KUALA LUMPUR: While there was no major aircraft purchases at the recently concluded Singapore Airshow 2018, industry experts say the event is more of a meeting point for airline operators and aviation companies and not an indication of the current state of the global aviation industry. CAPA Centre for Aviation chief analyst and Southeast Asia chief representative Brendan Sobie said the… Read more »

E-commerce is creating a cardboard nightmare. The rise of Amazon and the like has left a deluge of packing waste in many of the world's largest economies. None more than China, where more than 40 billion packages were shipped last year. That number will likely increase as the Chinese economy grows. There is some pressure on retailers to use less material in their packaging and to switch… Read more »

China is the world's biggest buyer of US soybeans. It imported $14 billion worth of them in 2016, according to the US Department of Agriculture. "If there were increased trade tensions, soybeans could likely be a potential target in any Chinese retaliation," said Paul Burke, the North Asia regional director for the US Soybean Export Council. That's a big worry for an industry that… Read more »

BEIJING — As China ratchets up pressure on Taiwan, the self-governing island it claims as its territory, the United States is cautiously starting to push back. In recent months, Chinese strategic bombers have been conducting “island encirclement” flights, escorted by fighter jets. The Chinese government has discouraged tourism to Taiwan and imports of goods like fish… Read more »

China's traditional Spring Festival splurge continued into the Year of the Dog, with high-tech consumer goods playing a stronger role alongside festive favorites such as movie-going and eating out. Sales at restaurants and shopping malls jumped 10.2 percent to about 926 billion yuan ($146 billion) during the Chinese New Year holiday from Feb. 15 to 21, compared with last year's… Read more »

China's new Arctic Policy was outlined by its first official white paper, released on Jan. 26. China, which self-identified as a "Near-Arctic State," sought to establish exactly how it believes the region should be governed and utilized. That's raised fears about a Chinese takeover of the region, but experts cautioned that a geopolitical standoff over the Arctic isn't necessarily coming. Read more »

China is seeking to "undermine" the international order in the Asia Pacific, Adm. Harry Harris, US President Donald Trump's nominee for ambassador to Australia, said in Washington on Wednesday. Addressing the US Committee on Armed Services on the challenges facing the US military in the region, Adm. Harris, the highest commander of US forces in Asia Pacific region, said the… Read more »

China's new Arctic Policy was outlined by its first official white paper, released on Jan. 26. China, which self-identified as a "Near-Arctic State," sought to establish exactly how it believes the region should be governed and utilized. That's raised fears about a Chinese takeover of the region, but experts cautioned that a geopolitical standoff over the Arctic isn't necessarily coming. Read more »