Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The sweeping “zero-tolerance” strategy that China has used to keep COVID-19 case numbers low and its economy functioning may, paradoxically, make it harder for the country to exit the pandemic.

Most experts say the coronavirus around the world isn’t going away and believe it could eventually become, like the flu, a persistent but generally manageable threat if enough people gain immunity through infections and vaccines.

BEIJING, Jan 21 (APP): China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic partners, and bilateral all-round cooperation has yielded fruitful results. As an important platform for all-weather cooperation between the two countries, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has entered a new stage of high-quality development.

In the new stage, the two sides are focusing on cooperation in industries, science and technology and people’s livelihood. We sincerely wish that Pakistan would make greater achievements in social and economic development in the new year.

BEIJING, Jan 21 (APP): The Chinese company which has rolled out nationwide logistics services across Pakistan was likely to cover about half of its population in February, Sun Chao, head of Speedaf Pakistan said on Friday.

“Moreover, we also provide China-Pakistan cross-border logistics services and warehouse and delivery services in Pakistan,” he said in an interview with China Economic Net (CEN).

As a leading logistics services provider plowing emerging markets, Speedaf initiated its business layout in Pakistan in September 2021.

TOKYO (AP) — Restaurants and bars will close early in Tokyo and a dozen other areas across Japan beginning Friday as the country widens COVID-19 restrictions due to the omicron variant, which has caused cases to surge to new highs in metropolitan areas.

The restraint, which is something of a pre-state of emergency, is the first since September and is scheduled to last through Feb. 13. With three other prefectures — Okinawa, Hiroshima and Yamaguchi — under similar measures since early January, the state of restraint now covers 16 areas, or one-third of the country.

BEIJING, Jan 20 (APP): Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, Zhao Lijian Thursday said that the China- Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) framework was moving forward against a headwind posed by Covid-19 pandemic as well as promoting economic development and people’s livelihood in Pakistan.

He rejected the reports indicating that the work on the CPEC, a pilot project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) had slowed down over the past three and half a year.

BEIJING, Jan 20 (APP): China, Russia and Iran held their second round of joint naval drills in the Gulf of Oman from Tuesday to Thursday this week, China’s Defense Ministry confirmed on Thursday.

The exercise aims to deepen the pragmatic cooperation between the navies of the three countries, and demonstrates their willingness to safeguard maritime security for the region, the ministry said in a statement.

MANILA, Jan 20 (NNN-PNA) – The Philippine government signed a commercial contract worth 2.8 billion U.S. dollars, with Chinese contractors, to build the “fastest and longest railway” in the country, that connects southern Luzon provinces, China’s Ambassador to the Philippines, Huang Xilian said, in a statement.

JAKARTA, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Indonesian lawmakers on Tuesday passed a law on the relocation of the nation's capital to the island of Kalimantan, which the country shares borders with Malaysia and Brunei, from the most populated island of Java.

The move is a step forward in one of the most ambitious projects initiated by the country's President Joko Widodo.

BEIJING, Jan 19 (APP): China’s construction of a new bridge across the Pangong Lake is nearing completion, several Indian media outlets reported on Wednesday, citing high-resolution satellite imagery obtained from a US space technology company.

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 (NNN-Bernama) — The ASEAN India Business Council (AIBC) is willing to work with business organisations in Malaysia to form a joint business council (JBC) that could provide a unified platform to explore trade and investment opportunities with India, said AIBC co-chairman Ramesh Kodammal.

Though there is the ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (AIFTA) and Malaysia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (MICECA), the awareness on how they could be tapped to expand trade between Malaysia and India is still low.