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Can Indonesia turn holiday island Bali into a global financial hub?

Having a financial centre on the island will help boost national economic competitiveness, officials say Indonesian Chief Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto earlier this week said the government was finalising regulations to establish a financial hub in the Kura Kura Special Economic Zone (SEZ) on Serangan island, 500 metres south of Denpasar, the provincial capital of Bali. “Indonesia is among the countries considered the safest if World War III ever breaks out. Just see how many Russians and Ukrainians are in Bali. We are planning to set up a special financial centre,” Prabowo said on April 8. Haryo Limanseto, a spokesman with the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs, said in a statement on Monday that Bali “could serve as a barometer for the financial sector”. “The international financial centre [IFC] is a strategic step in strengthening national economic competitiveness,” Haryo said.

May 6, 2026

Business

Europe readies trade war weapon amid China export deluge

The European Commission is working on a new trade weapon as the continent struggles to contend with a flood of low-cost imports from China. The tool may be presented at a May 29 gathering of the European Union’s executive branch, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday. Plans for a China-focused meeting were delayed from last month after the US-Israeli war on Iran prompted a new agenda focused on energy prices. It’s not clear what form the instrument will take. Business groups have been...

May 6, 2026

Business

EU cyber plan barring Chinese suppliers will cost US$430 billion: report

Brussels’ proposed new Cybersecurity Act would require vast amounts of Chinese equipment to be ripped out and replaced in a slew of industries The European Union’s push to bar Chinese suppliers from its critical infrastructure under a proposed new Cybersecurity Act would cost the bloc a jaw-dropping €367.8 billion (US$431.4 billion) over the next five years, a new study has warned. “Given the highly interconnected nature of Europe’s digital value chains … the resulting cost pressures would be borne across the economy, with small and medium-sized enterprises and end users likely to experience higher sensitivity,” said Liu Jiandong, chairman of the CCCEU, in the report released on Wednesday. Annual losses from the policy are projected to reach €39.1 billion in 2026 and peak at €93 billion in 2028, before plateauing at €91 billion for 2029 and €89.6 billion for 2030, according to the study. Beyond direct hardware costs, the report predicts €102.1 billion in social losses, with €88.3 billion of that driven by delayed digitalisation and green transition costs.

May 6, 2026

Business

Hong Kong retail sales jump 12.8% in March on back of higher car sales

Retail sales reached HK$33.9 billion as buyers raced to make deals before first registration tax concessions for electric cars ended Hong Kong’s retail sales jumped by 12.8 per cent in March, bringing first-quarter growth to 9.8 per cent, driven by a spurt in sales of electric cars ahead of the withdrawal of tax breaks. Provisional figures released by the Census and Statistics Department on Wednesday showed that retail sales reached HK$33.9 billion (US$4.32 billion) in March. The March increase was largely fuelled by car sales as buyers raced to make deals before the first registration tax concessions for electric cars ended at the close of the month. A government spokesman said retail sales continued to strengthen. “Looking ahead, the near-term outlook for retail sales is broadly positive, underpinned by recovering local demand, sustained growth in inbound tourism, and a favourable macro-financial environment,” he said. “The government will continue to monitor the downside risk arising from the evolving geopolitical tensions, for any potential implications for the consumer spending in the local market.”

May 6, 2026

Business

How China quietly erased Taiwan from coffee’s world stage

Support us The Taiwanese winner Bala (center) of the 2026 World Latte Art Championship in San Diego. His nationality was later inexplicably changed from 'Taiwan' to 'Chinese Taipei.' Image: Instagram Screengrab When Bala stepped onto the podium in San Diego in April, holding the trophy for the 2026 World Latte Art Championship, the backdrop behind him said “Luckin Coffee” — the Chinese chain that was an official sponsor of the event. He had just poured a raccoon, a giraffe and red pandas to claim the title with a winning score of 531 points. The official announcement listed him as representing Taiwan. About a week later, however, the Specialty Coffee Association quietly changed “Taiwan” to “Chinese Taipei” in the World Coffee Championships’ records. There was no announcement or explanation for why the change was made. Only a revision — soon followed by reports that the WCC had also stripped past rankings PDFs from its website, hiding the historical record of who had represented whom. The renaming of a barista may seem like a footnote to Beijing’s larger pressure campaign against Taiwan — the warships, the semiconductor controls, the diplomatic isolation.

May 6, 2026

Business

Australia warns of arrests as 13 people linked to Isis set to return from Syria

The four women and nine children, who had been living in Roj camp in Syria, are expected to land in Sydney and Melbourne on Thursday Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said he received an alert on Wednesday morning when the group’s travel booking was made. “The government is not assisting and will not assist these individuals,” he told a news conference. “They made an appalling, disgraceful decision. If any of these individuals find their way back to Australia, if they have committed crimes, they can expect to face the full force of the law, without exception.” Police said they collected evidence in Syria as they investigated whether Australians had committed crimes under Australian law, including travelling to a prohibited area and engaging in slave trade. “Some individuals will be arrested and charged,” Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said.

May 6, 2026

Business

Anxious Australia and jittery Japan deepen ‘quasi-alliance’ for an uneasy age

Shared concerns about trade coercion and energy shocks are driving the two middle powers to ‘institutionalise’ their partnership The centrepiece of her three-day visit was the Australia-Japan Joint Declaration on Economic Security Cooperation, which commits both governments to coordinating responses to economic coercion: a provision analysts say is aimed squarely at Beijing and Washington alike. Under the agreement, Canberra has committed up to A$1.3 billion (US$935.8 million) in support for critical minerals projects with Japanese involvement, potentially supplying resources including nickel, graphite and rare earths to Tokyo. “Australia and Japan are taking action to protect our economies from future economic shocks and uncertainty,” Albanese said in a statement. “By working together, we will achieve more secure and resilient supply chains that will benefit Australian and Japanese businesses and consumers now and into the future.”

May 6, 2026

Business

AI ecosystems in China and US grow apart amid tech war

China and the United States are taking divergent paths to developing artificial intelligence (AI), putting their technology ecosystems increasingly at odds. This divergence was on show on April 24 when start-up DeepSeek launched its next-generation V4 AI models that were optimised for use with the Ascend chips and associated software tools of tech giant Huawei Technologies. China has for years been pursuing technological self-reliance, a policy reiterated by the Communist Party’s Politburo at...

May 6, 2026

Business

Hong Kong Legco issues warning to lawmaker Judy Chan over traffic offence

Legco panel says warning aims to remind Judy Chan to be mindful of conduct and meet public expectations Hong Kong’s legislature has issued a written warning to lawmaker Judy Chan Kapui for driving on the wrong side of the road, urging her to be mindful of her conduct and meet the public’s expectations. The official warning was issued by the Legislative Council’s Supervisory Committee on Wednesday, four months after the 45-year-old New People’s Party lawmaker was filmed driving against the flow of traffic in Wan Chai on January 23. In its report to the Legco following an investigation into a complaint, the committee said its members unanimously concluded that Chan’s misconduct “did not reach a serious level” and that this was her first such offence. “The committee … decided to issue a written warning to Ms Chan, with a view to sternly warning her that she must be mindful of her words and deeds at all times and ensure that she lives up to the public’s expectations of Legco members,” it said in the report. A written warning is the mildest sanction in the five-tier mechanism, while more severe ones range from admonishment and suspension of duty to deductions in remuneration.

May 6, 2026 · 2 dk okuma

Business

Tai Po fire probe: Housing Bureau’s checking unit failed to follow up on safety issues

Committee’s lead counsel presses Independent Checking Unit officer on its responsibilities and whether it had properly overseen key safety issues All eyes are on the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU), whose officers are scheduled to testify before a judge-led panel on Wednesday about their role in Hong Kong’s Tai Po blaze. Senior maintenance surveyor Andy Ku Siu-ping will be the only witness giving live evidence in the first of three sessions of the fourth round of evidential hearings. The unit, responsible for overseeing maintenance of government-built residential complexes, has long been criticised for failing to act on residents’ complaints about flammable polyfoam boards and substandard scaffolding mesh at Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court before the fire. Pressed by committee lead counsel Victor Dawes to explain the ICU’s responsibilities on Wednesday morning, Ku admits the unit had failed to properly monitor safety issues such as the use of substandard scaffolding and flammable polyfoam boards. The inferno broke out at the residential estate on November 26, 2025, when it was undergoing facade renovation. The blaze was Hong Kong’s deadliest since 1948, killing 168 people and displacing almost 5,000.

May 6, 2026

Business

South Korean judge who handed Kim Keon-hee 4-year term found dead days after verdict

Shin Jong-oh, who was found with severe injuries on the ground near the Seoul High Court, had a suicide note in his pocket, police say Shin Jong-oh, who had overturned a lower court’s not guilty verdict and imposed a harsher sentence on Kim, was discovered with severe injuries in a flower bed near the Seoul High Court building in Seocho district, southern Seoul. Police suspect the 55-year-old died after falling from the building. “It is true that an apparent suicide note was found in his pocket,” an officer at Seocho Police Station told This Week in Asia. The note reportedly included phrases such as “I am sorry” and “I am leaving of my own accord”. However, police said it did not mention Kim’s case or any of his judicial duties.

May 6, 2026

Business

From Beijing to Berlin: Chinese EVs turn heads as brands eye European markets

BYD, Geely and Xpeng showcase eye-catching EVs at Beijing auto show as they build momentum in Europe and target more discerning buyers For German consumer Erik Böhme, a first visit to the Beijing auto show was an eye-opener – the world’s largest car exhibition showcased a vast array of electric vehicle (EV) brands, many already gaining traction in Europe. “I think there will be more Chinese brands coming and being successful in Europe,” said Böhme, a freelance automotive consultant who spent two days at the event, which ran through May 3. Böhme was among 250 foreign media, clients and social media influencers invited by Geely Automobile, China’s second-largest EV maker, to attend the show in Beijing. Around 50 of them came from Europe, the world’s third-largest car market. Other Chinese carmakers, including Xpeng and Chery Automobile, also flew in hundreds – in some cases thousands – of overseas visitors, with Europeans making up a large share. The push comes as Chinese EV makers pivot from a bruising domestic price war to overseas expansion, targeting higher margins, particularly in Europe, amid tightening regulations at home.

May 6, 2026