Transportation

Hyundai Motor Group aims to expand its fuel cell-powered lineup to 20 truck and bus models by 2028. Here, a Hyundai Nexo hydrogen car is fueled at a station in Seoul. (File photo by Reuters) 
Automobiles

Hyundai aims to put fuel cells in all its trucks and buses by 2028

South Korean automaker pins hopes on hydrogen tech to lead transportation market

7 September 2021
Philippine Airlines says it expects air travel demand to return to pre-pandemic levels by 2024 or 2025. Billionaire Lucio Tan, who controls the struggling flag carrier, is set to inject $505 million into the company.
Transportation

Philippine Airlines to delay or drop Airbus orders in rehab plan

Carrier aims to exit bankruptcy process this year as it seeks new investors

6 September 2021
Garuda's annual net loss of $2.4 billion last year was its biggest since at least 2005 and company executives said in June that it is still losing around $100 million a month. 
Business Spotlight

Indonesia's state airline Garuda hangs by a financial thread

With the government reluctant to stump up rescue funds, airline's restructuring is fraught with difficulty

3 September 2021
AirAsia is stepping up investment in digital operations to diversify from its core budget airline business. (Photo by Yumi Kotani) 
Transportation

Debt-ridden AirAsia's super app ambitions fly into murky skies

Shaky finances shackle investment in food delivery and ride-hailing service

2 September 2021
COSCO Shipping Holdings saw its profits soar by a factor of 32 in the first half of 2021 to 37.09 billion yuan.
Transportation

Chinese shipping profits surge across industry on capacity squeeze

COSCO, Sinotrans and port operators ride high while airlines left behind

1 September 2021
Indonesia has seized the oil tanker MT Strovolos, which Cambodia accuses of carrying 300,000 barrels of stolen crude from it first oil venture.
Commodities

Indonesia seizes tanker accused of carrying stolen Cambodian oil

Hunt for missing crude comes after collapse of Phnom Penh's first venture

27 August 2021
Nozomi bullet trains in Japan will offer cushions and foldable partitions for riders' computers in their telework car. (Photo courtesy of Central Japan Railway)
Transportation

Workaholics aboard: Japan bullet train to debut telework cars

Designated carriage to offer extra Wi-Fi capacity, chargers and encryption

27 August 2021
MarCoPay grants sailors freedom to spend their money in ways not afforded by cash. (Photo courtesy of MarCoPay)
Startups

Fintech hits high seas with Philippine e-money app for sailors

Japanese-backed MarCoPay aims to link crews to loans and insurance in $8bn market

25 August 2021
A traffic jam in Jakarta: Indonesia's capital faces the "dual threat" of rising sea levels and sinking ground, Greenpeace warns.
Politics

Indonesia's capital relocation plan 'still on,' Jokowi says

Presidential hopeful Subianto throws weight behind $32bn project

25 August 2021
AirAsia is increasingly betting on growth opportunities outside its core airline business. 
Transportation

AirAsia's Fernandes says company seeks more non-air acquisitions

COVID-hit budget carrier increasingly pins hopes on 'superapp' to diversify

24 August 2021
The delta variant outbreaks in Southeast Asia including Thailand throw a pall over the company's hopes for a recovery in travel.
Transportation

Thai Airways posts first profit in pandemic thanks to restructure

But slow recovery in passenger demand clouds path to rehabilitation

16 August 2021
A Cathay Pacific cargo plane carrying COVID-19 vaccines lands at Hong Kong International Airport in February.
Transportation

Cathay Pacific says not out of woods despite smaller loss

Airline aims to lift passenger capacity to 30% of pre-pandemic levels this year

12 August 2021
U.S. President Joe Biden prepares to test-drive a plug-in-hybrid Jeep Wrangler at an Aug. 5 event for clean cars and trucks at the White House, where he signed an executive order on transforming the country’s auto fleet.
Automobiles

Biden gives Japan automakers cold shoulder on EV targets

US targets 50% of car sales being zero-emissions vehicles by 2030

6 August 2021
Kansai International Airport is undergoing a major renovation to welcome more foreign tourists ahead of Osaka’s hosting of the World Expo in 2025.
Travel & Leisure

Kansai airport makeover 'necessary' for inbound tourism: operator

$635m project to double gateway's capacity and lift COVID-hit Osaka

5 August 2021
The importance of the Arctic Ocean is spurring competition between the U.S., China and Russia for control of the region.
Transportation

Arctic opening: How the Northern Sea Route will reshape the world

Melting ice caps bring a shorter path for shipping -- and a race for resources

5 August 2021
Thales’ Ground Transportation Systems operates rail signaling, train-control and fare-collection systems. (Source photos by Reuters)
Business deals

Hitachi to buy Thales' railway signaling business for $2bn

Japanese industrial conglomerate to expand digitization of transport sector

4 August 2021
"It's hard to picture a recovery in demand," Japan Airlines' chief financial officer has said. (Photo by Konosuke Urata)
Transportation

US airlines fly high while virus drag keeps Japan carriers low

JAL's $530m loss more than double Delta, American and United profits

4 August 2021
Despite prolonged states of emergency in Japan, ANA Holdings managed to increase passenger volume in the April to May period, in particular for domestic flights. (Photo by Wataru Ito) 
Transportation

ANA 'nearly over the worst' of COVID downturn: exec

Japanese airline slices loss helped by cost cuts

30 July 2021
SIA managed to cushion some of the devasting effects of the pandemic on the travel industry by removing seats from some aircraft to allow the transport of cargo.
Transportation

Singapore Airlines grapples with delta variant as COVID losses persist

SIA kicks off second fiscal year under pandemic pressures with $302 million net loss

29 July 2021
Discount carrier Skymark Airlines, like others in Japan is struggling to stay afloat amid a collapse in travel demand brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Companies

Japan's Skymark to raise $36m from DBJ, ANA and other shareholders

Struggling budget carrier will also get support from investment fund Integral

28 July 2021
Didi is banned from recruiting new users and drivers and rivals want to shake its market lead. (Source photos by Getty Images) 
China tech

Didi's China rivals go full speed for customers after app ban

Smaller ride-hailing services shower new users and drivers with incentives

28 July 2021
ANA Holdings appears headed for its smallest operating loss since January-March 2020, when the coronavirus began to spread globally.
Transportation

ANA halves quarterly loss on cost cuts and cargo demand

Full recovery remains distant for Japan carriers focused on international travel

28 July 2021
A Bird Rides scooter zips along a test track in Tachikawa, near central Tokyo. (Photo by Tadayoshi Ichimaru)
Startups

Helmets optional: US e-scooter rentals to roll into Japan

Bird Rides to conduct trials under a deregulatory program for new businesses

26 July 2021
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern cited health risks to citizens in shutting down the travel bubble with Australia.
Transportation

New Zealand suspends travel bubble with Australia over delta wave

Eight-week pause in effect after three Aussie states impose lockdowns

24 July 2021
Japanese nationals check in for the special chartered flight Wednesday at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport serving Jakarta.
Coronavirus

Indonesia's COVID surge spurs Japanese expat exodus

Nearly 200 passengers arrive in Tokyo as demand for flights home soars

22 July 2021