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BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s consumer spending over the Lunar New Year period could rise 13.6% to 45 billion baht ($1.36 billion), a three-year high, as the economy recovers and China’s border reopening bolsters tourism, a university survey showed on Thursday. The estimated spending compares with 39.6 billion baht last year, Thanavath Phonvichai, president of the …

Thai Lunar New Year spending seen at 3-yr high as tourism rebounds – survey Read More »

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong said it will no longer require people infected with COVID-19 to quarantine from Jan. 30, removing one of the last major coronavirus restrictions in place in the Asian financial hub. The scrapping of the isolation requirements is part of a decision to downgrade COVID-19’s status to an endemic disease …

Hong Kong to scrap isolation requirement for people with COVID Read More »

KABUL (Reuters) -The United Nations deputy secretary-general discussed women’s rights with Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister on Wednesday after the Taliban authorities banned most female aid workers and stopped women and girls from attending high school and university. Amina Mohammed has also met with U.N. staff, aid groups and Afghan women “to take stock of the …

Deputy U.N. chief has talks in Afghanistan on women’s rights Read More »

HONG KONG (Reuters) -If China wants to reverse a decline in population, more should be done to help families raise their children, according to Wei Chao, a 31-year-old mother of twin girls living in Shanghai, and many more parents interviewed by Reuters held the same view. “Nowadays many people do not want to have children …

Make it easier to raise children say many Chinese after population falls Read More »

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – The number of children grappling with various forms of undernutrition in Sri Lanka increased for the first time in at least six years in 2022, a government report and data from the health ministry indicate. The island nation of 22 million people is struggling with soaring prices, including of food, largely …

Child nutrition drops in Sri Lanka amid economic crisis Read More »

HONG KONG (Reuters) – China will soon launch a state-backed platform for transport which includes services of ride-hailing, cargo trucking, road transport, railway, ferry and flight services, Chinese state media Beijing Daily reported on Wednesday. The online platform, which has completed internal tests, is expected to integrate more than 90% of total capacity of the …

China to launch state-backed transport platform for ride-hailing, trucking Read More »