6 h. ago Chinese solar firms bank on overseas expansion to survive amid US tariffs

Chinese solar and energy-storage companies will continue to press ahead with their overseas expansion with or without a long-term agreement on trade tariffs, as production abroad holds the key to their long-term survival, according to executives at China’s largest solar industry exhibition. Although the US and China reached a 90-day truce in their ongoing tariff war in May, solar panel exports from China and Southeast Asia to the US are still subject to tariffs of as much as 3,521 per cent, with...

Economics

42 h. ago Why US defence chief’s attack on China won’t find favour in Southeast Asia

After listening to US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth’s all-out attack on “communist China” at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, some might have wondered what the Chinese people would make of it. But as a Chinese delegate listening to him live, I was wondering what Hegseth’s boss, US President Donald Trump, would think. In February, Trump called US Vice-President J.D. Vance’s speech in Munich bashing European allies “brilliant”. This time, we haven’t had his thoughts. I wondered, not only...

Events

6 d. ago L’Oreal sees Middle East and Southeast Asia as next growth engines as China slows: ‘Eventually demographics have to win’

L’Oreal sees Middle East and Southeast Asia as next growth engines as China slows: ‘Eventually demographics have to win’  Fortune

Politics

1 week ago Will Indonesia’s Whoosh extension to Surabaya be derailed by Chinese debt?

Indonesia is reviving plans to extend its Chinese-backed high-speed rail network, with ambitions to connect Jakarta with Surabaya, the nation’s second-largest city. But analysts say familiar complications could stall the project, from regulatory hurdles to the mounting debt owed to China. The proposed extension would build on Whoosh – Southeast Asia’s first high speed rail line – a US$7.3 billion project connecting capital Jakarta to Bandung in West Java province. The 142km (88-mile) railway,...

Events

2 w. ago Saudi Arabia looks to take partnership with China and Southeast Asia beyond AI: ‘There’s so many untapped areas’

Saudi Arabia looks to take partnership with China and Southeast Asia beyond AI: ‘There’s so many untapped areas’  Fortune

Politics

2 w. ago ANALYSIS: Unpacking China’s Offer to Southeast Asia and the Middle East

ANALYSIS: Unpacking China’s Offer to Southeast Asia and the Middle East  The China-Global South Project

Politics

2 w. ago Hong Kong embraces data trading as economic engine, finance chief says

Hong Kong is ramping up efforts to become an international data-trading hub by forging ties with mainland China and Southeast Asia, as cross-border data sharing is a new engine of an AI-driven economy that will benefit people and businesses, said Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po. “We are also committed to opening and sharing data that the private sector and academia can use,” Chan said on Tuesday at the inaugural International Data Industry Alliance (IDIA) Global Summit in Hong Kong. The...

Economics

2 w. ago Southeast Asia and Gulf leaders meet with China as governments look to coordinate in the face of Trump tariffs

Southeast Asia and Gulf leaders meet with China as governments look to coordinate in the face of Trump tariffs  Fortune

Politics

2 w. ago Li Qiang’s Indonesia visit highlights rapid change in world order

The United States’ global tariff war has done no harm to trade and cooperation between other countries. It has prompted and energised them to nurture and develop their own relations. The uncertainty that has riled markets and troubled business has therefore had a silver lining. There is no better example in this part of the world than China – the world’s second-largest economy – and Indonesia, the biggest economy in Southeast Asia, which is also China’s biggest market. Premier Li Qiang has just...

Politics

2 w. ago In Indonesia, Chinese premier urges multilateralism in face of protectionism

Beijing stands ready to work with Jakarta to uphold multilateralism amid growing protectionism and trade disruptions, Chinese Premier Li Qiang told Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto on Sunday. In talks in Jakarta on the second day of his trip to Southeast Asia’s biggest economy, Li said China was willing to “join Indonesia to address risks and challenges, and consolidate cooperation in politics, the economy, people-to-people and cultural exchanges, maritime affairs and security”, state...

Politics

4 w. ago Southeast Asia’s tech reliance on China poses economic promise – and cybersecurity risks

Huawei and other Chinese firms offer growth, but analysts warn of rising digital threat exposure and geopolitical challenges.

Events