South Korea’s spy agency announced late Wednesday that it has identified numerous instances where North Korean hacking groups targeted key shipbuilding firms in the South. This is seen as an attempt by the North to bolster its naval capabilities, potentially deepening the existing tensions between the two Koreas. “We believe that North Korean hacking organizations’ intensive attacks on our shipbuilders are due to Kim Jong Un’s order to build medium and large warships,” said the National Intelligence Service, adding the hackers targeted IT maintenance PCs of shipbuilders and sent phishing…
Day: October 4, 2023
Facing Climate Change, ASEAN Starts Cooperating on Regional Power-Sharing Grid
JAKARTA — The increasingly urgent threat posed by climate change is pushing ASEAN nations to start cooperating on a 20-year-old plan to develop a regional power-sharing grid. The goal is to speed the transition to renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and hydroelectric power by facilitating the transfer of energy from countries where there is a surplus to countries that need it. In August, utility companies in Malaysia and Indonesia signed a memorandum of understanding to study 18 potential locations where cross-border transmission lines could be set up. The…
China planning to offer more space for foreign equipment on future Chang’e 8 moon mission
China’s upcoming Chang’e-8 moon mission will offer an unprecendented amount of space for equipment for other countries. The mission is currently slated to launch in 2028, and will have 200kg (440lb) of payload capacity for interested countries, Wang Qiong, the mission’s deputy chief designer, said on Monday. These could be instruments fixed to the lander or items such as robots, rovers and flight vehicles that can work independently after landing, Wang told the International Astronautical Congress in Baku, Azerbaijan. Letters of intent must be submitted to China National Space Administration…
Will China’s property headaches have broader economic effects?
China’s property crisis is expected to continue to slow its growth. The World Bank said on Sunday it had cut its 2024 gross domestic product (GDP) growth estimates for the world’s second-largest economy to 4.4 per cent, down from its previous 4.8 per cent. The bank cited elevated debt and weakness in the property sector as key drivers for this change, as well as longer-term structural factors. How has the property downturn affected the economy? China’s GDP growth has been largely driven by investment in infrastructure and property, although years…
Malaysia aims for chip comeback as Intel, Infineon and more pile in
Ng Kok Tiong has been working in the semiconductor industry for 34 years and in all that time, the Kuala Lumpur native says, he has never seen the kind of activity in Malaysia that he is seeing now. As evidence, Ng, a senior vice-president at top European chipmaker Infineon, pointed to a new phenomenon: daily traffic jams between Penang Island and Kulim, site of the country’s first high-tech industrial park. “Malaysia benefited quite a bit from this diversification of the supply chain,” said Ng, who is also chair of the…
China jitters turn private equity investors towards India and Indonesia
Investors disappointed by China’s slow recovery and lack of new growth drivers are turning to India and south-east Asia for deals, even as experts warn they face a steep learning curve and potentially limited choice of exit routes in many of these markets. India and Indonesia have become two of the most popular destinations for private equity investors, who are under pressure as high interest rates drive up funding costs and as backers, such as family offices and university endowments, become increasingly nervous about investing in China. There have not…
How China is fighting in the grey zone against Taiwan
China even flew jets to Taiwan’s Pacific coast on the east, suggesting that it was practicing strikes from that direction, instead of west, which faces mainland China. Increasingly, China appears to be rehearsing a blockade of Taiwan. But Pentagon officials say it is unlikely to succeed as this would buy time for Taipei’s allies to mobilise themselves. BBC
‘Lying flat’: Song about being young and poor goes viral in China
As China copes with widespread youth unemployment and a flagging economy, a song about lying down, dropping out and burning incense in the hope of magically getting rich has become a viral sensation on social media. The jaunty pop hit by singer Li Ermeng titled, “I can’t afford to worship in the Temple of Wealth,” has been dubbed the “lying flat” song in a reference to a passive attitude reportedly adopted by Generation Z in China in the face of an increasingly harsh economic climate. “Lying flat,” also translated as…
China’s economic malaise boils down to ‘a failure to reform’ the system, Pathfinder report warns
“Given the lack of major reform announcements, year to date, similar weakness in 2024 should be expected, and growth may slacken even more next year as a result of adjustment pains if Beijing announces concrete reforms,” the report said. China’s economy has shown signs of a comeback in the third quarter thanks to a slew of supportive policies unfurled since July to reinvigorate growth, which reached only 0.8 per cent in the second quarter compared with the first quarter. But the property slump, ballooning local government debts, weak confidence in…
After message from Hun Sen, Cambodia’s new leader halts tax changes
After a public uproar – and apparent input from his father – new Prime Minister Hun Manet this week reversed a government plan to introduce new taxes and raise existing taxes. The announcement on Tuesday followed the release of a voicemail that former leader Hun Sen sent to government ministers about widespread criticism of the tax proposals. “For the tax issue, please take a look into it,” Hun Sen said in the voicemail, which was released earlier this week on Facebook. “Why is it exploding? We are not taking any…