Asia

Warning over reliance on gaming industry in wake of COVID-19

Macau’s leader Ho Iat Seng said on Monday that the world’s biggest gambling hub was too dependent on the casino industry, warning that the Chinese territory was facing acute challenges…

Read More Here

Japan virus expert ‘pessimistic’ Olympics can be held in 2021

A Japanese expert who has criticised the country's response to the coronavirus warned Monday that he is "pessimistic" that the postponed Olympics can be held even in 2021. "To be…

Read More Here

Number of passengers’ plummets by 95 % in Asian airports

Asia’s airports have reached “rock bottom” almost four months into the Covid-19 pandemic, with the number of passengers at about 5 per cent of last year’s figures, the global airports’…

Read More Here

Wuhan laboratory insists ‘no way coronavirus came from us’

The head of a research laboratory in the Chinese city of Wuhan, ground zero of the coronavirus, has broken his silence to reject claims the facility could be the source…

Read More Here

South Korea’s new cases stay under 20 for third day

South Korea reported fewer than 20 new cases of coronavirus for the third day in a row. On Monday it announced 13 new infections, bringing the nation’s total infections to…

Read More Here

China reports new mainland coronavirus cases

China reported 12 new confirmed coronavirus cases on April 19, down from 16 a day earlier, with no new deaths, the country’s health authority said on Monday. Of the…

Read More Here

Australia calls for international investigation on WHO’s and China’s handling of coronavirus

Australia on Sunday called for an independent investigation into the global response to the coronavirus pandemic, including the World Health Organization's handling of the crisis. Foreign Minister Marise Payne won't…

Read More Here

84 new cases, 95 recovered, death toll now at 89 in Malaysia

Another 84 new Covid-19 cases have been reported, bringing it to a total of 5,389 cases as of noon Sunday (April 19), says the Health Ministry. Health director-general Datuk Dr…

Read More Here

China reports lowest confirmed coronavirus cases since March, no new deaths reported

China’s National Health Commission reported 16 new confirmed coronavirus cases on April 18, the lowest number since March 17 and down from 27 a day earlier, according to data published…

Read More Here

France says no evidence so far of link between Covid19 and Wuhan laboratory

France said there was no evidence so far of a link between the new coronavirus and the work of the P4 research laboratory in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where…

Read More Here

Singapore mulls placing workers who recover from COVID-19 on cruise ships

Singapore is assessing whether migrant workers who have recovered from coronavirus might be safer on cruise ships than back in dormitories that have become infection hotbeds, despite problems controlling onboard…

Read More Here

China says WHO has said no evidence coronavirus was made in a lab

China’s foreign ministry said on Thursday the World Health Organization has said there is no evidence that the coronavirus that has infected more than 2 million people globally was…

Read More Here

Indonesia becomes Southeast Asian country with most infections

Indonesia has reported 407 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number of cases to 5,923 and surpassing the Philippines as the country with the highest number of infections in Southeast…

Read More Here

India bans Zoom for government remote meetings

India has banned the use of video-conferencing app Zoom for government remote meetings, the government said Thursday, in the latest warning about the platform’s security, The app has become the…

Read More Here

IVI, INOVIO, and KNIH to partner with CEPI in Phase 1/2 clinical trial of INOVIO’s COVID-19 DNA vaccine in South Korea

The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) announced today that the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has granted $6.9 million funding to INOVIO ( to work with IVI and the Korea…

Read More Here

China’s Wuhan city revises death toll to register a 50% increase

The total number of coronavirus deaths in Wuhan has been revised up by 1,290 - a 50% increase. According to the latest figures, 3,869 people are known to have died…

Read More Here

China reports two-week low in new coronavirus cases

Mainland China reported on Friday that new confirmed cases of the coronavirus fell to a two-week low, as infections involving travellers arriving from abroad sharply fell. China recorded 26 new…

Read More Here

China’s economy shrinks for first time in decades

China's economy shrank for the first time in decades in the first quarter of the year, as the virus forced factories and businesses to close. The world's second biggest economy…

Read More Here

Singapore reports huge surge in cases

For a second day running, Singapore recorded another daily high of new Covid-19 cases -728 - with the total number of people infected crossing the 4,000 mark. Like in the…

Read More Here

Thai new-born shows signs of improvement after COVID-19 infection

A handout photo made available on 16 April 2020 by Thai Deputy Health Minister Satit Pitutacha, shows a Thai nurse carrying a one-month-old baby girl as she receives treatment inside…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Life in Sri Lanka amid coronavirus curfew

Two daily-wage workers wear protective face masks as they walk in front of a mural during an island-wide curfew, in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government has implemented an…

Read More Here

China did not warn public of likely pandemic for 6 key days

In the six days after top Chinese officials secretly determined they likely were facing a pandemic from a new coronavirus, the city of Wuhan at the epicentre of the disease…

Read More Here

China may have conducted low-level nuclear test blasts

China may have secretly set off low-level underground nuclear test explosions despite claiming to observe an international pact banning such blasts, the U.S. State Department said in a report that…

Read More Here

South Korea ruling party wins election

South Korean President Moon Jae-in's left-leaning ruling party won an absolute majority in parliamentary elections, according to provisional results released Thursday. The Democratic Party and its satellite party won 180 out…

Read More Here

Local infections rise in China

China reported on Thursday fewer new coronavirus cases involving travellers arriving from overseas, but locally transmitted infections rose, with the Chinese capital seeing new local cases for the first…

Read More Here

IMF says Asia will suffer zero economic growth this year

Asia’s economic growth this year will grind to a halt for the first time in 60 years, as the coronavirus crisis takes an “unprecedented” toll on the region’s service sector…

Read More Here

Second Chinese city bans eating dogs and cats

A second city in China has banned the eating of dog and cat meat in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The city of Zhuhai follows the example by Shenzen…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Travelling in Wuhan

A passenger wearing a protective face mask sits on the train that goes from Wuhan to Beijing, China, 15 April 2020. Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, lifted the…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Facemask bread in Taiwan to help a hospital

Chef Pai Kuo-wen displays a 'Facemask Bread' at Luho Puff bakery in Taichung, Taiwan. Pai invented 'Facemask Bread' with red bean filling in March as the bakery's business was hit…

Read More Here

Lacking protective gear, Japan’s Osaka pleads for plastic raincoats

The Japanese city of Osaka has issued an urgent plea for citizens to donate plastic raincoats to hospitals running short of protective gear for staff treating coronavirus patients, with some…

Read More Here

South Koreans vote in national elections amid virus fears

South Korean voters wore masks and moved slowly between lines of tape at polling stations on Wednesday to elect lawmakers in the shadows of the spreading coronavirus. The government resisted…

Read More Here

China reports fewer coronavirus cases but worried about infections from Russia

China reported on Wednesday a decline in new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the mainland, although an increasing number of local transmissions in its far northeast bordering Russia…

Read More Here

Rise in infections among Japan’s younger generation

Japan has registered another 390 cases of infection, taking the country's tally to 7,645, according to data published the Ministry of Health. A state of emergency was declared by the…

Read More Here

COVID-19 censorship frustrates Indian doctors

Censorship has reached new highs in India during the present coronavirus pandemic, with healthcare professionals routinely silenced for questioning inefficiencies or resorting to social media to highlight issues such as…

Read More Here

Thailand cancels traditional Buddhist New Year water festival

Thailand’s traditional annual water festival celebrating the Buddhist New Year has been called of in a bid to control the spread of the pandemic in the Asian country. Thais…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Quarantine in Manila

A soldier uses his mobile phone inside the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, a quarantine center in Manila, Philippines, 13 April 2020. Government officials inspected quarantine facilities around Manila, including a passenger…

Read More Here

South Korea reports more recovered coronavirus patients testing positive again

South Korea reported on Monday that at least 116 people initially cleared of the new coronavirus had tested positive again, although officials suggested they would soon look at easing strict…

Read More Here

Foreigners in India who broke lockdown told to write “I didn’t follow lockdown. I am sorry” 500 times

Ten foreigners who broke a coronavirus lockdown in Rishikesh, the Indian town made famous by the Beatles, were forced to repent by writing “I am so sorry” - 500 times,…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Khmer New Year celebration in Cambodia

A Cambodian woman carries flowers as she walks past a pagoda during Khmer New Year celebrations in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 13 April 2020. Cambodians celebrate the Khmer New Year from…

Read More Here

Photo Story: 18 new coronavirus deaths in the Philippines

The Philippine health ministry on Monday reported 18 new coronavirus deaths and 284 additional infections. In a bulletin, the health ministry said total deaths have reached 315, while confirmed cases…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Nepal celebrates New Year 2077 amid nationwide lockdown

Traffic police stand for national anthem and clap during a nationwide campaign to perform respect for healthcare workers to mark the Nepali New Year 2077 in Kathmandu, Nepal, 13 April…

Read More Here

Major reshuffle in North Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has carried out a major reshuffle of his State Affairs Commission, official media reported on Monday, replacing more than a third of its…

Read More Here

Alarming rise in China’s new coronavirus cases

China reported the highest number of new daily coronavirus cases in nearly six weeks, driven by a rise in infected travellers arriving from overseas and underscoring challenges Beijing faces in…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Holy Week in the time of pandemic

A health official wearing a protective suit sprays disinfectant shortly before the Easter Service at the cathedral in Dili, East Timor, also known as Timor Leste, 11 April 2020.…

Read More Here

Singapore suspends use of Zoom by teachers

Singapore has suspended the use of video-conferencing tool Zoom by teachers after “very serious incidents” in the first week of a coronavirus lockdown that has seen schools move to home-based learning,…

Read More Here

Singapore orders workers who prepare or sell food to wear masks

All workers who are engaged in the sale and preparation of food and drinks will be required to wear masks or other forms of physical barriers from Monday (April 13),…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Death toll in Thailand increases

Thailand recorded 45 new coronavirus infections on Saturday, bringing the total in the country to 2,518. The death toll in the country also rose from 33 to 35. Earlier this…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Holy Week amid coronavirus pandemic in Bangkok

Hand sanitizer is offered to parishioners next to a sign advising there will be no holy water to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at an almost empty church on Good…

Read More Here

The Philippines bans health workers from leaving for overseas jobs

The Philippines has temporarily banned health workers from leaving for overseas jobs in an attempt to strengthen its own health systems. On Friday the death toll from the coronavirus in…

Read More Here

Mainland China reports increase in new coronavirus cases

China on Saturday reported a rise in new coronavirus cases, as authorities try to head off a second wave of COVID-19, particularly from imported and asymptomatic infections, as city and…

Read More Here

Large magmatic eruption is taking place at Krakatoa volcano in Indonesia

Krakatoa, also known has Krakatau, has reportedly erupted in Indonesia. There are reports of a "large magmatic eruption" happening right now. NZHerald reports that satellite imagery shows ash several kilometres…

Read More Here

Indian and Pakistani troops in Kashmir engaged in cross-border fighting

Indian and Pakistani troops in disputed Kashmir are engaged in their most frequent cross-border fighting of at least two years, official data shows, even as both nuclear-armed rivals battle…

Read More Here

China seeks to contain ‘silent carriers’ of coronavirus

China released new measures to try and prevent asymptomatic “silent carriers” of coronavirus from causing a second wave of infections, as the country reported another modest rise in new…

Read More Here

China reports slight increase for second day

China reported a slight increase in new coronavirus cases for the second straight day, as the number of infections involving incoming overseas travellers hit a two-week high. China reported 63 new…

Read More Here

“This is not what we had ordered” – Finland complains on Chinese-produced masks

Stories related to theft or abuse in the international distribution of medical supplies have been been fairly frequent in the recent rush to secure the necessary provision. Finland was the…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Birth during the coronavirus pandemic

A Thai nurse puts face shields on new-born babies as a precaution against the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic at Princ Hospital Suvarnabhumi, in Samut Prakan province, Thailand, 08 April 2020. The…

Read More Here

Photo Story: Hindu devotees celebrate amid Covid-19 lockdown

A Hindu devotee wears a facial mask while observing the Balaju Purnima festival during the nationwide coronavirus emergency lockdown, in Kathmandu, Nepal, 08 April 2020. A very low number of…

Read More Here