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March 26th, 2020

MESMERIZED

How ByteDance captivated a generation

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The Big Story

Inside ByteDance, the $75bn unicorn behind TikTok

The Chinese social media upstart has captivated users and alarmed regulators

The mesmerizing logo of the TikTok app is familiar to young smartphone users all over the world -- but its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, is a virtual black box.
Korean Air Lines Chairman Cho Won-tae is fighting for his company's and his own future. (Source photo by Reuters)
Business Spotlight

Korean Air's family feud opens door to activist challenge

Coronavirus pushes debt-strapped airline to brink as 'nut rage' sister eyes comeback

Avigan, the antiviral drug developed in Japan, has drawn global attention after Chinese medical authorities suggested it was effective in treating the new coronavirus. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Pharmaceuticals

Flu fighter Avigan gets coronavirus call after 30 years in bullpen

Indonesia imports antiviral after endorsement from China

A K-1 event in Japan went ahead on March 22 despite official requests it not be held due to concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus. (File photo from Reuters)
Coronavirus

K-1 organizer harshly criticized over Japan match amid virus

Kickboxing event attended by 6,500 fans went ahead despite official opposition

Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group, Hong Kong's largest jeweler, says there has recently been more customers selling their gold jewelry at its retail stores, citing higher gold prices as the primary reason.
Retail

Recession pushes Hong Kong shoppers to sell their luxury goods

Consumers seeking quick cash unload designer bags, jewelry and luxury watches

A TSMC plant in the southern Taiwanese city of Tainan. The chipmaker is also preparing another plant in the city but is considering the U.S. as a location to produce 2-nanometer chips. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Technology

TSMC weighs new US plant to respond to Trump pressure

Taiwan chipmaker faces scrutiny from Washington over security concerns

Samsung moved its annual shareholders meeting from southern Seoul to Suwon due to coronavirus concerns.
Companies

Samsung confirms aggressive investment despite coronavirus

Tech giant confident it can take on TSMC and Apple in chips and smartphones

AIA is in talks with the local insurer regulator to expand the range of products that can be sold remotely.
Nikkei Markets

AIA sees significant but temporary impact of virus outbreak

Insurer doesn't expect delays to unit formation that could be key to China growth

Tencent, China's top games publisher, is recovering from the impact of a months-long freeze on approvals in 2018 that had dried up new game launches last year.
The Visiting Forces Agreement will officially end on Aug. 9.
Asia Insight

Will the Philippine-US military alliance survive Duterte and Trump?

South China Sea security at center of efforts to salvage Visiting Forces Agreement

Students at a sit-in at a downtown park in Taipei display signatures supporting a pro-democracy campaign on March 20, 1990.
Coronavirus

Taiwan's transparent virus response born out of 1990 protests

Different paths taken by Beijing and Taipei reflected in handling of outbreak

Thailand could be the first new country to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership as early as in 2021.
International relations

Japan scouts more Asian players for TPP to cut China dependence

Thailand targeted as next member, with talks to start in August

Empty check-in counters at Don Mueang International Airport in Thailand are evidence of the sharp decline in Southeast Asian tourism amid the new coronavirus pandemic.
Datawatch

Southeast Asia faces budget deficits if tourist numbers drop 50%

Coronavirus pandemic exposes fragility of tourism-dependent economies

As airports, hotels and tourist havens like Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco empty out, the world is beginning to worry about widespread job losses. (Source photos from AP)
Datawatch

Coronavirus jeopardizes hotel, transport and retail sectors

Dire straits for 100m Japanese, Americans and Europeans in these industries

Osaka's Dotonbori district: The city is one of the world's three most expensive, topping Tokyo when it comes to things like clothing and recreation. (Photo by Tsuyoshi Tamehiro)
Economy

Osaka joins Singapore and Hong Kong atop priciest cities ranking

Coronavirus expected to affect future Economist Intelligence Unit findings

Liu Yifei at the premiere for Mulan in Los Angeles on March 9: The growing impact of coronavirus will likely hurt Disney's box office ambition.
Opinion

China's film industry will struggle to recover from coronavirus shutdown

Screens have been dark since Lunar New Year while people watch pirated versions

Officers in protective gear enter the Diamond Princess to transfer a patient to the hospital on Feb. 7: Japan needs to fix well-known problems in its current system.
Opinion

Does Japan need an equivalent of the CDC to fight coronavirus?

Country has first-class emergency medical system but it is not without problems

King Willem-Alexander walks with Joko Widodo during the welcoming ceremony at the presidential palace in Bogor on Mar. 10: other former colonial powers should follow the Dutch King's example.
Opinion

Dutch king's visit to Indonesia shows why apologies matter

Royal words should trigger wider review of imperial and post-colonial violence

A woman takes a photograph in front of the Olympic rings at Odaiba Marine Park in Tokyo.
The Nikkei View

Coronavirus fight is bigger than the Olympics

With Tokyo games on hold, Japan must act to ease the economic pain

An icebreaker carrying tourists sails through drift ice in the Sea of Okhotsk off Abashiri, on Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido, in January 2017. The decks are a lot emptier this year due to coronavirus fears.
Life

Coronavirus punches a hole in Japan's drift-ice tourism

Hokkaido attraction hit hard by COVID-19 outbreak as visitor numbers fall

Lesser flamingos gather on Mumbai's Thane Creek, Asia's largest creek. (Photo by Matjaz Tancic)
Life

Big pink influx: Why flamingo-spotting is Mumbai's latest craze

120,000 birds drawn to Thane Creek as slum waste fuels their food

"Bone healer" Mangku Sudarsana treats a patient at his clinic on the slopes of Bali's Mount Agung. (Photo by Ian Lloyd Neubauer)
Tea Leaves

Asian faith healer has lessons for modern medicine

Success of Bali 'bone-healer' highlights popular belief in traditional cures