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November 8th, 2018

Consumption downgrade

China’s soaring living costs and economic uncertainty turn spenders into savers

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The Big Story

China's middle class tightens its belt

Consumers curb their spending even as Beijing denies a 'consumption downgrade'

Shoppers are sparse at Plaza 66, a high-end shopping mall developed by Hang Lung Properties in Shanghai. (Photo by Sanmiao Photo) 
A resident enters an Oppo smartphone shop in Pinghai, a small town in China's Guangdong Province. 
The Big Story

China's villagers get a taste for Gucci

Rural spending rises even as city dwellers tighten their purse strings

Illustration by Eric Chow
Company in focus

Samsung and Huawei locked in mobile industry's prize fight

Battle of smartphone giants will be fought with foldable technology

Hanoi during rush hour. Vietnam is becoming a destination for multinationals seeking shelter from the U.S.-China trade war.
Economy

Vietnam primed for M&A boom as foreign ownership limit eases

Industries like pharmaceuticals and real estate catch Asian buyers' eyes

Personnel from the National Transportation Safety Board examine debris from Lion Air flight JT610 at Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta on Nov. 1. 
Companies

Lion Air crash puts focus on safety in Asia's booming air travel market

Lack of pilots and engineers the key challenge amid industry's rapid growth

Intel's Apple supply deal comes as the U.S. chipmaker has been trying to reduce dependence on processors for personal computers, like the one pictured here.
Business trends

Intel's iPhone supply deal leaves PC makers facing chip shortage

Chipmaker's shift to mobile weighs on Acer and Asustek as Christmas season nears

Microsoft founder Bill Gates says an objective test should be used to determine whether companies such as Huawei pose a security risk.  ©Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Interview

'Robot taxes' will help keep humans employed, Bill Gates predicts

US billionaire and philanthropist says Japan needs software talent to compete

A KYB group worker checks a quake damping device at a government office building in Osaka. (Photo by Hirofumi Yamamoto) 
Companies

Japanese quake equipment maker comes under pressure in Taiwan

Questions over testing checks as KYB urged to reveal affected buildings

Baidu, one of the world's largest internet companies, expects slower growth in the fourth quarter of the year as Chinese e-commerce players, real estate developers and other businesses scale back on advertising.
Companies

Baidu ad sales hit by gaming crackdown and trade war

Chinese search engine beats 3Q forecasts but end of year outlook dims

Sime Darby's acquisition of Heavy Maintenance Group will allow the company to accept more orders in Australia where an uptick in the mining sector has boosted demand for its industrial equipment.
Nikkei Markets

Sime Darby to buy Heavy Maintenance Group for $41.13 million

Purchase of Australian company to help add capacity, expand service offerings

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. has a large presence in Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, China and Macau in addition to its home market of Singapore.
Nikkei Markets

OCBC benefits from higher rates, posts record profit

Despite trade war, bank's markets remain sound, says CEO

Stream article image
Asia Insight

Southeast Asia awakens to the power of corporate competition

Caught flat-footed by Grab and Uber, states raise antitrust games

Lee Choon-shik, a victim who was forced to work for a Japanese company during World War II, sits inside the Supreme Court in Seoul on Oct. 30, 2018.
International relations

70 Japanese companies at risk of litigation after wartime ruling

Revived specter of historical labor issues leaves corporate Japan on edge

A truck approaches a border crossing between Thailand and Laos: Thailand plans new crossings and other infrastructure to deepen trade links with its neighbors. (Photo by Keiichiro Asahara)
Economy

Thailand bets on neighbors' rising incomes to lift exports

Bangkok pushes border trade as US-China spat cuts into shipments abroad

A general view of Laem Chabang port, east of Bangkok.
Economy

Bangkok approves $14bn of projects in effort to lift economy

New investment in Thailand's Eastern Economic Corridor expected to attract FDI

A small marijuana plant grows in a lab at Niagara College in Ontario, Canada.
Economy

Asia plants seeds for medical cannabis market

Thailand, Singapore and China pursue research into health care uses

Asia Pacific's offshore wind capacity is forecast to rise 20-fold over the next decade
Environment

Offshore wind projects hasten Asia's renewable shift from solar

China cuts solar subsidies as it starts to build its largest offshore wind facility

One concern for Asia last month was slowing semiconductor demand, with key producers citing a softer supply-demand balance.
Trade war

October PMI shows Asia's winners and losers of US-China trade war

Taiwan continues to plunge while Vietnam shows no sign of a slowdown

Asian countries challenge the dollar's dominance in oil trading.
Opinion

Oil -- bold Asian bids to dent dollar dominance

Plans for trading in alternative currencies fraught with challenges

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte must resist the temptation for giveaways to prop up his popularity.
Opinion

Duterte shaken by inflation storm

Facing risk of election losses, Philippines leader must not resort to populist handouts

  
Opinion

Japanese corporate deals -- work on the sell side

After warming to foreign acquisitions, could groups now be more positive about disposals?

Lee Choon-shik, who was forced to work for a Japanese company during World War II, speaks after the court’s ruling on Oct. 30.
The Nikkei View

War reparations ruling threatens foundations of Japan-South Korea ties

Tokyo must stick to its stance that the issue of payouts for Koreans who were forced to work has been settled

Poppies and photographs grace the Thiepval Memorial to unknown soldiers of the Somme battle. (Photo by Denis D. Gray)
Life

100 years on, Asia has largely forgotten the 'Great War'

The global conflict of 1914 to 1918 began a transformation of the continent

A drop valve engine from Fijenoord of Rotterdam used in the mills. (Photo by David Sutton)
Life

Tourism savvy sweetens life for Javanese sugar mill

Heritage tours transform vintage steam machinery into key attraction

Tourists photograph the sunset from the Shwesandaw Pagoda in Bagan, Myanmar.
Tea Leaves

Myanmar highlights divide between commerce and politics

The fairy tale is over but tourism boycott would be unhelpful and wrong