Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) - The United States is seeking to secure supplies of TNT in Japan for 155mm artillery shells, as Washington rushes weapons and ammunition to Ukraine for a counteroffensive against Russian forces, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

For war-renouncing Japan, any procurement would test its willingness to court controversy to help Kyiv because export rules ban Japanese companies from selling lethal items overseas, such as the howitzer shells that Ukraine fires daily at Russian units occupying its southeastern regions.

BEIJING (AP) — China’s Ukraine envoy appealed Friday to other governments to “stop sending weapons to the battlefield” and hold peace talks but gave no indication that his trip to the region made any progress toward a settlement.

Li Hui’s appeal came as Washington and its European allies are ramping up supplies of missiles, tanks and other weapons to Ukrainian forces that are trying to take back Russian-occupied territory.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s government says it is neutral and wants to serve as a mediator but has supported Moscow politically.

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s National Police Agency said in a report Thursday that flaws in basic security such as an absence of metal detectors and bag checks allowed an attacker to enter a campaign crowd unnoticed and throw a pipe bomb at Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in April.

The bomb fell near Kishida and he was pushed away by special police before it exploded and he was unhurt.

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets followed Wall Street higher Friday ahead of an update on the U.S. jobs market after Federal Reserve officials reignited hopes another interest rate hike might be postponed and lawmakers gave final approval to a deal to avert a government debt default.

Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul advanced. Oil prices strengthened.

BANGKOK (AP) — The huge trade in methamphetamine and other illegal drugs originating from a small corner of Southeast Asia shows no signs of slowing down, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime warned Friday.

“High volumes of methamphetamine continue to be produced and trafficked in and from the region while the production of ketamine and other synthetic drugs has expanded,” said the agency’s 2023 report, Synthetic Drugs in East and Southeast Asia — the first since the borders reopened post-COVID-19 pandemic.

SINGAPORE (AP) — As the United States and China vie to establish new partnerships and expand influence with Asia-Pacific nations, the top defense officials from both countries are preparing to try to win support this weekend from their regional counterparts, diplomats and leaders at a security forum in Singapore.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whose country is a stalwart American ally in the Pacific, is to give the keynote address Friday evening to open the dialogue at the Shangri-La Hotel hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank.

BEIJING, June 1 (APP): India is using visa restrictions as a tool to prevent media contacts between China and India, which is exacerbating bilateral tensions.

According to the Wall Street Journal, China and India have effectively kicked out a large number of each other’s journalists recently by denying visa renewals.

In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said that Chinese journalists had suffered unfair and discriminatory treatment in India for a long time.

KUALA LUMPUR, Jun 1 (NNN-BERNAMA) – The seasonally adjusted S&P Global Malaysia Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), posted 47.8 in May, down from 48.8 in Apr, S&P Global Market Intelligence said today.

The latest reading signalled further challenges for firms in the manufacturing sector with business conditions moderating to a great extent since Jan, the global research house said.

SHANGHAI (China), June 1 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Argentina’s Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, announced from Shanghai that he has obtained financing for approximately US$ 1 billion for investments and disbursements that will strengthen the Central Bank’s reserves.

Massa said on Twitter that the agreement was closed with the Chinese group Gezhouba for the development of dams in the province of Santa Cruz. “It is important to agree on issues that serve us for the present, but above all to agree on investments that serve for development,” he wrote.

SEOUL, June 1 (Reuters) - North Korea's latest space launcher appears to be a new design and most likely uses engines developed for the nuclear-armed country's intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), analysts said on Thursday.

The rocket, dubbed the Chollima-1, failed during its first launch attempt on Wednesday. It lifted off successfully but its second stage failed to start as expected, state media reported, and it crashed into the Yellow Sea.