Medical staff work in the isolated intensive care unit in a hospital in Wuhan, China on Feb. 6. 
Coronavirus: Free to read

Coronavirus: Week of Feb. 1 to Feb. 8 brings supply chain strain

US citizen dies in Wuhan as impact on business begins to crystallize

8 February 2020
Watermelons in front of Myanmar's border with China in Muse in 2018: For the immediate future, farmers will have to find other markets for their produce as borders with China remain closed.
Coronavirus

Coronavirus leaves tropical fruit rotting at China border crossings

Farmers in Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam hit hard as city lock-downs disrupt trade

6 February 2020
A view of a bridge that collapsed in Bali, Indonesia in 2016. The new insurance aims to offer protection for such Asian infrastructure. 
Economy

Asia's bridges and piers to be insured against disasters

Singapore, Japan and World Bank team to protect infrastructure

6 February 2020
A worker stands next to robotic arms in a factory in Zhangjiakou, China: robots often supplement and support humans rather than replace them.
Opinion

Asia's economies must learn to accommodate rise of robots

Technology can complement humans but it can also eliminate their jobs

5 February 2020
Amata halted a $1 billion "smart city" project outside Yangon, Myanmar due to the coup. (Source photos by Reuters and Shinya Sawai) 
Companies

Thai developer invests $1bn to put Myanmar industry on global map

Amata aims to woo foreign manufacturers with modern industrial zone in Yangon

3 February 2020
Cambodia's garment industry employs 750,000 workers. Losing tariff-free access to the EU could threaten some of those jobs. 
Business trends

As EU decision on tariffs looms, Cambodia garment industry gets nervous

Factories hit back at international brands' 'disappointing' criticism of human rights progress

3 February 2020
A doctor puts on protective goggles before entering the isolation ward at a hospital in Wuhan, China.
Coronavirus: Free to read

Coronavirus: How the outbreak unfolded from Jan. 27 to Feb. 1

As cases surpassed 10,000, countries rushed to fly citizens out of China

1 February 2020
A Union Jack flag on the tag of a mattress in a store in Bangkok: total two-way trade between Britain and ASEAN amounted to more than $48 billion in 2018.
Opinion

Post-Brexit UK should prioritize Southeast Asia trade deals

London is well-placed to surpass Brussels in relations with ASEAN

30 January 2020
Vietnamese porters carry goods from China in the border city of Mong Cai in 2018. The coronavirus crisis is reverberating in this and other border towns.
Coronavirus

Coronavirus fears haunt Vietnam and Myanmar border towns

Communities reeling from lack of Chinese visitors race to protect themselves

29 January 2020
The Cambodian government wants more airports as it aims to double tourist arrivals by 2025. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)
Transportation

At Cambodia airports, China's Belt and Road elbows out Europeans

Fate of French operator Vinci casts pall over country's sky-high tourist ambitions

29 January 2020
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is flanked by U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting at the G-20 leaders summit in Osaka in June 2019.
Comment

Is China following Japan into the haven of Southeast Asian nations?

US adjusts trade policies in an attempt not to repeat Plaza Accord mistakes

18 January 2020
Activists hold placards during a protest against the China-backed Myitsone dam project in March 2019: China remains remarkably unpopular in Myanmar.
Opinion

China leaves rivals in the dust with influence in Myanmar

As Xi Jinping visits, Beijing risks backlash if it pushes too far

16 January 2020
Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, Xi Jinping's right-hand man, will sign the Phase One trade deal with U.S. President Donald Trump this week. 
Your Week in Asia

US-China Phase One deal, China trade data and Kem Sokha trial

Your weekly lineup of Asia's biggest business and political events

12 January 2020
An influx of Chinese money and workers coupled with loose regulations fueled explosive growth in Cambodia's coastal city of Sihanoukville. (Nikkei montage)
Business Spotlight

In Cambodia's boomtown, a gamble on Chinese money goes sour

Online casino ban slams the brakes on Sihanoukville's runaway growth

10 January 2020
Myanmar plans a general election in November. Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy dominated the 2015 election. (Photo by Htet Aing Phyoe)
Politics

Suu Kyi invokes iconic father to solidify support before election

Biopic and kyat note come as Myanmar's leader takes heat on economy

8 January 2020
A Linklusion employee delivers merchandise to a small retail shop in a farm village near Yangon. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Retail

Village shops in Myanmar take a page from Japan's retail playbook

Startup Linklusion offers greater efficiency and choice to rural stores

5 January 2020
Stream article image
Asia Insight

Asia's flashpoints: What could go wrong in 2020

Missiles, military clashes, defaults and political crises in the cards

31 December 2019
Vietnamese residents take photos as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un goes past in Hanoi on Feb. 26.
Photos

2019 in pictures: Looking back at a year of celebrations, confrontations and more

A selection of striking images from across Asia, and the stories behind them

29 December 2019
© Illustration by Michael Tsang
Asia Insight

Manila Vice: Xi and Duterte grapple with online casino crime

China wants to kill thriving industry; the Philippines aims to tame it

24 December 2019
Beijing is promoting special economic zones in Laos as part of its Belt and Road Initiative. (Nikkeimontage/Source photo by Reuters)
Belt and Road

China digs Laos in deeper with flurry of SEZs

With Vientiane's hunger for investment, debt-trap fears mount

23 December 2019
Across Southeast Asia, companies are hunting for access to carbon credits -- whether to meet their own climate change pledges, redeem themselves in the eyes of their customers, or preempt the regulations that many believe are inevitable. (Photo by Peter Guest)
The Big Story

COP25: A new carbon market offers hope for Asia's forests

From Mitsui to Shell, companies are investing in emissions offsets

11 December 2019
A television factory in Shenzhen, China. The U.S. has additional tariffs coming on Dec. 15 that already have Chinese manufacturers scurrying.
Trade war

China Inc's search for factories hits technological wall in Cambodia

US tariffs and threat of more put manufacturers in tight spot

10 December 2019
Sumitronics has set up a factory inside a new industrial park in western Cambodia near the Thai border.
Economy

Cambodia economic zone eyes companies fleeing Thai costs

New industrial park along the border hooks into regionwide business corridor

10 December 2019
Indonesia's Ovo offers an app that lets people do everything from make daily purchases to buy investment products on their smartphones.
Finance

Southeast Asia leaps ahead in high-tech financial services

E-money offers the latest example of technological 'leapfrogging' in Asia

7 December 2019
Cambodia's own currency only accounts for 20% of money used in the nation. (Photo by Rie Ishii)
Economy

Chinese money flocks to dollar-based Cambodian economy

Phnom Penh starting to seek economic growth based on national currency

1 December 2019