Pacific Islands

Japan's Mitsui & Co. is expanding its gas development off the coast of Australia.
Business deals

Mitsui continues resources push, buying Australia's AWE

Japanese trader relies much more heavily on volatile business than peers

6 February 2018
A screen shows the Nikkei average in Tokyo on Feb. 5. (Photo by Maho Obata)
Equities

Stocks fall across Asia as Nikkei index closes down 2.5%

Japanese shares cede 2018 gains and India drops 1% at opening

5 February 2018
Trade ministers pose for a photo during a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership ministerial meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, on May 22, 2017.
International relations

With TPP agreed, RCEP members look to catch up

Trade negotiations kicking off Friday will cover tariffs, investor protections

2 February 2018
An Indonesian Muslim holds up a poster during a rally calling for the arrest of Jakarta's then-incumbent governor Basuki Purnama.
Politics

Democratic conditions 'fall sharply' in Asia

Region regresses as minorities suffer in Indonesia and Myanmar, says think tank

1 February 2018
AirAsia and Scoot are among budget carriers likely to be hit hard by reduced travel caused by the new coronavirus. (Photo by Shinya Sawai)
Business

Southeast Asia's airlines feel fuel price pinch

Ticket sales are looking good, but overhead is making for thinner margins

1 February 2018
Ola signaled its global ambitions when it procured $1.1 billion from Tencent and other investors in October.
Business

Ola takes ride-hailing duel with Uber to Australia and beyond

Indian company stages overseas offensive as US rival penetrates home market

1 February 2018
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan.26.
Politics

Is the US heading back to the TPP? Not so fast

Even if Trump is serious, renegotiation will take time and effort

30 January 2018
A Singapore Airlines stewardess folds the leg rest of a seat in the newly-launched premium economy class cabin of their A380 aircraft.
Business trends

Southeast Asia airlines face yet thinner profits in 2018

Over-capacity to weigh on regional carriers, with 1,600 airplanes on order

30 January 2018
U.S. President Donald Trump listens to a discussion by European business leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 25.
International relations

Asia puzzles over Trump's TPP remark

Japan and Australia offer guarded response as investors await more details

26 January 2018
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders arrive for the group photo session at the summit in Danang, Vietnam on Nov. 11. (Photo courtesy of APEC Secretariat)
Economy

Host problems cloud the outlook for this year's APEC

Beset by domestic issues, Papua New Guinea may struggle to put on the event

25 January 2018
Australian Actress Shareena Clanton addresses the crowd in a moving speech at Australia Day Protest in Melbourne, Australia on Jan. 26, 2017.
Politics

National day debate galvanizes Australians

Should Australia Day be called 'Invasion Day?'

25 January 2018
Japanese Trade Minister Toshimitsu Motegi speaks during the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade initiative talks in Tokyo on Jan. 22. The 11 countries reached an agreement Jan. 23 to move ahead without the participation of the U.S.
Economy

TPP 11 set to sign accord in March, without US

Earlier holdout Canada now part of deal on free trade zone spanning Pacific

23 January 2018
Workers load carts at a brick factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in April 2017.
Economy

Nearly one billion Asians in vulnerable jobs, says ILO

High growth, low unemployment mask precarious work conditions for many

23 January 2018
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speak to reporters after their summit in Tokyo on Thursday.
International relations

Japan, Australia agree to keep pressure on North Korea

Abe bolstering defense cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region

19 January 2018
Rising wages could leave Indian workers with more money to burn.
Economy

Better paydays are in store for Asia

The region is predicted to lead global wage growth in 2018

18 January 2018
Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and and Chinese President Xi Jinping arrive for the group photo session at the APEC Summit in Danang, Vietnam on Nov. 11, 2017. (Photo courtesy of APEC Secretariat)
International relations

APEC summit outlook clouded by new host's problems

Caught between China and the bloc, PNG's domestic issues dominate

17 January 2018
Technicians work on an evaporation pond test in the salt flat at the Olaroz. Argentina has among the world's largest reserves of lithium, a key mineral used in rechargeable batteries that power hybrid and electrified vehicles, as well as consumer electronics.
Business deals

Toyota Tsusho buying chunk of Australian lithium miner

Toyota group trading house eyes grip on key battery material

17 January 2018
An excavator loads a dump truck with zinc-bearing soil in Russia.
Commodities

Glencore on offensive as zinc prices recover, China cuts production

Swiss mining giant's production cuts still dealing a blow to steelmakers

4 January 2018
People walk at the financial district of Pudong in Shanghai.
Economy

Asia seen leading global wage growth in 2018

Raises solid in India, Vietnam, China, but meager in Japan, US, Europe -- survey

4 January 2018
Stream article image
Capital Markets

Japan joining Asian funds passporting scheme

Move will smooth cross-border marketing of investment trusts

3 January 2018
New Zealand is growing concerned about Chinese influence through trade and immigration.
Politics

China sends chills through South Pacific politics

Suspicion over New Zealand MP stokes fears of widespread meddling

30 December 2017
Former Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt in the water at Portsea, a suburb of Melbourne, in 1966
Politics

A missing PM 50 years ago still affects Australian-Chinese relations today

Harold Holt's disappearance remains a mystery, and a symbol of changing regional power dynamics

28 December 2017
Protesters take part in a demonstration in Sydney against Adani's planned coal mine project in northeast Australia on Oct. 7.
Business

Australia's biggest mine faces fresh hurdles

Collapse in outsourcing deal is latest setback for Adani's controversial project

28 December 2017
Xiang Xiang plays in a tree as she is introduced to the media at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo on Dec. 18. (Photo by Maho Obata)
Politics

Panda diplomacy grows with China's ambitions

Public needs to look beyond the furry animal's cuteness and see what's really at play, experts say

27 December 2017
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop delivers her opening remarks during a ministerial meeting of Australia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila on Aug. 6.
Economy

Australia seeks 80% free trade coverage by 2020

Foreign minister backs 'all options' on North Korea, including force

26 December 2017