Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

WUHAN, Jan 1 (Reuters) - Thousands of Chinese took to the streets to mark the New Year as authorities and state media sought to reassure the public that the COVID-19 outbreak sweeping across the country was under control and nearing its peak.

Though many people in major cities have continued to isolate as the virus spreads through the population, New Year revelries appeared to be mostly unaffected as people celebrated the end of 2022 and the turn into 2023.

MANILA, Jan 1 (Reuters) - Philippine authorities halted flights in and out of Manila on New Year's Day due to a malfunction of air traffic control, which also prevented airlines bound to other destinations from using the country's airspace.

A total of 282 flights were either delayed, cancelled or diverted to other regional airports, affecting around 56,000 passengers at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the airport operator said on Sunday.

It was unclear how many overflights were affected.

SINGAPORE, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- Singapore reported 542 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, bringing the total tally to 2,202,756.

A total of 76 cases are currently warded in hospitals, with two of them held in intensive care units, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Health.

No new deaths from COVID-19 were reported on Sunday, leaving the total death toll unchanged at 1,711.

SEOUL, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) calls for an exponential increase in its nuclear arsenal, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Sunday.

BEIJING, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- As people around the world are celebrating the New Year, world leaders delivered New Year messages to their citizens, reviewing the past year and hoping for peace and prosperity in 2023.

"It was a year of truly pivotal, even fateful events. They became the frontier where we lay the foundation for our common future, our true independence," Russian President Vladimir Putin said in his New Year address on Saturday.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the “exponential” expansion of his country’s nuclear arsenal and the development of a more powerful intercontinental ballistic missile, state media reported Sunday, after he entered 2023 with another weapons launch following a record number of testing activities last year.

TOKYO, Dec 31 (NNN-NHK) – Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stocks index ended essentially flat yesterday, after erasing early gains on concerns something negative might happen in the U.S. and affect global markets during the holidays against a backdrop of global recession worries.

The Nikkei index marked its first decline since 2018, slumping 9.4 percent for the year.

The broader Topix index, meanwhile, lost 3.56 points, or 0.19 percent, to finish at 1,891.71.

HANOI, Dec 31 (NNN-VNA) – A total of 11,448 traffic accidents occurred in 2022 in Vietnam, killing 6,364 people, severely injuring 4,215 and slightly injuring 3,613, according to the country’s Traffic Police Department, yesterday.

The number of traffic accidents and slight injuries decreased by 0.3 percent and 12.1 percent, respectively, while the number of deaths and severe injuries rose 9.9 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively, compared to the same period last year.

VIENTIANE, Dec 31 (NNN-KPL) – The Lao cabinet was reshuffled at the concluding meeting of the Fourth Ordinary Session of the National Assembly (Ninth Legislature) of Laos, held in the Lao capital, Vientiane yesterday, according to local TV reports.

Phankham Viphavanh, in his speech, at the National Assembly (NA) meeting, said to resign from the post of prime minister for reaching the retirement age and health problems.

WUHAN/BEIJING, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping called on Saturday for more effort and unity as the country enters a "new phase" in its approach to combating the pandemic, in his first comments to the public on COVID-19 since his government changed course three weeks ago and relaxed its rigorous policy of lockdowns and mass testing.