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The story of rare earths echoes that of chip manufacturing, which our Business Spotlight delves into from an environmental perspective. Asia's biggest chipmakers, including Taiwan's TSMC, are lagging behind their U.S. and European rivals in the race to cut carbon emissions. That is in large part because they lack access to ample renewable resources, and making chips, especially cutting-edge ones, is extremely energy intensive.
The war in Ukraine, with the recent short-lived mutiny by the Wagner paramilitary group still fresh in our minds, is further complicating tensions between Washington and Beijing. A new investigative report by Nikkei Asia shows that Russia has for months been importing drones from Chinese companies explicitly for use in its invasion of Ukraine, despite denials from Beijing that such equipment is being deployed in the war.
Though tensions surrounding China remain strong, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is seeking a chance to have a high-level dialogue with the country. Clouding the immediate prospects for better bilateral ties, however, is Beijing's opposition to the release of treated wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the North Pacific, which is due to start as early as August. Although the International Atomic Energy Agency on Tuesday approved the release of the water, China appears to remain firm in its objection, and the Japanese government will be tested on how it can manage its relationship with the neighboring country.
Over in the Philippines, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been making consistent efforts to strengthen ties with the U.S. -- a push that makes him stand out among Southeast Asian leaders and puts him in sharp contrast to his predecessor, who maintained a friendlier tone with China. This week's Asia Insight analyzes Marcos' first year in office, during which he has defied many skeptics by winning the confidence of business, bolstering the alliance with the U.S. and pledging to respect human rights.
Market Spotlight focuses on India, where former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga led a delegation of roughly 100 business executives this week. His predecessor, Shinzo Abe, would have headed the visit if he had not been killed by a bullet exactly one year ago tomorrow. According to the feature, India's startups are facing growing doubts among international investors due to concerns about poor governance and bad business ethics.
Finally, I would like to recommend a fun piece by Andrew Benfield, who in a Tea Leaves column discusses the concept of flygskam, or "flight shame" -- the Swedish term for a social movement that encourages people to ditch air travel to save the planet. Benfield experimented with this idea during a recent train journey in Southeast Asia, which lacks the kind of high-speed rail infrastructure seen in Europe. His trip from Bangkok to Singapore took a long time, as one would expect, but it taught him the value of slow travel, something that cannot be fully appreciated with a quick flight.
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