https://www.scmp.com/rss/14554/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Set in the rolling green hills outside the Queensland capital of Brisbane, Sirromet Winery has placed big bets on China. Exports of its Australian vintage now make up 30 per cent of its total sales, double what it was five years ago. Such is its popularity that Sirromet is now visited regularly by tourists from mainland China, necessitating the need for dedicated Mandarin speaking guides. “The Chinese really buy into the quality of the product and the fact it’s natural and grown in a clean... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/business/article/2151032/grapes-wrath-dark-clouds-australian-winemakers-china-ties-sour?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/business/article/2151032/grapes-wrath-dark-clouds-australian-winemakers-china-ties-sour?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 16 Jun 2018 02:15:45 +0000 The election of Joko Widodo as Indonesian president appears to mark a clean break from the past era of cronyism and special interests in the country. Jokowi, as he is known, is a man of humble origins with no strong establishment links. But a new book Liem Sioe Liong's Salim Group: The Business Pillar of Suharto's Indonesia by veteran journalist Richard Borsuk and his academic wife Nancy Chng is a timely reminder of the political power still wielded by big business in Indonesia. The book traces... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1661598/suharto-ties-chinese-financial-backer-still-hold-lessons-indonesia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1661598/suharto-ties-chinese-financial-backer-still-hold-lessons-indonesia?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2014 00:30:30 +0000 Australia's northern region - a 3 million sq km expanse of floodplains, rainforest and grasslands - is perhaps best known as being the home of the mythical knife-wielding Hollywood character Crocodile Dundee. But the largely isolated northern wilderness that was the backdrop to the hit movie franchise is set to be transformed as the government ramps up plans to turn the region into a "food bowl" for Asia. Canberra has released a green paper that envisions developing large tracts of land covering... https://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1580412/punting-australian-food-bowl?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1580412/punting-australian-food-bowl?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Aug 2014 19:33:59 +0000 Some of the flashiest vehicles travelling the roads of this laid-back, subtropical Australian city are owned by "tradies" - carpenters, builders, electricians and plumbers - whose salaries sometimes rival those of lawyers and doctors. In their shiny new "utes", they have been indirect beneficiaries of a China-fuelled mining boom, with the rising salaries of those in mining-related jobs buoying house construction and renovation in the city, the capital of the state of Queensland. And if the... https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/1528176/china-fuelled-mining-boom-double-edged-sword-queensland?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/1528176/china-fuelled-mining-boom-double-edged-sword-queensland?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Jun 2014 19:30:30 +0000 New talent and rising competition is helping to boost the transparency of the mainland's legal sector, long derided as being a Communist Party offshoot. With foreign investors in the world's second-biggest economy demanding legal certainties for their billion-dollar projects, Chinese courts are slowly moving towards a system based more on the 'rule of law' rather than on official whim. But there is still a long way to go. For foreign lawyers working in the country, the legal system is still a... https://www.scmp.com/article/964148/legal-system-less-arbitrary-still-work-progress?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/964148/legal-system-less-arbitrary-still-work-progress?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Apr 2011 16:00:00 +0000 Commercial lawyers are generally better known for their cut-throat ability to seal the latest billion-dollar deal than for their easy-going personalities. It comes as surprise therefore that Eduardo Leite, the new global chairman of Baker & McKenzie, was recommended for the role because of his 'humanity'. That was the word used by outgoing Baker & McKenzie chairman John Conroy when asked what trait would serve Leite best in his new position. The Brazilian is the first lawyer from an emerging... https://www.scmp.com/article/740176/chief-shows-human-face-legal-dealings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/740176/chief-shows-human-face-legal-dealings?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 06 Mar 2011 16:00:00 +0000 The advertisements made it look so attractive: smiling children in the arms of their doting parents, puppy dogs chasing balls through a green pasture and grey-haired grandfathers smiling kindly in rocking chairs. But the clever marketing images that encouraged my wife and I to fork out thousands of dollars for the 'security and convenience' of private heath insurance were nothing like the reality. In fact, it quickly turned into a nightmare. In the first year of the policy, my wife made a few... https://www.scmp.com/article/718251/health-scare?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/718251/health-scare?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jun 2010 16:00:00 +0000 His 44th was a particularly cruel birthday for Rajesh Sadhwani. It was the day in March last year that he received an e-mail on his BlackBerry telling him that his password for his Yahoo e-mail account had been changed. Shortly afterwards, the jewellery designer received an e-mail, warning him to 'enjoy what else is to be unleashed'. There was also a message from his account with social networking site Facebook telling him to 'watch his back'. Sure enough, when Sadhwani checked, he could not... https://www.scmp.com/article/711878/borderless-crime-hard-crack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/711878/borderless-crime-hard-crack?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Apr 2010 16:00:00 +0000 His 44th was a particularly cruel birthday for Rajesh Sadhwani. It was the day in March last year that he received an e-mail on his BlackBerry telling him that his password for his Yahoo e-mail account had been changed. Shortly afterwards, the jewellery designer received an e-mail from an account called 'happybirthdayasshole' warning him to 'enjoy what else is to be unleashed'. There was also a message from his account with social networking site Facebook telling him to 'watch his back'. Sure... https://www.scmp.com/article/710509/identity-theft-year-long-ordeal-designer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/710509/identity-theft-year-long-ordeal-designer?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Apr 2010 16:00:00 +0000 When Marita Kwan bought some books from a small internet retailer last year, she had no idea she was about to be cyber-mugged. After submitting her order with her credit card number to the site, she received confirmation and logged off. Little did she suspect that cyber thieves based in South Korea had hacked into the site and stolen her credit card details. Within hours they had made a copy of her card, which they used to rack up to HK$50,000 in charges including massages, hotel rooms and an... https://www.scmp.com/article/710012/cyber-criminals-gigabytes-ahead-hk-laws?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/710012/cyber-criminals-gigabytes-ahead-hk-laws?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Mar 2010 16:00:00 +0000 With cyberspace crowded with an increasing number of bloggers and citizen journalists, Colin Lawrence is a firm believer that the credentials of the news source are still important. The newly appointed commercial director at BBC World News is not alone in concerns that the torrent of information unleashed every day on the internet means people may lose sight of the need for old-fashioned journalism, including liberal doses of accuracy and balance. 'Not everyone can be a journalist and to me... https://www.scmp.com/article/701899/trust-and-technology-spread-bbc-news?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/701899/trust-and-technology-spread-bbc-news?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:00:00 +0000 This economic recovery is brought to you by the letters U, W, V, J and L. In a never ending quest to create new jargon, financial analysts, economists and journalists are now subjecting the innocent public to Sesame Street-like scenarios about when the worst financial crisis since the second world war will start to abate. This follows on from their previous attempts to jazz things up with forecasts about the 'green shoots of recovery'. Unfortunately, those shoots quickly turned brown and... https://www.scmp.com/article/687137/alphabet-soup-no-clue-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/687137/alphabet-soup-no-clue-future?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Jul 2009 16:00:00 +0000 For the dean of a prestigious business school, Roger Martin has a surprising attitude towards money. Rather than 'making the world go around' as the conventional wisdom goes, cash, says Mr Martin, is only a by-product of what the true vocation of the good business person should be: serving customers and making good-quality products and services. The 52-year-old dean of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto is no academic in an ivory tower. The former co-head of... https://www.scmp.com/article/682248/educator-and-innovator-puts-people-profit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/682248/educator-and-innovator-puts-people-profit?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 May 2009 16:00:00 +0000 What treatment did you have? The 30-minute salt and oil full-body exfoliation followed by an 80-minute aromatherapy body massage. The package includes a light 'spa' lunch by the pool (don't expect a burger and fries - it's seriously healthy fare designed to help rid your body of toxins). What was the atmosphere like? As you would expect of Hong Kong's 'grand old lady' of hotels, the surroundings are elegant and sumptuous - think luxurious country club with a modern Asian feel. How was... https://www.scmp.com/article/654035/trial-therapy-spa-escape?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/654035/trial-therapy-spa-escape?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Sep 2008 16:00:00 +0000 Could Australia and its Asian neighbours one day share the same currency and allow free movement across their borders? The idea of an Asian Union involving Australia would have sounded far-fetched to former prime minister John Howard, who placed the nation firmly in the western sphere. But this month the nation's new leader, Kevin Rudd, floated the idea of an Asian-Pacific Community by 2020 that could eventually rival the European Union and include Australia, Japan, China, India, Indonesia and... https://www.scmp.com/article/641762/can-australia-ever-be-part-united-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/641762/can-australia-ever-be-part-united-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Jun 2008 16:00:00 +0000 What treatment did you have? Therapeutic massage, including kneading, acupressure and deep pressure massage to release tension and stimulate circulation. What was the atmosphere like? Think luxury country club with lots of polished wood and marble - the sort of place you'd imagine a hot-shot lawyer or top banker heads to after winning a big case or closing a deal. After a dip in the deliciously warm pool, I took a nice long shower and pampered myself with the L'Occitane products before donning... https://www.scmp.com/article/638688/trial-therapy-therapeutic-massage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/638688/trial-therapy-therapeutic-massage?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 May 2008 16:00:00 +0000 The blizzards that laid waste to mainland China's railways, power stations and highways revealed chinks in the armour of a country whose infrastructure is considered among the best in the developing world. Under- investment in the vital rail and logistics network proved costly for the country, not only in terms of lost production, but in prestige ahead of the Beijing Olympics. Millions of stranded migrant workers, power blackouts and impassable highways are not the images the mainland generally... https://www.scmp.com/article/631105/infrastructure-investment-money-well-spent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/631105/infrastructure-investment-money-well-spent?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:00:00 +0000 Economic storm clouds are looming, the global economy is teetering on the brink of recession and general doom and gloom is descending. But there may be a silver lining in all this bad news - at least for us long-suffering consumers. The start of the hard times may mean fewer arrogant shopkeepers and taxi drivers who don't give a damn, as well as less of the poor service that generally marks periods when the cash registers are ringing and finding customers is as easy as fishing in a barrel. As... https://www.scmp.com/article/626396/recession-time-shoppers-revenge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/626396/recession-time-shoppers-revenge?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Feb 2008 16:00:00 +0000 Globalisation is increasingly creating intense pressure for one of the most precious resources on Earth - human talent. If raw materials and technology are the organs and limbs of a healthy and successful economy, talented and educated people are the DNA. The rise of China and India as economic superpowers will pose tough new challenges for developed countries accustomed to being the big winners in the 'brain drain' from these previously poor nations. Now these two economies are increasingly... https://www.scmp.com/article/621226/brain-gain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/621226/brain-gain?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Dec 2007 16:00:00 +0000 Australia is currently enjoying one of the longest runs of economic expansion in its history, fuelled by China's insatiable appetite for its mineral resources and the country's proximity to other areas of Asian growth. 'McMansions' are sprouting up across the landscape, salaries are rising and unemployment is at its lowest level in decades. It seems that the 'lucky country' is getting luckier. Why, then, are Australians preparing this Saturday to ditch John Howard, their prime minister of 11... https://www.scmp.com/article/616497/can-australia-capitalise-its-good-fortune?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/616497/can-australia-capitalise-its-good-fortune?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Nov 2007 16:00:00 +0000 China's rise as an economic power has plenty of people in the United States seriously worried. While the mainland has been an excellent source of cheap labour and markets for American companies, there is a niggling worry in the back of many minds that this may be the beginning of the end in terms of US domination of the global economy. In the next 20 or 30 years, it is conceivable the mainland will be bumping up against the US in terms of its economy's size and political influence. That... https://www.scmp.com/article/609013/unsettling-view-mainland-ascent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/609013/unsettling-view-mainland-ascent?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Sep 2007 16:00:00 +0000 Hong Kong should introduce universal suffrage as soon as possible, amid a danger that the improving economy will 'make everyone forget about politics'. That is the view of Lord Malloch-Brown, the British minister for Africa, Asia and the United Nations. Isn't it great that Hong Kong gets an update every so often from its former colonial masters about how it can become more democratic and civilised like, well, Britain? Having returned to Hong Kong after a year in Britain, I could give a... https://www.scmp.com/article/606530/british-style-democracy-you-can-keep-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/606530/british-style-democracy-you-can-keep-it?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 02 Sep 2007 16:00:00 +0000 Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong recently presented a stark message to Australia - the country that's still an outsider in the fastest-growing region in the world. Mr Lee said that compared to the city state, 'Australia is a luckier country, with a huge continent, resources and more secure position. But in 50 or 100 years time, will Australia be on top of its destiny or will Asia have moved forward and left Australia out of the game? Much will depend on what Australia does to engage... https://www.scmp.com/article/602554/australia-finally-ready-embrace-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/602554/australia-finally-ready-embrace-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Jul 2007 16:00:00 +0000