Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — With leader Kim Jong Un in attendance, North Korea opened a key political conference to discuss improving its struggling economy and reviewing defense strategies in the face of growing tensions with rivals, according to state media reports on Saturday.

The enlarged plenary meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party’s Central Committee came as the United States sent a nuclear-powered submarine to South Korea in the allies’ latest show of force against the North, which has ramped up its testing of nuclear-capable missiles to a record pace in recent months.

KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 (NNN-Bernama) — The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar this morning despite the prevailing cautious sentiments surrounding China’s economic growth. 

At 9.04 am, the local note strengthened to 4.6100/6155 against the greenback from 4.6235/6280 at Thursday’s close.   

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist and social finance head Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ringgit is anticipated to move within a tight range of around RM4.62, given the mixed signals this week. 

HONG KONG, June 16 (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed the global rise of artificial intelligence with Bill Gates on Friday and said he welcomed U.S. firms including Microsoft bringing their AI tech to China, two sources familiar with the talks said.

Xi also discussed Microsoft's (MSFT.O) business development in China during their meeting in Beijing, one of the sources said.

Gates, who co-founded Microsoft, stepped down from the company's board in 2020 to focus on philanthropic works related to global health, education and climate change.

BEIJING, June 16 (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping called Bill Gates "an old friend" and said he hoped they could cooperate in a way that would benefit both China and the United States, in Xi's first meeting with a foreign entrepreneur in years.

In a meeting at Beijing's Diaoyutai state guest house, where China's leaders have traditionally received senior foreign visitors, Xi said he was very happy to see the Microsoft (MSFT.O) co-founder and philanthropist after three years, and that Gates was the first American friend he had met this year.

PHNOM PENH, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn signed here Thursday the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Special Fund 2023.

Wang said at the event that Cambodia had so far harvested a total of 89 LMC Special Fund projects.

SEOUL, June 15. /TASS/: North Korea on Thursday launched two short-range ballistic missiles from the Sunan District near Pyongyang, the Yonhap news agency reported, citing South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"Two short-range ballistic missiles launched by North Korea from the Sunan District toward the Sea of Japan were detected between 7:25 p.m. and 7:37 p.m. local time (1:25 p.m. and 1:37 p.m. Moscow time - TASS)," the statement said. Earlier, the South Korean military reported the launch of a ballistic missile.

MANILA, June 15 (Reuters) - An earthquake of magnitude 6.3 struck the Philippines' main island on Thursday, authorities said, halting some railway operations in the capital Manila.

No casualties or major damage were reported after the quake, which struck out at sea at a depth of 10 kilometres (6.21 miles) and was felt in nearby provinces, the Philippine seismology agency said.

Operations of the three elevated railway lines in Manila were stopped due to the earthquake, the transport ministry said.

TOKYO, June 15 (Xinhua) -- A Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) recruit was referred to prosecutors Thursday on suspicion of murder a day after shooting three of his instructors during a live-fire training in central Japan, killing two of them.

The recruit, an 18-year-old male, was arrested at the site after allegedly opening fire at three GSDF personnel during the indoor exercise at the force's shooting range in Gifu prefecture on Wednesday morning, the GSDF said.

(AP) --- Suspected state-backed Chinese hackers used a security hole in a popular email security appliance to break into the networks of hundreds of public and private sector organizations globally, nearly a third of them government agencies including foreign ministries, the cybersecurity firm Mandiant said Thursday.

14 June 2023; MEMO: China is willing to play a positive role to help the Palestinians achieve internal reconciliation and promote peace talks with Israel, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his Palestinian counterpart in Beijing on Wednesday, Reuters reports.

"The fundamental solution to the Palestinian issue lies in the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital," Xi said, according to Chinese state media.