Laos

Passengers wear masks to prevent an outbreak of a new coronavirus at Hong Kong West Kowloon railway station.
Coronavirus

China faces more travel curbs as coronavirus spreads

Australia latest to bar entry and travel while Vietnam suspends flights

2 February 2020
Put together by a Japanese marketing man, Laos' LaoNavy pose in school uniform-style sailor costumes.
Media & Entertainment

Japanese-style idols LaoNavy put Laos on the pop culture map

Girl group created to advertise strawberries build Southeast Asian fan base

1 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
Lion Air is the first Asian airline to suspend all flights to and from mainland China on fears over the spread of coronavirus.
Coronavirus

Indonesia's top budget airline Lion to halt flights to mainland China

Fears of coronavirus risk domino effect among Asian carriers

29 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
Airport officials wear masks as they wait to help passengers after having their temperatures taken at Bandaranaike International Airport, Sri Lanka, on Jan. 24.
Coronavirus

Wuhan coronavirus spreads to Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Germany

Patient in Cambodian city of Sihanoukville is a tourist from China

28 January 2020
In taking a step to appease voters, Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi risks fracturing an already tense relationship with her country's military.
Politics

Myanmar's ruling party escalates constitutional feud with military

National League for Democracy sends bills to legislature in bid to sway voters

27 January 2020
As China prepares to ring in the Year of the Rat, travelers are on high alert for symptoms of a pneumonia virus that has spread in the city of Wuhan, a major transport hub. Nearly 3 billion passenger trips were made during last year's holidays.
Your Week in Asia

Huawei hearing, Trump in Davos and StarLux Airlines launch

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

19 January 2020
Myanmar State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Presidential Palace in Naypyitaw on Jan. 18. (Pool photo)
International relations

China and Myanmar agree to accelerate key Belt and Road port

Deep-sea project will give Beijing vital access to Indian Ocean

19 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
Cambodia's opposition leader Kem Sokha speaks to reporters outside his before leaving for his trial in Phnom Penh on Wednesday. Image made from video.
Politics

Cambodia begins treason trial of opposition leader Kem Sokha

Case has repercussions for nation's favored trade status with EU

15 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
Myanmar startup 360ed developed an education app for smartphones using augmented reality technology. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Education

Myanmar edutech startup 360ed wins Nikkei products award

AR on smartphones fills gap for kid's opportunity to learn

6 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
Japan will provide aid to help 3,000 people who fled their villages return home in Myanmar's northern state of Kachin. (Photo by Rie Ishii)
International relations

Japan offers $5m for refugee resettlement in Myanmar's Kachin

Strategic competition between Tokyo and Beijing moves into a new realm

1 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
Xi Jinping's ultimate aim is to win acceptance for what he has called a "community of common destiny" around Asia.
Opinion

2020 look ahead: Chinese influence a concern as ASEAN elections arrive

Taiwan, Singapore and others must beware Beijing's intentions as voters go to polls

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
Kohon Ja, a Myanmar woman, applies “thanaka,” a traditional cosmetic paste made from finely ground bark, to her face at her home. She was forced to marry a Chinese man. (Photo by Rie Ishii)
Photos

In pictures: Myanmar women trafficked as brides in China

Casting shadow on Belt and Road, victims share their ordeals

29 December 2019
Photos by Getty Images, Reuters
Politics

The 2010s in review: A decade of political and economic shocks

The past 10 years saw the rise of strongmen, the fall of an icon and an unexpected return

27 December 2019