Asia News

  • K-pop's profligate CD output draws fire as South Korea hosts plastic waste talks
    on November 21, 2024 at 10:09 am

    SEOUL — K-pop music may be South Korea's buzziest export but the industry needlessly creates mountains of plastic in its home market by churning out CDs that most fans don't even listen to, critics say. What the fans are interested in are the photos of band members that come with the CD and essentially […]

  • Australian teen dies from tainted liquor in Laos; 4th suspected victim
    on November 21, 2024 at 9:35 am

    SYDNEY/BANGKOK - An Australian teenager died on Thursday (Nov 21) after drinking alcohol contaminated with methanol in Laos, Thai police and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, the fourth foreign national now suspected to have died in the incident. Bianca Jones, 19, fell ill last week in Vang Vieng, […]

  • North Korea hackers behind $55.7m Ethereum heist in 2019, South Korea police say
    on November 21, 2024 at 8:14 am

    SEOUL — South Korean police said on Nov 21 that an investigation confirmed that hackers linked to North Korea's military intelligence agency were responsible for an Ethereum cryptocurrency heist in 2019, worth 58 billion won (S$55.7 million) at the time. More than half of the stolen assets were laundered […]

  • Want to be chief of staff at India's Zomato? CEO says forget salary, pay $31,800 fee
    on November 21, 2024 at 6:18 am

    NEW DELHI — The CEO of Indian food delivery giant Zomato has stoked a public debate by advertising a chief of staff job with an unusual twist: there will be no salary initially and the position instead comes with a 2 million rupee (S$31,800) "fee". Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal sought "down to earth" […]

  • Philippines to bring home woman drug convict from Indonesia, eyes clemency
    on November 20, 2024 at 8:14 am

    MANILA/JAKARTA — A Philippine woman spared execution in Indonesia on charges of drug trafficking in 2015 will return home after years of negotiations between the Southeast Asian neighbours, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Wednesday (Nov 20). Mary Jane Veloso, a domestic helper and mother of two, […]

  • Japanese manicurist takes on plastic pollution, one nail at a time
    on November 20, 2024 at 2:54 am

    CHIGASAKI, Japan — Before global leaders take the problem of plastic pollution into their hands this month, Japanese manicurist Naomi Arimoto is putting it into her fingernails. At the beach near her home south of Tokyo, Arimoto carefully sifts sand for tiny bits of plastic that she can mould into […]

  • South Korea authorities launch probe after 3 die in Hyundai car test
    on November 19, 2024 at 8:50 am

    SEOUL — South Korean authorities launched an investigation on Tuesday (Nov 19) after three workers died during a car test at a Hyundai Motor plant in the South Korean city of Ulsan, police said. A police officer based in Ulsan said that the three people who died included two Hyundai researchers involved in […]

  • South Korea opposition leader indicted for misuse of public funds: Yonhap
    on November 19, 2024 at 7:14 am

    SEOUL — South Korea's main opposition leader Lee Jae-myung was indicted on Nov 19 on charges alleging he used more than 100 million won (S$96,300) of public funds for personal purposes when he was a governor, Yonhap News Agency reported. Lee, chair of the Democratic Party, is already facing four other […]

  • India's north shrouded in smog as Delhi pollution hits season high
    on November 19, 2024 at 1:28 am

    NEW DELHI — Toxic smog engulfed much of northern India on Monday (Nov 18) and pollution readings in New Delhi hit their highest of this pre-winter season, after dense fog overnight. Visibility dropped to 100 metres in the capital and at least eleven flights were diverted. Operations at airports and railway […]

  • India restricts WhatsApp sharing data with other Meta entities, imposes $34m fine
    on November 19, 2024 at 1:21 am

    NEW DELHI — India's competition watchdog directed WhatsApp to refrain from sharing user data for advertising purposes with other applications owned by Meta for a period of five years and fined the US tech giant US$25.4 million (S$34.06 million) on Nov 18 over antitrust violations related to the messaging […]