Asia - South China Morning Post

Norway’s revocation of export licences for a naval missile system sold to Malaysia has thrust into sharp relief the United States’ ability to kill an arms deal between two other sovereign nations simply by restricting components its own industries supplied.

Analysts suspect a gyroscope used in the guidance system of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace’s Naval Strike Missile and other US-made components are the reason Malaysia’s navy will not be receiving the weapons it contracted for – and paid nearly...

Samsung Electronics workers’ union said late on Wednesday that a planned strike had been put on hold until further notice after negotiations with management resumed with the participation of South Korea’s labour minister.

The company’s management and workers’ union had resumed talks earlier in the day in a last-ditch attempt to avert a strike.

The labour union at the world’s top memory chipmaker had said it would begin a strike on Thursday after talks over bonuses broke down, raising concerns...

Indonesia continues to notch one grim milestone after another. The latest: losing its status as Southeast Asia’s largest stock market to Singapore.

The total market capitalisation of Indonesian-listed companies has fallen well over 30 per cent from a peak in January to US$618 billion, while Singapore’s has climbed to US$645 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Investor sentiment in Indonesia has increasingly soured in recent months amid uncertainties over a potential equities...

Japan’s planned deployment of long-range surveillance drones on remote Pacific islands would mark a significant expansion of its ability to monitor Chinese naval activity, as Beijing’s warships operate more frequently beyond the first island chain.

The drones are to be stationed on Iwo Jima and Chichijima Island in the Ogasawara chain south of Tokyo, according to a report by the Yomiuri newspaper published on Monday. The airfield on Minamitorishima, about 1,950km (1,211 miles) southeast of Tokyo...

The zoo housing the viral Japanese macaque Punch said on Tuesday it is considering a complete ban on photography and filming around the monkey enclosure after two men were recently arrested over an intrusion incident.

The Ichikawa City Zoo in Chiba prefecture has already expanded the buffer zone around the enclosure and installed anti-intrusion netting following Sunday’s incident involving two men claiming to be US nationals.

The monkey went viral, attracting international attention, for...

Asia’s clean energy push is facing heightened supply-chain risk as the Middle East conflict disrupts aluminium and nickel production and could raise costs for solar panels, wind turbines and grid upgrades.

Countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines have installed more rooftop solar panels and other green infrastructure in recent years, driven by high power bills caused by elevated oil and gas prices. However, these green projects are facing uncertainties as the blockade of the...

US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing, at a time of rising tensions over Iran, sanctions, tariffs and Taiwan, shows how far the Hormuz crisis has travelled beyond the battlefield.

What began as a regional war is now touching energy markets, currency politics and the balance of influence between Washington and Beijing. The US is trying to keep Gulf and Asian partners anchored to the US dollar system, while China continues to push for wider use of the renminbi in trade transactions.

Whether...

One of Thailand’s richest men dismissed his cousin from the Singha beer business empire on Tuesday, the company said, after days of controversy over allegations the man had sexually abused his own brother.

Environmental activist Siranudh Scott, a scion of the Bhirombhakdi family who control the beer brand ubiquitous in Thailand, posted an emotional video on his social media page this month accusing his elder brother of repeatedly abusing him in his teenage years.

“Everyone in my family knows it...

Security officers from the Philippine Senate are being investigated for firing their weapons without provocation as a senator wanted by the International Criminal Court sought refuge in the building, officials said on Tuesday.

Senator Ronald dela Rosa briefly sought refuge in the Senate last week while asking the Philippine Supreme Court to stop an attempt by government agents to arrest him.

The fugitive senator, the former national police chief in the early years of Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drug...

A Pakistani court sentenced a man to death on Tuesday for murdering a teenage influencer last year after she had repeatedly rejected his advances.

Sana Yousaf’s murder in June drew nationwide condemnation and reignited debate over women’s safety, after some online comments – alongside condolences – blamed her for her own death.

A judge announced to a cramped Islamabad courtroom on Tuesday afternoon that 22-year-old Umar Hayat was sentenced to death and fined US$7,200.

“This verdict is a lesson...