Asia Economy
North Korea reports first Covid-19 death as fever ‘explosively spreads’
People sit near a screen showing a news broadcast at a train station in Seoul on May 12, 2022, of North Koreas leader Kim Jong Un appearing in a face mask on television for the first time to order nationwide lockdowns after the North confirmed its first-ever Covid-19 cases. Anthony Wallace | AFP | Getty […]
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Shanghai says victory against Covid getting closer
Residents line up to take nucleic acid tests on May 12, 2022 in Shanghai, China. Streets in China’s capital Beijing were quiet on Friday as residents heeded the advice of authorities to work from home to stop the spread of Covid-19, while officials in locked-down Shanghai said they aimed to defeat the virus this month. […]
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Sri Lanka names new prime minister in bid to address growing crisis
United National Party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe sets his signature on his letter of appointment as the new Prime Minister at the Presidentâs House in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 12 May 2022. Wickremesinghe, a political veteran who has been prime minister of the island nation five times before, must try to address financial chaos and heal political […]
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North Korea fires suspected ballistic missile toward sea
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. KCNA | Reuters North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile toward the sea on Thursday, South Korea and Japan said, in the latest of a series of weapons demonstrations this years and just hours after it confirmed its first case of the coronavirus since the pandemic began. Japan’s Defense […]
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China won’t have a ‘normal’ economy without tackling Covid first, senior Chinese official says
Shanghai and Beijing have retained, if not tightened, many Covid-related restrictions on business and travel. In this picture, workers disinfect a residential community on May 11, 2022, in Beijing, China. Beijing Youth Daily | Visual China Group | Getty Images BEIJING — Getting the pandemic under control is a prerequisite for a “normal” functioning economy, […]
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Hong Kong central bank steps in to support weakening currency, in first intervention since Oct. 2020
People wearing face masks walk by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority on March 4, 2020 in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority bought HK$1.586 billion ($202 million) from the market on Thursday to stop the local currency weakening and breaking its peg to the U.S. dollar, the de-facto central bank’s first intervention in 18 […]
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China may chalk up more debt as lockdowns hit the economy
Covid lockdowns have hit China’s economy, and the Asian giant might have to issue more debt to continue meeting its growth target. Kevin Frayer | Getty Images News | Getty Images China may have to issue more debt as it tries to keep growing in the face of Covid lockdowns that are stunting its economy. […]
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North Korea officially reports first Covid-19 outbreak
North Korea officially confirmed its first Covid-19 outbreak on Thursday, with state media reporting a sub-variant of the highly transmissible omicron virus, known as BA.2, had been detected in Pyongyang. Kim Won Jin | Afp | Getty Images North Korea officially confirmed its first Covid-19 outbreak on Thursday, with state media reporting a sub-variant of […]
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Shanghai’s big automakers saw production plunge by 75% in April after lockdowns began
Although Shanghai began in mid-April to prioritize several hundred companies for resuming work, foreign business organizations have said that doesn’t mean the factories can operate at full capacity. Tian Yuhao | China News Service | Getty Images BEIJING — Auto production plunged in April as Covid lockdowns halted nearly all non-essential business in the metropolis of […]
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China’s consumer prices hit a six-month high as Covid prompts locals to stock up on food
Fresh vegetable prices rose by 24% year-on-year in April as consumers stocked up to prepare for potential stay-home orders. Pictured here is a delivery driver for Alibaba’s Hema Fresh supermarket in Beijing on May 10, 2022. Jade Gao | Afp | Getty Images BEIJING — China’s consumer and producer prices rose more than expected in […]
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