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Features

22 September 2025
While the strong baht boosts Thailand's purchasing power, it also increases the cost of investing in Thailand. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Kosaku Mimura and Rie Ishii)
Despite widespread forest loss from logging and wildfires, overall carbon dioxide absorption has risen as warmer temperatures stimulate plant growth in colder climates.
Datawatch

Higher CO2 uptake in once-colder regions hasn't slowed global warming

Absorption being challenged as deforestation in South America and Africa becomes severe

21 September 2025
Tuya Damdinjamts visits a site in Selenge aimag north of Ulaanbaatar where her cooperative used to mine for gold until its license expired in 2022:  The authorization was finally las March but the cooperative is still waiting on permission for blasting. (Photo by Byamba-Ochir Byambasure)
Big in Asia

Gold price surge leaves Mongolia's miners in the dust

Legal digging by 'ninjas' blocked by standoffs with citizens' councils wary of pollution risks

20 September 2025
Sri Lanka's President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, speaking during this year's May Day rally, has defied the opposition's doomsday predictions during his first year in office, but faces questions about progress on structural reforms and tackling poverty.
Policy Asia

Sri Lanka's leftist leader ditches dogma for economic pragmatism

President Dissanayake embraces private sector to stay on track with IMF bailout

19 September 2025
The owner of a "sari-sari" micro convenience store in Quezon City, the Philippines, uses software from local startup Packworks to manage his payments and inventory. (Photo by Ramon Royandoyan)
ASEAN Money

Philippine startups ride funding boom, but growing pains remain

Red tape and lack of big-ticket exits put brake on ecosystem momentum

18 September 2025
Vietnam's VinFast sees its path to Asian expansion in taxi services, electric vehicle manufacturing and charging infrastructure. (Source photos by Reuters, AP and Vingroup)
Tech Asia

VinFast bets on 'Vietnam playbook' to crack India and other Asian markets

EV maker deploys three-pronged strategy closer to home after US setback

17 September 2025
Known to often intervene against sharp speculative bets on the rupee, the Reserve Bank of India recently started letting the currency cross a long-held psychological barrier of 88 against the dollar. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Akira Kodaka and Reuters)
Trading Asia

Record-low Indian rupee risks further weakening if US trade tiff persists

Market goes out of favor with foreign investors as 50% 'reciprocal' tariffs take hold

15 September 2025
Torquay surfers take to the sea on Aug. 17. Among the world's largest makers of surfing equipment, Australia's 'big three' face challenges appealing to both hardcore enthusiasts and more casual fans of the lifestyle. (Photo by Suzu Takahashi)
Big in Asia

Australia's surf giants drift as big retail, newcomers catch wave

Some see Rip Curl, Quiksilver, Billabong closer to mall than beach, shedding cool

13 September 2025
Anutin Charnvirakul leaves parliament on Sept. 5 after his election as Thailand's new prime minister: A looming election campaign is expected to impel his administration to try to build a quick record of achievements.
Policy Asia

New Thai PM Anutin in race against clock to impress voters

Policy differences with bigger parties may see Bhumjaithai focus on populist measures

12 September 2025
During his big military parade in Beijing at the beginning of September, Chinese President Xi Jinping inadvertently shone a spotlight on two missing Central Committee members, Yi Huiman, center, and Liu Jianchao. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Yusuke Hinata, Uichiro Kasai and Reuters)
China up close

Analysis: China's latest probe targets: senior diplomat, financial specialist

Key party meeting nears without former 'fox hunter' and securities regulator

11 September 2025
Taiwan's coast guard is on alert for threats to the island's vital undersea cable infrastructure. (Photo courtesy of the Taiwan Coast Guard Administration)
Tech Asia

Inside Taiwan's fight to protect its vital undersea cables

Taipei fears key communication infrastructure is vulnerable to Chinese interference

10 September 2025
Two women look at a real estate development model at a property exhibition in Jakarta. Indonesia's weak mortgage market makes it harder for people to obtain affordable financing to buy homes.
ASEAN Money

Indonesia's anemic mortgage market crimps housing sector development

Conservative lending practices and government subsidies stall loan growth

9 September 2025
While Washington's erratic trade policy had prompted the BOJ to pause rate hikes, the uncertainty has gradually receded. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Getty Images and Satoko Kawasaki)
Trading Asia

Japan's government bond yields continue to face upward pressure

Expectations for BOJ rate hike and political uncertainty are pushing yields higher

8 September 2025
With traditional succession and apprenticeship systems falling short, Japan Arts Council-trained individuals are playing a growing role in classical performing arts.
Datawatch

From Noh to Kabuki, Japan's stage arts struggle to pass the torch

One traditional genre hit by 90% drop in training program applicants

7 September 2025
"Yah Lah But" co-hosts Haresh Tilani, right, and Terence Chia have expanded their audience to about 300,000 listens and views a month, drawing attention from sponsors and politicians seeking an informal channel to reach voters. (Photo by Suzu Takahashi)
Big in Asia

Podcasts inject dose of unpredictability into Singapore politics

Public interest in personalities and ideas commands attention from party leaders

6 September 2025
Demonstrators clash with riot police clash outside the Indonesian parliament in Jakarta on Aug. 28, as protestors decry what they say are exorbitant allowances for Indonesian lawmakers. 
Policy Asia

Indonesia protests expose economic divide threatening Prabowo programs

President urged to reduce spending on defense and free meals, prioritize cash transfers to the poor

5 September 2025
By giving Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin equal billing on the rostrum overlooking a military parade on Sept. 3, Xi Jinping elevated the North Korean leader's global diplomatic standing. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters and TASS/Kyodo)
China up close

Analysis: Kim Jong Un turns Beijing military parade into a diplomatic victory

North Korean given equal billing alongside Vladimir Putin, who disappointed Kim 4 months ago

4 September 2025
Thailand is witnessing a once-in-a-generation investment boom as the supply chain for printed circuit boards shifts from China and Taiwan. (Nikkei montage/Source photo by Suzu Takahashi)
Tech Asia

Thailand carves out a less-glamorous AI niche: printed circuit boards

Country aims to be biggest non-China PCB hub as makers race to diversify production

3 September 2025
Cambodia's solar industry has endured a roller coaster ride in the last eight years. It boomed after the U.S. slapped tariffs on China in 2018 and then collapsed in the last two years after Washington imposed tariffs of up to 3,404% on Cambodian-made products. (Source photo by Getty Images)
ASEAN Money

Cambodian solar industry booms and busts in fallout from US-China trade war

Trans-Pacific exports plunge from $2.4bn in 2023 to $4.4m in first half of year

2 September 2025
In a market once dominated by integrated resorts and on-site casinos, the digital-first approach of companies like DigiPlus is proving a force to be reckoned with. (Nikkei montage photo by Ramon Royandoyan) 
Trading Asia

Rise of online gambling reshapes Philippine stock market, but risks emerge

Regulatory concerns bring volatility to internet casino operator DigiPlus

1 September 2025
A couple of Agariya salt workers, barefoot and barehanded, do some heavy lifting under a scorching sun. Salt crystals cut through the skin, leading to high blood pressure, blockages and heart attacks, medical officials say. (Photo by Rohit Jain)
Big in Asia

India salt workers pay brutal health cost to season national, world diets

Intensive labor in extreme weather brings meager wages as exports, corporate profits pile up

30 August 2025
Security guards stand in the shade in Tokyo's Shinagawa district on Aug. 20, when the temperature reached 35 C. (Photo by Chris Russell)
Policy Asia

In a hotter world, East Asia tries to keep workers working

New rules prompt employers to offer more heat protections, but gaps remain

29 August 2025
As Xi Jinping 's Chinese Communist Party stakes its prestige on an upcoming military parade, leaders in Tokyo and Seoul are growing more cooperative, much to China's chagrin. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters, Yusuke Hinata and pool)
China up close

Analysis: Rapidly warming Japan-South Korea ties leave China uneasy

Lee Jae Myung has yet to RSVP to Xi Jinping's military parade invitation

28 August 2025
Battery group CATL announced on Aug. 11 that it had halted operations at its major Jianxiawo lepidolite mine, pictured, in the lithium hub of Yichuan ahead of a permit expiry.
Tech Asia

China crackdown boosts lithium prices, but how long can the rally last?

Focus turns to authorities' next moves as miners hope for sustainable recovery

27 August 2025
Saha Group Chairman Boonsithi Chokwatana and the building that houses E-Commerce Digital Thai Holding, a strategic unit led by the tycoon. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Suzu Takahashi and Saha Group) 
ASEAN Money

Thailand's 'king of consumer goods' leads Saha's bold e-commerce bid

Chairman Boonsithi Chokwatana spearheads new platform for next generation

26 August 2025
SoftBank Group Chairman Masayoshi Son. Along with expectations for the company's future growth, investors are buying the company's shares as a way to gain access to OpenAI. (Nikkei montage/Source Photo by Nanami Sato)
Trading Asia

SoftBank rides tech rally with AI investments, but will they pay off?

Investors hopeful of future growth, but rising AI exposure a source of concern

25 August 2025
Archipelago, a Philippine distillery, is among a growing contingent of Asian gin producers making waves on the bar scene. (Photo by Suzu Takahashi)
Big in Asia

Craft gins bring Philippine and other Asian flavors to discerning drinkers

Region's upstart distilleries challenge industry's heavy hitters in growing market

23 August 2025
The fishing village of Kurau on Bangka Island: Foreign nuclear power plant developers are courting Indonesia, eyeing a potential windfall as Southeast Asia's largest economy shifts from reliance on coal toward the goal of net zero carbon emissions. (Photo by Dimas Ardian)
Policy Asia

Indonesians fret that talk of nuclear power could be just hot air

Plans by US startup Thorcon to introduce new reactor technology encounter doubts

22 August 2025
It is safe to say China's current political and economic situation under Xi Jinping is a cause of a third wave of Chinese migration to Japan, one largely made up of the wealthy and intellectual who hate the situation back home. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Yusuke Hinata and Katsuji Nakazawa)
China up close

Analysis: How Tokyo became the cradle of the Chinese revolution in 1905

120 years on, Japan hosts a third wave of Chinese migration

21 August 2025
Japan's Toshiba and Rohm have been exploring collaboration in the power chip segment as Chinese competition rises. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Yoshiyuki Tamai, Hiromasa Matsuura and Toshiki Sasazu) 
Tech Asia

Japan's fragmented power chip industry struggles to meet China's challenge

Workhorse chips control current flow in power grids and EVs, but rivals catching up

20 August 2025