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December 5th, 2019

Crony capital

Rodrigo Duterte promised to get rid of the oligarchs. Instead, he embraced them.

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The Big Story

Crony capital: How Duterte embraced the oligarchs

President Rodrigo Duterte promised to destroy the Philippines' elite. Instead, he chose his own

Three years into his presidency, Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte's promise of a systemic transformation has come to look more like a personal vendetta. (Nikkei cover photo illustration/Source photos by Reuters, The Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is being retried on corruption charges. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Getty Images, Reuters)
Company in focus

Samsung on trial: Can top South Korea company stay on course?

Electronics giant aims for strategic shift in chips as its leader faces possible jail

PMC Bank customers rush to withdraw money from a branch in Mumbai in September. In a decade of alleged deception, the bank's exposure to a single housing developer reached 70% of total assets.
Industry in focus

Indian financial sector stuck in real estate quicksand

Over 500,000 stalled housing units deepen economic mess for Modi

A James Bond 1965 Aston Martin DB5 coupe is displayed at Sotheby's auction house in New York in July. 
Datawatch

Risk-averse investors flee from WeWork, pizzas and 007 cars

Low-rated bonds lose their shine amid concerns for global economy

Mobile e-payment logos seen at a street food stall in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh city. Vietnam's slice of regional venture capital funding devoted to fintechs soared from just 0.4% in 2018, to 36% in the nine months to September 30.
Startups

Vietnam closes in on Singapore as fintech funding booms

Investors flood the region with cash as chase for unbanked intensifies

A truck is ready to test drive the newly opened second Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge which connects Myawaddy with Mae Sot, part of the East-West Economic Corridor. (Photo by Yuichi Nitta)
Transportation

Southeast Asia's trans-regional corridor takes shape

Highway connecting South China Sea and Indian Ocean to reshape supply chains

MediaTek's 5G smartphone chips will debut in China early next year.
Technology

Chipmaker MediaTek takes 5G phone fight to Qualcomm in China

Taiwanese company battles for business from the likes of Xiaomi and Oppo

Tenaga Nasional plans to increase its international exposure. It enjoys a near monopoly on electricity distribution in its home market of Malaysia.
Nikkei Markets

Malaysian utility Tenaga Nasional's net profit more than doubles on year

Expectations of steady performance through 2020 lift shares in weak market

Hyflux has reached a restructuring agreement with Utico that will see the Middle Eastern utility take a 95% stake in the troubled water treatment firm. (Photo by Shinya Sawai)
Business deals

Hyflux reaches $290m deal with Middle Eastern savior

UAE's Utico to acquire 95% of embattled Singapore water company

© Illustration by Hiroko Oshima/Michael Tsang
Asia Insight

Nepal's territorial flare-ups with India and China test its finesse

Public outcries imperil Himalayan nation's development strategy

Cambodia's own currency only accounts for 20% of money used in the nation. (Photo by Rie Ishii)
Economy

Chinese money flocks to dollar-based Cambodian economy

Phnom Penh starting to seek economic growth based on national currency

Pope Francis attends mass in Nagasaki on Nov. 24. The pontiff did not extend his Asian trip to China, but a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping could yet happen. (Photo by Shinya Sawai)
Comment

Pope's overture to China would pay dividends for religious freedom

Benefits of building relations expected to outweigh risks

Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the ASEAN leaders summit in November: Faced with falling public support, Widodo has appointed new advisers to boost his standing with young people.
Politics

Jokowi seeks to boost image by putting media chiefs in government

One detractor says Indonesian president's cabinet picks 'damage democracy'

Indonesian President Joko Widodo, left, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in intend to sign the trade deal early next year.
International relations

South Korea and Indonesia reach final agreement on free trade deal

Countries to sign pact next year, removing tariffs on steel, autos and beer

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe poses with guests during this past spring's cherry blossom viewing party in Tokyo. 
Politics

Abe cherry blossom scandal stirs up tweet storm of rare intensity

Falling approval suggests Japan PM's aura of invincibility may be fading

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu speaks to Nikkei in an interview in Istanbul. (Photo by Momoko Kidera)
Interview

Istanbul mayor says Erdogan hurting Turkish democracy and economy

Ekrem Imamoglu plans to visit Japan and China to seek investment in city

Trump made clear that multilateral institutions have no place in his Indo-Pacific strategy through sending a mid-ranking cabinet official.
Opinion

By abandoning Asia's multilateral organizations, US empowers China

TPP, CPTPP, APEC, EAS, ASEAN, RCEP -- Donald Trump dislikes them all

Han's erratic style quickly alienated the mainstream KMT.
Opinion

Taiwan's Han Kuo-yu offers uncomfortable echoes of Donald Trump

Kuomintang candidate's supporters like his raucous, anti-intellectual populism

Myanmar's garment industry will be irreparably damaged if the EU ends privileged access for the country's exports.
Opinion

Misplaced calls for Myanmar sanctions threaten wrong people

EU trade restrictions in response to Rohingya crisis would hurt ordinary workers

The U.S. continues to squeeze Huawei Technologies and other Chinese companies out of telecommunications networks over concerns of their ties to Beijing.
The Nikkei View

Incompatible legal systems at heart of China's telecom shutout

Both American and Chinese players must offer greater transparency

Stream article image
Life

Does Tokyo have the infrastructure for a winning Olympics?

A look at the architecture and urban projects that will entertain the world in 2020

Chai's style choices and sound put them at odds with the choreographed female idol troupes, hip-hop vocalists and fashion and beauty queens in the J-pop genre’s mainstream.
Life

Japanese pop sensation Chai dance to their own beat

In the meticulously controlled world of J-pop, the foursome embrace a DIY spirit

Quirky "do not disturb" signs made of wood at a Six Senses resort. (Photo by Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas) 
Tea Leaves

Sustainability or bust

High-end hotels and resorts no longer have the luxury of choice on green issues