#south-east-expansion

#south-east-expansion

The Korean wave or hallyu that brought the country's culture to the world has now well and truly engulfed Latin America.

South Korea has launched a nationwide energy-saving campaign, enforcing an odd-even vehicle restriction system for public-sector cars based on licence plate numbers. Authorities urge voluntary compliance from private vehicle owners.

"Asia has more diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular patients than anywhere else in the world," Abrar Mir states, emphasizing the severity of the health crisis in the region.

The Malaysian government plans to slash the number of foreign workers to encourage local hiring and raise incomes, with significant changes to visa regulations coming in June.

A hotel is already alive long before it welcomes its first guest. Housekeepers make the rounds before dawn, kitchen crews rehearse dishes yet to be ordered, concierges prepare for the day. This unseen work is now expanding as Southeast Asia's travel sector expands at an unprecedented pace. The region's hospitality sector is projected to grow to roughly $208 billion by 2033, up from $136 billion in 2024, according to Deep Market Insights, a market research firm.

The upgrade places the EU on the same diplomatic footing as the United States, China and Russia and was announced during a visit to Hanoi by European Council President António Costa. "At a moment when the international rules-based order is under threat from multiple sides, we need to stand side by side as reliable and predictable partners," Costa said, adding that the partnership is about "developing spheres of shared prosperity."

A sprawling tale of two Singapores, the short documentary Sandcastles draws connections between Singapore, Michigan - a 19th-century ghost town swallowed by sand following widespread deforestation - and the island country of Singapore, where rapid development and land reclamation has, for decades, been enabled by the importation of sand. More poetic exploration than call to action, the work surveys waterways, cycles of development and the transient nature of sand - deceptively sturdy over short timescales but, over decades, quite volatile.

Windows 2000 Professional seems to be a popular choice for ticket machine operators: a small footprint, bombproof reliability, and content to sit in the background while the customer's software takes center stage. Unfortunately, that reliability was not on display in this ticket machine, spotted in Bangkok by an eagle-eyed Register reader. A reboot has brought Windows 2000 Professional out of the shadows, and the loading screen is visible.

The announcement of a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" between Brussels and Hanoi last week places the EU side by side with China, the United States, and Russia as one of Vietnam's top-tier diplomatic relationships. Vietnamese President Luong Cuong described it as a "historical milestone underlining the great achievements that the two sides have made," during a meeting with the head of the European Council, Antonio Costa, in Hanoi.

Asia's healthcare challenges include aging populations, rising disease, and strained infrastructure, but the crisis is better understood at the kitchen table, where families decide what conditions to treat, and what to ignore, according to their savings. While the APAC region makes up 60% of the world's population, the region accounts for a mere 22% of global healthcare spending. According to the World Health Organization, most developing Asian countries spend just 2-3% of GDP on health, and in many cases public

This year's Art SG, which closed last month, featured an intriguing debut: South Asian Insights, a modest pavilion dedicated to contemporary art from the region. Part of the TVS Initiative for Indian and South Asian Contemporary Art, it was backed by India's TVS Motor Company, one of the world's largest two-wheel manufacturers, which has its global headquarters in Singapore. Eight galleries-five from India-were each given a wall to showcase art.