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The latest breaking news and stories on Japan, a country in East Asia known as a constitutional monarchy, and the world’s fifth largest economy. Also covering Japan’s relationship with China and Asia, plus commentary and updates on Japan’s economy, politics, society and trade.
Capital
Tokyo
Head of State
Emperor Naruhito
Head of Government
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
Fumio Kishida
The MQ-9 Reaper has been deployed as part of the US military’s surveillance network in the Indo-Pacific. Photo: Reuters
SCMP Highlights

US drone presence worries China, neuroscientist moves to Shenzhen: 7 highlights

From China’s push for foreign Lunar New Year spending to a Hongkonger attacked in Japan, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Hong Kong stock market

Hong Kong stocks fall as market reopens after 3-day Lunar New Year holiday

Sanae Takaichi

Japan’s Takaichi pushes to scrap food tax, ignoring economists’ warnings

Defence

Why plan by US and Japan to relocate Okinawa airbase is hitting turbulence

The US does not intend to vacate the current airbase for now due to disagreement over runway length at a replacement site, a report says.

The coast of Henoko near the US military base Camp Schwab seen in 2010, where the replacement site will be built for the US airbase in Futemma, Okinawa, Japan. Photo: Getty Images
US-China trade war

Washington offers US$200 million to boost US smartphone industry in Indo-Pacific

State Department subsidies for US companies to shore up US artificial intelligence supply chain in region and counter China’s dominance.

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Medicine

Japan approves world’s first regenerative medicines using iPS cells

Drugs made with iPS, or induced pluripotent stem cells, will be used to treat patients with severe heart failure and Parkinson’s disease.

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Hong Kong politics

Protect Hongkongers in Japan, authorities urge Tokyo after tourist attacked

Concerns over attack on resident in Sapporo amid tense relations between China and Japan over Sanae Takaichi’s Taiwan comments.

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Travellers cross the road in Sapporo. Photo: Kyodo
Hong Kong tourism

Hong Kong hotels, tourist-area eateries report brisk trade over Lunar New Year

Locals left city in droves from February 13 to 18, with residents making 2.5 million journeys out, compared with 1 million tourist arrivals.

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Singapore

Is Singapore’s plan to regulate blind boxes ‘paternalistic’ or ‘harm reduction’?

The mystery surrounding the purchase of blind boxes has prompted concerns of gambling-style risks faced by consumers, especially minors.

China-Japan relations

Tokyo involvement in Taiwan would amount to aggression against Beijing: UN envoy

Fu Cong, permanent representative to the United Nations, warns of a resolute retaliation if Japan intervenes militarily on the issue.

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Fu Cong (centre), China’s permanent representative to the UN, addresses the Security Council on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters
Architecture and design

This Hong Kong home sleeps six – and still feels serene

This luminous, Japanese-inspired bolt-hole in Tsim Sha Tsui is a far cry from its gloomy, fragmented beginnings.

Living area of the flat in Tsim Sha Tsui designed by GAAN. Photo: Eugene Chan
Royalty

‘Enormous failure’: naked man exposes gaps in Japan’s royal security

Princess Kako reportedly witnessed the chaos firsthand as a shrieking intruder stripped off and scaled a barrier below the royal balcony.

Consumer protection in Hong Kong

Editorial | Food poisoning cases in Hong Kong must prompt swift mitigation efforts

Amid the latest spate of illnesses, the city needs to adopt proactive and transparent strategies to ensure that customers can dine safely.

Hong Kong society

Japan travel warning after Hongkonger beaten with beer bottle in Sapporo

Visitor beaten on head at a restaurant in the Japanese city, Chinese consulate says.

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Sapporo is a popular winter holiday destination. Photo: Getty Images
South Korea

South Korea to observe first, decide later on Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’

A former South Korean ambassador to Egypt will be attending Thursday’s inaugural meeting in Washington.

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US President Donald Trump holds a signed resolution at the “Board of Peace” charter announcement in Davos on January 22. Photo: Reuters
Chinese tourists

Chinese tourist arrivals to Japan plunge 41% in January amid simmering tensions

Impact ripples through Japan’s retail sector, with falling duty-free sales at top department stores highlighting the pain for the industry.

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The Philippines

‘Knowing your friend’: Japan to join US-Philippines drills for first time

Australia also joins the fray as the US and its allies shift away from simple bilateral deals towards tighter regional security networks.

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Liancourt rocks

‘A very good thing’: Japan’s Takaichi steps back from Liancourt Rocks pledge

Analysts say Takaichi’s decision not to send a cabinet minister to the event shows she is ‘protecting ties’ with Seoul amid regional tensions.

The Dokdo or Takeshima Islands. Photo: AP
China education

Opinion | Universities in Japan and China are becoming tools of national strategy

Across Asia, higher education is becoming a central arena where national ambition, geopolitical constraint and human capital intersect.

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Donald Trump

Trump unveils first Japan investments under trade deal with US

The president hailed the projects – a critical minerals site, a gas power plant and an LNG facility in the US – ahead of PM Takaichi’s visit.

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China-Africa relations

How a punt on an unknown Chinese truck manufacturer paid off in South Africa

Chinese commercial truck builder FAW now outsells major Western and Japanese brands including Toyota, Daimler and Isuzu.

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According to data from naamsa, South Africa’s automotive business council, FAW became the country’s leading commercial truck brand in 2024 and maintained this top position through late 2025. Photo: Handout
Cambodia

Battered Cambodia seeks economic reset after Thailand border war

Shuttered borders have choked trade and sent migrant workers home, forcing Phnom Penh to seek new partners and markets.

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Cambodian migrant workers cross from Thailand into Cambodia at the Ban Laem checkpoint in Chanthaburi on July 28, 2025. At least 20,000 people were estimated to be returning to Cambodia amid fighting along the Thai–Cambodian border around that time despite reported peace talks. Photo: dpa
SCMP Highlights

Indonesia’s tourist visa, Filipino attacked in Singapore mall: 7 Asia highlights

From scrutiny over Indonesia’s tourist visa to workplace pranks in Japan, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent Asia reporting.

Tourism

Russia emerges as unlikely growth market for Japan tourism as China pulls back

New visa centres in Moscow and St Petersburg reflect a sharp rise in Russian demand as Chinese arrivals fall amid diplomatic tensions.

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Asia elections

Okinawa voters shift away from concerns over US military presence

Analysts point to a shift in priorities among younger Okinawans as a possible factor in the alliance’s bruising defeat in the election.

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Anti-base activists take part in a protest against the construction of a US military facility in Henoko in Nago, Japan’s Okinawa prefecture, in 2022. Photo: AFP
China's military weapons

Why the growing network of American MQ-9 drones is a challenge for China

Reapers can carry out both reconnaissance and strike missions and an increasing number of US allies and partners are buying them.

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The MQ-9 Reaper has been deployed as part of the US military’s surveillance network in the Indo-Pacific. Photo: Reuters
Consumer protection in Hong Kong

Hong Kong watchdog finds fragrance allergens in Gucci, Bvlgari perfumes

Consumer Council warns perfumes containing excessive fragrance chemicals may lead to ‘cocktail effect’, increasing health risks.

SCMP Highlights

Star Cruises apologises, China goes visa-free for UK, Canada: 5 weekend reads

From the Munich Security Conference to Star Cruises’ fiasco, here are five stories you may have missed over the weekend.

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