ASEAN News

Melvin Jerusalem opened the boxing season for the Philippines by winning the WBO global minimumweight championship on January 6 in Osaka, Japan. Better and wiser than when he first fought for a world title six years ago, Jerusalem stopped Japanese champion Masataka Taniguchi with a vicious straight right to the face in the second round at the Edion Arena. Taniguchi …

China is in negotiations with Pfizer Inc. to get a license that will allow domestic drugmakers to produce and market a generic version of the COVID-19 antiviral medicine Paxlovid in China, according to three sources cited by Reuters. Since late last month, China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has been in charge of negotiations with Pfizer, according to one source …

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ousted a former foreign minister who played a key role in his summits with former US President Donald Trump in 2018 and 2019, according to intelligence authorities cited by South Korean MPs on Thursday (5 January). Ri Yong-ho has remained out of the public view since denuclearization talks with Washington halted following a …

Now that the border between Hong Kong and China has been reopened, Shanghai engineer Roy Wang has a pressing task: rekindling his long-distance love after a terrible separation. “So many arguments occurred between my girlfriend and I. It was quite difficult to manage,” Wang, 23, reported to AFP on Wednesday (Jan 4). His request to visit her the following day …

On Friday, January 6, the operator of McDonald’s restaurants in Japan announced its third price raise in less than a year. This is the latest indicator of compounding inflationary pressures on the customers of the nation’s McDonald’s restaurants. McDonald’s Holding Company Japan announced on January 16 that it would raise prices on around 80 percent of its menu, citing currency …

China may be reopening, with its millions of would-be tourists and other global travelers freed of nearly all Covid-19 restrictions, but many of the countries that had been waiting desperately for the return of all those lovely tourist dollars are now keeping a wary foot behind the door, if not slamming it shut. China has announced that it would eliminate …

ormer According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday morning for a three-day visit, during which he will meet with President Tsai Ing-wen.  Rasmussen, who also served as Denmark’s prime minister, was greeted at Taoyuan International Airport at around 7:08 a.m. by MOFA Department of European Affairs director Vincent Yao.  Rasmussen, …

Jisoo of the South Korean girl group BLACKPINK will soon make her solo debut. Monday, January 2, YG Entertainment stated that BLACKPINK’s Jisoo is now hard at work recording her solo album. According to a report from Soompi, Jisoo has completed the picture session for her album jacket and is currently working on the music production for the album. She …

Last year, the Japanese economy encountered a number of obstacles, including a record decline in the value of the yen versus the U.S. dollar and decades-high inflation. However, efforts were also made to recommence economic activity halted by the COVID-19 epidemic, exemplified by the reopening of borders for the first time in two years. According to economists, the forecast for …

Manny Pacquiao will return to the ring in 2023 for an exhibition match organized by the Japanese mixed martial arts company Rizin Fighting Federation, he revealed in Japan on the eve of the new year, Saturday, December 31. During an in-ring appearance at the Rizin 40 event in Saitama Super Arena, the eight-division Filipino champion made the announcement. Pacquiao, who …