Asia

South Korea needs more babies and immigrants
Asia, China, Market, Singapore, World

South Korea needs more babies and immigrants

South Korea greeted the new year by recording its first annual population decline. Unfortunately, the go-to solutions are meeting some practical challenges in the COVID-19 era. Headcount dwindled slightly to 51.8 million last year, the Ministry of Interior and Safety said Sunday. The retreat was the product of a 10.6% slide in births, coupled with a 3.1% increase in deaths. South Korea now joins neighboring Japan in suffering an actual fall in population, as opposed to the diminishing rates of growth that characterized past years. The ministry called for “fundamental changes,” national news agency Yonhap reported, without offering details. South Korea’s demographic challenges partly stem from family-planning measures imposed by military-backed administrations in the 1960s, which aimed to...
Escaping COVID-19 lockdowns, tourists flock to Dubai
Asia, World

Escaping COVID-19 lockdowns, tourists flock to Dubai

DUBAI: As much of the world tightens lockdowns to stem coronavirus, Dubai has flung its doors open, branding itself as a sunny, quarantine-free escape - despite a sharp rise in cases. While mask-wearing and social distancing are strictly enforced, life in the tourism-reliant emirate looks much like normal, with its restaurants, hotels and mega-malls open for business. Images of sports stars and television personalities enjoying life at beach clubs and cocktail bars have flooded social media - sometimes to disapproval back home. Emirates, which restored its network to about three-quarters of pre-pandemic levels, is again operating A380 super-jumbos - the world's largest commercial airliner - ferrying in visitors from Britain and Russia. Russian tourist, Dmitriy Melnikov, said he cam...
Commentary: How Tencent, that other Chinese Big Tech giant, is beating a path to a trillion dollars
Asia, China, Market, Singapore, World

Commentary: How Tencent, that other Chinese Big Tech giant, is beating a path to a trillion dollars

Tencent looks set to grow to a US$1 trillion market capitalisation given its diversified revenue sources, its strong growth strategy premised on e-sports and live-streaming, says IMD Business School’s Mark Greeven. SINGAPORE: Tencent is poised to join the trillion dollar club. After a whopping 11 per cent rally in stock price and an equally whopping tumble of about 5 per cent last week, the question is whether we are seeing the global tech bubble expanding to Asia. Certainly, the Hong Kong market generally was in a positive mood on the day of the 115 per cent jump. And over this past year, Tencent’s stock price has risen by 85 per cent in value. Nevertheless, a trillion dollars is a lot of money. Amazon, Apple and Microsoft are all well into their first trillion-dollar market cap...
Indian govt asks Twitter to remove 1,178 Pak-Khalistani handles over provocative content on farmers’ protest
Asia

Indian govt asks Twitter to remove 1,178 Pak-Khalistani handles over provocative content on farmers’ protest

Amid the ongoing farmers' protest in India, the Central government has directed Twitter to remove 1,178 Pakistani-Khalistani accounts spreading misinformation and provocative content on farmers agitation, according to sources.External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday had said that there was a reason why the MEA reacted to the remarks of some celebrities in relation to protest by farmer unions and noted that they spoke "on matters on which they obviously didn't know very much".Jaishankar said that the 'toolkit' case, which is being probed by police, has revealed a lot."I think it has revealed a lot. We have to wait and see what comes out. You can see there was a reason why the foreign ministry reacted to the statements which some celebrities gave out on matters on which they obviou...
Peace in Kashmir possible if Pak’s terrorist activities are curtailed: Experts
Asia

Peace in Kashmir possible if Pak’s terrorist activities are curtailed: Experts

In a webinar held on the 37th anniversary of diplomat Ravindra Mhatre’s killing and India’s fight against international terrorism, a panel of experts unanimously said that peace in Kashmir was a possibility only if Pakistan's actions were curtailed and if the international community played a proactive role in the process.Participating in the webinar, senior journalist Akhlaq Ahmed Usmani remarked that Pakistan sponsored-terrorism had hampered the peace situation in Kashmir Valley.Usmani asserted that such actions were strictly un-Islamic and had to be discussed by the international community to fix accountability on the sponsors.Shujaat Ali Qadri, President, Muslim Students Organisation (MSO), equated the killing of the diplomat as an "act of war against India" and highlighted the restrain...
Myanmar police file charges against Aung San Suu Kyi after coup
Asia, USA, World

Myanmar police file charges against Aung San Suu Kyi after coup

Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi attends the Leaders Plenary Session of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -Australia Special Summit in Sydney on March 18, 2018. Mark Metcalfe | AFP | Getty Images Myanmar police have filed charges against ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi for illegally importing communications equipment and she will be detained until Feb. 15 for investigations, according to a police document. The move followed a military coup on Monday and the detention of Nobel Peace laureate Suu Kyi and other civilian politicians. The takeover cut short Myanmar's long transition to democracy and drew condemnation from the United States and other Western countries. A police request to a court detailing the accusations against Suu Kyi, 75, said six walkie-talkie radios had b...
Asia shares pare losses as China GDP pips forecasts
Asia, China, Market, World

Asia shares pare losses as China GDP pips forecasts

Asian share markets retreated from highs on Monday as disappointing news on U.S. consumer spending tempered risk sentiment ahead of a closely-watched reading on the health of the Chinese economy. SYDNEY: Asian share markets pared early losses on Monday as data confirmed China's economy had bounced back last quarter as factory output jumped, helping offset recent disappointing news on U.S. consumer spending. Chinese blue chips edged up 0.4per cent after the economy was reported to have grown 6.5per cent in the fourth quarter, on a year earlier, topping forecasts of 6.1per cent. Industrial production for December also beat estimates, though retail sales missed the mark. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan trimmed losses and were off 0.2per cent, having hit a st...
Quad countries working to arrange first meeting amid China’s growing influence
Asia, China, World

Quad countries working to arrange first meeting amid China’s growing influence

Amid China’s growing influence, members of the Quad countries - the US, India, Japan and Australia - are working to arrange the first meeting of their leaders, according to media reports.This comes as the US President Joe Biden’s new administration has expressed its eagerness to build on renewed attention to the grouping of the four major Indo-Pacific democracies. National security adviser Jake Sullivan even called it “a foundation upon which to build substantial American policy in the Indo-Pacific”.According to a source, the US has already proposed to other countries the idea of holding an online meeting of the Quad leaders.During the envisioned meeting, the Quad members are expected to discuss cooperation for the realisation of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” amid concerns over China’s ma...
Shares rally, retail surge drives silver to 8-year high
Asia, Market, World

Shares rally, retail surge drives silver to 8-year high

LONDON: Global shares bounced and silver markets surged on Monday (Feb 1) as retail investors expanded their social media-fuelled battle with Wall Street to drive the precious metal to an eight-year high. Stock markets were roiled last week after a spike in retail demand to buy the stocks most bet against by hedge funds drove huge gains in companies such as GameStop, and prompted fresh concern that COVID-19 monetary and fiscal support measures were fuelling a market bubble. With chatrooms abuzz with talk that silver was the new target, silver-exposed stocks, funds and coins jumped, helping push spot silver up more than 11 per cent, before gains were trimmed and it last traded up around 9 per cent. The bullish spirit helped London-listed miners post strong gains, including one of mor...
Thailand reports 819 new COVID-19 cases, 1 additional death
Asia, World

Thailand reports 819 new COVID-19 cases, 1 additional death

BANGKOK: Thailand on Wednesday (Jan 27) reported 819 new COVID-19 cases, taking its total infections to 15,465. One additional death was reported, bringing total fatalities to 76. More than 700 of the new infections were in Samut Sakhon province, the epicentre of the most recent outbreak, the Thailand COVID-19 task force said at a briefing. On Tuesday, Thailand's health minister called for understanding and sought to explain the country's coronavirus vaccine procurement plan, following criticism that the government has lacked transparency and been too slow in securing supplies. The strategy came under scrutiny last week when banned opposition politician Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit said the government had been too reliant on a company owned by King Maha Vajiralongkorn to produce va...