TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares advanced Friday after China reported its economy expanded at an 18% annual pace in the first quarter of the year.
Jubilance over positive Chinese and U.S. economic data and another record high on Wall Street was tempered by caution over coronavirus outbreaks in the region, where rollouts of the vaccine have lagged.
BEIJING (AP) — China’s economy grew by double digits in the latest quarter but an explosive rebound from the coronavirus pandemic is slowing abruptly as manufacturing and consumer spending return to normal.
The economy grew by 18.3% over a year ago, official data showed Friday, a figure that was magnified by comparison with early 2020, when factories and shops were closed and activity plunged. Growth compared with 2020’s final quarter, when a recovery was under way, slowed to 0.6%, among the weakest of the past decade.
HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court on Friday sent five leading pro-democracy advocates, including media tycoon Jimmy Lai, to up to 18 months in prison for organizing a march during the 2019 anti-government protests that triggered an overwhelming crackdown from Beijing.
A total of nine advocates were given jail terms, but four of them, including 82-year-old lawyer and former lawmaker Martin Lee, had their sentences suspended after their age and accomplishments were taken into consideration.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China’s success at controlling the coronavirus outbreak has resulted in a population that has seemed almost reluctant to get vaccinated. So it is accelerating its inoculation campaign by offering incentives — free eggs, store coupons and discounts on groceries and merchandise — to those getting a shot.
After a slow start, China is now giving millions of shots a day. On March 26 alone, it administered 6.1 million shots. A top government doctor, Zhong Nanshan, has announced a June goal of vaccinating 560 million of the country’s 1.4 billion people.
(Reuters) -Myanmar security forces arrested on Thursday one of the main leaders of the campaign against military rule after ramming him with a car as he led a motorbike protest rally, friends and colleagues said.
Opponents of a Feb. 1 coup that ousted an elected government led by Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi have kept up their campaign against the military this traditional New Year week with marches and various other displays of resistance.
BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) -- China has lodged solemn representations with the United States over the U.S. government sending a delegation to the Taiwan region, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Wednesday.
Spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks at a press briefing when commenting on U.S. President Joe Biden sending a delegation of former U.S. officials to Taiwan, scheduled to visit the island from Wednesday to Friday.
BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets were mixed Thursday after Wall Street retreated from a record high as major banks reported strong profits.
Shanghai, Hong Kong and India declined. Tokyo, Seoul and Sydney advanced.
Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index closed 0.4% below the previous day’s record due to losses for major tech stocks while smaller companies rallied.
BANGKOK (AP) — When Thailand’s transport minister was recently diagnosed with COVID-19, it was Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha who got a headache.
Prayuth was not particularly lauded for his leadership last year against the coronavirus, but for much of 2020 Thailand fought the disease to a standstill, with low infection and death rates envied by more developed countries.
Now, an outbreak at nightspots in the capital Bangkok has sent new infections surging, suggesting the country may have been lulled into a false sense of security before mass vaccinations begin.
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said Tuesday that the semiautonomous Chinese territory’s legislative elections will take place in December, more than a year after they were postponed by authorities citing public health risks from the coronavirus pandemic.
Lam also said that laws will be amended so that inciting voters not to vote or to cast blank or invalid votes will be made illegal, although voters themselves are free to boycott voting or cast votes as they wish.
TOKYO (AP) — The president of Toshiba Corp. stepped down Wednesday, a week after the the Japanese technology and manufacturing giant said it was studying an acquisition proposal from a global fund where he previously worked.
Nobuaki Kurumatani tendered his resignation at a board meeting, and the board accepted, effective Wednesday, Tokyo-based Toshiba said in a statement.
Kurumatani headed the Japan operations of CVC Capital Partners, which proposed the acquisition last week, before taking his post as chief executive of Toshiba in 2018.
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