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Asia

This Week in Asia

New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay (right) and Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal after they signed documents on a free-trade agreement in New Delhi on Monday. Photo: AP

Australasia

India, New Zealand sign ‘once-in-a-generation’ free-trade deal

The deal will cut or remove tariffs on 95 per cent of New Zealand’s exports to India, with all Indian exports to New Zealand duty free.

3 hours agovideocam

‘I feel anger’: Japan’s women rise up against constitutional reform push

3 hours agovideocam

French teen in Singapore faces jail for licking vending machine straw

3 hours agovideocam

Politics

Philippine court order over Marcos’ health raises constitutional question

The order for Marcos to comment on a petition comes as Duterte’s supporters continue to cast doubts about the president’s fitness.

4 hours agovideocam

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr tosses the ceremonial ball during the opening of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship in Pasay in September. Photo: AP

Politics

Malaysia’s Najib ends house-arrest appeal over 1MDB-linked prison sentence

The withdrawal ends the former prime minister’s attempt to serve out his SRC sentence at home after his jail term was halved in 2024.

2 hours agovideocam

South Asia

Child, newlywed among 14 killed by lightning in Bangladesh

Lightning kills ‌hundreds of people every year in ⁠Bangladesh, which ⁠declared lightning strikes a natural disaster in 2016.

6 hours ago

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Lifestyle & Culture

In hot water: Japan’s bathhouses struggle to stay afloat as oil prices spike

“Sentos” have cut operating hours and welcomed fewer customers, with some deciding to fold amid the energy crisis.

6 hours agovideocam

A customer washes his hair at a public bathhouse in Tokyo. Photo: Reuters

South Asia

Sri Lanka arrests 22 monks with US$3.5 million worth of cannabis in record haul

Each monk was found with 5kg of kush concealed within false walls in his luggage at Colombo airport.

27 Apr 2026 - 2:46PM

Politics

North Korea, Russia boost anti-West ‘powerful bulwark’ as Ukraine war drags on

At a memorial for fallen North Korean soldiers who fought in Ukraine, Moscow offers to renew a military pact with Pyongyang.

4 hours agovideocam

South Asia

Everest climbers left hanging after giant ice chunk blocks path to summit

Mountaineers are waiting for the serac above the Khumbu icefall to melt before marking the rest of the route for the spring climbing season.

27 Apr 2026 - 2:05PMvideocam

Members of an expedition team hike at Khumbu icefall on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

Politics

Malaysian state in political crisis after Umno pulls support for chief minister

The Negeri Sembilan spat has shone the spotlight on increasingly fragile ties within Prime Minister Anwar’s coalition government.

4 hours ago

Negeri Sembilan ruler Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir. Photo: YouTube

People

Air-sea-land: migrant smugglers target Malaysia entry via Singapore, Thailand

A raid reveals a shift in tactics by syndicates that have long used Malaysia’s porous borders to move undocumented migrants.

4 hours agovideocam

Southeast Asia

Thailand to extradite Indonesian man in US$10 million scam targeting Americans

The suspect allegedly hired models to lure targets into phoney investment schemes over video calls, dating apps and social media.

27 Apr 2026 - 10:07AMvideocam

Global Economy

Chinese EVs are making inroads in one of world’s most competitive auto markets

BYD is now one of Korea’s fastest-growing imported EV brands while rivals like Chery look to break into a market long dominated by local giants.

27 Apr 2026 - 10:00AMvideocam

An aerial drone photo taken on April 10 shows vehicles to be exported at Yantai port in east China’s Shandong province. Photo: Xinhua

East Asia

North Korea’s Kim renews pledge to support Russia at memorial for fallen troops

More than 6,000 North Korean soldiers are estimated to have died while fighting Ukrainians in Russia’s Kursk region.

27 Apr 2026 - 9:30AM

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ((right) greets Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov with a hug in Pyongyang on Sunday. Photo: Russian Defence Ministry/EPA

East Asia

Magnitude 6.2 quake strikes Japan’s Hokkaido, JMA warns of more to come

The temblor, and another hours earlier, come less than a week after last Monday’s 7.7 earthquake off northern Iwate prefecture.

27 Apr 2026 - 9:34AMvideocam

Economics

Japan aims to build world’s largest wind farm. Can it power on by 2035?

The plan calls for wind turbines to supply power to the Izu Islands and Tokyo, with an eventual capacity of 1 gigawatt.

3 hours agovideocam

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Economics

Mixed bag: Indonesia’s 8% growth dream hits a plastic ceiling

Soaring packaging costs amid the Iran war hint at a deeper malaise as the middle class contracts and growth hits a plateau.

26 Apr 2026 - 10:01AMvideocam

A woman shops for vegetables in Depok, Indonesia, earlier this month near a sign asking customers to bring their own shopping bags. Photo: Reuters

Health & Environment

Shock therapy: war forces oil-addicted Asia to finally go green

Burned by soaring energy prices, Southeast Asian nations are racing to future-proof themselves against the volatility of war.

18 Apr 2026 - 8:00AMvideocam

Politics

Japan’s Middle East oil habit gets an Iran war reality check

Almost all of Japan’s oil comes from the Middle East. A closed strait turned that dependence into a trap.

11 Apr 2026 - 8:00AMvideocam

Lifestyle & Culture

Cultural capitals: Southeast Asia seeks soft power to outlast the buzz

The region’s creators are going global, but the structures to sustain them are still catching up.

4 Apr 2026 - 9:50AMvideocam

Illustration: Mario Rivera

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Highlights from

THIS WEEK IN ASIA

Economics

Mixed bag: Indonesia’s 8% growth dream hits a plastic ceiling

26 Apr 2026 - 10:01AMvideocam

A woman shops for vegetables in Depok, Indonesia, earlier this month near a sign asking customers to bring their own shopping bags. Photo: Reuters

People

‘I feel anger’: Japan’s women rise up against constitutional reform push

3 hours agovideocam

People protest against a constitutional amendment allowing Japan to sell weapons overseas, in Tokyo on April 21. Photo: EPA

Politics

Philippine court order over Marcos’ health raises constitutional question

4 hours agovideocam

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr tosses the ceremonial ball during the opening of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship in Pasay in September. Photo: AP

Politics

Malaysia’s Najib ends house-arrest appeal over 1MDB-linked prison sentence

2 hours agovideocam

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, is escorted by prison officers on his arrival at the Kuala Lumpur High Court Complex, in Kuala Lumpur on December 22, 2025. Photo: AP

Lifestyle & Culture

In hot water: Japan’s bathhouses struggle to stay afloat as oil prices spike

6 hours agovideocam

A customer washes his hair at a public bathhouse in Tokyo. Photo: Reuters

MORE IN This Week in Asia

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Opinion | 122 years on, Mackinder’s ‘heartland’ remains geopolitically decisive

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24 Apr 2026 - 4:30PM

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23 Apr 2026 - 5:20PM

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Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

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TRENDING TOPICS

South China Sea

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