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June 14th, 2018

Power projection

How Beijing is winning control of the South China Sea

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The Big Story

How Beijing is winning control of the South China Sea

Erratic US policy and fraying alliances give China a free hand

Chinese warships and fighter jets take part in a military display in the South China Sea on April 12.
Chinese structures are seen in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea in April last year.
The Big Story

Shifting US policy leaves Asian allies at sea

Trump's 'America first' attitude plays into China's hands

The Airbitat Oasis Smart Bus Stop is equipped with sensors, a camera in the ceiling and a cooling unit on its roof (Photo by Kentaro Iwamoto)
Company in focus

Singapore defense giant brings 'smart' tech to city streets

ST Engineering's advanced bus stop signals shift as core units face challenges

Members of India's Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) trade wing protest in New Delhi against U.S. retailer Walmart's purchase of a majority stake in local e-commerce company Flipkart.
Business deals

Walmart-Flipkart deal in question as Indian trade bodies protest

Groups warn it could harm small businesses, aggravate unemployment

TSMC Chairman Morris Chang on Tuesday bowed out of the chip foundry he started three decades ago.
Companies

Post-Chang TSMC needs to pursue new tech and mainland market

New leadership at world's leading contract chipmaker inherits challenges

Sharp released the Aquos 8K television last year. (Photo by Kaisuke Ohta)
Companies

Revived Sharp now ready to help sluggish parent Foxconn

After stock buyback, electronics maker to go on offensive with 8K TVs and AI

Participants of a listing promotion forum at the Yangon Stock Exchange this week. Only five companies are listed on the YSX, which has about 100 active investors among more than 30,000 account holders. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Markets

Struggling Myanmar stock market gears up for more listings

Yangon exchange counts on new law to lure foreign investors and more liquidity

A visitor uses his iPhone X to take photos of the stage at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference on June 4 in the U.S. state of California.
Companies

Apple warns suppliers of 20% drop in new iPhone parts orders

Sources say US company prepares two OLED models earlier to avoid repeat of last year's delays

A room offered for short-term rental in Tokyo. A new law that takes effect on June 15 requires hosts to obtain a license. (Photo by Keisuke Takahashi)
Sharing Economy

Airbnb's Japan purge threatens to trigger 30,000 cancellations

US company sets aside $10m to soothe panicked travelers

StarHub is the second-largest player in Singapore's competitive pay TV market. (Photo by Keiichiro Asahara)
Asia300

StarHub risks losing Discovery Channel and viewers in payment row

Singapore pay TV battle intensifies as video streaming surges

MediaTek sees much promise in the field of voice assistant devices. (Photo courtesy of MediaTek)
Companies

Chipmaker MediaTek works to double shipments for AI speakers

Taiwanese company aims to design chips for Amazon and Alibaba

To cut reliance on automotive business, DRB-Hicom have previously stated its aim to raise the share of services in its revenue to 50% by 2021.
Nikkei Markets

DRB-Hicom cuts 4Q losses, swings to full-year net profit

Tips cautious growth this fiscal year led by aerospace, services divisions

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump sign documents at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa Island, Singapore, on June 12.
Trump-Kim Summit

Trump and Kim leave the denuclearization details for later

US to stop ‘war games’ with South Korea but keep sanctions on North

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad speaks about his vision for Malaysia's auto industry to the Nikkei Asian Review in Tokyo on June 11. (Photo by Keiichiro Sato)
The Future of Asia 2018

Malaysia weighs new national carmaker with global reach

Mahathir also says reopening North Korean embassy is a possibility

The Philippine labor department has ordered Jollibee Foods to convert more than 6,000 workers on short-term contracts to permanent staff.
Asia300

Southeast Asia confronts big business over short-term hiring

Philippines issues list of top employers including Jollibee and PLDT

Interns from Indonesia harvest cabbages in Ibaraki Prefecture. The government wants to bring in more foreign workers to relieve Japan's labor shortage. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)
Economy

Abe vows to bring in more foreign workers

Japan to issue new work permit to attract 500,000 people by 2025

Facial recognition software is advertised at the Global Mobile Internet Conference in Beijing in April. The ZTE saga has hardened China's resolve to develop its own technology.
Trade war

US and China enter digital arms race after ZTE spat

Washington eyes Huawei next while Beijing rushes to be self-sufficient

People view a Proton model at a showroom in Kuala Lumpur. Prime Minister Mahathir once had a plan to boost Malaysia’s manufacturing sector, symbolized by national automaker Proton.
Opposition lawmakers protest at Japan's Diet following allegation of sexual misconduct against Finance Ministry's top official.
Datawatch

Japan's attitude to sexual harassment toughens

Data highlight country's intolerance of misconduct despite low traction of #MeToo

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte addresses troops during the 120th anniversary of the Philippine Navy on May 22 in Pasay, the Philippines.
Opinion

Manila elite split over Duterte's China policy

Defense and security officials resist swing away from the US

MSCI opted to compromise on standards to go with investors who wanted to be in China. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Opinion

Buyer beware -- MSCI is not a quality guarantee

Bending of index rules in hope of Chinese reforms is bound to lead to disappointment

Demonstrators demanding debt waivers for farmers are hit by police water cannon during a protest in Chandigarh, India, in March.
Opinion

Modi's plan to placate Indian farmers will not work

Country needs serious agricultural reform, not bigger subsidies

Trump, right, must ensure that Kim does not lead him away from the goal of complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization.
The Nikkei View

Trump and Kim offer just a glimpse into promised 'new history'

US must tread carefully to avoid giving up too much for too little

Aisholpan Nurgaiv starred in the 2016 documentary "The Eagle Huntress." (Photo by Odbayar Urkhensuren)
Life

A girl and her eagle help bridge Mongolian ethnic divisions

Documentary on huntress sparks interest in once-spurned minority

Street Boundaries, one of Malaysia's most dedicated anti-fascist skinhead Oi! bands. The late Rozaimin Elias, a anti-fascist hero, plays guitar on the far left corner (Photo by Cole Yew)
Arts

Punk and metal bands riff on conservative Islam

In Indonesia and Malaysia, subcultures lyricize hardline religious views

A woman dressed in traditional costume smiles at the Royal Plaza in Bangkok. 
Tea Leaves

For Thais, smiling is no laughing matter

Social pressures have made the appearance of happiness a patriotic duty