alt

March 15th, 2018

The rise of the cyber athlete

Esports players are winning big audiences -- and big money

View all editions

The Big Story

Esports: Why pro video gaming will be bigger than the NFL

Players of 'Dota 2' and 'League of Legends' reap millions

Teams face off at the League of Legends Champions Korea tournament in Seoul on Feb. 1. (Photo by Koji Uema)
A student attends an esports management class at the Sichuan Film and Television University in Chengdu, China, in 2017.
Business trends

Life after esports: What happens when pro gamers hang up the joystick?

Lack of education and skills often makes finding a new career a challenge

The Ninoy Aquino International Airport has long been ranked as one of the world's worst airports, although it did not make the Sleeping in Airports list last year.
Company in focus

All-star Philippine conglomerates contest to upgrade 'worst' airport

Flooded with proposals, President Duterte yet to pick favorite for Manila gateway

GlobalFoundries wants Chinese regulators to probe its bigger rival TSMC for violations of antitrust rules.
Asia300

US chipmaker GlobalFoundries asks China to probe TSMC

Already under EU investigation, Taiwan company now accused of unfair competition

Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal President Kosei Shindo announces the company's midterm business plan in Tokyo on March 2. (Steelworks photo by Getty Images, photo of Shindo by Maho Obata)
The Trump effect

Nippon Steel looks west as Trump turns protectionist

Japan's top steelmaker to buy Indian peer and triple strategic investment

Tata Motors has unveiled its compact commercial ‘IRIS’ EV and a battery charging system. (Photo by Hiroshi Kotani)
Economy

India scaling back electric vehicle ambitions

Minister proposes 30% EV target, instead of total fleet switch

Asset Value Investors CEO Joe Bauernfreund says TBS has no fundamental business relationship with 72% of its securities portfolio.
Equities

UK activist fund demands Tokyo broadcaster sells crossholdings

Asset Value Investors says it will present proposal at June annual meeting

Stream article image
Business deals

Julius Baer wades deeper into Asian wealth market with Thai venture

Swiss bank and partner Siam Commercial Bank target $30bn in managed assets in 5 years

iPhone X on display in Tokyo (Photo by Mamoru Yago)
Taiwan tech tracker

Soft demand for iPhone X dents Taiwan tech sales

First year-on-year decline in 15 months for 19 IT companies

The Indonesia Stock Exchange in Jakarta: Emerging Asian markets suffered a net outflow of funds in February. (Photo by Takaki Kashiwabara)
Asia Insight

Asian central banks face white-knuckle steering as Fed tightens

Fund outflows and Chinese debt pose major monetary policy challenges

Chinese President Xi Jinping now faces no term limit after the National People's Congress amended the constitution.
The process that amended China's constitution was too fast to allow opposition in the Communist Party to block it. The National People's Congress approved the change on a vote of 2,958 to 2.
China People's Congress 2018

Xi's swift strike on term limits left no time for opposition

Constitutional amendment took just six months from start to finish

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 11' emerges as bulwark against American protectionism

Japan and Mexico press to put trade deal into effect this year as others look to join

Trump pointed to output of Chinese-made steel in his remarks on the decline of America's steel industry.
International relations

Beijing condemns US tariffs as Tokyo and Seoul seek exemptions

Philippines expects benefit to infrastructure drive from steel price fall

Illustration by Michael Tsang
North Korea Crisis

Five things to know about Trump-Kim summit

What are the prospects for a historic encounter between the leaders?

People take pictures of themselves in front of the Sydney Opera House.
Economy

Australia weighs the costs of the coming population boom

'Lucky country' worries that high immigration will compromise its lifestyle

Abe answers reporters' questions regarding the tampering with land sale documents.
Politics

Abe contrite over document tampering amid political firestorm

Japanese prime minister still backs embattled finance chief

Protesters denounce the Philippine government's alleged inaction on Feb. 20 in Pasay, south of Manila, after China named five ocean features in the Benham Rise as their own.
International relations

Benham Rise -- the New Frontier in China's maritime ambitions

An obscure seabed landmass has emerged as a new flashpoint with the Philippines

There is speculation that Prabowo Subianto, left, a rival candidate to Joko Widodo in the 2014 presidential election, could emerge as his vice presidential running mate.
Politics

Imperfect democracy is Indonesia's least bad option

Rising Islamic extremism and Chinese influence cloud the pre-election agenda

An aging population is among the changing economic environments forcing a change in Singapore's reputed low tax rates.
Politics

Hats off to Singapore for raising taxes

City-state's brave move offers a new model for Asia

A mural of painted tiles created with community help (Photo by John Krich)
Arts

Bangkok canal community turns to art for survival

Exhibits along Bangmod waterways drive environmental repair, cultural renaissance

Kumada, a sashimi restaurant in Tokyo's Harajuku district, serves a dish with three varieties of salmon that change every month. (Photo by Takumi Sasaki)
Business trends

Salmon gives Japan fish farmers chance to hook Asian customers

Growing appetite for sashimi means fat profits at home and abroad

The set of Francis Ford Coppola's Vietnam War epic "Apocalypse Now," in April 1976 in the Philippines.
Tea Leaves

'Apocalypse Now' still resonates in today's Manila

As the film turns 40, Duterte-Kurtz comparisons are unfortunately apt