China is exploiting Western commercial technology, conducting aggressive cyber espionage and buying more anti-ship missiles as part of a steady military buildup, the Pentagon said Friday. Beijing aims to take advantage of “mostly US” defense-related technologies in the private sector as part of a concerted effort to modernise the country’s armed forces and extend China’s [...]
The House of Representatives voted Friday to require the United States to sell 66 new fighter-jets to Taiwan, with lawmakers saying the deal would close a growing military gap with China. The House of Representatives voted to force President Barack Obama’s administration to authorise the sale of F-16 jets in addition to plans under way [...]
Japan and Australia on Thursday signed an agreement that will allow them to share intelligence as the Asia-Pacific region adapts to the rising power of China. Japanese Foreign minister Koichiro Gemba and his Australian counterpart Bob Carr met in Tokyo to pen the pact that the two sides hope will boost security ties and safeguard [...]
The Southeast Asian nation of East Timor celebrates 10 years of independence tomorrow night facing a challenge that has eluded emerging economies across the world: How to stop oil wealth wrecking your economy. After a decade of contract delays, deadlocked oilfield negotiations with Woodside Petroleum Ltd (WPL) and a political crisis that almost precipitated civil [...]
Philippine President Benigno Aquino convinced protesters to abort plans to sail Friday to a disputed South China Sea shoal as he sought ways to resolve a tense stand-off with China. A group of about 20 people, led by outspoken former Philippine Marine officer Nicanor Faeldon and including television crews, was all set to depart to [...]
A Thai court stripped a top “Red Shirt” leader of his parliamentary seat Friday, in a move likely to anger supporters of the movement whose protests in Bangkok in 2010 descended into bloodshed. The Constitutional Court in Bangkok said that Jatuporn Prompan’s election was invalid because his membership of the now-ruling Puea Thai party had [...]
Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo has traveled to Taiwan, his first stop on a five-country tour of Asia aimed at increasing trade between the region and his land-locked South American nation. Lugo will especially seek markets for Paraguayan agricultural and livestock exports, his office said. Lugo, who will also be in Taiwan for the inauguration of [...]
China, which is locked in a dispute with major trading partners over its control of rare earth minerals, on Thursday announced additional export quotas for this year. The Ministry of Commerce said it would allow companies to potentially export an additional 10,680 tonnes of rare earths, bringing the total for this year to 21,226 tonnes. [...]
Blind activist Chen Guangcheng said Thursday China had agreed to issue him a passport within 15 days, allowing him to go to the United States after a bitter row between Beijing and Washington. It was the first indication of when Chen would be allowed to leave the country since he left the US embassy more [...]
Since last week, more than 1,000 Rohingya people displaced from Burma have been camping in the Indian capital, Delhi, seeking refugee status from the UN refugee agency. Over the years, thousands of Rohingyas – a Muslim minority group in Burma – have fled to India to escape persecution. Avinash Dutt of the BBC Hindi service [...]
Six human foetuses which had been roasted and covered in gold leaf as part of a black magic ritual have been seized from a British citizen in Bangkok, Thai police said Friday. Chow Hok Kuen, 28, who is of Taiwanese origin, was arrested with the grisly haul in the city’s Chinatown on Thursday, police said. [...]
Lady Gaga was warned Friday to refrain from nudity, lewd conduct and blasphemy when her Asian tour reaches the Philippines next week, after her controversial act was banned by neighbouring Indonesia. Antonino Calixto, mayor of Manila’s Pasay district where the American pop phenomenon is due to perform on May 21 and 22, said inspectors will [...]
State media say Vietnamese police have arrested four senior executives at a major state-owned shipping company for alleged mismanagement in another high-profile scandal. [...]
» More
Hong Kong economic indicators: GDP 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 Pct* 5.0 7.0 -2.6 2.3 [...]
» More
Asian markets slumped and the euro fell further yesterday as the eurozone debt crisis was stoked by a ratings downgrade for Greece and 16 Spanish banks, while weak US data [...]
» More
Global insurers Manulife Financial Corp (MFC.TO), Metlife (MET.N) and Prudential Financial Corp (PRU.N) are among suitors expected to place first-round bids on Friday to buy [...]
» More
When Ian Narev presents Commonwealth Bank’s third-quarter trading update this morning, he might be tempted to needle Mike Smith at ANZ Bank about CBA’s plans for [...]
» More
State media say Vietnamese police have arrested four senior executives at a major state-owned shipping company for alleged mismanagement in another high-profile scandal. Online VnExpress says Duong Chi Dung, former chair of Vietnam National Shipping Lines, or Vinalines, and three other executives were detained Friday for allegedly causing losses of $80 million from 2009-2010 after [...]
Lady Gaga was warned Friday to refrain from nudity, lewd conduct and blasphemy when her Asian tour reaches the Philippines next week, after her controversial act was banned by neighbouring Indonesia. Antonino Calixto, mayor of Manila’s Pasay district where the American pop phenomenon is due to perform on May 21 and 22, said inspectors will [...]
A penguin that has been on the run from a Tokyo aquarium is alive and well, a park official said Thursday, as it emerged the fugitive had given the slip to Japan’s well-equipped coastguard. More than 30 sightings of the 60cm Humbolt penguin have been reported to Tokyo Sea Life park since it fled in [...]
The international engineering and construction company M+W Group, Stuttgart (Germany), has signed a contract to acquire Reliable Plant Solutions (RPS) GmbH based in Schkeuditz near Leipzig (Germany). Through the acquisition, M+W Group strengthens its Energy & Environment Technologies business segment. RPS designs and builds power plants fired by both conventional and renewable fuels. The engineering [...]
Asian markets slumped and the euro fell further yesterday as the eurozone debt crisis was stoked by a ratings downgrade for Greece and 16 Spanish banks, while weak US data added to the pessimism. In Tokyo, shares slumped and the Nikkei 225 Index lost 265.28 points, or 2.99 percent, to close at 8,611.31. The benchmark [...]
The contest between Korean and international bidders to bag ING Group’s Asian insurance business will begin today, as the Netherlands-based financial group starts to accept preliminary bids for the sale of its Asia-Pacific unit. Korea’s KB Financial Group, Korea Life Insurance and Kyobo Life Insurance as well as foreign insurers are expected to be on [...]
Australia and Vietnam are working together to tackle tuberculosis (TB) in Vietnam, which has one of the highest rates of the disease in Asia. An initial $1.3 million has been allocated for a partnership project in which Vietnam is receiving advice from Australian TB experts to apply at all levels of its healthcare system. Although [...]
AusAID has funded a water ambulance as well as a new digital X-ray system to help Papua New Guinea tackle drug-resistant tuberculosis. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-17/ausaid-8m-dollar-package-to-tackle-tuburculosis-in/4017936?section=qld
Police in China are investigating after the discovery of a batch of “fake” pigs’ ears reportedly made from gelatin, according to state media. In the latest food safety scare to hit the country, the bogus ears were discovered in a market in Ganzhou city in the eastern province of Jiangxi in late March after a [...]
China, which is locked in a dispute with major trading partners over its control of rare earth minerals, on Thursday announced additional export quotas for this year. The Ministry of Commerce said it would allow companies to potentially export an additional 10,680 tonnes of rare earths, bringing the total for this year to 21,226 tonnes. [...]
Salamander Energy Plc. (SMDR.L: News ) on Thursday said performance of its producing assets is in line with expectations and maintained its 2012 average production forecast at 12-13,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day or boepd. In an Interim Management Statement for the period from January 1 to May 16, the company said its production [...]
Publicly-listed oil and gas company PT Medco Energi Internasional is getting closer to acquiring producing oil and gas fields in Indonesia, the Middle East and North Africa to further expand the company’s oil and gas exploration activities. “We are evaluating several locations, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa as well as in Indonesia. [...]