Japan warns China against frequent yuan devaluations to prop up economy

The irony in his statement was not lost on analysts, who pointed out that last week’s two successive daily yuan devaluations by the People’s Bank of China had resulted in only a 3 per cent drop in the yuan-dollar rate, while Japan’s own currency, the yen, has crashed 35 per cent in value over the past two years.

Fuck the Japs.

Asian dating apps from Peekawoo to Paktor offer group dates, group chats and chaperones

Move over Tinder - a crop of dating apps in smartphone-addicted Asia are offering to recruit friends for group dates or send along a chaperone to steer the course of romance.

Retooling Singapore’s economic engine for the next lap

As Singapore surveys the future landscape on its 50th birthday, it has come to the striking realisation that the staying on the frontier of the global economy will entail having a markedly different game plan from that of playing catch-up.

Irish ducks all the rage in Singapore restaurants

Ducks from Ireland are all the rage with restaurants here, with at least 13 serving them.

China’s jobseekers think local as Beijing’s policy switch takes shine off foreign firms

To be, or not to be? That was the question facing Chinese railway signalling engineer William Shen for three years: should he stay where he was, working for a well-known German manufacturing conglomerate, or move on and join a private Chinese firm formed only six years ago?

China plan to expand importance of Singapore

In response to expected flat world trade growth abroad and moderate economic activity at home, China is packaging a series of initiatives to help bolster both. The plans will significantly expand Singapore’s importance to South-east Asia’s financial, trade and logistics services.

Thailand ‘exploring possible Uygur revenge plot’ in Bangkok bomb attack investigation

The probe on who could be behind the deadly blast in central Bangkok is focusing on a revenge motive by Uygur militants as it has now emerged that Thai authorities received intelligence that Chinese tourists could be a target of attacks.

Not so sweet on sugar daddy dating sites

“Sugar dating” sites, which pair young women with rich older men willing to pay lavishly for companionship, have, in recent years, begun targeting people in Singapore. And hundreds have been signing up, leading to some to call for them to be banned as they could draw young women into prostitution.

Abe Stokes History Wars by Avoiding Apology

The Diplomat

Should the United States Be Blamed for Japan’s Historical Revisionism?

Given the controversy surrounding Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s statement on the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, it is perhaps worthwhile to briefly reexamine some of the root causes that lead to conservative Japanese revisionism.

The Diplomat

WWII: how did Japan and Germany become global powerhouses?

Germany and Japan rose from the ashes of World War II to become global economic powerhouses in a few decades. But how did they achieve this remarkable feat so quickly, and what is the legacy of these parallel economic "miracles" today?

AFP

The issue of US 'neutrality' in South China Sea disputes

However, China will likely consider this statement in the context of other US policy statements and actions on these (and other) issues between them, as well as the positions of the disputants. In doing so, China is likely to draw the conclusion that the US is being disingenuous and hypocritical and is actually supporting rival claimants against it.

WWII wounds in Asia continue to fester

Unless Mr Abe makes a really dramatic gesture - for example, going in atonement to Nanjing and/or bowing in front of the Seoul memorial to the sex slaves - it is unlikely that the Japanese national consciousness will be awakened and hence, that genuine reconciliation will occur.

‘Made by China’ is what Chinese consumers want now

The rapid inroads made in China by domestic smartphone makers like Xiaomi, for example, suggest danger ahead for international brands. There’s a very real risk that the emergence of Chinese consumers will be more of a local story than a global one. Overseas companies that take them for granted do so at their own peril.

Men need more sex than women so decriminalise UK sex trade

Decriminalising prostitution in Britain could reduce levels of rape and sexual assaults on women, a think tank said, which described attempts to control the sex trade as ineffective and a waste of public money.

Claims that Mahathir’s cronies donated to opposition

Business tycoons close to former premier Mahathir Mohamad have been accused of giving money to the opposition in the 2013 general election, as questions continued to swirl around the US$700 million (S$960 million) donation deposited into Prime Minister Najib Razak’s personal accounts.

Japan revisionists deny WW2 sex slave atrocities

BBC

Luxury brands cut China sales forecasts

China’s economic slowdown is casting a long shadow over the glittering world of global luxury brands.

Jungle Vegas: How China’s gamblers are pouring into a casino in Laos’ notorious Golden Triangle

It’s nine in the morning and the gaming tables are still going strong. As croupiers take bets from the overnight die-hards, several exhausted gamblers sleep nearby, one still clutching a wad of betting slips.

China’s military needs to ‘upgrade weaponry, extend surveillance into western Pacific’

China’s People’s Liberation Army needs to broaden its air surveillance and attack capabilities to the western Pacific including the area near Japan to ensure its command of the air, according to an official study.