Southeast Asia
Manufacturing, trade, and digital economies are shifting here faster than almost anywhere else on the planet. Ten nations, one supply chain revolution, and a tourism boom rewriting where the world travels next.
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Aug- 2026 -13 AugustCompass
Thailand is quietly winning the race for Chinese tourists from Japan
With 5.1 million Chinese arrivals projected for 2026, Thailand has overtaken Japan in the first half—a shift driven by airlift capacity, safety perceptions, and political friction between China and Tokyo.
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12 AugustPower
China brings Indonesia into waters Taiwan claims as its own
The PLA's first joint naval drill east of Taiwan with an Indonesian frigate tests whether repeated foreign participation can normalize Beijing's contested presence.
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12 AugustTech & AI
China just unwound Meta’s $2 billion AI deal after it closed
The NDRC ordered Manus to reverse its acquisition on August 11, establishing Beijing's power to retroactively unwind cross-border tech deals regardless of offshore incorporation—a capability foreign acquirers assumed did not…
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12 AugustPower
Philippines opens dual legal front against Vice President Duterte over assassination threat
Criminal charges filed 11 August 2026 under Article 282 of the Revised Penal Code run parallel to an active Senate impeachment trial, creating an unprecedented institutional collision with no legal…
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11 AugustEarth
Indonesia’s fires are spreading. Cloud seeding cannot stop them.
A Super El Niño and positive Indian Ocean Dipole have stripped the atmosphere of rain-bearing clouds, leaving only water-bombing crews to fight 107,000 hectares already burned across 10 provinces as…
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10 AugustCapital
India’s $41 billion currency trick is reshaping how Asia defends reserves
The Reserve Bank of India pulled in $41 billion through a subsidised deposit window by July 31, setting a benchmark for incentive-based defense that other central banks are now copying—but…
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10 AugustSociety
The primatologist who quit to expose Asia’s hidden lab supply chain
A documentary premiering at Melbourne on August 11 follows Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel's break with animal testing and her warning that Southeast Asian macaque farms pose epidemiological risks comparable to COVID-19's…
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10 AugustPower
Thailand’s parole system keeps releasing killers. Now it faces the gallows.
Five bodies in Chonburi—two Russian tourists, three Thai residents—have reignited a debate the country thought it had settled: whether a broken risk-assessment process justifies resuming executions.
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10 AugustSociety
Indonesian creators are monetizing foreign political outrage on Meta
A Guardian investigation found thousands of Indonesian accounts posting polarizing content in Australian and US Facebook groups, exploiting Meta's US$3 billion creator payment system to generate engagement payouts.
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9 AugustSociety
Singapore’s government bets on cheaper care to keep families working
PM Wong announced a major review of family support spanning all life stages, arriving as Singapore becomes super-aged this year and households face competing pressures from childcare and elder care.
