8 h. ago From pledges to policy: Indonesia’s Prabowo marks 1 year in office

As Prabowo Subianto marks his first year as Indonesia’s president, the former general is grappling with the challenge of turning his populist campaign promises into lasting policy. While early initiatives such as free meals for children have drawn praise, concerns over civil liberties, economic sluggishness and foreign policy decisions threaten to overshadow his administration’s achievements. Prabowo, who was sworn in on October 20 last year, campaigned on a platform of ambitious social...

Events

25 h. ago Trump to visit China next year, aims for 'fair' trade deal with Xi

Trump to visit China next year, aims for 'fair' trade deal with Xi  TRT World

Politics

28 h. ago Argentina formalises US$20 billion lifeline from Trump as Milei faces poll test

Argentina on Monday formalised a currency swap agreement with the United States for up to US$20 billion aimed “at contributing to Argentina’s economic stability,” the South American country’s central bank said. The deal is part of huge financial support from the administration of Donald Trump, a strong backer of Argentine President Javier Milei, who is under pressure ahead of midterm elections on October 26. The peso has been fluctuating wildly ahead of the vote, disrupting the savings and...

Politics

33 h. ago 2025 'Study Beijing' Education Exhibition Coming Soon to Vietnam and Indonesia!

2025 'Study Beijing' Education Exhibition Coming Soon to Vietnam and Indonesia!  The Manila Times

Politics

33 h. ago What is ‘offering sacrifices to empty coffin’ ritual in Taiwan; why burn figurine

In a Taiwanese folk custom, when two family members die within the same year, straw figurines and duck blood are employed in a special ritual that involves burning an empty paper coffin, aimed at preventing a third death within the family. This traditional practice, known as “Sacrificing to an Empty Coffin”, or ji kong guan in Chinese, is usually conducted during the funeral of the second deceased. Grounded in the folk belief that “bad luck comes in threes,” the ritual seeks to ward off...

Events

37 h. ago Hong Kong set for IPO flurry next week with Sany leading the charge

The Hong Kong stock exchange is poised for a blockbuster day next week, as four stocks – including Sany Heavy Industry, China’s largest construction machinery manufacturer – are set to debut, positioning the city to reclaim its status as the world’s top fundraising venue this year. Among the four stocks launching on October 28, Sany Heavy Industry, already listed in Shanghai, aims to raise the highest amount, targeting up to HK$12.36 billion (US$1.59 billion) by offering 580.42 million shares in...

Politics

40 h. ago ‘An impossible dream’? South Korea wants to be among top 4 defence exporters

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said on Monday that the country would devote a “larger-than-expected budget” in defence and aerospace research until 2030 as it sought to build the world’s fourth-largest defence industry. Lee was speaking at South Korea’s largest-ever arms fair, the Seoul International Aerospace & Defence Exhibition 2025, where companies showed off new unmanned and artificial intelligence-enhanced weapons from howitzers to suicide drones in pursuit of more global defence...

Politics

58 h. ago China Helped Indonesia Build One of the World’s Biggest, Youngest Coal Fleets. It’s Still Growing.

China Helped Indonesia Build One of the World’s Biggest, Youngest Coal Fleets. It’s Still Growing.  Inside Climate News

Politics

61 h. ago Flu’s spread across Asia prompts Hong Kong groups to join vaccination appeal

Medical organisations and politicians in Hong Kong, Macau and other parts of Asia have issued a joint appeal to take preventive steps against the spread of influenza across the continent, with a local expert calling on residents to get vaccinated early. Dr Mike Kwan Yat-wah, president of the Asian Society for Paediatric Infectious Diseases, said on Sunday that influenza was spreading not only in Hong Kong, but in countries such as Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Singapore. “After the Covid-19...

Politics

62 h. ago Hong Kong TCM hospital to collect data on Chinese, Western medicine interactions

Hong Kong’s first traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) hospital aims to co-develop the world’s first clinical database on interactions between its healing practices and Western treatments to help provide evidence-based therapy guidelines. Dr Cheung Wai-lun, project director of the Health Bureau’s Chinese Medicine Hospital Project Office, said on Sunday that no such database currently existed and hoped the launch of the institute would help to fill that gap. The Chinese Medicine Hospital of Hong...

Science

2 d. ago Vietnam’s defence pact with North Korea a step back into the shadows

When Vietnam’s top delegation landed in Pyongyang with seven Politburo members – half the ruling body’s total membership – accompanying General Secretary To Lam, the symbolism could not be clearer. The Vietnamese leadership was not merely extending a hand of friendship; it was making a high-stakes gamble for political survival. According to official reports, Vietnam and North Korea signed five bilateral cooperation documents covering defence, diplomacy, healthcare, trade and information. On the...

Politics

3 d. ago Is North Korea pushing China to more openly accept its nuclear power status?

North Korea’s recent military parade, which featured an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of striking the continental United States, suggested that China had “tacitly accepted” Pyongyang as a nuclear state, analysts said. The October 10 parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea was attended by Li Qiang – the first Chinese premier to visit the country in 16 years. It featured several advanced weapons systems, including tanks, artillery and...

Events

3 d. ago Battery fire aboard Air China flight to South Korea forces emergency landing

An Air China flight from Hangzhou to Seoul was forced to make an emergency landing in Shanghai on Saturday after a lithium battery caught fire in the plane’s cabin. In a statement on social media, Air China confirmed the incident. “On October 18, on flight CA139 from Hangzhou to Incheon, a lithium battery in a passenger’s carry-on luggage stored in the overhead compartment spontaneously ignited,” the airline said. The crew handled the situation quickly, it added, and “to ensure flight safety”,...

Events

3 d. ago 2025 'Study in Beijing' Education Exhibition Coming Soon to Vietnam and Indonesia! Face

2025 'Study in Beijing' Education Exhibition Coming Soon to Vietnam and Indonesia! Face-to-face with Beijing's Top Universities - Unlock Your Study-Abroad Opportunities  The Manila Times

Politics

3 d. ago 64 South Korean ‘pig butchering’ suspects return home from Cambodia

Sixty-four South Koreans who had been detained in Cambodia for alleged involvement in cyberscam operations returned home Saturday. South Korea had sent a team to Cambodia on Wednesday to discuss cases of fake jobs and scam centres involved in kidnapping dozens of its nationals. “A total of 64 nationals just arrived at Incheon International Airport on a chartered flight,” a police official said. Seoul had said around 60 South Koreans had been detained by authorities in Cambodia over the alleged...

Politics

3 d. ago 64 South Korean cyber scam suspects repatriated from Cambodia

Sixty-four South Koreans who had been detained in Cambodia for alleged involvement in cyberscam operations returned home on Saturday and were under arrest, police said. South Korea had sent a team to Cambodia on Wednesday to discuss cases of fake jobs and scam centres involved in kidnapping dozens of its nationals. “A total of 64 nationals just arrived at Incheon International Airport on a chartered flight,” a police official said. Seoul had said around 60 South Koreans had been detained by...

Politics

4 d. ago Envoys given special tour of Hong Kong exhibition on Chinese victory in WWII

The Chinese foreign ministry’s arm in Hong Kong has organised its first tour for diplomats and business chamber representatives of an exhibition on the country’s war of resistance against Japan, with a Beijing official saying the aim of the visit was to remember history, cherish peace and create a better future. More than 20 consuls general, consuls and representatives from foreign chambers of commerce joined the visit on Friday afternoon to the “United in Arms, Standing for Peace: 80th...

Events

4 d. ago Chinese team aims to test powerful chip on world’s largest optical telescope

Chinese researchers have developed an optical chip the size of a fingernail that can analyse light in real time with a precision once possible only with bulky laboratory instruments. They hope to test it using the largest optical telescope on Earth. The breakthrough could enable an unprecedented level of visual intelligence in machines ranging from drones and robots to medical scanners and telescopes, according to Fang Lu and her team at Tsinghua University. In a paper published this week by the...

Politics

4 d. ago Outrage over celebrity revels at South Korean breast cancer event

A breast cancer awareness fundraiser by a South Korean high fashion magazine has come under fire for focusing too much on the celebrities and not on the cause itself. Photos and videos of celebrities such as BTS’ V and RM, Aespa’s Karina and Lovely Runner actor Byeon Woo-seok drinking and partying at W Korea’s “Love Your W 2025” breast cancer awareness campaign at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul’s Jongno district on Wednesday sparked criticism that the event looked more like a fashion party than...

Politics

4 d. ago Indonesia’s Bali subway plan stalls over investor concerns and feasibility

A US$20 billion plan to build an underground light rail in Indonesia’s Bali has stalled due to wary investors and concerns over land scarcity, throwing into question whether the island’s long-promised solution to solve its notorious traffic gridlock would ever get off the ground. More than a year after its ceremonial groundbreaking, the “Bali Urban Subway” remains in the feasibility-study phase. Officials once hailed the project as a game changer that would ease congestion and preserve the...

Economics