Features

Energy companies and other buyers of carbon emissions credits have begun to question their effectiveness in curbing global warming.
Datawatch

Weak trading in carbon credits blunts world decarbonization drive

Futures fall 90% as effectiveness of carbon offsets questioned

24 December 2023
India's central bank has responded to the growing popularity of unsecured consumer loans by requiring lenders to hold more capital against such credits. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)
Business Spotlight

Indian consumer borrowing surges, raising fears of defaults

Unsecured loans give lower-income workers a chance to 'spend on things we really want'

22 December 2023
Xi Jinping's government is now wielding national security concerns to hush analysts whose work shows an economic decline. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Yusuke Hinata and Ken Kobayashi)
China up close

Analysis: China's spy agency now watches for doomsayers

With increasing power over 'economic security,' ministry hints at crackdown

21 December 2023
As PDD Holdings' Temu moved into more than 40 countries in 2023, reportedly spending more than $2 billion on marketing, employees say the work culture took a toll on their personal lives and health. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
The Big Story

Inside PDD, China's e-commerce titan behind Temu and Pinduoduo

Efforts to surpass Alibaba at home and chase Amazon abroad come with human cost

20 December 2023
The Hindu Kush Himalaya region, which stretches 3,500 kilometers and includes Earth's highest mountain range, is warming by 0.3 C per decade -- faster than the global average, according to the U.N.'s science body for climate change. (Illustration by Yoshiko Kawano)
Asia Insight

COP28 spotlights key climate battle: Saving Himalayan ice

From Afghanistan to China, vanishing glaciers risk floods and drought for billions

19 December 2023
Markets are watching the yen's volatility against the U.S. dollar as BOJ policy members meet for the last time this year. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Satoko Kawasaki) 
Market Spotlight

Yen reverses downtrend as policy rates of BOJ and Fed set to move closer

Shift in foreign exchange market sends Japan Inc. scrambling

18 December 2023
Japan's gender pay gap of more than 20% is nearly double the average of developed countries, according to the OECD.
Datawatch

Japan's 'greedy work' practices blamed for gender pay gap

Freed from child-rearing, more men work long hours to seek higher pay, promotion

16 December 2023
The buyout of Toshiba could be a positive step, since consolidating ownership makes bold reforms easier. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters and FactSet)
Business Spotlight

As Toshiba exits market, Japan's governance reforms remain unfinished

Shareholder activism has only halfway reshaped Japan Inc., experts say

15 December 2023
Last summer, after China appeared to be changing its stance on Russia's war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin discovered a way to put Xi Jinping back on his side.
China up close

Analysis: Did Putin's tip lead Xi to purge his foreign minister?

After Qin Gang's disappearance, Beijing changed its stance on the Ukraine war

14 December 2023
Stream article image
The Big Story

The great nanometer chip race

China looks for shortcuts as TSMC, Samsung and Intel push the limits of miniaturization

13 December 2023
Fisherman Rashep Valencia says Chinese sand dredging vessels tore apart his fishing nets. (Photo by Nick Aspinwall)
Asia Insight

U.S.-China rivalry hits home in this Philippine province

Cagayan among places caught up in moves to bring both growth and security

12 December 2023
Singapore's commercial property investment volume declined 11%, year-on-year, to $2 billion in the third quarter of 2023. (Photo by Norman Goh)
Market Spotlight

From Singapore to South Korea, commercial property deals falter

Japan and India are bright spots, although most real estate investors remain wary

11 December 2023
Online platforms are giving less prominence to external links as they try to keep users on their sites to enhance their value as channels for advertising. 
Datawatch

Japan's websites see traffic from X and Facebook fall up to 40%

Social media companies vie to corral users, affecting news and review sites

9 December 2023
Pakistani and Afghan flags flutter at the Chaman Border Crossing as a truck carries refugees back to Afghanistan amid Pakistan's crackdown on undocumented immigrants. 
The Big Story

Pakistan makes Afghan refugees pay the price for economic crisis

Threatened with default, government tries reform whilst looking for scapegoats

8 December 2023
A POSCO Chemical battery pack for electric vehicles is displayed at the InterBattery exhibition in Seoul in March 2022. The company changed its name to POSCO Future M this year. 
8 December 2023
The Chinese economy is in unprecedentedly dire straits under President Xi Jinping. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Yusuke Hinata and Getty Images)
China up close

Analysis: Xi-Biden summit leaves China's economic policies up in air

Key policy meeting likely postponed to 2024; Evergrande issue also left unresolved

7 December 2023
Supporters of Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party, which aims to defend the island's sovereignty, gather at the party's campaign headquarters in Taipei on Dec. 3, ahead of the presidential election in January. (Photo by Hiroki Endo)
The Big Story

Taiwan's defining moment: Election to determine future of relations with China

Against backdrop of Ukraine and Hong Kong, voters must choose confrontation or compromise with Beijing

6 December 2023
Trucks line up in Osaka: New rules capping overtime hours for truck drivers in Japan are forecast to cut the country's cargo delivery capacity by more than a third by 2030. (Photo by Kosaku Mimura)
Asia Insight

Japan's 2024 problem? Trucker overtime curbs risk an economic pileup

Multiple industries brace for impact of move to tackle chronic driver shortage

5 December 2023
The number of IPOs in Mumbai is expected to rise 45% this year, and new listings in Shenzhen, Shanghai and Hong Kong to fall by around 30%. (Source photos by Ken Kobayashi and Kenji Kawase)
Market Spotlight

Mumbai leads world in number of IPOs as new China listings fall

Hong Kong's equity fundraising proceeds drop below India's in sign of waning appeal

4 December 2023
Southeast Asia is raking in foreign direct investment as the region positions itself as a buffer zone amid the intensifying U.S.-China rivalry.
Datawatch

U.S. and China butt heads over investment in Southeast Asia

Region attracted a record $222bn in foreign direct investment in 2022

2 December 2023
Investors and analysts have been asking questions about Alibaba's move, which caused the tech giant's share price to plunge.
Business Spotlight

Clouds gather over Alibaba's key unit after IPO plans shelved

Cloud computing was supposed to be a surefire growth driver, but the future looks less sunny

1 December 2023
Taiwan's presidential election came up during talks between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in California on Nov. 15. In the background from left: Ko Wen-je, former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou and Hou Yu-ih. Ko and Hou are presidential candidates. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by AP, Reuters, and Yusuke Hinata)
China up close

Analysis: How Biden's farewell jab at Xi over Taiwan traveled across the Pacific

Days after U.S.-China summit, democratic island's opposition alliance collapsed

30 November 2023
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin says that the country faces an economic crisis, and that the antidote is for citizens to "take pride in spending."
Asia Insight

Thailand PM Srettha faces hard sell in e-wallet plan to stoke economy

'Salesman' turns to domestic woes after foreign focus in first 100 days

28 November 2023
President Yoon Suk Yeol has come down firmly on the side of retail investors regarding the issue of short-selling of shares. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters)
Market Spotlight

South Korea's stock short-selling ban raises political questions

Experts, media see potential negative impact of 'populism' ahead of April election

27 November 2023
Many elderly widows in Japan depend on survivor's pensions and have lower incomes than welfare recipients.
Datawatch

Older single women face growing risk of poverty in Japan

Over 30% of those 65 or older fall below poverty line after death of spouses

26 November 2023