Set to host Trump, Xi targets stability under cloud of Iran uncertainty
Economy

Set to host Trump, Xi targets stability under cloud of Iran uncertainty

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping tour the Forbidden City in Beijing in November 2017. The U.S. leader is poised to visit the Chinese capital again next week. © AP China expected to use leverage to preserve trade truce, shape US policy on Taiwan TOKYO/HONG KONG -- When Donald Trump met Xi Jinping for the first time in Florida in 2017, the U.S. president told his Chinese counterpart of missile strikes on Syria over what he called the "most beautiful piece of chocolate cake." Now, their plans to meet next week in Beijing are being overshadowed by another American military engagement in the Middle East.

May 8, 2026
VinFast rival Selex launches open EV charging network with Petrolimex
Economy

VinFast rival Selex launches open EV charging network with Petrolimex

Motorbike startup expands Vietnam battery swapping with state gas-station firm A VinFast charging station in Hanoi. Vietnam's largest EV maker has built a proprietary charging network that is slowing the country's adoption of electric vehicles. (Photo by Yuki Kohara) HO CHI MINH CITY -- VinFast rival Selex launched a joint venture with Vietnamese gas-station giant Petrolimex to build electric vehicle charging and battery-swap stations that do not demand brand loyalty.

May 8, 2026
Hong Kong’s pinball wizards and claw fans defend arcade thrills as curbs loom
Business

Hong Kong’s pinball wizards and claw fans defend arcade thrills as curbs loom

Citywide craze in pinball and claw machines has prompted authorities to consider tightening regulations to prevent addiction to these games A Hong Kong homemaker sits alone at a pinball machine, engrossed in the game for an hour to kill time before picking up her sons from school for lunch on a weekday morning at a shopping centre in Sham Shui Po. The 47-year-old mother-of-two, who only identified herself as Mrs Cheung, said she played pinball machines at least twice a week at Dragon Centre, including once on the weekend with her family of four as entertainment. “We just have fun as a family and use the points we earn from the games to redeem the prizes we want,” she said. “We all enjoy it.” The family’s favourite pastime reflects a citywide craze in pinball and claw machines, a trend growing so fast that it has prompted authorities to consider tightening regulations to prevent addiction to these games, amid a debate over whether they should be viewed as gambling. The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau earlier this week proposed amending the city’s gambling laws to require an “amusement with prize licence” for every individual machine, citing addiction risks associated with prize-based games.

May 8, 2026 · 2 dk okuma
Can Vietnam’s bureaucracy reform boost investment amid growth threats?
Business

Can Vietnam’s bureaucracy reform boost investment amid growth threats?

Vietnam’s drive to energise its economy may take time to materialise in the face of rising fuel costs and trade barriers, analysts say Last month, the government issued eight resolutions to cut 680 administrative procedures and simplify hundreds more to speed up approvals for new businesses in sectors ranging from casinos to importing cars. A blizzard of draft decrees aimed at slashing red tape is queuing up for approval by a government that has already reduced the number of ministries by a quarter and slimmed down the civil service. “Vietnam’s government has recently issued a slew of resolutions and directives to cut administrative procedures and simplify business conditions,” said Heng Jian Xin, senior country risk analyst at BMI, a unit of Fitch Solutions.

May 8, 2026
Islamic State-linked Australian women charged with keeping slave in Syria
Business

Islamic State-linked Australian women charged with keeping slave in Syria

The mother and daughter, accused of ‘crimes against humanity’, were arrested in Melbourne after travelling from a Syrian detention camp Two Australian women “kept a female slave” after travelling to Syria in 2014 to support Islamic State, police said on Friday after the pair were charged in Melbourne. The women returned to Australia on Thursday evening for the first time in almost a decade, travelling from a Syrian detention camp where they were stranded after the group’s collapse. They were immediately arrested after their Qatar Airways flight landed at Melbourne International Airport. Police accused the women – a mother and daughter aged 53 and 31 – of “crimes against humanity” while living under Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate. The 53-year-old woman was “complicit in the purchase of a female slave for US$10,000”, the Australian Federal Police said. The 31-year-old woman had “knowingly kept a female slave in the home”.

May 7, 2026
Lula won’t sideline China or anyone in rare earths, tells Trump refining stays in Brazil
Business

Lula won’t sideline China or anyone in rare earths, tells Trump refining stays in Brazil

In a three-hour White House meeting on Thursday, Brazil’s president pitched his country’s minerals to all comers “We have no preference. What we want is to share with whoever wants to invest in Brazil,” Lula said at a press conference at the Brazilian embassy in Washington after a three-hour meeting with Trump that ran more than an hour past schedule. “Americans, Chinese, Germans, Japanese, French, whoever wants to participate with us to help us mine, separate and produce the wealth that these rare earths offer us, they are invited.” He said his government would not repeat what happened with silver, gold and iron ore, resources that Brazil exported raw for decades without capturing the industrial value. Why the US is worried about China’s growing influence in South America

May 7, 2026
China’s move to cut EV payment cycles may push weaker carmakers out: S&P
Business

China’s move to cut EV payment cycles may push weaker carmakers out: S&P

China’s weaker EV makers may soon be running on fumes as tighter payment cycles squeeze cash flow and curb price wars The warning is likely to deepen bearish sentiment surrounding mainland China’s more than 100 car assemblers, many of which have been at the forefront of global electric vehicle (EV) technology and production. “Financially fragile players that struggle to keep pace with government guidance will exit the market or be absorbed,” S&P said in a research report written by analysts Stephen Chan and Claire Yuan released on Wednesday. “Larger players with continuously upgraded products and stronger balance sheets will likely gain share. A leaner, more disciplined sector should shake out, albeit with likely failures and lost capital along the way.” Since mid-2025, Beijing has urged carmakers to pay suppliers promptly in an effort to rein in the prolonged discount wars that have engulfed nearly every player in the world’s largest car and EV market.

May 7, 2026
US military says it carried out retaliatory strikes over ‘unprovoked hostilities’ by Iran
Business

US military says it carried out retaliatory strikes over ‘unprovoked hostilities’ by Iran

Iran earlier said the US had violated a ceasefire by targeting an ‌Iranian oil tanker and another ship entering the Strait of Hormuz The US ⁠military said it carried out retaliatory strikes ⁠on Iran on Thursday, targeting sites it said were responsible for attacking US forces in what it called unprovoked hostilities by Tehran. Earlier, Iran’s top joint military command said the US had violated a ceasefire by targeting an ‌Iranian oil tanker and another ship entering the Strait of Hormuz, and by striking civilian areas. “US Central Command (CENTCOM) eliminated inbound threats and targeted Iranian military facilities responsible for attacking US forces including missile and drone launch sites; command and control locations; and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance nodes,” the military said in a statement. It added Iran had ⁠launched multiple missiles, drones and small boats as three US Navy destroyers, the Truxtun, Peralta and ‌Mason, transited the Strait of Hormuz to the Gulf of Oman. No US military assets were hit by the Iranians, the US military said. “CENTCOM ‌does not seek escalation but remains positioned and ready to protect American forces,” ⁠the statement said.

May 7, 2026
Wrapped in a Boeing: will Trump’s China visit include another aircraft deal?
Business

Wrapped in a Boeing: will Trump’s China visit include another aircraft deal?

US President Donald Trump’s landmark visit to China comes as the US-Iran war disrupts global energy supplies, fuels economic uncertainty and adds fresh strain to Washington-Beijing ties. In the second instalment of a series examining how rivalry, interdependence and geopolitical crises are reshaping the relationship between the two powers, we weigh the odds of a major deal for Boeing aircraft after nearly a decade without a significant order from Chinese airlines. Shanghai Airlines was flying...

May 7, 2026
Zelensky warns Russia’s allies against attending WWII parade as Moscow repeats threats
Business

Zelensky warns Russia’s allies against attending WWII parade as Moscow repeats threats

Russia has doubled down on its threat to strike Kyiv on Victory Day on May 9, which it marks with a military parade through Red Square Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday warned Russia’s allies against attending its May 9 World War II victory parade, as Moscow doubled down on its threat to strike Kyiv on the day. Moscow has unilaterally declared a ceasefire from May 8 to 10 in its war on Ukraine but the Russian army has urged residents to leave Kyiv in case of a potential retaliatory strike on the day. “We have also received messages from some states close to Russia, saying that their representatives plan to be in Moscow,” said Zelensky, speaking in central Kyiv in a regular video address. Ukraine had proposed a counter-truce from May 6, blasting Russia’s move as a propaganda measure to protect the parade – one of the most important patriotic events for Russian leader Vladimir Putin. “They want from Ukraine a permit to hold their parade, so that they can go out onto the square safely for one hour once a year, and then go on killing,” said Zelensky.

May 7, 2026
White House inviting Nvidia, Apple, Boeing CEOs on Trump’s China trip, report says
Business

White House inviting Nvidia, Apple, Boeing CEOs on Trump’s China trip, report says

The Trump ⁠administration is inviting CEOs from ⁠Nvidia, Apple, Exxon, Boeing and other big companies to accompany the president on his trip to China next week, Semafor reported on Thursday. Executives from Qualcomm, Blackstone, Citigroup ‌and Visa are also on the invitation list, according to the report. A person familiar with the matter confirmed that Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser was invited. Qualcomm confirmed the invitation but declined to comment further. Reuters was not able to confirm ⁠the...

May 7, 2026
Why China’s warning over military blocs is finding listeners in Asia
Business

Why China’s warning over military blocs is finding listeners in Asia

For regional governments, strategy is about preserving options. China has read this instinct carefully and given it a diplomatic vocabulary Beijing’s response captured the larger argument. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said the region needed peace, not division and confrontation fuelled by outside military build-up. In Western capitals, such language is treated as familiar rhetoric. Across Asia, it lands differently, because the concern behind it is familiar. That is the quiet fear behind much of Asia’s hedging. The region does not live by grand strategy alone. It lives by ports, shipping lanes, investment flows, energy prices, factory orders and domestic politics. A patrol at sea can become an insurance question. A military exercise can become a market signal. A crisis in one channel can reach grocery shelves, fuel bills and election debates. For middle powers and smaller states, strategy is about preserving options. A government may welcome American support as insurance and still prefer to avoid becoming part of a structure that demands public loyalty in every dispute. It may expand defence ties with Washington and still want stable trade with China.

May 7, 2026