Kim Min-seon bought an electric vehicle from China’s BYD in July. “Everyone reacted like, ‘Why did you buy a Chinese car? Are you trying to get yourself killed?’” the 48-year-old Seoul resident said. Her purchase would have been unthinkable just a few years ago in South Korea, where Chinese cars have been long dismissed as shoddy. At around $18,500, the Dolphin compact…

The Iran war is showing why the Philippines can’t afford to neglect its farmers
A war thousands of kilometers away is beginning to ripple through something as basic as the Filipino dining table. The conflict involving Iran has pushed oil prices higher, disrupted key shipping routes, and strained global supply chains—especially for fertilizer, a critical input for food production. Farmers are already feeling the pressure. Fertilizer prices have surged by as much as 30% to 40%,…