Hong Kong
Exports lift China factory activity as domestic demand remains weak
China’s purchasing managers’ indices for April indicate that the supply shock stemming from the Iran war pushed price pressures higher, while manufacturing output continued to accelerate.
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Has the Third World War started – in Asia?
As history has demonstrated many times to date, the ‘start’ of a world war is less a moment than a process, and Asia today is beginning to look uncomfortably similar to Europe of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Renewables met 100% of global electricity demand growth in 2025 that will speed America's decline
For the first time in history, renewables covered all new global electricity demand in 2025, and the oil shock of the Iran war will only accelerate the move away from the reliance on fossil fuels, according to a report by Ember.
Asian trade jitters spark fresh Malacca Strait monetisation push
The collapse of maritime stability in the Middle East has cast a long, overdue shadow over the busiest maritime chokepoint in Asia: the Strait of Malacca.
With Washington’s reliability shifting daily, Northeast Asia’s security order frays
US policy is increasingly variable, shaped by domestic politics, transactional needs, and at times which side of the bed its leader wakes up on.
China to list sovereign bonds in Indonesia in reciprocal deal
The deal permits China to issue yuan-denominated sovereign bonds directly on the Indonesian stock exchange for the first time. In return, Indonesia gains equivalent rights to issue Indonesian sovereign debt in China’s domestic market.
Asia-Pacific defence spending hits post-2009 high as China-Taiwan tensions drive regional build-up
Military expenditure the Asia-Pacific region increased sharply in the last year, reaching a total of $681bn - an increase of 8.1% year on year and the largest annual expansion in military spending since 2009
Asia food inflation risks rise on fertiliser shock
Fitch Ratings has warned that emerging markets in Asia could face rising cost pressures across agribusiness sectors and food supply chains if a prolonged US-Iran conflict continues to disrupt fertiliser supplies further into the planting season.
India’s nuclear triad operational, still lags far behind China
By contrast, China operates over 60 submarines, including at least 12 nuclear-powered vessels and by 2035 half of Beijing’s projected fleet of around 80 attack submarines could be nuclear-powered.
Trump’s Iran gambit leaves APAC region ‘Quad’ dead in the water
The European Union has already, for all intents and purposes broken away from the US. It is only a matter of time before the Quad either ceases to function or decides to go its own way, without the US.
China quietly tightens its regional grip across Southeast Asia
Beijing and Hanoi are stepping up co-operation centred on internal security, in the process offering a preview of how China may deepen ties across south-east Asia despite longstanding differences with several countries in the region.
India’s renewable surge hits critical mass as solar drives structural shift
Much of this has been underpinned by falling technology costs and a hard fought push for energy security in which the pace of expansion over the past 12–18 months has been particularly notable.
COMMENT: Chinese claims on arms transfers to Iran raise doubts
With a ceasefire in place, recent intelligence points to Tehran once more looking to replenish its depleted air defences and China potentially preparing more shipments of offensive systems including shoulder-fired missiles.
Indonesia, US forge defence partnership
The MDCP is a clear signal that when it comes to regional deterrence and technological modernisation, Indonesia views the US as its primary partner, but it will continue to deal with Russia and China to ensure the lights stay on at home.
ADB projects slower growth in all of Asia
According to an outlook forecast report by the Asian Development Bank, the broad Asia region including its many developing high growth economies are facing what can be best described as the most complex set of headwinds in years.
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China's Xi hosts Taiwan's KMT chair in landmark Beijing meeting
Cheng is visiting China at the invitation of the CPC Central Committee and Xi. She is the first KMT chair to lead a delegation to China in a decade.
ASIA BLOG: How Taiwan’s KMT risks the nation’s sovereignty
As Taiwan’s opposition leader, Cheng Li-wun leads a delegation across China the fine line between opposition outreach and quasi-diplomacy is being blurred. It is an issue that should concern anyone with a stake in Taiwan’s democratic integrity.
Taipei slams Cheng Li-wun's Beijing trip
Data from National Chengchi University shows a mere 2.5% of the population see themselves as Chinese, whereas 62% identify as Taiwanese.
Cheng Li-wun leads KMT tour across China
Cheng asserted that her visit mirrors the precedents set by previous KMT leaders which supports the notion of a single Chinese entity while rejecting separatist movements for Taiwan.
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Taiwan opposition leader Cheng travels to China on 'peace mission'
Cheng, who leads Taiwan’s largest opposition party, is visiting a number of cities in China, as Chinese military pressure on the island reaches new heights.