
Southeast Asia's budget airlines bet on travel demand, despite competition woes
An airplane of VietJet Airline is seen at Noi Bai International Airport, in Hanoi, Vietnam, May 28, 2025. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa/File Photo
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South China Morning Post
40 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Air India flew Airbus planes with unverified emergency slides, prompting regulator warning
India's aviation regulator has warned Air India for breaching safety rules after three of its Airbus planes flew despite being overdue for checks on emergency equipment, and for being slow to address the issue, government documents show. Advertisement The warning notices and an investigation report – both reviewed by Reuters – were not in any way related to last week's crash of an Air India Boeing 787-8 plane that killed all but one of the 242 people on board, and were sent days before that incident. In the report, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said spot checks in May on three Air India Airbus planes found that they were operated despite mandatory inspections being overdue on the 'critical emergency equipment' of escape slides. In one case, the watchdog found that the inspection of an Airbus A320 jet was delayed by more than a month before being carried out on May 15. AirNav Radar data shows that during the delay the plane flew to international destinations such as Dubai, Riyadh and Jeddah. Another case, involving an Airbus A319 used on domestic routes, showed checks were over three months late, while a third showed an inspection was two days late. Advertisement 'The above cases indicate that aircraft were operated with expired or unverified emergency equipment, which is a violation of standard airworthiness and safety requirements,' the DGCA report said.


South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Caught in the chip war, Malaysia must rethink its US–China balancing act
Malaysia has landed in another tight spot – this time over claims Chinese engineers may have accessed high-end Nvidia chips on its soil to train artificial intelligence models, potentially breaching US export controls. Advertisement The timing could hardly be worse. Trade Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz and Second Finance Minister Amir Hamzah Azizan were in Washington this week to negotiate down a steep 24 per cent 'reciprocal tariff' imposed by US President Donald Trump in April. Now, their efforts risk being overshadowed by fears in Washington that Malaysia is serving as a backchannel for Chinese firms to access restricted chips – fears that could harden American attitudes and demands. The report, first published by the Wall Street Journal, claimed that an unnamed Chinese firm had booked out Malaysian data centres equipped with Nvidia's most advanced chips. US policy restricts the sale or export of these chips to China and its military-linked entities, including via third countries. A banner showing Nvidia branding at the AI & Big Data Expo 2025 in London on February 5. Photo: Reuters While it is unclear whether any laws were broken, the perception alone could prove damaging. Analysts expect Washington may use the case as leverage to push Malaysia into stricter enforcement of US export controls, especially given the billions of dollars in investments by American tech firms in Malaysian plants and data centres.


South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong stocks gain as PBOC's benchmark-rate choice spurs optimism on economy
Hong Kong stocks rose on Friday, paring the week's losses as China's decision to stand pat on a benchmark interest rate offered optimism that a recovery in the world's second-largest economy would hold up. Advertisement The Hang Seng Index climbed 0.6 per cent to 23,372.46 as of 10.10am local time, trimming the weekly loss to 2.1 per cent. The Hang Seng Tech Index gained 0.5 per cent. On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index and the Shanghai Composite Index added at least 0.1 per cent. Sunny Optical Technology Group advanced 3.7 per cent to HK$65 and sportswear maker Li Ning rallied 2.8 per cent to HK$15.42. China Life Insurance added 2.5 per cent to HK$18.20. Alibaba Group Holding rose 0.4 per cent to HK$110.40. China left the one-year loan prime rate at 3 per cent this month, and the five-year rate at 3.5 per cent, according to the central bank. The People's Bank of China has refrained from cutting the interest rate aggressively, stirring expectations that the economy has been riding out headwinds such as tariffs from the US and a downturn on the property market. Other major Asian markets were mixed. Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 0.1 per cent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.7 per cent, while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.9 per cent. Advertisement