Trade triumphs over tariffs: The world is trading more than ever

Global trade booms on tech and AI, but geopolitical tensions and slower growth cloud the outlook.

Australia says Bondi review to check if terror attack could have been averted

SYDNEY, Dec 29 - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday an independent review into law enforcement agencies set up after the Bondi mass shooting will assess whether authorities could have taken additional steps to prevent the terror attack.

South Korean president vows to reveal truth on anniversary of Jeju Air crash

Indonesia fire kills 16 people in retirement home

JAKARTA, Dec 29 - A fire at a retirement home in the city of Manado on Indonesia's on Sulawesi island has killed 16 people, a local police official was quoted as saying on Monday by state news agency Antara.

Coupang announces $1.5 billion compensation to South Korean users for data leak

Coupang said users will get vouchers of $44 each for its various services.

Hidden gem of Straits of Johor: Seahorses found in the largest seagrass meadow in Malaysia

Malaysia currently leads Asia in field research and citizen science participation in seahorse conservation.

Why everyone loves Japan

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! Winter holiday season is here, and for an increasing number of Americans, that means traveling abroad. Europe and Mexico are still hot destinations, but in recent years, Japan has skyrocketed to the top. In many places, Tokyo is the

Is Russian technology behind North Korea’s new nuclear submarine?

Analysts in Seoul say suspicions of Russian assistance are difficult to dismiss.

China’s beautiful biotech chaos vs West’s elegant paralysis

Recent analyses have documented what many in the pharmaceutical industry quietly suspected: China’s drug discovery output has achieved parity with the United States, tripling from roughly 30 new medicines in 2013 to over 400 a decade later. This is remarkable not merely as an

China hiding missiles on merchant ships for a Taiwan war

China appears to be experimenting with missile-armed merchant ships, probing whether commercial hulls packed with concealed firepower can deliver surprise salvos and tilt the naval balance in a Taiwan or US-China clash. This month, multiple media sources reported that China

China launches military drills around Taiwan amid tensions with Japan

BEIJING, Dec 29 - China's military moved army, naval, air force and rocket force units around Taiwan on Monday for its \"Just Mission 2025\" drills, aimed at testing combat readiness and delivering a \"stern warning\" against moves toward Taiwanese independence.

On the trail of poachers trapping China's rare songbirds

The BBC catches a man trapping songbirds - selling them is a profitable business because many keep them as pets.

North Korea’s Kim Jong Un oversees cruise missile launches

This comes as the country races to wrap up its current “five-year plan” of development.

Big ambitions meet uneven reality as Qianhai returns to China’s opening-up spotlight

Established in 2010 almost entirely on reclaimed land in Shenzhen, Qianhai is pitched as China’s showcase for its next phase of opening up. Yet limited multinational depth highlights the tough task of turning policy vision into global traction, say analysts.

North Korea's Kim Jong Un oversees cruise missile launching drill

SEOUL, Dec 29 - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a long-range strategic cruise missile launching drill on Sunday, state media KCNA said on Monday.

Putin and Trump do not support European-Ukrainian temporary ceasefire idea, the Kremlin says

MOSCOW, Dec 28 - The Kremlin said on Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump do not support a European-Ukrainian push for a temporary ceasefire ahead of a settlement, and that Moscow thinks Kyiv needs to make a decision on Donbas.

Bangladesh’s student-led party allies with Islamists ahead of election

Some figures deemed the alliance as a pragmatic step in a fragmented political landscape.

Bangladesh's student-led party allies with Islamists ahead of election

DHAKA, Dec 28 - The student-led Bangladeshi party born out of the protest movement that toppled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has forged an electoral alliance with Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami ahead of February's parliamentary election, stirring internal rifts.

Trump congratulates Thailand, Cambodia leaders on ceasefire

Trump congratulated the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia "on their brilliance in coming to this rapid and very fair conclusion".

Three dead in Alawite protests on Syrian coast, local officials say

LATAKIA, Syria Dec 28 - Three people were killed on Sunday when protests in Syria's Alawite heartland of Latakia spiralled into gunfire and other violence, according to the province's media office.

China welcomes Thailand-Cambodia truce ahead of trilateral talks

BEIJING, Dec 28 - China on Sunday congratulated Cambodia on reaching a ceasefire with Thailand after weeks of deadly border fighting, as officials from the three countries prepared to open a two-day meeting in southwestern China.

Thailand sees ceasefire with Cambodia as strategic test, not retreat

The bouts of fighting in 2025 rank among the deadliest clashes between the two countries.

Soldiers with guns, short lines of voters: Myanmar goes to the polls for first time since 2021 coup

Polling proceeded relatively smoothly on Dec 28, though there were reports of explosions in a few cities.

Weak turnout seen in Myanmar's phased election, first since 2021 coup

Armed groups formed in the wake of the coup and long-established ethnic armies are fighting the military across swathes of the country, displacing some 3.6 million people and creating one of Asia's worst humanitarian crises.

Thais, Cambodians fear returning home despite border truce

Officials on both sides said the day-old ceasefire was holding on Sunday, but for most areas, there has been no all-clear notice just yet.

Bangladesh police say student leader Sharif Osman Hadi’s killers fled to India

The two suspected accomplices had been arrested in India, said Bangladeshi investigators.

Bangladesh police say student leader's killers fled to India

As some boycott Myanmar’s flawed election, others hope for change

Some members of the country’s dwindling opposition said they are determined to make their voices heard.

‘Unfair election’: Young voters absent from Myanmar polls

The junta is touting the vote as a return to democracy.

5-year-old boy dies after arm gets trapped in travelator at Hokkaido ski resort

The boy fell as he was trying to get off the moving walkway, which does not have a handrail.

Hannah Arendt can help us understand today’s far-right populism

Sales of Hannah Arendt’s The Origins of Totalitarianism (1951) rocketed when Donald Trump won the 2016 US presidential election. Nearly a year into the second Trump administration – and 50 years since Arendt’s death in December 1975 – it seems an apposite time to revisit the

Russia vows to support China if Taiwan contingency flares up: Top diplomat

China and Russia have conducted joint bomber flights repeatedly over the years.

Sydney could see army patrols after Bondi attack, New South Wales Premier says

The government is also considering a wide range of measures, including the potential deployment of troops.

'Unfair election': Young voters absent from Myanmar polls

Even those still in the country were not particularly eager to take part in the vote, which international rights campaigners have dismissed as a sham.

South Korean President Lee names conservative lawmaker as budget minister

Lee Hye-hoon said she aligns with the president's goals economic goals.

13 people arrested over armed fight at restaurant in JB’s Taman Mount Austin

Six of the suspects also tested positive for ketamine.

‘Vape valley’: Double standards in China’s powering of world’s e-cigarette boom

Chinese consumers are barred from buying the same flavoured nicotine vapes that China exports.

Over 4,000 schools closed in South Korea, with 82 left unused for 30 years

The total number of teaching positions for the 2025 academic year was cut by 2,232.

Nearly 80% of South Korea’s dog meat farms shut ahead of 2027 ban

Over half of the farms scheduled to close in 2026 and 2027 opted to shut down earlier than planned.

Malaysia army chief placed on leave amid investigation: Media

Defence Minister Khaled Nordin did not explicitly state the nature or the subject of the allegations.

The lure of Indonesia’s new capital Nusantara? No traffic

Only a fraction of civil servants who were expected to move in have done so.

Coupang founder Kim Bom apologises for data leak, pledges compensation

He also pledged investments and reforms to prevent data breaches.

South Korea’s presidential office completes move back to historic Blue House

The moving process began on Dec 8.