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Jollibee employees attend to customers at an outlet in Manila in 2015. Photo: AFP
The Philippines

Joy in a bag: for overseas Filipinos, Jollibee is a taste of home

Forget KFC. For Filipinos abroad, Jollibee serves up cultural pride with a side of nostalgia – and the best fried chicken in America.

Malaysia

Malaysia’s Yong Zheng Xi on the ‘95% hard work’ behind his Bridgerton fame

Cambodia

A US$19 billion scam industry is fleeing Cambodia. Where will it end up?

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Singapore

Singapore seizes record Asian pangolin scales disguised as ‘dried fish skin’

The scales – estimated to be from more than 2,200 pangolins – were found after officials intercepted an inbound truck carrying sea cargo.

Pangolin scales are examined following their seizure in Singapore on December 29, 2025. Photo: AFP/Singapore’s National Parks Board and Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
Pangolin scales are examined following their seizure in Singapore on December 29, 2025. Photo: AFP/Singapore’s National Parks Board and Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
Indonesia

Indonesia begins social media ban for children under 16

Indonesia is now the first country in Southeast Asia to ban children from having accounts on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok and Facebook.

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Artificial intelligence

‘Economic own goal’? Vietnam’s AI law sets a risky pace for Southeast Asia

From Malaysia’s sovereign cloud to Vietnam’s data curbs, critics say the rush to regulate will deter investment.

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Myanmar

Myanmar travellers take to the trains as fuel prices rise

Commuters are choosing cheaper and faster rail travel over costly planes and cars.

Passengers travel on a train from Yangon to Naypyidaw early on Thursday. Photo: AFP
Passengers travel on a train from Yangon to Naypyidaw early on Thursday. Photo: AFP
Malaysia

Malaysian politicians rebuff Sabah oil fix for Philippine energy crisis

Political parties condemn Robin Padilla’s Sabah claim, affirming the oil-rich state’s irreplaceable role in Malaysia’s federation.

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Asean

Burning daylight: Iran war energy shock revives Asean’s power grid plans

Oil is up, coal is back and so are fuel queues. As the Middle East burns, Southeast Asia dusts off an old plan to rewire its future.

The Philippines

Why Philippines may face ‘strategic dilemma’ over Nato partnership, US demands

Manila has been forging closer ties with several Nato members amid tensions between the transatlantic security alliance and the US.

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Philippine military servicemen take part in a live fire exercise during the 2025 US-Philippines joint military “Balikatan” exercise in Rizal, Palawan. Photo: AFP
Thailand

Thai luxury hotels dangle huge discounts as Iran war disrupts travel

While the lower prices may be a boon for visitors, businesses say ‘the stillness is unsettling’ as they brace themselves for hardship.

Tourists pose for photos with kites flying above a beach in Pattaya. Thailand is expecting up to 3 million fewer overseas tourists this year. Photo: Xinhua
Tourists pose for photos with kites flying above a beach in Pattaya. Thailand is expecting up to 3 million fewer overseas tourists this year. Photo: Xinhua
Malaysia

Iran crisis bites into Malaysia’s supply chain as fuel subsidy cap falls

The quota cut for subsidised petrol reflects how the distant war is affecting Malaysia, with the food industry also sounding the alarm.

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The Philippines

As Philippines battles fuel crisis, will Marcos postpone Asean summit?

Lawmakers have urged the president to postpone or scale down the event and redirect funds towards softening the blow of rising energy costs.

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Singapore

As haze returns to Singapore, is crisis ‘quietly accepted’ by Asean?

Some Singaporeans are resigned to tolerating the annual occurrence despite the health risks and higher electricity bills.

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A fire razes through a peatland field in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra, Indonesia last July. Photo: AP
The Philippines

Why Japan’s troops are returning to Philippine soil for first time since WWII

The return marks an upgrade from the region’s previous ‘hub and spoke’ strategy to one of overlapping minilaterals, experts say.

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Japan Ground Self-Defence Force personnel on board amphibious assault vehicles take part in a joint landing exercise with Philippine and US troops in San Antonio, Zambales province, in 2018. Photo: AFP
Japan Ground Self-Defence Force personnel on board amphibious assault vehicles take part in a joint landing exercise with Philippine and US troops in San Antonio, Zambales province, in 2018. Photo: AFP
The Philippines

Why Filipinos blame Marcos, not Trump, for the Iran war fuel crisis

A Philippine senator wants Filipinos to hold Trump accountable for their surging fuel bills. But public anger has a different target.

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Malaysia

Iran to allow Malaysian vessels to pass in Strait of Hormuz: Anwar

Malaysia’s PM Anwar Ibrahim said he talked with Iran and other countries as part of efforts to ‌facilitate peace in the Middle East.

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Malaysia

Couple sentenced to 1 year in prison for having sex at Malaysian cemetery

The incident in Penang sparked public outrage after a 38-second video of the act went viral.

Public indecency at a Malaysian cemetery has landed a couple in jail for a year. Photo: The Star
Public indecency at a Malaysian cemetery has landed a couple in jail for a year. Photo: The Star
Singapore

Singapore’s green fuel levy on air travellers delayed over Iran war

The tax, which depends on the class of travel or length of flight, will now be rolled out on October 1.

The Philippines

Philippines working with US to obtain oil from US-sanctioned nations

This comes after the Southeast Asian nation, which relies heavily on imported fuel, declared a state of national emergency on Tuesday.

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Malaysia

Minister denies link to Malaysia’s ‘corporate mafia’ saga

Ramanan Ramakrishnan has challenged businessman Victor Chin to identify the politician ‘Mr R’ said to be at the centre of the controversy.

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Ramanan Ramakrishnan is Malaysia’s human resource minister and vice-president of the ruling People’s Justice Party. Photo: Handout
Singapore

Man extradited from Singapore to New Zealand faces rape, home invasion charges

Zhang Xuesong is accused of raping and strangling the victim and reportedly fled to China, and later Singapore, following the break-in.

Zhang Xuesong, who is accused of raping and strangling a woman during a violent home invasion, pleaded not guilty in the Auckland High Court. Photo: Shutterstock
Zhang Xuesong, who is accused of raping and strangling a woman during a violent home invasion, pleaded not guilty in the Auckland High Court. Photo: Shutterstock
Singapore

Singapore coroner rules Indian singer Zubeen Garg’s death accidental drowning

State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said no one had forced, coerced or pushed Garg into the waters off Lazarus Island last year.

Malaysia

Malaysia’s weather is so hot that it can warp a payment card

Rice fields are drying out in the northern region, while heat-related health cases are rising across the country.

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South Korea

South Korean ‘sugar cane killer’ extradited from Philippines over drug empire

Accused of running a drug ring from his Philippine prison cell, ‘VIP’ inmate Park Wang-yeol was extradited after a nine-year legal impasse.

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Park Wang-yeol (centre), a South Korean national detained in the Philippines, arrives at Incheon International Airport in South Korea on Wednesday. Photo: Yonhap/EPA
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