South Korea
Chip exports move global portfolios, cultural exports move global taste, and a security alliance with Washington keeps both under constant pressure.
-
Jun- 2026 -11 JuneTech & AI
Telecom operators are quietly becoming AI infrastructure gatekeepers
SK Telecom, NTT and Chunghwa Telecom launched a $500 million fund on June 10, 2026, to back optical networking and cooling startups, betting that power efficiency—not algorithms—now limits AI growth.
-
11 JuneSociety
Asia sent a record nine teams to the World Cup. The money came first.
FIFA nearly doubled Asia's direct qualification slots to eight in 2017, years before a single qualifier kicked off, betting that 46% of the world's avid football fans now live in…
-
9 JunePower
China just abandoned denuclearization. North Korea noticed.
Xi Jinping's first visit to Pyongyang since 2019 omitted any mention of nuclear weapons, signaling Beijing now accepts a permanent arsenal as the price of regional leverage against Washington.
-
9 JunePower
North Korea found a buyer for its war. Sanctions collapsed.
Moscow's demand for artillery shells has generated up to $14.4 billion for Pyongyang, enabling 3.7% GDP growth while 15,000 troops fight in Ukraine at a one-in-three casualty rate.
-
8 JuneCapital
Seoul’s AI boom just erased six months of gains in one day
South Korea's KOSPI plunged 8.29% on June 8 after a strong U.S. jobs report and renewed Iran-Israel fighting triggered a rush for the exits from leveraged tech positions across Asia.
-
8 JuneCompass
Full hotels are not profitable hotels in Southeast Asia anymore
Minor International and Accor report revenue per room above 2019 levels, yet rising power and wage costs are eroding margins fastest in Thailand, where Bangkok and Phuket added rooms faster…
-
5 JunePower
China is recruiting Western spies on LinkedIn. Five Eyes has no answer.
On 5 June 2026, the Five Eyes alliance named China's Ministry of State Security in a joint advisory, but stopped short of naming a single recruited individual or announcing prosecutions.
-
4 JuneTech & AI
Washington just closed the loophole China used for a year
On 31 May 2026, the U.S. Commerce Department extended export controls to any company whose ultimate parent sits in China or Macau, blocking the Singapore and Malaysia subsidiaries that had…
-
3 JuneCompass
Bangkok’s Pride festival is becoming Asia’s queer travel hub
Agoda data shows all nine top international booking markets are Asian countries, drawn by Thailand's 2025 marriage equality law and a 500-metre rainbow flag parade on 31 May.
-
3 JuneCompass
Taiwan’s tourism pivot: fewer visitors, higher spending
Inbound arrivals remain 80% below 2019 levels, but Taipei is deliberately chasing premium travellers over crowds, targeting NT$60,000 per visitor by 2030.
