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Asia

This Week in Asia

Protesters rally against Freedom Shield 2026 in front of the US embassy in Seoul. Photo: AFP

East Asia

US begins large military exercise with South Korea while attacking Iran

Thousands of troops begin annual drills amid speculation over US Patriot redeployment to the Middle East.

27 minutes ago

Malaysia slashes gym licence fees by 80% to fight urban obesity

2 hours ago

Japan’s cultural treasures still exposed to fire risk as safety upgrades stall

4 hours agovideocam

Economics

1 holy month, 1 year’s income: Malaysia’s Ramadan bazaar boom

Rents have doubled, ingredient costs keep climbing, yet for the stallholders at Malaysia’s bazaars, no other month comes close.

8 Mar 2026 - 4:00PM

Asyraf Ahmad (left) sells drinks at his Ramadan stall after switching his business model from food. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Southeast Asia

Philippines’ only cockroach expert defends bugs from extinction

The 31-year-old soft-spoken scientist has been dubbed ‘cockroach lord’ and occasionally finds himself in demand for very specific situations.

8 Mar 2026 - 4:35PM

People

‘It’s inevitable’: Singapore’s workers brace for AI disruption

The city state wants 100,000 workers to become ‘AI bilingual’. But with entry-level roles already vanishing, time may not be on its side.

8 Mar 2026 - 8:00AMvideocam

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Lifestyle & Culture

Why Vietnam’s new AI law makes it proving ground for Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia’s first law on AI could raise the bar from voluntary guidelines to binding legal frameworks across the region, analysts say.

8 Mar 2026 - 6:43PMvideocam

A girl checks her phone next to Communist Party and Vietnamese flags in Hanoi on February 27. Vietnam’s new artificial intelligence law went into effect on March 1. Photo: AFP

Politics

Nepal election: rapper-turned-politician Balen Shah beats former prime minister

The 35-year-old former Kathmandu mayor’s defeat of K.P. Sharma Oli means he is on track to head the next government.

7 Mar 2026 - 9:33PMvideocam

Lifestyle & Culture

Iran war oil shock accelerates Southeast Asia’s EV revolution

Southeast Asia was already going electric. Then war broke out in the Middle East and it started going faster.

8 Mar 2026 - 10:00AMvideocam

Economics

Indonesia’s US trade deal faces a sovereignty reckoning at home

Nearly 80 civil groups and 65 academics have signed a petition urging parliament to block ratification of the ‘shameful’ deal.

7 Mar 2026 - 11:00AM

Indonesias President Prabowo Subianto (left) and US President Donald Trump at a summit in Egypt last year. Photo: AFP

Politics

Pakistan imperils its IMF rescue as Afghanistan border violence rages

Without an IMF bailout, ‘Pakistan won’t survive’, one economist says. But financial collapse wouldn’t just be Islamabad’s problem.

7 Mar 2026 - 2:00PM

A Taliban security guard rides an armed vehicle on the outskirts of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on February 28. Photo: AFP

Economics

Singapore real estate giants feel the heat amid China’s property woes

Analysts say Singaporean companies are still likely to bet on China’s massive market, but could now adopt a more selective investment approach.

7 Mar 2026 - 5:31PMvideocam

Lifestyle & Culture

In Vietnam’s Da Nang, South Korean tourism boom meets growing resentment

The coastal city has become a hub for Korean tourists and businesses, but workers and residents say the boom has also exposed frictions.

8 Mar 2026 - 9:59PMvideocam

Health & Environment

Singapore’s ban on caged lorries revives debate over migrant worker transport

The government says the move improves workers’ safety, but advocacy groups say the wider transport risks remain.

7 Mar 2026 - 7:00PMvideocam

Migrant workers ride in the back of an open lorry in Singapore on Dec 6, 2025. The government is moving to ban the use of caged lorries to transport workers as part of efforts to improve transport safety. Photo: Kyodo

Politics

Indonesia to ban under-16s from ‘high-risk’ social media platforms

Minister Meutya Hafid said the restrictions would protect children from online harms, but experts warned enforcement might prove difficult.

6 Mar 2026 - 9:00PMvideocam

A student uses a mobile phone for online learning in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, in 2020. Photo: EPA

People

DNA confirms mutilated remains found on Bali beach belong to kidnapped Ukrainian

Ihor Komarov, a 28-year-old Ukrainian national, was reported abducted in mid-February while riding a motorcycle with a friend in Jimbaran.

6 Mar 2026 - 8:24PMvideocam

Economics

Qatar’s LNG halt exposes Asia’s energy vulnerability

Analysts say the turmoil underscores Asia’s need to shift to renewable energy, as nations scramble for alternatives amid the disruption.

6 Mar 2026 - 5:30PM

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People

‘It’s inevitable’: Singapore’s workers brace for AI disruption

The city state wants 100,000 workers to become ‘AI bilingual’. But with entry-level roles already vanishing, time may not be on its side.

8 Mar 2026 - 8:00AMvideocam

Illustration: Huy Truong

Politics

Build fast, grow rich: To Lam’s blueprint for a rising Vietnam

Vietnam’s Communist Party chief is staking his legacy on 10 per cent growth, domestic megaprojects and an overseas charm offensive.

1 Mar 2026 - 8:00AM

Economics

Philippines’ AI reckoning puts millions of jobs on the line

The US$30 billion outsourcing sector is fighting to adapt, leaving millions of workers with a stark choice: upskill or be left behind.

14 Feb 2026 - 4:03PMvideocam

Economics

India’s trade blitz seeks to keep afloat a sinking global order

‘Jolted out of its slumber’ by US tariffs, New Delhi is aggressively diversifying trade alliances to act as a bridge in a polarised world.

10 Feb 2026 - 8:54PM

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (centre) with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (right) and European Council President Antonio Costa at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on January 27. Photo: European Council/dpa

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Highlights from

THIS WEEK IN ASIA

People

‘It’s inevitable’: Singapore’s workers brace for AI disruption

8 Mar 2026 - 8:00AMvideocam

Illustration: Huy Truong

Lifestyle & Culture

A forgotten theatre lane in Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown gets a new lease on life

12 minutes agovideocam

Pedestrians now walk through Jalan Sang Guna to access Chinatown. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Health & Environment

Malaysia slashes gym licence fees by 80% to fight urban obesity

2 hours ago

A man runs on a treadmill with a view of Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock

Economics

Singapore real estate giants feel the heat amid China’s property woes

7 Mar 2026 - 5:31PMvideocam

Buildings under construction in Nanjing, in China’s Jiangsu province, in February. Photo: AFP

Economics

1 holy month, 1 year’s income: Malaysia’s Ramadan bazaar boom

8 Mar 2026 - 4:00PM

Asyraf Ahmad (left) sells drinks at his Ramadan stall after switching his business model from food. Photo: Ushar Daniele

MORE IN This Week in Asia

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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

The Philippines

South China Sea

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