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July 12, 2026
 

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Claire Fu
Last month, the EU agreed to overhaul its customs system, including a crackdown on mainly Chinese e-commerce platforms that could face fines if ⁠they sold illegal or unsafe products in the bloc.
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2026
China issues e-commerce guidance after EU lawmakers’ visit
European Union lawmakers had pressed China about a surge ​of dangerous products that entered the bloc.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for accelerated planning and construction of a new system to safeguard the country's energy security, as conflict in the Middle East has disrupted global markets.
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2026
China’s Xi urges faster development of new energy system as Middle East war continues
The leader of the ‌world’s second-largest ‌economy also emphasized hydropower development and ecological protection, while urging the safe ​and orderly expansion of nuclear power.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands on the day of their bilateral summit in Beijing on Sept. 4.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 12, 2026
China is rebuilding its grip on North Korea. Is Kim Jong Un ready to oblige?
Beijing is deepening ties with North Korea as U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to visit China and expresses interest in reviving talks with Kim.
Flames and thick smoke rise from multiple residential blocks at the Wang Fuk Court housing complex in Hong Kong on Nov. 26.
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Dec 6, 2025
Hong Kong fire came after contractor safety breaches and a residents’ revolt
The contractor had been penalized by the city’s safety regulator more than a dozen times in the years before it was hired to renovate the complex.
A couple pose with their marriage certificates after they registered at the Huguo Guanyin Temple, in Beijing, in October.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Nov 7, 2025
In China, wedding bells are ringing in nightclubs, a subway station and on snowy mountain peaks
In May, China began allowing weddings anywhere in the country instead of couples’ places of residence in an effort to boost marriage rates and ease the demographic crisis.
A group of older women performs during a midautumn festival at a mall in Jinan, in eastern China, on Sept. 6. China’s shrinking population poses threats to growth but has opened opportunities for businesses that serve older adults.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Sep 18, 2024
China’s ‘silver economy’ is thriving as birthrate plunges
Births in China fell to 9 million in 2023, down about 6% from the previous year, with the number of preschool children plummeting nearly 12%.
The entrance gate of the SEG electronics market in Shenzhen, China, on June 27.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 5, 2024
With smugglers and front companies, China is skirting U.S. AI bans
The U.S. worries advanced semiconductors could help China develop superior weaponry, launch cyberattacks and make faster decisions on the battlefield.
As China struggles with a slumping stock market and a collapsing real estate sector, commentary and even financial analysis Beijing deems negative are blocked.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2024
China’s censorship dragnet targets critics of the economy
The government’s new information campaign about the economy is wider than usual censorship, with efforts now extending to mainstream commentary.
Nepali security personnel stand guard at Pokhara International Airport in Pokhara, Nepal, ahead of the arrival of the first international flight from China on June 21.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 13, 2023
Nepal is investigating new airport made by China
A few engineers who had worked on the airport said that building quality had been compromised and that the project’s infrastructure was not sound.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 7, 2023
China’s COVID surge threatens villages as Lunar New Year approaches
China is bracing for an onslaught of infections in its fragile countryside as millions of people crowd onto trains and buses to return to their rural homes for the Lunar New Year holiday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Oct 18, 2022
In Xi’s China, the business of business is state-controlled
The Chinese leader has increasingly demanded that businesses conform to the aims of the Communist Party, an agenda he doubled down on this week at an important political gathering.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 1, 2022
How China targets the global fish supply
With its own coastal waters depleted, China has built a global fishing operation unmatched by any other country.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 27, 2022
In China’s auto market, electric isn’t the future. It’s the present.
This year, the U.S. passed a key threshold of EVs accounting for 5% of new car sales. China passed that level in 2018.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
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The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
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