Coronavirus
Japan relaxes mask guidelines in COVID milestone
Masked faces still abound after government makes wearing them a personal choice
Coronavirus
Transportation
Aircraft lease rates near pre-COVID levels for narrow-body jets
Travel recovery and production bottlenecks drive up costs for airlines
Coronavirus
COVID patients in Japan to foot more costs after downgrade
Testing, vaccine requirements for international arrivals to end on May 8
Caixin
Uncertainties hurt prospects of China's homegrown COVID antivirals
SIM0417 and VV116 lack data on effectiveness, face competition from Paxlovid
Property
Thai developer Central Pattana eyes $3.9bn for malls, homes over 5 years
Expanded investment plan includes hotels, anticipating rapid tourism rebound
Property
Singapore's Keppel sells upscale Myanmar hotel for $57m
Hospitality industry hammered by pandemic and military takeover
Politics
How China's new No. 2 hastened the end of zero-COVID
Li Qiang went from locking down Shanghai to resisting Xi's reopening hesitance
Travel & Leisure
Slow return of Chinese tourists stalls Japan's hotel recovery
Occupancy rate drops below 70% for the first time in four months
Travel & Leisure
Cruise ships return to Japanese ports after 3-year COVID gap
Japan takes first step toward regaining 2m cruise passengers annually
Coronavirus
FBI claim of lab leak likely sparking COVID draws China derision
Beijing rips U.S. 'credibility'; Washington says no consensus on pandemic origin
Economy
China manufacturing expands at fastest pace since April 2012
Easing of COVID restrictions, rising consumer sentiment buoy February PMI
Politics
Hong Kong seeks to claw back reputation with busy month of events
Mask mandate dropped, government 'desperate' to return to global stage with shows
Travel & Leisure
Japan opens up to Chinese tourists, but can it handle the rush?
80% of hotels short-staffed as country sees 84 times as many overseas visitors
Coronavirus
Hong Kong to scrap COVID mask mandate from March 1
Aims to lure back visitors and business, restore normal life after over 3 years
Coronavirus
Japan scraps arrival COVID tests for China visitors from March 1
Travellers still need to show negative results before takeoff
Travel & Leisure
Marriott and Hilton see China tourism rebound lifting growth in 2023
Stronger room demand set to drive up revenue following U.S. recovery
Coronavirus
China says COVID-19 epidemic has 'basically' ended
Officials claim 'major decisive victory' over virus although there are still cases
Companies
Qantas leaps to record H1 profit but softer fares spook investors
Australian airline announces $341m share buyback
Coronavirus
South Korea to scrap COVID test for travelers from China
Beijing willing to consider reciprocal measures when appropriate
