Politics

Massage parlors in Thailand can now provide up to two hours of service at a time. Workers at a salon on Surawong Road, Bangkok wear face shields. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Coronavirus

Thailand reopens massage parlors as Singapore ends 'circuit breaker'

Southeast Asia relaxes restrictions, cautious about second coronavirus wave

1 June 2020
Singapore's Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan and Malaysia's Minister of Economic Affairs Azmin Ali shake hands during a news conference after a High-Speed Rail signing ceremony at Putrajaya, Malaysia September 5, 2018
31 May 2020
Japan on Thursday will examine whether to ease coronavirus restrictions in Tokyo. The city has a significantly lower death toll than similarly sized global cities. (Photo by Kai Fujii)
Coronavirus

Japan reassesses Tokyo and Osaka emergency restrictions Thursday

New cases in capital slow, but unease over low testing remains

20 May 2020
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's news conference on the coronavirus emergency is displayed on a large screen in Tokyo on May 14.
Coronavirus

Asia and world seek different paths to exit coronavirus crisis

Singapore, India, and US look to strike balance between public and economic health

16 May 2020
A banner of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Xi Jinping in Belgrade, Serbia, pictured on May 11: more than 100 countries have received China's anti-virus overtures with varying degrees of enthusiasm.
Opinion

China wants to know if you are with it or against it

Beijing has divided world with coronavirus policies, making countries take sides

16 May 2020
The Beijing Capital International Airport may start receiving more travelers if the Chinese government can seal agreements with more countries a fast-track procedure for business travelers.
Economy

China proposes fast-track entry for Japanese business travelers

Arrangement lets in fliers who test negative for COVID-19

12 May 2020
Shanghai Disneyland will reopen this week since it closed on January 25 amid China's coronavirus lockdown. 
Your Week in Asia

Shanghai Disney, Sony results and Bitcoin 'halving'

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

10 May 2020
Registered practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine will be allowed to sell retail products in Singapore, starting May 5, as the coronavirus outbreak eases and the city-state gradually reopens for business.
Coronavirus

Singapore reopens Chinese drugstores and barbers with tracing system

City-state will restart businesses in phases, beginning May 5

2 May 2020
Meat, fish vegetables and fruit are among the items covered under a mutual supply initiative signed by Singapore and New Zealand.
Trade

TPP countries defy protectionist trend to maintain supply chains

Singapore teams with New Zealand and Japan to keep food and medical gear flowing

2 May 2020
Buddhist monks at Bangkok's Wat Matchantikaram Temple wear face masks to shield themselves from the coronavirus. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Coronavirus

Thailand and Malaysia keep guard up after Vietnam lifts lockdown

Bangkok weighs careful easing but extends emergency and curfew for now

28 April 2020
Beijing has been accused of using the coronavirus outbreak to renew efforts to consolidate its control over disputed parts of the South China Sea.
South China Sea

New South China Sea tensions rattle Manila and Hanoi amid pandemic

US and Australian warships sail in disputed waters after China bolsters claim

27 April 2020
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong can learn lessons from the way South Korean President Moon Jae-in's government handled the coronavirus outbreak. (Nikkei Montage/Reuters) 
Politics

South Korean landslide changes Japan and Singapore election math

Abe, Lee and other leaders face judgment over coronavirus performance

24 April 2020
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong explains the decision to extend workplace and school closures on April 21.
Coronavirus

Singapore extends shutdown until June as virus cases top 9,000

Decision means more business pain and more election uncertainty

21 April 2020
The Virus Vanguard, Singapore's team of coronavirus fighters, landed with a thud.
Coronavirus

Singapore scores own goal with cartoon coronavirus superheroes

PR campaign, criticized as tone deaf, angers Liverpool soccer fans to boot

21 April 2020
A medical staff takes samples at a drive-thru testing center in Daegu, South Korea, on Mar. 3; the U.S. can learn from its partners.
Opinion

US can outshine China at coronavirus medical diplomacy

Washington needs to boost existing anti-pandemic research networks in Asia

21 April 2020
A man enters a hospital where a special ward has been set up for COVID-19 patients in Mumbai.
18 April 2020
Life in Singapore's migrant worker dormitories has become heavily restricted as authorities rush to stop a rise in infections. (Courtesy of Singapore's Ministry of Manpower)
Coronavirus

Virus clusters push Singapore to test thousands of migrant workers

Cramped dormitories generate city-state's biggest wave of infections yet

15 April 2020
Gravediggers wear protective suits in preparing a plot in Manaus, Brazil.
Coronavirus: Free to read

Coronavirus: Week of Apr. 5 to Apr. 11, Global death toll reaches 100,000

Kyoto asks to be put under emergency decree; Vietnam preps $2.66bn safety net

11 April 2020
South Korea and Singapore are both gearing up for elections amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Coronavirus

How Singapore and South Korea aim to avoid election infections

Quarantine voting, obligatory masks and other measures planned

10 April 2020
A food delivery biker passes closed restaurants at Boat Quay, Singapore, on April 7, the first day of the city's restrictive measures to curb the spread of coronavirus. REUTERS/Edgar Su
Coronavirus

Singapore shutdown starts with stimulus targeting food deliveries

Government funds 5% commission fees during 4 weeks of restraint

7 April 2020
Firefighters spray disinfectant to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease in Jakarta.
4 April 2020
Members of the World Intellectual Property Organization attend a meeting at the body's headquarters in Geneva in October 2019.(Photo courtesy of WIPO)
International relations

US-backed Singaporean leads patent agency into new era

WIPO's new chief Daren Tang spearheaded negotiations on TPP and RCEP

2 April 2020
A man is tested for the coronavirus outside a hospital in Bangkok on Thursday. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Coronavirus

From light touch to total lockdown: How Asia is fighting coronavirus

Countries begin to toughen their approach as infections continue to rise

28 March 2020
Congress gave final approval to the largest economic package in U.S. history. 
Coronavirus: Free to read

Coronavirus: Week of Mar. 22 to Mar. 28, US House passes a $2.2tn stimulus

Hong Kong bans gatherings of over 4 people; Trump tweets he is working with Xi

28 March 2020
Lionel Barber, then-editor of the Financial Times, seen speaking at a forum in Turin, Italy in June 2017. 
Life

What UK should learn from Asia on fighting coronavirus

Financial Times' former editor on lessons in pandemic prevention

25 March 2020