Ukraine war

Nippon Yusen is considering plans to withdraw its land freight business from Russia as sanctions have made it hard to operate in the country.
Ukraine war

Nippon Yusen plans to end Russia automotive land freight business

Transportation demand has plunged due to fall in car production amid sanctions

18 May 2022
A woman pumps gas in Sydney on March 29. Rising gasoline prices are contributing to a crisis in the cost of living in Australia.
Australia election

Soaring cost of living hangs over Australian election

The winner of Saturday's poll will have to tackle accelerating inflation

18 May 2022
A perfect storm of political unrest, climate change and disruptions brought on by the war in Ukraine is pushing food security in Asia to crisis point. In Indonesia (pictured), shortages of cooking oil prompted a blanket ban on palm oil exports in late April. 
The Big Story

Asia's food crisis: Ukraine war triggers chain reaction of shortages

Deadly combination of conflict, misgovernance and climate change threatens widespread hunger

18 May 2022
A storage warehouse near a Nutrien potash mine. Shares in Nutrien, the world's largest fertilizer maker, have soared during the Ukraine conflict.
Markets

Farming stocks flourish as Ukraine war hits food supply

Seafood, fertilizer and equipment companies buck market downtrend

18 May 2022
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to Group of Seven leaders and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who gathered for an online conference  on May 9.
Comment

Globalization sees new 'variant' in wake of COVID-19, Ukraine

Priority for business, governments shifts from efficiency to risk reduction

15 May 2022
Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing will buy Ireland-based Goshawk for around $1.5 billion as it looks for air travel to recover.
Business deals

Sumitomo unit to buy European aircraft lessor Goshawk

$1.5bn deal will make Japanese company the world's No. 2

14 May 2022
Narendra Modi, right, and Vladimir Putin greet each other in New Delhi in December 2021: India cannot antagonize Russia in light of continuous Chinese expansion across the Himalayan border.
Opinion

India wants strategic partnerships, not friends with common values

Understanding New Delhi's response to the war in Ukraine

14 May 2022
Estonian Defense Minister Kalle Laanet: "We can never rule out the chance that Russia might attack neighboring countries."
Interview

Estonia asks NATO for anti-Russia command center in Baltics

Country to drastically strengthen military capacity: defense minister

14 May 2022
SMBC Aviation's parent reported an 81.96 billion yen ($635 million) of Russia-related extraordinary loss for the financial year ended in March.
Finance

Asian aircraft lessors' Russia losses top $1bn, led by SMBC Aviation

Most Chinese players yet to report impact of Western sanctions

14 May 2022
AliExpress Russia's business has been disrupted by Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. 
Ukraine war

Alibaba's Russian venture slashes 40% of staff amid Ukraine war

AliExpress had planned to expand in its biggest market as recently as March

14 May 2022
Odesa residents join a military training session, ready to take up arms should Russian forces enter the Ukrainian city. (Photo by Eiji Furukawa)
Ukraine war

Odesa residents say will stand defiant in face of Russian attacks

Putin's war unites people in multicultural port town under Ukrainian flag

13 May 2022
Tsai Ing-wen visits army reservist troop in Nanshipu on March 12: Their training is likely insufficient in the event of an all-out Chinese invasion.
Opinion

Ukraine war is motivating Taiwan to better secure its own future

Implications of successful resistance to Russia sure to give Beijing something to worry about

13 May 2022
Ukrainian Ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky speaks with Japan's foreign minister in March.
Interview

Japan aid to Ukraine counters Russia risk in East Asia: ambassador

Korsunsky sees leadership role for Tokyo in recovery from conflict

13 May 2022
A man rests while waiting in a line to buy diesel in Colombo on April 7: Europe's frenzied efforts to secure alternative sources spells trouble for importing states with lower-paying power such as cash-strapped Sri Lanka.
Opinion

European scramble for energy comes at Asia's expense

EU moves to wean itself off Russian oil and gas is creating a self-defeating trap

13 May 2022
Japan's Daiichi Sankyo has halted sales of some of its drugs to local distributors in Russia.
Pharmaceuticals

Japanese drugmakers reduce Russia business in wake of Ukraine war

They join global peers in pulling back as logistics, payment systems deteriorate

12 May 2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks May 9 at a ceremony commemorating Russia's victory over Germany in World War II.
Comment

Putin, the spy who lost sight of strategy in Ukraine

European conflict shows Japan importance of military spending

12 May 2022
A Russian tanker delivers oil to Norway in April. The European Union announced a proposed ban on Russian oil imports last week.
Trade

Russian oil tankers turn to stealth shipments under sanctions

Ship data shows sharp rise in crude with no set destination

12 May 2022
EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso says the bank's Asian strategy is to emphasize investment in renewable energy, with a focus on Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries. (Photo courtesy of ERBD)
Interview

European development bank seeks Ukraine loan guarantees: president

Odile Renaud-Basso asks countries to take on risk to support war-torn economy

11 May 2022
Smoke rises after a Russian missile strike in Lviv, Ukraine, on May 3,. Russian missiles targeted the city, hitting electrical substations and disrupting power.
Ukraine war

'Staying no matter what': Ukraine auto parts plant adapts to war

Factories give local workers opportunities to help rebuild battered economy

11 May 2022
Despite strong earnings, executives with Japanese trading companies are cautious due to the Ukraine-Russia war. (Source photos by Kai Fujii, Reuters and Sakhalin Energy/Jiji)
Commodities

Commodity price surge lifts profits at Mitsubishi, Itochu

Executives at big Japanese trading houses cagey on Russia operations

10 May 2022
European Council President Charles Michel speaks at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on April 6. 
Interview

EU urges Japan to support 'Marshall Plan' for Ukraine

European leaders to visit Tokyo for summit with Kishida this week

10 May 2022
A liquefied natural gas plant in Sakhalin. Japan's investments in development projects on the island were aimed at diversifying the nation's energy procurement.  
Energy

Japan faces dilemma in Sakhalin as G-7 vows to quit Russian crude

Continued stakes in pivotal oil and gas projects highlight Tokyo's energy woes

10 May 2022
A view of the G-7 video conference on Ukraine from Paris on May 8.
Ukraine war

Japan to keep stake in Russia's Sakhalin oil, gas projects: Kishida

PM indicates no timeline for energy ban after G-7 pledge of support

9 May 2022
A wheat farmer in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh: The country has endured unusual heat waves around harvest time.
International relations

India downplays wheat export worries as heat waves threaten yields

Delhi says it won't curb shipments amid supply disruptions caused by Ukraine war

7 May 2022
Sanna Marin, Finland's prime minister, said the international community should make the Ukraine war "as expensive for Russia as possible." (Photo by Yasuo Takeuchi)
Interview

Finland to decide on possible NATO membership application in May: PM

Sanna Marin supports import bans on Russian oil and gas to curb Putin's war fund

7 May 2022