Asia news

• Asian stocks drop as US tech sell-off spreads

  14-11-2025 08:49 via ft.com
  Falls were sharpest in AI stocks, including chipmakers SK Hynix and Samsung
  
  Read more

• Silenced by China, Hong Kong struggles to voice its grief over the Tai Po fire disaster | Antony Dapiran

  08-12-2025 11:00
  The pain is visceral, but civil society, media and the creative community have been sent into retreat since the 2019 pro-democracy protestsAntony Dapiran is the author of two books on Hong Kong politics and protestWhite flowers at makeshift shrines and messages of support posted in a public square. A rainbow of folded paper cranes. Boxes of donated goods for the those in need. Hongkongers’ responses to the Tai Po fire disaster – in which at least 159 people have died and 31 are still
  
  Read more

• October wage data helps case for a December BoJ rate rise at the margin

  08-12-2025 09:21 via ft.com
  Nominal wage growth was better than expected even if real wages continued to fall
  
  Read more

• Near-record low election turnout in Hong Kong amid discontent over apartment fire

  08-12-2025 07:33
  Sunday’s ‘patriots only’ Legislative Council elections took place in the shadow of the Tai Po fire that killed at least 159 peopleTurnout for Hong Kong’s “patriots only” Legislative Council elections on Sunday was at a near-record low, with fewer than 32% of voters casting ballots, as the number of registered voters fell for the fourth consecutive year.At 31.9%, Sunday’s turnout is marginally higher than 2021’s record low of 30.2%. But fewer people
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Hong Kong sees near-record low election turnout amid discontent over apartment fire

  08-12-2025 07:33
  Sunday’s ‘patriots only’ Legislative Council elections took place in the shadow of the Tai Po fire that killed at least 159 peopleHong Kong saw a near-record low turnout in Sunday’s “patriots only” Legislative Council elections, with fewer than 32% of voters turning out, as the number of registered voters fell for the fourth consecutive year.At 31.9%, Sunday’s turnout is marginally higher than 2021’s record low of 30.2%. But fewer people overall vo
  
  Read more

• The power crunch threatening America’s AI ambitions

  08-12-2025 06:00 via ig.ft.com
  A lack of electricity for new data centres could deflate the AI ‘bubble’
  
  Read more

• Indonesia’s authoritarian tilt

  08-12-2025 06:00 via ft.com
  President Prabowo Subianto has centralised power and forged close ties with the military, raising concerns about autocratic creep
  
  Read more

• Airwallex plots Silicon Valley expansion after securing $8bn valuation

  08-12-2025 06:00 via ft.com
  Payments company opens San Francisco base and reduces Tencent’s holding in US pivot
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Japan PM vows ‘resolute’ response after Chinese aircraft accused of locking radar on to Japanese fighter jets

  08-12-2025 05:14
  China’s ambassador summoned over alleged weekend incident that saw Chinese J-15 fighter aircraft twice train their radar on Japanese F-15sThe diplomatic dispute between Japan and China appeared to deepen over the weekend after Chinese military planes were accused of locking their radar on to Japanese fighter jets near the Okinawa islands.Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, vowed to “respond calmly and resolutely” to the alleged incident, saying her country would take
  
  Read more

• China’s trade surplus tops $1tn for first time

  08-12-2025 04:56 via ft.com
  Exports soar despite tensions between Washington and Beijing
  
  Read more

• Thailand strikes Cambodia as Trump-backed truce collapses

  08-12-2025 04:53 via ft.com
  Cross-border clashes erupt again months after south-east Asian neighbours were involved in five-day conflict
  
  Read more

• Thailand launches airstrikes along disputed border with Cambodia as tensions flare

  08-12-2025 04:28
  Escalation comes after Thai soldier was killed and four others wounded in clashes, more than a month after Donald Trump oversaw ceasefire agreementThailand has launched airstrikes along its disputed border with Cambodia, after both countries accused one another of breaching a ceasefire deal brokered by Donald Trump.Thailand’s military said airstrikes were launched after at least one of its soldiers was killed and four others wounded in clashes along the countries’ tense border on Mon
  
  Read more

• UN report sounds alarm over Māori rights in New Zealand

  08-12-2025 03:10
  UN committee raised concerns over government policies including scrapping the Māori Health Authority and funding cuts for Indigenous servicesA United Nations committee has warned New Zealand is at serious risk of weakening Māori rights and entrenching disparities for the Indigenous population, in its most critical review of the country’s record on racial discrimination.Last month, the UN’s committee for the convention on the elimination of all forms of racial discrimination
  
  Read more

• Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau make their relationship Instagram official

  08-12-2025 03:10
  The singer posted a photo of the pair smiling cheek to cheek and a video of them eating sushi together while in JapanKaty Perry and Justin Trudeau have launched their relationship on Instagram, after the singer posted a photo of the pair smiling cheek to cheek and a video of them eating sushi together while in Japan.Perry’s post appeared to confirm the pair are in a relationship, after months of speculation about a possible romance between her and the former Canadian prime minister. Contin
  
  Read more

• FirstFT: Japan frustrated at Trump administration’s silence over dispute with China

  07-12-2025 23:02 via ft.com
  Also in today’s newsletter: Hong Kong’s low turnout election, and Chinese phonemakers attempt to win over iPhone users
  
  Read more

• Hongkongers sit out first election since deadly fire

  07-12-2025 19:31 via ft.com
  Authorities struggle to win mandate for ‘patriots only’ system of governance as only 31.9% of voters cast ballots
  
  Read more

• Fire at nightclub in Goa kills at least 25 people – video

  07-12-2025 12:38
  A fire broke out at about midnight at Birch by Romeo Lane, a popular restaurant, cocktail bar and club in Arpora, a district of north Goa. The state's chief minister, Pramod Sawant, told journalists at the scene that several tourists were among the dead. Goa attracts millions of Indian and international tourists every year. According to government data, about 5.5 million visited the state in the first half of this year, 270,000 of whom were from abroadTourists among at least 25 killed in Goa nig
  
  Read more

• Hostile powers sending spies to west’s universities, says former security chief

  07-12-2025 10:00
  Canadian expert David Vigneault warns of China’s ‘industrial-strength’ attempts to steal new technologiesHostile spy agencies are now as focused on infiltrating western universities and companies as they are on doing so to governments, according to the former head of Canada’s intelligence service.David Vigneault warned that a recent “industrial-scale” attempt by China to steal new technologies showed the need for increased vigilance from academics. Continue re
  
  Read more

• US tariffs prompt surge in Chinese exports to south-east Asia

  07-12-2025 06:00 via ft.com
  Washington’s greater protectionism spurs closer ties between Beijing and the region
  
  Read more

• ‘Unbearable imbalances’ cast shadow on Macron’s Beijing bonhomie

  07-12-2025 06:00 via ft.com
  French president’s visit to China highlights growing fears about existential threat to European industries
  
  Read more

• Chinese phonemakers seize on Apple’s AI struggles to grab market share

  07-12-2025 06:00 via ft.com
  Manufacturers tout apps that help users switch from iPhones
  
  Read more

• Chinese phonemakers seize on Apple’s AI struggles

  07-12-2025 06:00 via ft.com
  Manufacturers tout apps that help users switch from iPhones
  
  Read more

• Japan frustrated at Trump administration’s silence over row with China

  07-12-2025 02:53 via ft.com
  Tokyo asks US to be more vocal in its support after Beijing reacted furiously to prime minister’s comments about Taiwan
  
  Read more

• US defence secretary says Monroe Doctrine is ‘stronger than ever’

  07-12-2025 00:06 via ft.com
  Pete Hegseth promises ‘peace through strength’ as he asserts American military dominance in western hemisphere
  
  Read more

• ‘Don’t say we didn’t warn you’: Hong Kong foreign media told not to cause trouble after fire

  06-12-2025 17:24
  Beijing security agency accuses international journalists of disregarding facts and smearing governmentBeijing’s security agency in Hong Kong has summoned international journalists to inform them it will not tolerate “trouble-making”, following critical coverage of the deadly apartment complex fire that has left the territory reeling.Senior reporters from several media outlets operating in the city were called to the Office for Safeguarding National Security (OSNS), which was s
  
  Read more

• ‘Don’t say we didn’t warn you’: Beijing summons journalists in Hong Kong after fire

  06-12-2025 15:16
  Powerful security agency accuses international journalists of disregarding facts and smearing the governmentBeijing’s powerful security agency in Hong Kong has summoned journalists from international media to inform them it will not tolerate “trouble-making”, after critical coverage of the deadly apartment complex fire that has left the territory reeling.Senior reporters from several outlets operating in the city were called to the meeting by the Office for Safeguarding Nationa
  
  Read more

• The yen-yield break-up

  06-12-2025 11:30 via ft.com
  The dollar-yen exchange rate is moving opposite the traditional pattern with yields
  
  Read more

• From ‘terrorist’ to national treasure, renowned Māori activist finally tells his own story

  06-12-2025 00:00
  Tāme Iti’s colourful memoir covers his decades-long fight for Indigenous rights in New Zealand and takes aim at ‘saboteurs’ in the governmentThere are so many ways to begin telling the story of Tāme Iti, arguably New Zealand’s most recognisable Māori rights activist, who was once branded a terrorist by the state and is now considered by many a national treasure.You could begin with his formative school years at the foot of Te Urewera ranges, where he was ma
  
  Read more

• Woman wanted by Interpol over trafficking of tiger parts arrested in India

  05-12-2025 19:13 via bbc.com
  Yangchen Lachungpa is accused of building trafficking corridors leading out of the country.
  
  Read more

• We must warn travellers about the risk of methanol poisoning | Letters

  05-12-2025 18:26
  Jim Dickson MP says much has been done since the death of Simone White, but a wider campaign is needed to educate tourists on the dangers of drinking spirits in countries where methanol-lacing occurs With 14,600 deaths caused by suspected methanol poisoning incidents worldwide since 2015, much more needs to be done to prevent tragedies like the death of Simone White in Laos last year (Brain damage, blindness and death: the global trail of trauma left by methanol-laced alcohol, 29 November).Follo
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Asia_News on Twitter!