Accessibility links
Asia Asia

Asia

Asian Investors Find Hot Market In U.S. Properties

In May, a large piece of the General Motors Building in Manhattan was purchased by a Chinese real estate developer. Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Parallels

Asian Investors Find Hot Market In U.S. Properties

Sales in commercial real estate in the U.S. have soared over the past year. Asian nations, particularly China, are scooping up trophy properties and investing in some large, long-term development projects at a record pace.

Asian Investors Find Hot Market In U.S. Properties

Listen · 5:21
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/227609255/227699527" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Truth Or Propaganda? Finding Real Stories In North Korea

Children mobilized for the annual mass games in Pyongyang act as pixels, portraying a happy patriot in uniform. David Guttenfelder /National Geographic hide caption

toggle caption
David Guttenfelder /National Geographic

Truth Or Propaganda? Finding Real Stories In North Korea

Some stories from the isolated nation are stranger than government-sponsored fiction. AP Asia correspondent Tim Sullivan brings us unexpected tales, like the North Korean love affair with Gone with the Wind.

Truth Or Propaganda? Finding Real Stories In North Korea

Listen · 4:59
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/226888234/227551591" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Market Bombing In Peshawar Leaves Dozens Dead

Pakistani rescue workers, police officers and civilians look for people who were wounded and killed at the site of a car bomb explosion in Peshawar, Pakistan, Sunday. Mohammad Sajjad/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Mohammad Sajjad/AP

The Two-Way

Market Bombing In Peshawar Leaves Dozens Dead

An explosion has killed at least 37 people in Peshawar, Pakistan, where authorities say they suspect a car bomb was detonated in a street market near a police station. The powerful blast left a scene of devastation, with casualties and severe damage to nearby buildings.

Another Earthquake, Measured At 6.8 Magnitude, Hits Pakistan

A Pakistani youth stands in the doorway of a damaged house in the devastated district of Awaran Wednesday. A powerful 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck the same region Saturday. Banaras Khan/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Banaras Khan/AFP/Getty Images

The Two-Way

Another Earthquake, Measured At 6.8 Magnitude, Hits Pakistan

Pakistanis who endured Tuesday's strong earthquake that killed hundreds of people felt another quake Saturday in a remote area of Baluchistan province. The quake struck less than 20 miles from Tuesday's 7.7-magnitude event.

Shanghai To Open Free-Trade Zone To Boost China's Growth

On Sunday, Shanghai will open a free trade area that officials say will be a laboratory for overhauling the world's second-largest economy. The new zone is garnering lots of media attention in China, but details remain sketchy.

Shanghai To Open Free-Trade Zone To Boost China's Growth

Listen · 1:42
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/226716500/226716473" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
New Chinese Law Cracks Down On 'Rumor Mongers'

Chinese authorities go to great lengths to censor the Internet and control social media. A 16-year-old was recently arrested under a new law that bars "rumormongering" online. Here, customers use computers at an Internet cafe in Hefei, China, in 2012. Jianan Yu/Reuters/Landov hide caption

toggle caption
Jianan Yu/Reuters/Landov

Parallels

New Chinese Law Cracks Down On 'Rumor Mongers'

The Chinese government is one of the most aggressive when it comes to censoring the Internet and restricting social media. A 16-year-old boy recently became the first person arrested under a new law that bars the spreading of rumors.

Concerns Growing Over North Korea's Nuclear Program

Robert Siegel talks to Joshua Pollack, a consultant to the US government, about concerns that North Korea has or could soon have the tools to make the centrifuges to enrich the uranium to make the atomic weapons without having to import key elements in the process. Pollack studies arms control, proliferation, deterrence, intelligence, and regional security affairs. He also writes for the blog Arms Control Wonk.

Concerns Growing Over North Korea's Nuclear Program

Listen · 4:10
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/226205900/226208518" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
For Some NYU Students, A Sweet Deal To Study ... In Shanghai

New York University in Shanghai is the first Sino-U.S. joint university. Here, a student speaks with an NYU staffer on Aug. 11. Liu Xiaojing/Xinhua /Landov hide caption

toggle caption
Liu Xiaojing/Xinhua /Landov

Parallels

For Some NYU Students, A Sweet Deal To Study ... In Shanghai

New York University's new Shanghai campus is the first Sino-U.S. joint-venture university. Chinese students get a Western education without leaving home. American students get to live and study in China, with many enjoying big breaks on tuition and other costs.

For Some NYU Students, A Sweet Deal To Study ... In Shanghai

Listen · 7:49
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/226107695/226205899" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
That's The Spirit: Why Indians Prefer Strong Beer, Liquor

A bartender pours Haywards 5000 strong beer into a glass at a restaurant in Mumbai. Strong beer, with alcohol content of 5 to 8 percent, accounted for 83 percent of all beer sold in India last year, according to research firm Mintel. Danish Siddiqui/Reuters /Landov hide caption

toggle caption
Danish Siddiqui/Reuters /Landov

Parallels

That's The Spirit: Why Indians Prefer Strong Beer, Liquor

Indians traditionally don't drink much compared with many other countries. But they are imbibing more these days and they do like the strong stuff. Liquor and strong beer dominate the market.

Pakistan Quake Killed Hundreds, Created Island Off Coast

It rose from the sea: The small island that appeared off the coast of Pakistan on Tuesday after an earthquake shook the region. Government of Pakistan/EPA/Landov hide caption

toggle caption
Government of Pakistan/EPA/Landov

The Two-Way

Pakistan Quake Killed Hundreds, Created Island Off Coast

The death toll from Tuesday's temblor in southern Pakistan may go even higher, authorities warn. Meanwhile, it appears that a "mud volcano" triggered by the quake has created an island. That's happened there before and it's likely the small land mass will slide back into the sea at some point.

World Economic Growth Points To More Planes In Asian Skies

An Airbus A320 on display during Airshow China 2012 at China International Aviation Exhibition Center in Zhuhai on Nov. 13, 2012. Increasing prosperity and urbanization in China and elsewhere in Asia will drive the global demand for aircraft, Airbus said Tuesday. Marina Lystseva /ITAR-TASS/Landov hide caption

toggle caption
Marina Lystseva /ITAR-TASS/Landov

Parallels

World Economic Growth Points To More Planes In Asian Skies

Airbus, the second-largest aircraft-maker, says that in 20 years China will overtake the U.S. as the world's top aviation market. The estimates are similar to projections issued by Airbus' bigger rival, Boeing, earlier this year.