Trump complained about the weak yen. Days later, Japan PM Takaichi signals the end of reflation

Experts, however, warn that the prime minister must tackle structural weaknesses rather than rely on policy slogans.

South Korea’s hypersonic leap runs into North Korea’s nuclear wall

South Korea’s maiden flight test of a domestic hypersonic glide vehicle highlights an accelerating bid to field counterstrike assets capable of bolstering autonomous deterrence against North Korea’s expanding nuclear threat. This month, multiple media outlets reported that

Modi wants India to power the AI age. Residents are pushing back

Amazon, Google and Microsoft data centres face resident anger over noise, water use and power demand.

Chinese developer makes ARTEX AI agent closed-source after South Korean bank hack

They said they opposed any illegal use of the software.

EU weighs safeguard tariffs as China refuses hybrid car limits

Beijing has rebuffed a European Union request to voluntarily cap hybrid car exports to the bloc, raising the prospect of new, steep EU tariffs on Chinese hybrids, which have so far escaped the duties on pure electric vehicles. China has refused to set quotas on its exports of

Kashmiri filmmaker Arfat Sheikh released from US ICE detention, campaign says

WASHINGTON, Oct 8 - Award-winning Kashmiri filmmaker Arfat Sheikh was released from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention on bond on Thursday after being detained on September 24, according to a statement by a campaign of his friends and relatives to free him.

Worsening haze disrupts flights across Indonesia’s Sumatra

Five flights at an airport in Palembang were delayed on the morning of Oct 8 because of poor visibility.

Seals and sea lions get hearing tested at Australia zoo

Keepers trained two sea lions and two fur seals to listen to sounds and press a paddle when they heard a tone.

Thailand to serve up soft power with tilapia for finance elite at IMF, World Bank meetings

Thailand is treating everything from what they eat to what they hear as an exercise in soft power.

Hong Kong rejects US downgrade to lowest tier in human trafficking report

Hong Kong has been moved to the bottom tier in the US' annual human trafficking report, joining the likes of China, Macau, North Korea, Russia, Iran and Afghanistan.

South Korea test-flies its first domestically developed hypersonic weapon

The test flight comes just days after Pyongyang launched its own hypersonic missile, amid heightened tensions between the two Koreas.

WTO lifts global trade outlook as AI boom powers Asian growth

Global supply chains have proved more resilient than expected to disruptions from the Middle East conflict, the World Trade Organization’s chief economist Robert Staiger tells CNA’s Olivia Marzuki in an interview.

Siblings in Johor who insisted on going to school despite closure killed in road accident

The accident happened about 200m from their home.

Giant Taiwan flag flies from helicopter for national day, defying Beijing

TAIPEI, Oct 9 - Largely banned from display internationally due to Beijing's objections, a giant Taiwan flag suspended under a US-made Chinook helicopter and flown over Taipei is one of the most eye-catching moments of its national day.

Record crowds, transport chaos: Can Malaysia afford an F1 comeback?

The Bahrain GP last week showed Sepang can still deliver an F1 spectacle, but transport woes exposed shortcomings off the track. The question is whether Malaysia can make a permanent return viable, say experts.

400km overnight run for Kelantan breakfasts in KL

Every night, vans carry thousands of packets of Kelantanese food to feed the morning demand in KL.

South Korea recalls ambassador from Ukraine amid N. Korea prisoners wrangle

Ukraine's President told the UN in September that Ukraine had sent North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.

Armenia, Azerbaijan discuss stepping up search for war missing

BAKU, Oct 8 - Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday he had discussed with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stepping up efforts to find people missing from decades of conflict, as a conference in Baku ended with Azerbaijan detailing its exchanges of

Schools in Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Selangor to close on Oct 9 due to haze

The move follows the shutting of all schools in Johor on Oct 8 and 9 owing to unhealthy air quality.

ICC says former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte fit to stand trial

The 81-year-old's trial is due to start on Nov 30.

ICC says former Philippine President Duterte fit to stand trial

AMSTERDAM, Oct 8 - Judges at the International Criminal Court have found that former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is fit to stand trial, the court said on Thursday.

Dozens protest in Tokyo after US Marine accused of killing woman in Okinawa

Lance Corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, has denied killing 39-year-old Anna Yagi.

Dozens protest in Tokyo after Marine accused of murder in Okinawa

TOKYO, Oct 8 - Dozens of protesters lined up in front of Japan's Foreign Ministry on Thursday after a US Marine was accused of killing a woman in the southernmost prefecture of Okinawa, many holding signs decrying crimes by US service members.

Attack risks rise for tankers as Iran vows to block more Hormuz routes

LONDON, Oct 8 - Tankers are facing a higher risk of attacks and intimidation as they try to get critical shipments through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran issued new warnings it would block routes that it has not authorized, sources said.

Pain at the pump sends Philippine car buyers rushing to EVs, hybrids

EV registrations, including hybrids, surged 130% annually from January to August.

Turkey's foreign minister says Ankara weighing Saudi defence support, rules out offensive role

ANKARA, Oct 8 - Turkey is assessing how it can help Saudi Arabia defend against attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants under a joint defence pact with Pakistan, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, ruling out Turkish participation in offensive operations.

Puma Shen’s debut in Taipei mayoral election creates more than waves. But can it translate to votes?

A Taiwanese celebrity who attended Shen's rally has also been mired in controversy over his stance on 'Taiwan independence'.

Teacher who sexually abused pupil back in Indonesia jail after BBC investigation

Mochamad Subchi Azal Tsani had been secretly released on parole in 2025, after serving less than half his sentence.

UK PM Burnham says open to Germany joining GCAP fighter programme

LONDON, Oct 8 - British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the UK was open to Germany joining the GCAP programme, a partnership between Britain, Italy and Japan to build a new fighter jet, after he met Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin on Thursday.

Bear kills man in home attack near Mongolian capital

Police say the bear entered a traditional nomadic dwelling near Ulaanbaatar, killing a man and seriously injured a woman.

53 companies in Japan hit by Qilin ransomware group: police agency

The cybercrime group began operating around October 2022 and has attacked some 4,000 companies worldwide.

Russia says reports of second case linked to Siberian plague lab are false

MOSCOW, Oct 8 - Russia's health regulator denied on Thursday that someone had fallen ill after coming into contact with a worker at a plague research laboratory in Siberia who died last week.

Canadian poet and writer Anne Carson wins 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature

STOCKHOLM, Oct 8 - Canadian poet and writer Anne Carson won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature \"for her bold and inventive oeuvre that, in playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature,\" the award-giving body said on Thursday.

As Munir's military takes on Gulf role, Pakistan's parliament is not involved

ISLAMABAD, Oct 8 - Eleven years after Pakistan's parliament voted to keep the country out of a Saudi-led intervention in Yemen in 2015, Islamabad has agreed to rapidly deploy more forces to Saudi Arabia without a parliamentary vote, highlighting the military's grip on foreign

Landmark ASEAN digital pact will guide region on AI, digital economy: Marcos

Parties are also making “good progress” on the code of conduct for the South China Sea, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said at a forum in Singapore.

India's 'Cockroach' movement says many members detained ahead of Delhi rally

BENGALURU, Oct 8 - Indian authorities started mass detentions of people associated with the \"Cockroach\" youth movement, the group said Thursday, just days ahead of a major planned protest in Delhi to demand the resignation of the nation's top poll official.

Bottas arrives in Singapore after 260-mile ride

Cadillac driver Valtteri Bottas says he was chased by dogs, saw snakes and leapt over a lizard as he cycled from Malaysia to Singapore for this weekend's Grand Prix.

Pushing back RTS-Link launch to mid-Feb provides buffer for smooth operations: Anthony Loke

The Malaysian Transport Minister said an earlier launch date of January was “technically” plausible but he was seeking “some buffer” to complete the necessary safety assessments and regulatory approvals.

South Korea recalls Ukraine envoy over prisoner-of-war row

It is the latest in a diplomatic spat after Kyiv disclosed that two North Korean prisoners were transferred to Seoul.

How a one-month buffer and JB transport upgrades will prepare commuters for the RTS Link

Malaysian officials welcome it as a convenient buffer to ensure flawless operations.

South Korea says to recall ambassador from Ukraine

Syria considers help in Yemen war after Saudi airports come under Houthi fire

RIYADH, Oct 8 - Syria may deploy troops to help Saudi Arabia fight Yemen's Houthis, a US official and a Syrian defence official said, as the Iran-aligned group steps up its missile and drone attacks on the kingdom, killing three people at Saudi airports this week.

India’s Central Asia missile sales spark a new Great Game

A flurry of landmark arms deals is reshaping Central Asia’s strategic landscape, as regional states leverage alternative defense suppliers to assert their sovereignty amid Russia’s waning dominance and an intensifying Sino-Indian rivalry. Indian Defense Secretary Rajesh Kumar

China nominates health official Song Li as WHO head

The WHO will release the complete list of nominees after final regional committee meetings, expected in early November.

Israel votes again but the arithmetic hasn’t changed

TEL AVIV – Every Israeli election of the past decade has been sold as the last chance to save the country, and every one has ended in the same place: a long night of counting, followed by weeks of bargaining among men who swore they would never sit together. The vote on October

Batam residents protest against data centre expansion as water shortages worsen

But official denies claims, saying El Nino effect had triggered a prolonged dry season in the country.

Keeping global temperature gain in check is a matter of survival, COP31 president says

NADI, Fiji, Oct 8 - Restricting global warming is a matter of survival and too many countries are shirking their responsibility to cut emissions, the official presiding over the UN's flagship upcoming climate conference said on the final day of the meeting's precursor event on

Rare red carpet in KL for Myanmar’s leader sparks outrage, but signals shifting ASEAN stance

The Malaysia visit came amid deportation of thousands of Myanmar nationals.

Malaysia builds a new ‘Silicon Island’ to house its AI ambitions

The island is also expected to house office towers, hotels and waterfront apartments.