This Week in Asia

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Economics
People
Opinion
Health & Environment
Lifestyle & Culture
Shoppers walk along a street illuminated with decorative lights ahead of New Year celebrations in Bengaluru, India, last month. Photo: AFP

Economics

India overtakes Japan in economic size – while prosperity trails far behind

Becoming the No 4 economy is a source of pride. Now, the race is on to turn statistical success into 8 million new jobs a year.

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Japan’s top diplomat heads to Philippines with South China Sea top of mind

Philippine tourism chief’s magazine cover draws backlash as visitor numbers slip

Lifestyle & Culture

‘We are not criminals’: Malaysian LGBTQ event faces conservative backlash

Police have launched an investigation into ‘Glamping With Pride’ after Islamic authorities raised an outcry.

A man holds a rainbow flag, commonly used to signal LGBT pride. Photo: Shutterstock
A man holds a rainbow flag, commonly used to signal LGBT pride. Photo: Shutterstock

People

Next appointment, 2027: US visa squeeze hits India’s tech talent

With H-1B renewals stalled, a new generation of Indian professionals is questioning whether to pursue their American dreams.

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Politics

‘Gang of hooligans’: rebuke from North Korea signals icy ties with South

The unusually coarse language from Kim Jong-un’s sister shows that Pyongyang has no intention of reconciling with Seoul, experts say.

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Politics

Exclusive | Philippine army colonel faces charges after anti-Marcos post goes viral

Audie Mongao will also undergo psychiatric tests after he sparked a political storm by withdrawing support for the president.

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Philippine army colonel Audie Mongao’s actions are under military investigation. Photo: Facebook/YourPhilippineArmy
Philippine army colonel Audie Mongao’s actions are under military investigation. Photo: Facebook/YourPhilippineArmy

Politics

US strips moral framing from foreign aid in ‘America first’ pivot

US funding for the Asia-Pacific now ties aid to business and security wins, a move analysts condemn as a ‘corrosive’ shift.

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Lifestyle & Culture

‘No taste’: Malaysia’s Life of Pi and Squid Game artists warn against AI rush

After viewers slammed AI-enhanced films for looking ‘cheap’, local experts warn that algorithms serve profit, not storytelling.

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Lifestyle & Culture

Soft power, hard cash: inside Southeast Asia’s billion-dollar anime obsession

Driven by Gen Z spending and streaming, the region’s US$1.3 billion anime market represents a triumph for Japan’s cultural push.

Anime cosplay enthusiasts pose for photos in Singapore in 2024. Photo: EPA-EFE

Economics

Indonesia eyes 6% growth in 2026, as a youth jobs ‘time bomb’ ticks

Economists have cast doubt on the ‘optimistic’ target as educated youth struggle to find work and manufacturing lay-offs neared 80,000.

People cross the street in Jakarta’s main business district in November. Photo: EPA
People cross the street in Jakarta’s main business district in November. Photo: EPA

Economics

Singapore businesses list rising costs and tariffs as their biggest challenges

A new survey shows supply chain difficulties, unfamiliarity with new markets, and lack of funding are also key hurdles for local firms.

Politics

‘Something has to give’: Iran on the brink as protest fury mounts

Weakened by conflict with Israel and a plummeting currency, analysts say the regime faces a choice between radical reform or collapse.

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Health & Environment

Soaring healthcare costs in the Philippines: are doctors’ fees to blame?

Doctors have hit back, saying that they are being unfairly blamed for deeper systemic failures in healthcare financing.

Medical professionals attend to a patient at the government-run National Kidney and Transplant Institute in Quezon City, Metro Manila, the Philippines. Photo: Getty Images

Politics

North Korea revives drone claims in rebuff to Seoul’s outreach

Analysts dismiss the ‘implausible’ breach involving low-tech devices as a ploy, backing Seoul’s denial that its military was involved.

An image released by North Korean state media that claims to show one of the drones Pyongyang’s military said it had intercepted from South Korea. Photo: KCNA/Handout
An image released by North Korean state media that claims to show one of the drones Pyongyang’s military said it had intercepted from South Korea. Photo: KCNA/Handout

Lifestyle & Culture

Meow arriving: Japan railway’s newest cat stationmaster clocks in

Yontama is the third cat to become stationmaster on the Kishigawa Line in Wakayama prefecture after the death of her predecessor last year.

Lifestyle & Culture

Fisherman, defector or spy? Mystery ‘ghost ship’ discovery puzzles Japan

Korean writing on the boat led to conjecture that it was a ‘ghost ship’ similar to those that washed up on Japanese shores in the past.

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Economics

India overtakes Japan in economic size – while prosperity trails far behind

Becoming the No 4 economy is a source of pride. Now, the race is on to turn statistical success into 8 million new jobs a year.

4
Shoppers walk along a street illuminated with decorative lights ahead of New Year celebrations in Bengaluru, India, last month. Photo: AFP
Shoppers walk along a street illuminated with decorative lights ahead of New Year celebrations in Bengaluru, India, last month. Photo: AFP

Economics

Fair or fowl? Malaysia struggles to stomach its US trade pact

Local chefs fume over ‘lousy’ US poultry flooding the market, as critics call the trade agreement hastily reached and unfairly lopsided.

Economics

Thailand’s tourism crown slips as troubles in paradise mount

Border clashes with Cambodia, fierce competition from Malaysia, deadly floods and a strong baht threaten the kingdom’s holiday appeal.

Economics

As Southeast Asia’s middle classes lose their homes, the rich get sky garages

As wealthy buyers seek penthouses with living-room supercar parking, struggling families battle banks to keep a roof overhead.

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Illustration: Huy Truong
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LATEST Asia NEWS

East Asia

South Koreans see joy in parenthood but fear economic strain

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South Koreans view parenthood as a source of joy, but widespread anxiety about financial burdens highlights a critical tension underlying the country’s low fertility rate and persistent economic worries. Photo: Shutterstock

Southeast Asia

Malaysian man who used home labs to brew drug drinks worth US$246,000 arrested

KL police display drug laced drinks seized in a 2023 raid. Photo: The Star

Politics

Japan’s top diplomat heads to Philippines with South China Sea top of mind

Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi looks on during a meeting in Israel on Sunday. He is due in Manila on Thursday. Photo: AP

People

Philippine tourism chief’s magazine cover draws backlash as visitor numbers slip

Christina Frasco, secretary of the Philippines’ Department of Tourism. Photo: Handout

East Asia

Japan launches world’s first mission to lift rare earth from deep sea

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Japan’s deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu is anchored at a pier in Shimizu port, Shizuoka prefecture, in 2013. Photo: AFP
MORE Asia NEWS
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OPINION
I Gusti Bagus Dharma Agastia

Asian Angle | Indonesia’s digital 2045 ambition rests on a fragile seabed spine

I Gusti Bagus Dharma Agastia
Amani Braa

Opinion | From memes to the streets: Gen Z’s fight back against corruption

Amani Braa
Xu Peng

Asian Angle | How uneven borders fuel Myanmar’s vast and resilient scam economy

Xu Peng
Kamal Ahmad

Asian Angle | Bangladesh needs ‘structural’ change, but how will it get there?

Kamal Ahmad
Arnold Puyok

Asian Angle | Sabah’s election proves Malaysians want results, not slogans

Arnold Puyok
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MULTIMEDIA
Video

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters
03:09
Video

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji
02:34
Video

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport
02:02
Video

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail
04:27
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India overtakes Japan in economic size – while prosperity trails far behind

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