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November 18th, 2021

So long, Hong Kong

Asia's business hub loses its luster

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The Big Story

So long, Hong Kong: Asia's business hub loses its luster

City's rigid quarantine rules appease mainland but risk alienating foreign bankers

Strict travel restrictions and Xi Jinping's national security law are forcing overseas bankers out of Hong Kong in droves.
Should Lee Jae-myung, the ruling Democratic Party's pick, come from behind to win the presidency in March, South Korea could become the first major economy to adopt a universal basic income program.
Asia Insight

Cash for all: Lee Jae-myung's radical plan to reshape South Korea

Presidential hopeful wants universal basic income to ease economic disparities

Singapore Airlines and other Asian carriers have been hit hard by tough travel restrictions in the region.
Business Spotlight

COVID curbs leave Asian airlines lagging their U.S. peers

Loss-hit Singapore and Japan carriers pin recovery hopes on borders reopening

Ride-hailer Didi is just one of the Chinese companies in Temasek's portfolio that has been caught up in Beijing's clampdown on the tech sector. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)
Interview

Temasek pauses China tech investments amid Beijing crackdown

Singapore state investor wants regulatory clarity as Didi, others face scrutiny

John Kerry, U.S. special envoy for climate, gestures at the end of a stocktaking plenary session at the U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, on Nov. 13.
COP26

Nations strike climate deal after India-led compromise on coal

Last-minute drama switches wording from 'phase out' to 'phase down'

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping from the White House in Washington on Nov. 15.
US-China tensions

Biden and Xi tell each other to stick to Taiwan status quo

Chinese president warns of 'resolute measures' to block independence

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks in Manila on Aug. 24.
Philippine elections

Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte files senator bid on deadline day

Sara Duterte to run for vice president in possible team-up with Marcos

Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn, seen here in December 2019, reportedly returned to Germany on a Thai Airways flight Nov. 8.
Turbulent Thailand

Thailand king returns to Germany for first time in 13 months

King Vajiralongkorn expected to stay for a few weeks in Bavaria: sources

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks to an avatar of himself during a live-streamed virtual and augmented reality conference to announce the rebrand of Facebook as Meta.
Technology

Into the Metaverse: 5 things to know about tech's latest buzzword

Virtual reality on steroids: Attend concerts with friends in other countries

Tourists wait to receive COVID-19 nucleic acid test at Shanghai Disney Resort on Oct. 31: more than 30,000 visitors had to take on-site tests on Sunday night.
Opinion

China's zero COVID strategy has the support of its people

National health system is not able to withstand local outbreaks of the virus

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Tuesday that she will seek support for its bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership when she attends a meeting of economic leaders of the Asia-Pacific group APEC next week.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is seen on a screen at the Museum of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing on Nov. 11. Xi's ever-tightening grip on power poses potential risks at home and abroad. 
The Nikkei View

World must watch for risks posed by Xi's expanding power

China's politically driven policy shifts threaten investors and businesses

Vegetables and herbs dominate this dish at Garamanjaku, a restaurant whose owner is on a personal mission to combat the prevalence of fast and processed food in the Japanese island prefecture of Okinawa. (Photo by Stephen Mansfield)
Life

Okinawan cuisine challenges and compels stomach and spirit

Diverse food and culture of Japan’s southern ‘healing islands’ makes unique mark

Office workers walk down a street in central Tokyo in June. The typical Japanese salaryman has been forced to live a stressful life.
Tea Leaves

Why I'd rather be a Japanese woman than a Japanese man

Unrealized female potential is preferable to the insufferable life of a salaryman