationalShow More

China issues death sentences for Bai family crime bosses in sweeping crackdown
Why Beijing moved hard against Kokang crime syndicatesA Chinese court has imposed…

November 4, 2025

China’s UN Remarks on Okinawa Target Militarisation, Not Sovereignty
What Beijing's statement means for OkinawaChina used a United Nations human rights…

November 1, 2025

Competing Rules at Sea: Why a South China Sea Code of Conduct Remains Elusive
A test of rules and resolve in the South China SeaConfrontations near…

November 1, 2025

Lukoil agrees to sell international assets to Gunvor after new US sanctions
Why Lukoil is unloading its global portfolioRussia’s second largest oil producer, Lukoil,…

October 31, 2025

Protests, summits and strategy as Seoul hosts rival powers
A capital on edge as rival leaders arriveChants of "No Trump! No…

October 30, 2025
Politics
PoliticsShow More

Takaichi seeks landmark summit with North Korea to resolve abductions
A new opening on a decades old riftJapan's new prime minister, Sanae…

November 4, 2025

BBC urges Vietnam to return passport and let journalist leave as To Lam visits UK
Why this case matters for press freedom and UK Vietnam relationsA Vietnamese…

October 29, 2025

Nusantara at a Crossroads: Money, mandates and the making of Indonesia’s new capital
Funding cuts and a pivot in purposeIndonesia’s new capital, Nusantara, was conceived…

October 29, 2025

Aung San Suu Kyi Spends 80th Birthday in Myanmar Jail
An 80th birthday marked by silence and steel doorsAung San Suu Kyi…

October 27, 2025

China Fourth Plenum charts tech drive, market cleanup, and a sweeping military purge
Why this plenum matters nowChina has closed a consequential political gathering in…

October 25, 2025
Science
ScienceShow More

Sugar in the Streets: Tainan Railway Dig Unearths 19th Century Roads from a Sweet Past
A rare window into Tainan's sugar streetsArchaeologists in Tainan have uncovered a…

November 2, 2025

China closes in on US scientific leadership across AI, quantum, and biotech
A shifting center of gravity in scienceChina is moving toward parity with…

October 30, 2025

Philippines Investigates Source of Radioactive Shipment to Indonesia
How a radioactive shipment linked the Philippines and IndonesiaThe Philippines has launched…

October 18, 2025

ImpacFat launches cultivated fish fat in Japan, linking Singapore science with Tokyo innovation
A milestone for cultivated seafood in TokyoSingapore startup ImpacFat has begun operations…

October 2, 2025

David Baltimore and the Making of a China US Life Sciences Bridge
A scientist who built bridges across bordersDavid Baltimore, Nobel Prize winning American…

September 27, 2025
Society
SocietyShow More

How Japan’s Net Cafes Reinvented Themselves to Survive
Comfort, privacy, and Wi-Fi reshape a shrinking industryInside a small private room…

November 4, 2025

Xinjiang’s Tourism Boom Masks Deeper Issues
A tourism surge meets tight controlAcross China, social media feeds showcase snowy…

November 2, 2025

How the Yamanote Line Shaped Tokyo and Still Sets the Pace at 100
A centennial loop that became Tokyos backboneOn November 1, 2025, the JR…

November 2, 2025

Singapore Leads World in Feeling Safe at Night, Gallup Finds
Singapore’s near universal sense of safetySingapore once again sits at the top…

November 2, 2025

Tradition in the Sky as Myanmar Tazaungdaing Festival Carries On
A festival of light in a time of darknessIn Taunggyi, a city…

November 1, 2025
Sports
SportsShow More

National Games 2025 set to turn Hong Kong into a city of sport and culture
A citywide celebration of sport and cultureHong Kong is preparing for a…

October 31, 2025

IOC tells federations to avoid events in Indonesia after Israeli gymnasts barred
IOC freezes Indonesia as host after Israeli gymnasts denied visasThe International Olympic…

October 23, 2025

How S Vegiyathuman Turned Walks and Runs Into a National Bond
Unity on foot across a diverse nationFor half a century, scenes of…

September 16, 2025

Tokyo Police Boost Security Ahead of World Athletics Championships
A city on alert as global athletics returns to TokyoTokyo has tightened…

September 13, 2025

Singapore to Host 2026 MotoGP Season Launch
A new stage for MotoGP in SingaporeMotoGP will open the 2026 campaign…

September 9, 2025
Technology
TechnologyShow More

Geopolitics upends Wingtech and Nexperia as the Netherlands asserts control
A rare intervention triggers a global semiconductor shockThe Netherlands has taken the…

November 4, 2025

Facial recognition fast lanes widen for Hongkongers as mainland talent gains longer access to the city
What is changing and why it mattersMainland China is expanding facial recognition…

November 4, 2025

Inside the human cost of Xiaomi’s race from phones to electric cars
A death that sparked a debateIn late summer, a 34-year-old retail project…

November 3, 2025

Why Chinas Hsinchu Photo on X Set Off Global Chip Jitters
A photo and a message with global stakesChina's embassy in Washington used…

November 3, 2025

Singapore App CallBridge Enables Deaf People to Make and Receive Calls
A new kind of phone callFor much of his life, Alfred Yeo,…

November 2, 2025
Travel
TravelShow More

Film Your Own Samurai Battle in Kyoto: Inside the New Armor and Action Experience
A cinematic samurai adventure in ArashiyamaKyoto now offers a new way to…

November 3, 2025

Autumn at Ban Gioc Waterfall Jade Water, Golden Rice, and Essential Travel Tips
A season of color and calm in Vietnams border highlandsAs the summer…

November 2, 2025

China’s Low Altitude Tourism Trend Takes Off
A skyward craze reshapes China travelCityfly is the new shorthand across China…

November 2, 2025

Cheaper flights to Sabah and Sarawak on the horizon as Malaysia rallies domestic tourism
Why lower airfares matter nowMalaysians may soon get cheaper flights to Sabah…

November 2, 2025

Konbini Tourism: Japan’s Convenience Store Tours Attract Visitors
Inside Tokyos most unlikely tourOutside Tokyo’s busy Yoyogi Station, a small group…

November 2, 2025

reintegration challenges

Migrant workers gather for book launch in Pasig | The Manila Times

Coming Home, Facing New Realities: The Struggles of Returning Migrant Workers

June 15, 2025