Japan inbound tourist numbers hit record high in December despite 45% drop from China

January 20, 2026 3:30 PM

Japan inbound tourist numbers hit record high in December despite 45% drop from China

Tourists to Japan from China dropped 45% in December from the year earlier but the total number of inbound visitors hit a record high for the month, the Japanese minister for tourism said on Tuesday. Beijing had in November urged its citizens not to travel to Japan in an effort to punish Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for comments she made about Taiwan. For all of 2025, total tourist numbers to Japan reached a record 42.7 million people, exceeding 40 million for the first time, Yasushi...

Stocks and dollar slip in Asia, China data a mixed bag

January 19, 2026 9:15 AM

Stocks and dollar slip in Asia, China data a mixed bag

Stock markets slid in Asia on Monday after President Donald Trump threatened to slap extra tariffs on eight European nations until the U.S. is allowed to buy Greenland, pushing the dollar down against the safe-haven yen and Swiss franc. Gold and silver both jumped to all-time highs, while oil flatlined on concerns about what an all-out trade war between the U.S. and Europe could mean for global growth and demand. A holiday in U.S. equity and bond markets made for thin trading and likely contri...

G7, other allies discuss ways to reduce dependence on Chinese rare earths

January 13, 2026 3:22 PM

G7, other allies discuss ways to reduce dependence on Chinese rare earths

Finance ministers from the G7 and other major economies met in Washington on Monday to discuss ways to reduce dependence on rare earths from China, including setting a price floor and new partnerships to build up alternative supplies, ministers said. The meeting, convened by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, included finance ministers from G7 members Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and the U.S. as well as officials from Australia, Mexico, South Korea and India. U.S. Trade R...

Reject China’s attempts to alter ground reality in Shaksgam Valley, MEA says

January 9, 2026 7:55 PM

Reject China’s attempts to alter ground reality in Shaksgam Valley, MEA says

India on Friday rejected what it described as Chinese efforts to change the ground reality in the Shaksgam Valley and reiterated that it reserves the right to take necessary measures to safeguard its interests in the region. At a regular media briefing in New Delhi, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India has never recognised the so-called China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement of 1963, through which Pakistan attempted to cede the area to China. He also reiterated ...

China bans two Taiwanese ministers for alleged ‘independence activities’

January 7, 2026 11:04 AM

China bans two Taiwanese ministers for alleged ‘independence activities’

Beijing has banned two Taiwanese ministers from entering China for alleged separatist activities related to "Taiwan independence", its Taiwan Affairs Office said on Wednesday. The office described Taiwanese Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang and Education Minister Cheng Ying-yao as "die-hard Taiwan independence secessionists", and banned them as well as their relatives, from entry. The ban also extends to Hong Kong and Macau. Beijing claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and ...

South Korea’s Lee begins China state visit after North fires missiles

January 4, 2026 12:46 PM

South Korea’s Lee begins China state visit after North fires missiles

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung began a state visit to China on Sunday, hoping to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula hours after rival North Korea launched ballistic missiles. The visit, Lee's first to China since taking office in June, comes amid heightened global tensions after Pyongyang's aggressive display, on the heels of the U.S. attack on Venezuela. Lee is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping during the trip for their second meeting in just two months, an unusually shor...

Taiwan vows to defend sovereignty after China’s military drill

January 2, 2026 12:08 PM

Taiwan vows to defend sovereignty after China’s military drill

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said on Thursday the island is determined to defend its sovereignty and boost its defence in the face of China's increasing expansion, after Beijing fired rockets towards the island as part of military drills. The international community is watching to see whether the Taiwanese people possess the resolve to defend themselves, Lai said in a New Year's speech broadcast live from the presidential office in Taipei. The U.S. State Department said later on Thursday that...

Twelve killed in residential fire in southern China, Xinhua reports

December 10, 2025 11:31 AM

Twelve killed in residential fire in southern China, Xinhua reports

Twelve people have been killed in a residential fire in the southern Chinese city of Shantou, state news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday. The blaze broke out on Tuesday at 9:20 p.m. in a four-storey building and was extinguished about 40 minutes later, Xinhua said. An investigation into the cause of the fire is under way. The incident comes as the death toll from Hong Kong's deadliest fire in decades climbed to 160 on Tuesday. The fire prompted calls from China's top leaders to eliminate ...

MEA seeks assurances from China after Arunachal-origin Indian detained at Shanghai airport

December 9, 2025 11:15 AM

MEA seeks assurances from China after Arunachal-origin Indian detained at Shanghai airport

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Monday urged China to provide clear assurances that Indian travellers transiting through Chinese airports will not be “selectively targeted, arbitrarily detained or harassed,” following an incident involving an Indian national from Arunachal Pradesh who was stopped at Shanghai airport last month. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, addressing a weekly press briefing, said India expects China to respect international air travel regulations and ensure f...

Japan will pay ‘painful price’ if steps out of line over Taiwan, China says

November 27, 2025 2:04 PM

Japan will pay ‘painful price’ if steps out of line over Taiwan, China says

China's defence ministry said on Thursday that Japan will have to pay a "painful price" if it steps out of line over Taiwan, responding to Japanese plans to deploy missiles on an island some 100 km (62 miles) from Taiwan's coast. The remarks come amid the countries' worst diplomatic crisis in years, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said this month a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo. Japan's Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said on ...