Japan relaxes royal succession rules - but ban on female emperors remain
Princess Aiko, the only child of the current emperor, is still not eligible to succeed the throne
· Bbcnews
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Newest first · UTC+11:00A simple pair of glasses is helping productivity gains in some Bangladesh garment factories
In Bangladesh, home to the world’s second-largest garment industry after China, some factory owners are working on supplying more glasses to workers to boost productivity. The country’s garment sector contributes about 11% of gross domestic product and employs around 4 million workers. VisionSpring, a global non-pro…
· Al Emrun Garjon
Today in Korean history
1973 -- The United States announces it supports the unified entry of North Korea and South Korea into the United Nations. In 1991, the two Koreas were simultaneously admitted to the U.N. as the Cold War structure of global politics receded.
· Kim Seung-yeon
PNG ousts Taiwan officials, seeks to 'reassure' China after Australian treaty
Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 2:51pm
· Marian Faa
Philippines demands ‘racist’ Chinese state media video depicting Filipinos as monkeys be taken down
Philippine defence secretary denounces video referencing South China Sea dispute as a ‘disgrace’ to regional leadership
· Reuters
S. Korea's exports of K-pop albums hit record high in H1
South Korea's exports of K-pop albums hit a record high in the first half of the year, government data showed Friday, driven in part by BTS' fifth studio album, "Arirang."
· Yonhap
Korea weighs citizen-led rules on online gender hate
The South Korean government is considering creating a citizen body to define gender-based hate speech online and build public consensus on how to respond to it, local media reported Friday.
· Lim Jae-seong
Chinese scientist’s sodium battery leap; petition to boot Argentina: SCMP’s 7 highlights
From Hong Kong’s exceptional IB results to Louis Vuitton suing China’s trademark regulator, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting
· SCMP
Chinese scientist’s sodium battery leap; petition to boot Argentina: SCMP’s 7 highlights
From Hong Kong’s exceptional IB results to Louis Vuitton suing China’s trademark regulator, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting
· SCMP
Asian shares slide following an AI-led retreat on Wall St
People walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Wednesday, July 15, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Moonshot AI unveils world’s largest open-source AI model as China narrows gap with US rivals
Kimi K3 is designed for long-horizon coding, knowledge work and reasoning tasks, according to a blog post by Moonshot AI
· Ben Jiang
Moonshot AI unveils world’s largest open-source AI model as China narrows gap with US rivals
Kimi K3 is designed for long-horizon coding, knowledge work and reasoning tasks, according to a blog post by Moonshot AI
· Ben Jiang
Trump alleges 'shocking vulnerabilities' in US election security ahead of midterms
US President Donald Trump has delivered a primetime address in which he accused China of interfering in the 2020 election and alleged "shocking vulnerabilities" in American voting systems.
· Bbcnews
China’s desert mock-up rehearses a US warship’s death at sea
Keep independent journalism alive
· Gabriel Honrada
China rebukes UK over nationalisation of British Steel
Beijing has warned the United Kingdom that its nationalisation of British Steel has “severely undermined” Chinese companies’ confidence in investing in the UK.
· Al Jazeera
Landslide buries people, destroys buildings in Chinese province
Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 1:38pm
Landslide buries people, destroys buildings in south-western China
Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 1:38pm
· Allyson Horn
Ex-Fed Adviser Sentenced To 38 Months For Passing Sensitive Info To China
Authored by Frank Fang via The Epoch Times,
· Tyler Durden
Japan changes rules to save shrinking monarchy, but bars female emperors
A revised imperial law keeps the long-standing male-only succession system, defying public support for female emperors
· Kyodo
Japan changes rules to save shrinking monarchy, but bars female emperors
A revised imperial law keeps the long-standing male-only succession system, defying public support for female emperors
· Kyodo
‘Gateway to Asean’: South Korea bets on Vietnam hub for food expansion
Vietnam will be positioned as a logistics and distribution base aimed at growing demand for South Korean food products across the region
· Sam Beltran
‘Gateway to Asean’: South Korea bets on Vietnam hub for food expansion
Vietnam will be positioned as a logistics and distribution base aimed at growing demand for South Korean food products across the region
· Sam Beltran
Japan changes royal rules but sidesteps female succession: 5 things to know
Japan's Princess Aiko, daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, attends the Spring Imperial Garden Party at the Akasaka Imperial Gardens in Tokyo, on April 17. © Reuters
· SHOTARO TANI
China hits out at British Steel nationalisation
China has hit out at the nationalisation of British Steel, saying it "firmly opposes and is strongly dissatisfied with the British government's decision".
· Bbcnews
Festivals, sights across Korea
Busan will light up its wartime past in Busan Heritage Night, a festival running July 24-25 at Yurari Square near Yeongdo Bridge in Jung-gu.
· Hong Yoo
What Mirae Asset's Korbit acquisition means for Korea
Antitrust watchdog's approval signals a more flexible approach to crypto-finance tie-ups, though Naver-Dunamu merger remains in limbo
· Im Eun-byel
Trump airs sensational claims about ‘meddling’, data theft and fraud in US elections
Washington: US President Donald Trump has made a series of sensational claims alleging wholesale corruption of American elections, including that China meddled in the 2020 presidential poll and stole the data of 220 million voters, in an extraordinary primetime television address ahead of November’s midterms.
· Michael Koziol
Trump accuses China of massive US election data breach
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about election security during an address to the nation from the East Room of the White House in Washington on July 16.
· Staff Writer
Padilla’s office: China Daily’s ‘racist’ video unacceptable
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Robinhood Padilla’s office on Friday said the “racist and demeaning” content published by China Daily on the 2016 West Philippine Sea arbitral award is “unacceptable and deserves unequivocal condemnation.”
· Isabelle Pechay
Rain returns for long weekend, heavy downpours expected in central region
South Korea's monsoon rains are set to dampen the long weekend beginning with the Constitution Day holiday on Friday. Weather forecasters warn that central regions face the greatest risk of torrential downpours as the country comes under unstable atmospheric conditions.
· Lee Sun-young
Trump’s China election claims mark new front in the rivalry, analysts say
As midterms loom and Iran war backlash grows, US president resurrects unproven claims, casting uncertainty over Chinese leader’s visit
· Khushboo Razdan
Trump’s China election claims mark new front in the rivalry, analysts say
As midterms loom and Iran war backlash grows, US president resurrects unproven claims, casting uncertainty over Chinese leader’s visit
· Khushboo Razdan
Korea joins FIT-P to shape supply chain, digital trade rules
South Korea has joined the Future of Investment and Trade Partnership (FIT-P) to expand its global trade network and work with like-minded economies to tackle rising protectionism, geopolitical tensions and disruptions to multilateral trade.
· Jo He-rim
‘Even Politburo members can be touched’: what the latest purge says about Xi Jinping’s China
The ousting of Ma Xingrui – the third Politburo member in recent years - suggests Xi’s tolerance of dissent is diminishing, say analysts
· Alicia Chen in Taipei
Getting ready for holiday crowds
Lifeguards at Gyeongpo Beach in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, run across the sand during early-morning training to warm up ahead of patrols on South Korea's Constitution Day, which ushers in a long weekend.
· Lee Sun-young
China’s Xi Jinping addresses World AI Conference as US tech rivalry heats up
President’s personal attendance seen as a sign of China’s inclusion of artificial intelligence into broader geopolitical strategy
· SCMP Reporters
China’s Xi Jinping addresses World AI Conference as US tech rivalry heats up
President’s personal attendance seen as a sign of China’s inclusion of artificial intelligence into broader geopolitical strategy
· SCMP Reporters
Man gets 15 years for killing father with dementia
South Korea's Supreme Court has upheld a 15-year prison sentence for a man convicted of beating his 87-year-old father to death after becoming angry over what he described as years of harmful treatment.
· Park Han-na
Trump accuses China of 2020 voting interference, contradicting U.S. intelligence findings
WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump declassified intelligence on Thursday that he said showed Chinese interference in U.S. elections, reviving his long-running attacks on election security despite a U.S. intelligence assessment that found no evidence Beijing altered the 2020 vote which he lost.
· Nandita Bose
China’s support for North Korea will ‘never change’: Top official
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has held talks with Wang Huning, China’s fourth-highest-ranked official, and pledged to deepen ties with Beijing, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reports.
· Al Jazeera
[Photo News] Grab a bowl of ramyeon in St. Petersburg
The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp., known as aT, said Thursday it ran a Korean food-themed booth at a culture festival in St. Petersburg, Russia, on July 12, drawing roughly 3,000 visitors to experience K-food, K-beauty and K-pop firsthand.
· No Kyung-min
New China routes to link Nanjing, Hangzhou with Busan
The Korea Tourism Organization signed a multilateral agreement Thursday with Korea Airports Corporation, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and Loong Air to promote new international routes at Gimhae Airport in Busan.
· Hong Yoo
"The Killer Chokepoint": China's Rare Earth Squeeze Is Reshaping The Global Economy
Artificial intelligence may be driving headlines, but one of its biggest vulnerabilities is an obscure metal that few people have ever heard of. Yttrium, a rare earth element first identified more than two centuries ago, has quietly become an essential ingredient in advanced semiconductor manufacturing, according to…
· Tyler Durden
China’s AI ascendance gives Xi a stage and a security dilemma
The rise of China’s AI models is handing President Xi Jinping new bragging rights and a stronger claim to shaping the technology’s global rules, even as their growing power stirs security alarm in Washington and Beijing alike.
· No Author
Trump reveals China stole voter registration data from 220M Americans
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· Victor Nava
17 UNESCO sites that tell Korea's story
Between 1995 and 2025, the Republic of Korea inscribed 17 sites to the UNESCO World Heritage List — 15 cultural and two natural. Together they span the arc of the Korean story: prehistoric rock art and Bronze Age dolmen fields; the confederacies and three kingdoms of antiquity; the Buddhist golden age of Silla; the …
· Park Ga-young, Cha Min-jung
Trump accuses China of ‘election meddling’ (VIDEO)
US President Donald Trump has made a prime-time White House address on election security, announcing the release of declassified intelligence documents detailing alleged vulnerabilities in the voting infrastructure.
· RT
‘True everyday hero’: Chinese man has nose bitten off saving woman from attacker
Zeng Fanlin, who has lost most of his nose and is undergoing reconstruction procedure, says ‘everything I have given is worth it’
· Zoey Zhang
‘True everyday hero’: Chinese man has nose bitten off saving woman from attacker
Zeng Fanlin, who has lost most of his nose and is undergoing reconstruction procedure, says ‘everything I have given is worth it’
· Zoey Zhang
From humanoids to Huawei: what to watch as Xi attends China’s WAIC amid US AI rivalry
Gathering will showcase Beijing’s push to compete across the full AI stack, from models and chips to robots, consumer devices
· Wency Chen