Philippines–China Tensions: China’s foreign ministry hit back at Manila after Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro read out a Chinese note at a Seoul forum, calling it “grandstanding and lying” and reiterating Beijing’s South China Sea stance. Japan–Workplace Reform: Japan’s paternal leave take-up hit about 50.9%, but gaps remain as men still take shorter leave than women and workplace support lags. Japan–Immigration: Tokyo has not decided when to resume foreign worker intake for the food sector under the Specified Skilled Worker (i) track, with the industry saying staffing is “stretched.” ASEAN–Scams: A GSMA report says nearly half of scam cases across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are still unresolved, with messaging apps the main entry point. ASEAN–Food Inflation: OCBC warns El Niño is more likely to lift prices than slow growth, with rice, wheat, maize and vegetable oils the key channels. China–Investment & Trade: Global investors remain bullish on China’s long-term prospects as CIFTIS draws wide participation; China also says it’s open to AI talks with the US while warning of retaliation over restrictions. Myanmar–AI Supply Chain: A major tin mine in Myanmar is restarting and ramping exports to China, a boost for AI-linked electronics supply. Mongolia–Finance & Broadband: Mongolia signed an MoU with BlackRock’s markets advisory unit, while Mobinet is rolling out Plume tech for AI-optimized home broadband. Japan–Asian Games Security: Japan plans to mobilise about 10,000 police for the Nagoya opening ceremony, including drone no-fly zones and an info-gathering centre.