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January 20th, 2022

Not in my backyard

Russia, China and U.S. squabble over spheres of influence

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The Big Story

Ukraine crisis highlights superpowers' quarrel over spheres of influence

As Russia and the U.S. focus on Eastern Europe, China is taking notes for Taiwan

As Eastern Europe edges closer to war, the U.S. and Russia are squaring off as China watches the outcome.
"The universe is an awfully big place," author Kurt Vonnegut wrote. "There is room enough for an awful lot of people to be right about things and still not agree."
Asia Insight

Space powers take aim at moon in quest for resources and glory

U.S. and China jostle for lead as Japan, South Korea and others carve niches

Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani poses for a photo before the company's annual general meeting in Mumbai in September 2019. 
Business Spotlight

Anil Ambani's financial empire goes under the hammer

Reliance Capital creditors hope court administrator has more luck selling assets

Relations between Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and Chinese President Xi Jinping are under the spotlight as the success of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative rests on Thai sector. (Source photos by Xinhua/Kyodo, Getty Images and Akira Kodaka) 
Economy

China's pan-Asian railway sputters to a halt in Thailand

Bangkok's indifference to Beijing's plan creates gap in Belt and Road network

China's population growth has not been so slow since Mao Zedong's disastrous Great Leap Forward policies of the late 1950s and early 1960s. A baby and a nurse in Daoxian County, Hunan Province. (Photo by He Hongfu/VCG via Getty Images)
Politics

China's population grows 0.034% in 2021, slowest in six decades

Latest data casts shadow over Beijing's dream to catch up with U.S. economy

Indonesia's new capital city is set to be built in East Kalimantan Province on the island of Borneo. (Photo by Jun Suzuki)
Politics

Indonesia names new capital 'Nusantara' as parliament approves shift

Relocation from Jakarta to Borneo designated a '10-year national priority'

Huawei is aggressively ramping up its chip packaging capabilities as a way to lessen the impact of U.S. restrictions on the company's access to vital semiconductor production technologies. (Source photo by AP and Reuters)
Huawei crackdown

Huawei bets big on chip packaging to counter U.S. clampdown

China tech champion doubled semiconductor investments in 2021

A shopping mall in Manila. Philippines' retail sector is dominated by local players, such as family-owned conglomerates SM Investments and Gokongwei Group's Robinsons Retail Holdings. (Photo by Kimberly Dela Cruz)
Retail

Philippines eases Asia's toughest FDI rules with new retail entry law

Backers say move boosts competition while critics call it 'industry killer'

Fast Retailing CEO Tadashi Yanai spoke with Nikkei about U.S.-China tensions and how companies can navigate them. (Photo courtesy of Fast Retailing)
Interview

Uniqlo won't choose between U.S. and China, CEO says

Yanai says Japanese companies must look abroad because home market has no future

Hun Sen waves from a plane before heading to Myanmar at Phnom Penh International Airport on Jan. 7: when it comes to Hun Sen's ASEAN leadership, it rhymes.
Opinion

Hun Sen readies ASEAN to do more of China's bidding

Cowboy diplomacy will further weaken the 10-member bloc's key principles

Joe Biden hosts a Quad leaders summit at the White House in September 2021: American, Australian, Indian and Japanese interests are not entirely congruent.
Opinion

The Quad needs an economic pillar to stand on

Four nation grouping needs to focus on more security to maintain relevance

China's economic growth slowed to 4% last quarter, and some analysts expect little improvement in 2022.
The Nikkei View

China must face up to policies at root of cooling economy

Restrictions on private industry work against stability sought by Communist Party

A ticket to the Jim Thompson House Museum now offers entry to two venues: the genteel former home of the late silk tycoon and the new Jim Thompson Art Center, an airy raw concrete building hosting exhibitions of contemporary art and related events. (Source photos by John Clewley)
Arts

Updating Jim Thompson's legacy for the 21st century

Famed museum's new arts center highlights contemporary Thai and international art

Thais invariably stood up in cinemas for the king's anthem during the reign of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died in 2016, but times have changed.
Tea Leaves

The politics of Thai cinemas

To stand or not to stand -- an evening at the movies becomes an 'inflection point' in generational zeitgeist