Naturally blessed with a rich and diverse cultural heritage, Southeast Asia attracts a huge amount of tourists to the region every year. Its cultural heritage is manifested through a wealth of ancient monuments, heritage sites, colourful festivals and exotic cuisines which have become major tourist attractions for travellers who are seeking for a unique cultural experience.

The Philippines' military chief hailed the United States as his nation's "number one ally" and announced a return of regular war games, following President Rodrigo Duterte's call for warmer ties.Duterte last week vowed to be "friendly" with the United States, signalling an end to relentless criticism that included a vow to end all joint military exercises and branding then US president Barack Obama a "son of a whore".Military chief General Eduardo

Southeast Asia is a highly sought-after holiday destination for tourists and travellers from all across the world. The region, which is home to more than 630 million people, is geographically situated in the heart of Asia. Due to its tropical climate, the region is typically warm and humid all year round with plentiful rainfall. Southeast Asian countries are also known for its unique and diverse cultures as well as natural wonders like sandy beaches, mountains and wildlife.

Since the early 2000s, the Philippines added more than a million jobs as foreign companies outsourced customer support and sales tasks to the Southeast Asian nation.Now a looming wave of automation is threatening employment at call centres and forcing the industry to retrain workers to meet the demand for higher skilled jobs in areas such as healthcare, banking, finance and insurance.“The biggest challenge is people,” Jojo Uligan, president of the Contact Center Association of the Philippines

Singapore and Thailand are in discussions about connecting their national digital payment systems to forge an unprecedented regional alliance, as officials step up efforts to curb the use of cash.The link would bring together Southeast Asia’s first national digital-payment platforms, Singapore’s PayNow and Thailand’s PromptPay, said Naphongthawat Phothikit, director of payment systems policy at the Bank of Thailand.“The Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Bank of Thailand are exploring th

The US (United States) will continue to play an active role in ensuring peace and prosperity within Southeast Asia despite growing geopolitical shifts in the region.Speaking at the sixth Maritime Institute of Malaysia South China Sea Conference, Senior Advisor and Senior Director of the Asia Pacific Security Programme at CNAS (Centre for New American Studies), Patrick Cronin highlighted five key elements which would likely underpin the Trump administration’s approach towards this region.

Culture plays an important role when it comes to business and communication in the Southeast Asian region.

Take 7,100 islands, add 100 million people, throw in a twist of corruption, an unhealthy slug of poverty and a dab of dynastic politics, and what do you get? A recipe for disaster, you might think. And yet the Philippines has been simmering nicely enough as a developing democracy since the overthrow of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986. Recent years have been marked by relative stability and economic growth that’s outpaced most of Southeast Asia.

ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) is facing unpredictable times ahead.

Indonesia’s central bank should avoid cutting interest rates further because borrowing costs are at an appropriate level even as loan growth remains subdued, according to the chief of the country’s biggest lender.The current benchmark rate of 4.25 percent is “quite optimal,” Bank Mandiri President Director Kartika Wirjoatmodjo said in an interview on September 28. “Overall liquidity is much better” and “is not an issue anymore,” he said.