Asia - South China Morning Post

Japan’s exports of agricultural, forestry and fishery products rose 12.8 per cent to an all-time high ‌in 2025, lifted by stronger shipments to the United States despite ‍new tariffs, and by a rebound in exports to China from the previous year’s slump.

Exports totalled 1.701 trillion yen (US$10.9 billion) last year, up from 1.507 trillion yen in 2024, marking ⁠a 13th consecutive annual gain and a record high, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) said on Tuesday.

“Rising...

Japan is reeling from a Russian espionage scandal that has laid bare how easily industrial secrets can slip through the country’s grasp, just as Tokyo is pushing to strengthen its laws against spying.

Police in the Japanese capital referred a case to prosecutors on January 20 involving a former Russian trade official suspected of violating Japan’s laws on unfair competition.

While neither he nor the Japanese employee accused of selling data for cash has been publicly named, the details of the...

In the town of O’Smach, along Cambodia’s northern border with Thailand, stands a compound of abandoned buildings that were battered by shelling during recent weeks of armed clashes.

The site, now occupied by Thai troops, had served as one of Cambodia’s notorious scam centres, according to Thai officials.

A six-storey building, shown to journalists and international observers on Monday during a trip organised by the Thai military, is scattered with documents, equipment and personal belongings,...

Rescuers praised a teenage boy’s “superhuman” survival instincts after he swam four hours through choppy waters off Australia to find help for his family.

The 13-year-old boy swam 4km (2.5 miles) back to shore to raise the alarm after his mother and two younger siblings were swept out to sea while kayaking and paddleboarding near the Western Australian tourist town of Quindalup.

Marine rescue volunteer Paul Bresland said the teenager’s four-hour swim saved his family, who were eventually found...

China’s chief builder of commercial aircraft is displaying its full product line – including its home-grown narrowbody C919 as well as a full surgical cabin on board its regional jet – at the Singapore Airshow as it seeks to widen its footprint in Southeast Asia.

The Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) has “set up” a C919 at the twice-yearly expo for a fly-by demonstration, according to independent aviation analyst Li Hanming. The show began on Tuesday and is set to run for six...

Japan’s government plans to revive the military ranks used by its armed forces before and during World War II, in a symbolic gesture to please conservatives that analysts warn could stoke regional tensions.

The plan, first floated in November after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party had struck a coalition deal with the Japan Innovation Party (JIP), appeared to have been pushed by senior JIP members, the Asahi newspaper reported on Saturday.

The LDP has reportedly agreed to the change on the...

South Korea is bracing for prolonged US tariff pressure after last week’s emergency talks in Washington failed to yield a breakthrough, exposing the growing uncertainty that has come to define trade ties under US President Donald Trump.

Korean Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan returned home empty-handed on Sunday after two rounds of meetings with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, fuelling concern in Seoul that negotiations could drag on until the US midterm elections later this year.

Trump...

After more than a year of haggling, US President Donald Trump on Monday announced a major trade deal between Washington and New Delhi that significantly de-escalates economic tensions between the two nations.

A White House official confirmed to the South China Morning Post that the deal will remove the 25 per cent punitive Russia oil tariffs.

Trump in a social media post earlier said that he held a phone call with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“He [Modi] agreed to stop buying Russian Oil,...

Dual impeachment cases were filed on Monday against Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte, marking a historic first with the nation’s top two officials each facing twin complaints accusing them of betrayal of public trust.

Observers told This Week in Asia that the political exercise, while risking economic collateral damage, could show how a political crisis could be tackled through “institutionalisation” using constitutional means, instead of military intervention.

Former congressman Neri...

Artificial intelligence (AI) may look automated, but it runs on human labour. Behind every chatbot and image generator are thousands of people labelling images, tagging text, moderating content and training systems to understand language and culture. This invisible workforce has quietly become a critical layer of the global AI economy.

India has emerged as a major hub for this work. Its large English-speaking workforce and long history in information technology outsourcing have made it a go-to...