Muslims took to the streets in huge protests around Asia after Friday prayers, sparked by remarks about the Prophet Mohammed by an Indian ruling party official that embroiled the country in a diplomatic storm.Anger has engulfed the Islamic world since last week, when a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party commented on the relationship between the prophet and his youngest wife on a TV debate show.Around 20 countries have since called in their Indian ambassadors and

For years there have been calls for Asia – which is home to some of the world's biggest carbon dioxide (CO2) emitters – to ditch fossil fuels to help tackle climate change.Countries in the region – including its three biggest economies China, Japan and India – were criticised last year for not making a bigger commitment at the COP26 global climate change conference.But six months on, there is another, arguably more immediate reason for Asia to make the transition away from oil, gas and c

Asian markets rose Monday as investors rediscovered some verve after the release of healthy United States (US) data and as China eases some of its strict COVID curbs in Shanghai and Beijing, lifting hopes for the world's number two economy.The gains extended a positive end to last week for global equities with some commentators saying there was a growing hope that the months-long sell-off may have run its course.Wall Street provided a strong lead and snapped a series of weekly losses, wi

Asian equities were up on Monday after a rally on Wall Street last week, but analysts say fears of a recession due to surging inflation and COVID-driven supply chain woes still have investors worried.World markets have been volatile for much of 2022, fuelled by uncertainty over supply chain snarls due to China's lockdowns, inflation pressures and European anxiety over the Ukraine war.Wall Street stocks closed Friday with a robust rally on tech-rich Nasdaq after a tumultuous week that saw

Asian equities were mostly up Friday following a tumultuous trading period on Wall Street, which rebounded at the close after investors calmed down about United States (US) policies to counter surging inflation.World markets have been volatile for much of 2022 owing to China's COVID-19 lockdowns, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and as surging inflation weighed on consumer sentiment.The Federal Reserve (Fed) last week had announced its largest rate hike since 2000 and signalled that si

Asia stocks mostly fell Tuesday as markets brace for a sharp United States (US) interest rate hike and similar moves by other central banks as they struggle to control inflation, with traders increasingly worried about another possible recession.Surging prices, moves to tighten monetary policy, China's COVID lockdowns, the Ukraine war and a stronger dollar have come together in recent weeks to cause a massive headache for investors, sending them running to the hills.All eyes are on the c

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has further dampened the economic prospects for developing countries in east Asia and the Pacific, meaning lower economic growth and higher poverty in the region this year, the World Bank has warned.The Ukraine factor came on top of the existing risks that the region – home to 2.1 billion people and stretching from China to Papua New Guinea – has been facing in recent years.

The COVID-19 pandemic took a turn for the worse this week after five weeks of improvement, driven by an upsurge of cases in Asia.Here is the state of play based on AFP's database:Eight Percent Rise The average number of global daily cases increased over the week by eight percent to 1.59 million, according to an AFP tally to Thursday.That is, however, half the number in late January, when cases peaked at 3.37 million per day.The confirmed cases only reflect a fraction of the actu

The COVID-19 pandemic continued its retreat around the world this week, but infections were still raging in hotspots in Asia and Oceania, led by Hong Kong and New Zealand.Here is the state of play based on AFP's database:12 Percent Fall The average number of global daily cases dropped for the fifth week in a row, shrinking by 12 percent to 1.47 million, according to an AFP tally to Thursday.Daily infections have fallen by half since peaking at 3.37 million in late January with t

On 18 February, 2022, six Filipino nationals from Ukraine arrived in the country after the Philippine government announced free repatriation flights for Filipinos living in the crisis-driven Eastern European state. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has estimated more than 350 Filipinos living in Ukraine.