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WASHINGTON: Global finance leaders came to Washington this past week seeking clarity on what it would take to get some relief from President Donald Trump’s multi-layered tariff assault and on just how much pain it will bring to the world economy. Most headed home with more questions than answers. Many participants in the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Spring Meetings had a sense that Trump’s administration was still conflicted in its demands from trading partners hit with his sweeping tariffs. During the whirlwind week, many finance and trade ministers sought to meet with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and…

Beijing has further tightened its management of rural government workers with revised anti-corruption supervision rules for grass-roots officials.The changes mean that after more than a decade of anti-corruption campaigns, China’s system for supervising rural officials has finally been defined, according to one scholar.The revised Regulations on the Honest Performance of Duties by Rural Grass-roots Officials came into force on March 28, state news agency Xinhua reported last week.The document was jointly issued by the Central Office of the Communist Party and the General Office of the State Council, China’s cabinet, and is the first revision of the rules since they…

Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Taipei on the weekend as part of an opposition rally against Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te.The Kuomintang (KMT) organisers of the rally claimed that more than 200,000 supporters attended the event. Citing an unidentified police source, Taiwan news site UDN.com said that at least 60,000 people attended the rally.Protesters gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office Building on Saturday, holding Republic of China flags and banners denouncing Lai’s rule.Addressing the crowd, KMT chairman Eric Chu Li-luan accused Lai of being a “dictator” who was trying to “eliminate…

To generations of Filipinos, Nora Aunor was not just a film star – she was the embodiment of their hopes, hardships and quiet resilience.Celebrated as the Philippines’ one and only “Superstar”, the diminutive actress with a golden voice and uncommon charisma rose from poverty to become a national icon – not for her glamour, but for her ability to portray the unvarnished lives of ordinary Filipinos.“She was full of contradictions, simple yet complicated,” said screenwriter and long-time collaborator Ricardo Lee, who delivered one of the most poignant tributes following Aunor’s death on April 16 at age 71.Aunor was laid to…

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldThe liquefied natural gas industry has warned the Trump administration it cannot comply with new rules aimed at forcing them to use US transport vessels by imposing levies on Chinese-built ships docking at US ports.It warns the rules published by US trade representative Jamieson Greer on April 17 could damage a $34bn a year export industry that is central to the president’s “energy dominance” agenda, according to lobbying letters sent by the American Petroleum Institute to the administration this week.…

Talks between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the United States to forge a “minerals-for-security” deal to help end violence in the country may threaten China’s mining dominance, but analysts say there are still many challenges ahead.In a proposal to cease hostilities in the country’s east, which worsened this year following the capture of strategic cities by the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group, Kinshasa has offered the US access to its vast mineral resources.In exchange, the DRC is seeking security guarantees and military support from the US, and hopes to attract American investment to reduce its reliance on China.Under…

TOKYO: Toyota Motor said it is exploring the possibility of investing in a potential buyout of key parts supplier Toyota Industries – a buyout that reportedly could cost $42 billion. “We are currently exploring various possibilities, including partial investment,” the automaker said in a filing with the Tokyo stock exchange on Saturday following reports about the possible buyout. Bloomberg News reported on Friday that Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda and his founder family have proposed acquiring Toyota Industries in a possible 6 trillion yen ($42 billion) deal. Toyota Industries, which has a market value of 4 trillion yen, said in a…

Gestamp, one of the world’s top manufacturers of metal parts for cars, is pursuing acquisition opportunities in China’s automotive sector, where an excess of capacity threatens unprofitable assemblers and supply-chain vendors.The Spanish company, which supplies chassis and body products for clients like Volkswagen and Ford, is bucking the trend among international automotive firms that are disposing of their facilities in the world’s largest vehicle market amid fierce competition.“Not every company in China’s automotive industry is profitable today, so we think that in the future, there may be some consolidations,” Francisco Jose Riberas Mera, executive chairman of Gestamp, told the Post…

Gestamp, one of the world’s top manufacturers of metal parts for cars, is pursuing acquisition opportunities in China’s automotive sector, where an excess of capacity threatens unprofitable assemblers and supply-chain vendors.The Spanish company, which supplies chassis and body products for clients like Volkswagen and Ford, is bucking the trend among international automotive firms that are disposing of their facilities in the world’s largest vehicle market amid fierce competition.“Not every company in China’s automotive industry is profitable today, so we think that in the future, there may be some consolidations,” Francisco Jose Riberas Mera, executive chairman of Gestamp, told the Post…

At a mountainside cafe in southwestern China, Liao Shihao brews handfuls of locally grown beans into steaming cups of coffee, a modern twist on the region’s traditional drink.For centuries, Puer in Yunnan province has given its name to a type of richly fermented tea – sometimes styled “pu-erh” – famous across East Asia and beyond.But as younger Chinese cultivate a taste for punchy espressos, frothy lattes and flat whites, growers are increasingly branching out into tea’s historic rival.“People are coming to try our hand-drip coffee … and more fully experience the flavours it brings,” said Liao, 25. “In the past,…