Economy

The liquefied hydrogen carrier, which will be used as part of a hydrogen supply chain pilot project between Australia and Japan, is docked at Kobe Works yard in Kobe, western Japan, on July 15. (Photo by Hideyuki Miura)
Opinion

Green hydrogen can re-energize Indo-Pacific relations

Close cooperation between regional governments will be an essential enabler

7 November 2021
RCEP comes into force 60 days after six of 10 ASEAN nations and three of five other countries submit depositions to ASEAN, which is serving as the wider bloc's secretariat.
Trade

World's biggest trade deal RCEP to take effect Jan. 1

Asia-focused pact covers 30% of global population and GDP

4 November 2021
Sunbakers gather on Coogee Beach in Sydney on Sept. 12: those less fortunate looked on through gritted teeth.
Opinion

COVID lays bare Australia's dyed-in-the-wool complacency

Has the 'lucky country' finally run out of luck?

2 October 2021
French President Emmanuel Macron, second from left, and then-Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, center, on a Royal Australian Navy submarine in May 2018. (AAP image/Mick Tsikas)
International relations

EU pushes back Australia trade talks over France submarine snub

AUKUS deal puts goal of FTA by year-end further from reach

2 October 2021
A liquefied hydrogen carrier transporting its first cargo from Australia extracted from brown coal is docked at Kobe Works yard in Kobe, western Japan, on Jan. 13: not all hydrogen is the same. (Photo by Naoki Hori)
Opinion

Our climate emergency requires huge amounts of green hydrogen

Energy source provides unmatched potential to cut global emissions

29 September 2021
A draft of a joint statement obtained by Nikkei shows how Quad leaders intend to take a stand against China's use of science and technology to maintain authoritarian regimes around the world.
Indo-Pacific

Quad leaders to call for securing chip supply chain

Japan, India, Australia and U.S. leaders to link advanced tech with human rights

19 September 2021
Representatives of Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership member countries take part in a news conference in Santiago, Chile, in 2019.
Trade

China officially applies to join CPTPP trade pact

Bid comes day after U.S., U.K. and Australia announce new defense partnership

16 September 2021
In this image made from video, Lt. Col. Mamady Doumbouya, center, commander of the army's special forces unit, surrounded by others and draped in a Guinean flag, makes an address to the nation from state television headquarters in Guinea's capital, Conakry, on Sept. 5.
Commodities

Guinea coup upends China strategy as aluminum prices soar

Beijing's dependence on Australia rises while uncertainty clouds African source

8 September 2021
Protestors in Pakistan demonstrate against debt servitude. Australia implemented a law in 2019 that requires businesses to disclose labor abuses in their supply chains.
Business trends

Suspect suppliers ousted under Australia's anti-trafficking law

Retailer Woolworths takes steps to rid supply chain of Xinjiang cotton

31 August 2021
The Australian dollar touched a roughly nine-month low against the U.S. dollar last week.
Currencies

China risk sends Australian, South Korean currencies sliding

Fear of Chinese slowdown weighs on export-heavy nations

27 August 2021
Warships participate in the 2020 Malabar exercise involving the four Quad members: the U.S., Japan, India and Australia.
International relations

Quad navies gather for drills as Australia courts India on trade

'Good luck with that,' expert says of Canberra's push for alternative to China

26 August 2021
Talbingo dam, part of Snowy 2.0 pumped-storage scheme in Australia: we need long-term, large capacity energy storage for when the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine. (Handout photo from Snowy Hydro)
Opinion

Energy storage is ignored crisis within the climate crisis

Hydropower essential to back up wind and solar

22 August 2021
Workers stand in line at a production line of mobile phones in Noida in May 2020: India displacing China as a global manufacturing hub is more about wishful thinking.
Opinion

India nowhere near ready to substitute for China

Better integration into existing value chains is needed first

18 August 2021
Protesters throw pot plants at mounted police during an anti-lockdown rally in Sydney on July 24.
Opinion

How Australia became the world's most luxurious prison

Convict past is key to understanding the country's overseas travel ban

13 August 2021
Singapore's central bank is allowing United Overseas Bank, DBS and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp to pay out higher dividends.
Finance

Singapore's DBS hikes payouts as other lenders reel from COVID

Central banks in the city-state and Thailand ease guidance on dividends

5 August 2021
The RBA affirmed its decision to trim purchases of government bonds to AU$4 billion a week from September, from the current weekly pace of AU$5 billion.
Economy

Australia central bank to trim bond buying despite delta COVID risk

Hawkish decision surprises markets but RBA sees virus pressure as temporary

3 August 2021
Scott Morrison's problem is the lack of a Plan B.
Opinion

Australia's COVID-19 about-face is a warning for everyone

Scott Morrison should channel the Hawke-Keating era to get creative about reform

2 August 2021
A man fishes across the harbor from the Sydney Opera House on July 27. Residents and businesses in the greater Sydney area are under tight COVID-19 restrictions.
Coronavirus

Sydney COVID lockdown extended as double-dip recession fears grow

Australia's tight rules and low vaccination rate threaten economic comeback

28 July 2021
Dalilah Muhammad of the U.S. celebrates her gold medal in the women's 400m hurdles at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on Aug. 18, 2016, in Rio de Janeiro.
Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Spending on Olympic medals pays off in swimming and track

Team sports require more money but win far less, as shown by Rio 2016 data

20 July 2021
Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan tells Nikkei Asia about how Canberra is navigating its tariff and other disputes with China on July 17. (Photo by Yasunori Okamura)
Interview

Australia wants China talks but will be 'patient': trade minister

'Team approach' with industry mitigates Beijing tensions as Quad ties deepen

18 July 2021
Farmworkers prune Merlot vines on a farm near Griffith, Australia: they talk of piece rates that can sometimes yield as little as 3.00 Australian dollars an hour.
Opinion

Australia's shameful attempt to squeeze Southeast Asian workers dry

New ASEAN visa scheme will exacerbate exploitative conditions on farms

16 July 2021
Japan takes 36 times longer to process trade paperwork than France or Italy, the World Bank reports.
Trade

Blockchain greases trade wheels between 7 Asian-Pacific economies

TradeWaltz aims to keep supply chains of 5,000 companies moving at steady pace

11 July 2021
A shared working space in Tokyo: The city's remote working infrastructure, cultural attractions and other factors contribute to its appeal for "digital nomads." (Photo by Tetsuya Kitayama)
Economy

Tokyo and Singapore trail Melbourne in 'digital nomad' ranking

List highlights places best positioned to lure new breed of remote workers

2 July 2021
Bottles of Australian wine are seen at a store in Beijing: Australia's diplomatic relations with China, its largest trading partner, have worsened since Canberra called for an international inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus. 
Trade

Australia takes wine dispute with China to WTO

Canberra opposes Beijing's imposition of anti-dumping duties

19 June 2021
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson reviews the Brexit trade deal with the EU that he signed at number 10 Downing Street in London, on Dec. 30.
Trade

UK knocks on TPP door harder after EU exports fall 16%

Britain also nearing trade deals with India and Australia

4 June 2021