Bangkok: Following an alleged kidnapping of a Chinese actor, concerns about the safety of tourists were raised by Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Friday ( Jan 17 ). Tourism is a important driver of Southeast Asia’s second-largest market, and China is the biggest single industry for Thailand. ” TourismContinue Reading
China demanded from the Philippines to continue to work together through speech and conversation. Both of them agreed to improve communication and foster speech, but they also called each other out over new hostilities. The Philippines, a supporter of the US, expressed grave worry about how the coast guard operates,Continue Reading
China’s top airlines’ civil aviation administration ( CAAC ) approved a number of new routes to European cities in the third quarter of last year. These include solutions to Bucharest, Dublin, Edinburgh, and Geneva.  ,
This expansion builds on various road additions in the same time, such as Air China’s Chengdu-Milan services, China Eastern Airlines ‘ direct journey from Shanghai to Marseille, and China Southern Airlines ‘ Guangzhou-Budapest way.
Chinese carriers now occupy the China-Europe course market, according to market data.  ,
Between Nov 27 and Dec 3, a total of 855 planes were operated between China and Europe, reflecting a 21.6 per share increase year-on-year, as reported by aircraft data platform DAST.  ,
Importantly, over 84 per cent of these airlines were operated by Taiwanese companies, a significant increase from about 60 per cent in 2019.
According to observers, unequal access to Russian aircraft has been the main motivating factor behind Western airlines ‘ reversals while Chinese ships fly high.
In punitive action against sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, Russia inflicted a number of other companies on its airport in February 2022. The country’s largest state by land mass almost three years later successfully remains a no-fly zone for Western airlines.
Due to this, they have had to take lengthy and pricey detours, considerably extending the flight times and operating costs. In comparison, Chinese companies are also permitted to travel over Russia, attaining a competitive edge.
Prior to the invasion, Scandinavian Airlines ‘ planes from Shanghai to Copenhagen were usually 11 hours long. Following the rerouting, its last flight in November stretched to over 15 days.
According to Bloomfield from Propelo Aviation, it likewise risks overcrowding aircraft in other areas, which could lead to flight disruptions and increased operating costs.
” If you want to go from Europe to Southeast Asia, for example, you go into India or the Middle East, typically flying across Turkey, through the Caucasus, and then around”, he explained.  ,
” When all the airlines are flying the same way, it’s ( manageable ) today, but you could eventually face capacity issues. If you were to put flights, from Beijing for instance, heading west to join that supply, it would further contribute to the gridlock”.
According to Bloomfield, there is typically an efficient flight way and level for fuel efficiency. Aircraft may be asked to change their speed or path if aircraft capacity approaches its limits, which could have an impact on flight times and gas consumption.
However, the current situation may have lessened those effects because the Chinese airlines now fly over Russia and while European carriers are now reducing their routes to and from China. In any case, Bloomfield noted that there is a cap on the number of airlines from either area that you fly.
In light of this, European carriers face a challenging task of keeping their roads to China, particularly as their Chinese rivals are extremely stepping up from the wings.
European carriers may lose money because the Chinese airlines have” but much” power and are “very intense” with their charges, noted Sobie from Sobie Aviation.  ,
” This is further exacerbated by the fact that the ( European ) carriers have longer flights. European companies simply cannot support flights into China in that atmosphere, it’s very clear”.
Experts have also questioned whether Chinese airlines may keep expanding in the Western market, especially as customer demand is uncertain.
The “big three” flights, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, and China Southern Airlines, all reported having reported quarterly profits, but their regular income from international routes dropped by about 30 % in the first quarter of 2024.
After a angry, hours-long conflict with his political soldiers, who refused to budge when investigators tried to kill their permit, Yoon’s first try to be apprehended on January 3 failed. According to local media reports, a shared CIO and police group has since obtained a fresh warrant and mobilized upContinue Reading
On Wednesday, about 6,500 Yoon supporters gathered at the house and some lawmakers from the ruling party were forming a human chain to halt the arrest warrant’s murder, according to Yonhap information agency. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials ( CIO ) and the police have organized numerous meetingsContinue Reading
BEIJING: One Chinese tourist was killed and another injured after their jet skis collided off Thailand’s Phuket island on Tuesday ( Jan 14), Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing China’s embassy in Thailand. The cause of the incident was being investigated, CCTV said. In only two weeks, there have beenContinue Reading
Southeast Asia is firmly in the forefront of China’s trade efforts, which analysts predict will only grow as the West’s growing geopolitical tensions and Trump 2.0 administration in the United States drag on.
This will make the benefits and drawbacks for the area more obvious, according to observers, which highlights the growing needed for nations to integrate a reaction to Beijing as they try to balance the scales.  ,
Consumers in South Asian countries gain from the variety and relative accessibility of Chinese products on the one hand. But on the other hand, local sectors face an extremely fraught environment.
Local businesses are seeing eroding profit margins, plant closures, and widespread job losses, according to Doris Liew, an economist and assistant research manager at the Malaysian think tank the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs ( IDEAS ).
” Southeast Asia is grappling with the negative effects of China’s trade abundance, a problem that extends far beyond the region.
Analysts say the key is whether South Asian states can work together to navigate the landscape, especially given their varying stages of development and varying needs, as some South Asian states are considering countermeasures like anti-dumping tariffs.  ,
” The reality is that the consequences are wildly diverse for specific industries … a single cross-region or even cross-industry result is so unlikely”, Diana Choyleva, chief analyst at Enodo Economics, told CNA.
China’s import website has been operating at full capacity as its local market struggles with a sluggish property market and weak consumer demand. Exports make up around 20 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product ( GDP ).
Exports in 2024 grew 7.1 per cent year-on-year to 25.45 trillion yuan ( US$ 3.47 trillion ), exceeding 25 trillion yuan for the first time, according to China customs data released on Monday ( Jan 13 ).  ,
” China consolidated its position as the world’s largest buying state in products”, said Wang Lingjun, assistant head of the General Administration of Customs, at a press conference on Monday.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a strategic Himalayan road tunnel on Monday ( January 13 ), allowing for cross-border disputed high-altitude disputes with rivals China and Pakistan. The Z-Morh or Sonmarg pipe, which extends 6.4 kilometers beneath a dangerous mountain pass that is closed off by frost for fourContinue Reading
MANILA: The Philippines announced on Sunday ( 12 January ) that it had deployed a coast guard ship to confront Chinese police boats ‘ attempts to “alter the existing status quo” in the contested South China Sea.
Beijing asserts the majority of the proper waterway despite a 2016 worldwide tribunal decision that was opposed, and Philippine and Chinese vessels frequently engage in hostilities or anxious standoffs.
Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam even have promises to the lakes.
Commodore Jay Tarriela, a Philippine Coast Guard spokesman, said Chinese patrol ships had this year come as close as 60 nautical miles ( 111km ) west off the main Philippine island of Luzon.
” Their objective is to normalise for operations, and if these steps go unnoticed and unquestioned, it will allow them to change the existing position quo”, he said in a speech.
Eventually, he later claimed that Manila had sent a coast guard ship to the place to fight off the “unlawful” Foreign patrols.
He claimed that the implementation was meant to make sure that Chinese patrols “are not normalized, and that this bullying behavior does not thrive.”
Between December 30 and January 11, according to Tarriela, the Taiwanese coast guard reportedly deployed three vessels into Spanish waters from its Guangdong and Hainan bases.
The South China Sea conflicts have sparked problem they could bring the United States, Manila’s long-time safety ally, into military conflict with China.
Thatchai told Thai PBS TV that an initial examination of Wang’s phone chat reports confirmed his history. He claimed Wang told police that there were about 50 different Chinese people present at the same place. Like him, all had their heads shaved, he told officers. He claimed he was alsoContinue Reading