Asia - South China Morning Post

South Korea’s most iconic food is enjoying record demand overseas, yet at home a growing share of the kimchi served in restaurants and increasingly in household kitchens is made in China, according to the latest trade data and industry analysts.

The Korea Customs Service has reported that from January to October, South Korea exported US$137.39 million worth of kimchi, a 2 per cent increase over the same period last year, but imported US$159.46 million, up 3.1 per cent.

This has left the country...

The senior political secretary to the Malaysian prime minister, has resigned following public controversy over a contractor support letter.

Announcing his decision on social media on Tuesday, Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin stated he resigned to “defend myself” against attacks regarding his involvement in issuing a letter of support for contractors on a hospital project.

He expressed concerns that the controversy could “tarnish the image of the government”.

The resignation follows Prime Minister...

Thailand’s navy will deploy an aircraft carrier to the flood-stricken south, as public outcry mounts over the government’s response to a crisis that has hit about 2 million people and left an entire southern city under water.

Heavy late monsoon rains, compounded by the La Nina climate pattern, have battered Southeast Asia for weeks, with scores killed in floods and landslides in central Vietnam and Thailand, and floods now striking south into Malaysia.

Five days of continuous rains have pounded...

The governor of Bali has ordered the permanent shutdown of a controversial China-backed glass lift project on one of the island’s iconic cliffs, following widespread public backlash that erupted after photos of the construction went viral.

Analysts say the decision reflects broader concerns about how major tourism projects in Indonesia move through a fragmented permit system, with some describing the lift as a case study in how central government approvals can collide with local...

Hong Kong is ramping up efforts to expand the use of local currencies across the Asia-Pacific region, including developing a local currency debt market, as part of a push to hedge against rising geopolitical risks, according to Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) CEO Eddie Yue Wai-man.

Speaking at the fourth edition of the Asean+3 Economic Cooperation and Financial Stability Forum in Hong Kong on Tuesday, Yue underlined the need to strengthen regional financial ties as Hong Kong and its...

The sister of fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, whose whereabouts are still unknown, and a close associate were ordered by the Kuala Lumpur High Court to pay 11.58 billion ringgit (US$2.8 billion) to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), over “tainted proceeds” misappropriated from the state fund.

Justice Mahazan Mat Taib granted the judgment in default (JID) against Low May Lin, the sister of Low – better known as Jho Low – and Eric Tan, after the court found that 1MDB had decisively...

Malaysia’s human rights commission on Tuesday urged the country’s police chief to immediately enforce a long-standing court order to locate the missing daughter of Ipoh resident M. Indira Gandhi, in a custody row linked to religious conversion that has stretched on for 16 years.

The renewed pressure comes after Indira’s 1.8km (1.1 miles) march to the federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman on Saturday, where she sought to hand over her missing daughter’s old teddy bear to Inspector-General of...

Controversy continues to plague Thailand’s hosting of this year’s Miss Universe beauty pageant days after the winner was crowned, but one contestant believes that some of the earlier “drama” was all for show.

In the latest development, a Thai activist has accused Jakapong “Anne” Jakrajutatip, the former CEO of JKN Global Group and Miss Universe Organisation, of fleeing to Mexico to avoid her legal problems.

The transgender celebrity businesswoman bought the Miss Universe pageant for US$20...

A Philippine police anti-narcotics team has been disbanded after a teenager accused several officers of raping and robbing her during what authorities later described as a failed drug operation in Cavite, a province south of Manila, triggering a series of arrests and high-level investigations.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) said all 15 members of its Drug Enforcement Group – Special Operations Unit 4A were relieved of duty after the Grade 9 student, identified publicly only as “Nena”,...

Singapore’s police have ordered Apple and Google to prevent the spoofing of government agencies on their messaging platforms, the Home Affairs Ministry said on Tuesday.

The order under the nation’s Online Criminal Harms Act came after the police observed scams on Apple’s iMessage and Google Messages purporting to be from companies such as the local postal service, SingPost.

In September, the government also threatened to impose fines on Meta Platforms if it did not introduce measures like facial...