Politics

Representatives from the 11 member nations of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership met March 8 in Santiago, Chile, to sign the revised trade and investment pact.
International relations

Eleven countries sign revamped TPP in Chile

Pacific trade deal brought back from the brink after US departure

9 March 2018
A woman shows her finger after voting in national elections in the Philippines. The Southeast Asian nation ranks above the global average in women in parliament.
Politics

Once a world leader, Asia now trails in women lawmakers

Philippines, Laos and China among best in terms of females in parliament

8 March 2018
A ceremony to celebrate the opening of a temple in Qiguan, in China's Fujian Province (Photo by CK Tan)
Tea Leaves

Ethnic Chinese step up the search for their roots

The diaspora reconnects with the ancient homeland in the digital age

8 March 2018
A container ship in Singapore: The trade-dependent city-state hopes the TPP 11 will provide an economic tailwind.
The Big Story

TPP 11: How Asia took the lead in free trade

The trans-Pacific pact will help business, but hopes remain for a US return

7 March 2018
World's top three palm oil producers, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, have agreed to cooperate in rejecting the EU’s decision to ban the use of palm oil in biofuels.
6 March 2018
Construction workers take a break in Singapore, where migrants make up about a third of the workforce.
Asia Insight

Southeast Asia's vulnerable migrants pose an economic dilemma

Countries struggle to prevent abuse without hindering business

6 March 2018
Scene of a motorcycle bomb attack in Thailand's southern province of Narathiwat.
Politics

'Safety zone' proposed for Thailand's troubled South

Thai military and Muslim militants mull initiative, locals sceptical

26 February 2018
ESM Managing Director Klaus Regling speaks to the Nikkei Asian Review in Tokyo on Feb. 22. (Photo by Rie Ishii)
Interview

Emerging markets face credit challenges in tightening cycle, ESM head warns

Asian, Latin American and African economies are vulnerable, says Klaus Regling

23 February 2018
The rules hammered in the TPP-11 free trade agreement signed on March 8 are at risk of not keeping pace with-fast moving developments in worlds of technology and business.
International relations

TPP's remaining members ease path for trade deal

Approval by countries with majority of GDP no longer required to take effect

23 February 2018
A worker collects palm oil fruit at a palm oil factory in Sepang, outside Kuala Lumpur.
Politics

ASEAN labor flows hit a wall with growing migrant crackdown

Malaysia and Thailand left short-handed as foreigners leave en masse

18 February 2018
Thailand has been recruiting Chinese-speaking volunteers in anticipation of a huge influx of tourists during the Lunar New Year holiday. (Photo by Takaki Kashiwabara)
Economy

China's neighbors gear up for record Lunar New Year tourism

Thais and others ready to cash in on travelers from Vietnam as well

17 February 2018
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak speaks at the World Capital Markets Symposium in Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 6.
Economy

Malaysia's impending slowdown rattles Najib ahead of election

Analysts expect investment and private spending to cool

14 February 2018
Stream article image
The Big Story

Enemies of the state -- why the press in Southeast Asia is under attack

News outlets from the Philippines to Myanmar face growing threats

14 February 2018
Malaysia's former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, left, was once a mentor to Prime Minister Najib Razak. (Original pictures by Getty Images, Reuters)
Asia Insight

Malaysia's Najib deploys policy firepower in duel with Mahathir

In election run-up, PM dangles public benefits as his mentor strikes back

13 February 2018
A shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur chooses "garden" as its theme for this year's Lunar celebrations.
Business trends

No dog in Malaysia's Lunar New Year decorations

Retailers avoid displays of the zodiac sign on worries of offending Muslims

11 February 2018
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad waves to the crowd in Kuala Lumpur on Jan. 10.
Politics

Mahathir's daughter says he'll be back in the fray soon

Malaysia's combative former prime minister hospitalized for chest infection

10 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

Democracy rankings put Asia in poor standing

Six of seven regions around the world slipped in freedoms for 2017

8 February 2018
Some at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat voiced concerns over land reclamation and other activities in the South China Sea that undermine peace and stability. (Photo by Mayuko Tani)
International relations

ASEAN 'concern' resurfaces over contested waters with China

A shift in tone as the Philippines rotates out as the regional bloc's chair

7 February 2018
Palm oil fruits at a plantation in Topoyo village in Mamuju, Indonesia.
6 February 2018
A woman uses a funnel to fill the tank of a man's motorbike at a gas station in Gujarat, India. (Photo by Shinya Sawai)
Economy

Oil price rally puts Asian governments in a tight spot

Burden on consumers increases pressure for action on fuel prices

1 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
Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak, second from left, inspects the United Malays National Organisation youth during the annual assembly in Kuala Lumpur on Dec. 10.
Politics

William Pesek: Former prime minister's political return will delay Malaysia's rise

Challenging Najib is one thing, but there are greater economic issues needing attention

1 February 2018
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, leads ASEAN heads of state and others to a reception following the Republic Day parade in New Delhi on Jan. 26.
Economy

Modi fetes ASEAN leaders at India's Republic Day celebration

China fears have the prime minister angling for closer ties with Southeast Asia

1 February 2018
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad speaks to the Nikkei Asian Review on Jan. 29. (Photo by Takaki Kashiwabara)
Politics

Mahathir says his political comeback is for Malaysia's good

Former prime minister unties disparate opposition in hopes of ousting Najib

1 February 2018
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address in the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives on Jan. 30. (Getty Images)
International relations

Trump's State of Union addresses 'reciprocity' and 'unfair trade'

China a 'rival' but other Asian nations have also put up barriers

31 January 2018