17 h. ago End of an era: Canon closes China printer plant as Japanese brand loses to local rivals

End of an era: Canon closes China printer plant as Japanese brand loses to local rivals  Yahoo Finance

Economics

22 h. ago Japan moves to ease tensions; China’s reusable rocket: SCMP’s weekly roundup

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Japan’s Sanae Takaichi moves to ease weeks of tensions with China over the Taiwan Strait After weeks of turmoil in relations with China, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has sought to dial down tensions with Beijing over a...

Events

22 h. ago Chinese boy lost after US detention, helper’s last call in fire: weekly roundup

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Japan’s Sanae Takaichi moves to ease weeks of tensions with China over the Taiwan Strait After weeks of turmoil in relations with China, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has sought to dial down tensions with Beijing over a...

Events

27 h. ago End of an era: Japan’s Canon shuts China printer plant as local rivals rise

Japanese imaging technology giant Canon has shut down one of its major printer production facilities in mainland China, underscoring the growing clout of domestic brands in the country’s printing market. A visit on Thursday by the Post to Canon Zhongshan Business Machines, in Zhongshan city in the southern Guangdong province, revealed little activity. The car park was nearly empty, while a dozen employees strolled outside the office building. A worker said production had halted late last month,...

Politics

51 h. ago China warns that growing Japanese militarization threatens world peace

China warns that growing Japanese militarization threatens world peace  Peoples Dispatch

Events

64 h. ago Japan’s Sanae Takaichi moves to ease weeks of tensions with China over the Taiwan Strait

After weeks of turmoil in relations with China, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has sought to dial down tensions with Beijing over a hypothetical conflict in the Taiwan Strait. Responding to a lawmaker’s question on Wednesday, Takaichi told the Japanese parliament that Tokyo’s position on the island remained unchanged and referred to a 1972 commitment that led to the normalisation of ties between Beijing and Tokyo. “The Japanese government’s basic position regarding Taiwan remains as...

Events

65 h. ago China, Russia united against ‘Japanese militarism’ as Wang Yi, Shoigu meet

China and Russia had reached a “high degree” of strategic consensus on issues related to Japan and jointly opposed the revival of “Japanese militarism”, a readout from Beijing said after Foreign Minister Wang Yi met chief Kremlin security aide Sergei Shoigu in Moscow. Statements from the World War II allies after Tuesday’s meeting indicated continued solidarity amid growing China-Japan tensions. Shoigu, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, also told Wang that Russia could achieve...

Events

2 d. ago Japanese fandom is having a moment in China – and not in a good way

Japanese fandom is having a moment in China – and not in a good way  CNN

Politics

3 d. ago Chinese and Japanese coastguard ships confront each other near disputed islands

Chinese and Japanese coastguard vessels have been involved in a stand-off near the disputed Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. The two sides gave conflicting accounts of Tuesday’s incident, with the Chinese coastguards saying they had driven a Japanese fishing boat away from the islands, which are known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan. Liu Dejun, a spokesman for the coastguard, said the Chinese vessels took “necessary control measures” and issued warnings to the boat. “The Diaoyu Islands and...

Politics

4 d. ago China Coast Guard expels Japanese vessel near Diaoyu Islands

China Coast Guard expels Japanese vessel near Diaoyu Islands  ecns.cn

Politics

4 d. ago China Coast Guard expels Japanese fishing vessel from waters around Senkaku Islands

China Coast Guard expels Japanese fishing vessel from waters around Senkaku Islands  Reuters

Politics

4 d. ago Japanese Concerts Continue To Be Cancelled in China as Tensions Simmer

Japanese Concerts Continue To Be Cancelled in China as Tensions Simmer  Tokyo Weekender

Events

4 d. ago Debate and backlash in China after Japanese singer halted mid

A Japanese singer was forced to stop performing on stage in Shanghai over the weekend, triggering accusations of excessive restriction amid the downward spiral in tensions between Beijing and Tokyo over a Taiwan contingency. On Saturday, Japanese singer Maki Otsuki was abruptly silenced while singing at an anime event in Shanghai and told by staff to halt her performance. Otsuki, known for singing the theme song of the popular anime One Piece, has “returned home safely”, according to a statement...

Politics

5 d. ago Why do Chinese no longer feel the need to boycott Japanese products?

During past flare-ups in diplomatic tensions between China and Japan, Chinese consumers spontaneously boycotted Japanese goods. But the latest row, sparked by controversial remarks on Taiwan by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, has met with a markedly different response, with almost no one in China calling for a boycott of Japanese products. Part of the reason for the turnaround is a seismic shift in China’s consumer market, with the Japanese home appliances, digital gadgets and cars once...

Politics

7 d. ago Beijing freezes Japan youth exchange programmes over Takaichi Taiwan row

Beijing has frozen youth exchange programmes with Tokyo amid the fallout over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan, according to a diplomatic source, raising concern that the bilateral rift could affect younger generations. The Japanese side was told about the cancelled programmes after China launched retaliatory measures against Japan over Takaichi’s comments earlier this month, the source said. “Usually, November and December are the season for youth exchanges, but now...

Politics

8 d. ago Public outrage over Chinese man placing hell money in Japanese temple donation box

A Chinese man who placed joss paper into a fortune-drawing money collection box at Japan’s Sensoji Temple has sparked online outrage and criticism of bad tourist behaviour. A video that circulated on social media in November showed the unidentified man putting a piece of joss paper, also known as “hell money”, into the box on the desk where fortune sticks are drawn. Visitors are required to put 100 yen (US$1) into the box to draw from 100 bamboo sticks in a tube. They then need to find the...

Politics

1 week ago Trump calls Takaichi after Xi, China’s cruise dominance: SCMP daily highlights

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump talks to Japanese PM hours after his overnight call with China’s Xi Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi confirmed “the close cooperation” between Tokyo and Washington in a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, hours after Trump spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. 2. China sends emergency return vehicle to space...

Politics

1 week ago Why China’s PLA is wary of Japanese submarine and missile strengths

Japan’s submarine fleet could prove a major strategic headache for China, military analysts have said, as Tokyo moves to strengthen its armed forces. The two Asian powers have become embroiled in one of their most serious diplomatic crises in years after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said earlier this month that an armed attack against Taiwan could be seen as a “survival-threatening situation” that would justify Japan deploying its military. Her remarks were the most explicit by a sitting...

Events

1 week ago Japan PM next on Trump’s telephone list after overnight call with China’s Xi

US President Donald Trump is expected to speak to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday morning, as tensions between China and Japan continue to escalate over Takaichi’s remarks over the Taiwan contingency. Takaichi was reported to be making final arrangements to hold a telephone conversation with Trump, after a request from the White House, according to the Fuji News Network, citing multiple government sources. News of the impending call came shortly after the phone conversation...

Politics

1 week ago Trump calls Japanese PM hours after his overnight call with China’s Xi

Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi confirmed “the close cooperation” between Tokyo and Washington in a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, Japanese media reported. The conversation – which took place hours after Trump spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping – covered strengthening of the Japan-US alliance along with the various challenges facing the Indo-Pacific region, Takaichi said, according to the Fuji News Network. “During the conversation, President...

Politics