THE HOT STORY

Delivery robots take to Shenzhen's subway to restock 7-Eleven stores

Subway trains across the southern Chinese megacity of Shenzhen saw a fleet of delivery robots join passengers during off-peak hours to restock 7-Eleven's station outlet. The metre-tall robots, operated by a logistics subsidiary of Chinese property giant Vanke, are capable of autonomously riding lifts, entering and exiting platforms, boarding trains and delivering goods to 7-Eleven stores across the city. “These robots are specially designed with unique chassis systems that allow them to cross gaps to enter lifts and carriages”, said Hou Shangjie, head of automation at VX Logistics, the Vanke subsidiary. “They will continue to iterate based on real-world performance.” Li Yanyan, a manager at one of the 7-Eleven stores involved in the project, said: “In the past, delivery workers had to park above ground, unload goods, and manually push them into subway stations . . . Now, with robots, it’s much easier and more convenient."

South China Morning Post

HIRING

Younger workers vanish from Korea's top firms

Analysis by CEO Score reveals a significant decline in the share of employees in their 20s at Korea's largest companies, dropping from 24.8% in 2022 to 21% in 2024. The report, which examined sustainability disclosures from 67 of the top 100 firms, indicates that over half of these companies reduced their younger workforce. Samsung Display experienced the steepest decline, with a 15.4 percentage point drop. In contrast, Hanwha Aerospace saw an increase in its share of young workers, attributed to a boom in the defence sector. Cho Won-man, chief executive of CEO Score, said: “With growing economic uncertainties, companies appear to be scaling back or scrapping open recruitment for new graduates.”

Korea Joongang Daily

The Korea Times

Citi confirms investment banking recruitment goals

Citigroup plans to increase its investment banking workforce in Japan by 10% to 15% over the next year, alongside new hires in Australia, as it aims to capitalise on a surge in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. The bank's investment banking fees in Japan have risen by 140% to $92m, driven by a growing interest in complex geopolitical deals and a shift in corporate governance.

Reuters

ECONOMY

Global economy may do better in second half of year, OPEC says

In a monthly report published on Tuesday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said the world economy may perform better than expected in the second half of the year despite trade conflicts. "India, China, and Brazil are outperforming expectations so far, while the United States and the Eurozone are experiencing a continued rebound from last year," OPEC said in the report. "With this, the second-half 2025 economic growth may turn out better than currently expected."

Arab News

LEGAL

China strengthens legal arsenal against sanctions

China's ruling Communist Party has instructed its top judicial bodies to enhance their understanding of international and foreign laws to strengthen the nation's legal framework against foreign sanctions and jurisdiction. The judicial guidance document is part of Beijing’s overall plan to “sharpen its legal tools to protect its overall national interests,” said Deng Yuwen, former deputy editor of Study Times, the official publication of the Central Party School, the party’s top ideological training centre. Similar guidance was previously issued for police in 2019 and prosecutors in 2021.

South China Morning Post

TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

Students in Japan struggle with language and math on national exam

Japan's Education Ministry reports that the average correct answer rates in the Japanese language and math sections of a national achievement test for students in 2025 fell to 67%, from 67.8% the previous year. Among third-year junior high school students, the rate dropped to 54.6% from 58.4%, the lowest level since the current question format was introduced in 2019. For the math section, the rate slid to 58.2% from 63.6% among elementary school sixth-graders, while in science it declined to 57.3% from 63.4% in 2022, the last time it was held. The tests were conducted in April, with 1.9m students from 28,000 schools participating.

Japan Times

TECHNOLOGY

Meta to invest hundreds of billions in AI push

Meta Platforms chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has announced that the Facebook parent company will invest hundreds of billions of dollars to construct several large artificial intelligence (AI) data centres aimed at advancing superintelligence, with the first centre, Prometheus, expected to be operational by 2026. His ambitious plan includes the establishment of multiple "titan clusters," one of which will cover a significant area comparable to Manhattan, as Meta seeks to enhance its competitive edge in the AI sector amid a talent acquisition drive for top engineers.

Reuters

INTERNATIONAL

France's PM looks to scrap two public holidays

France's Prime Minister François Bayrou has proposed cutting two public holidays as part of a 2026 budget proposal to cut overall spending while also increasing defence expenditure. Bayrou suggested axing Easter Monday and 8 May, a day that commemorates the Allied victory at the end of World War Two in Europe. He said Easter Monday had "no religious significance" and the whole nation had to work and produce more, observing that the various bank holidays had turned the month of May into a gruyère - a Swiss cheese full of holes - although he added he was open to other suggestions. On Tuesday, Bayrou saud that France was "in mortal danger" of being crushed by debt. The far-right National Rally (RN) party blasted Bayrou's proposal as an attack on French history and on French workers, while Green party leader Marine Tondelier lamented that the day that commemorated victory against Nazism would no longer be a holiday.

BBC News

New York Times

Reuters

US nuclear regulator asks job candidates political questions

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has come under fire for a job posting that includes political questions. The position, for a senior operations engineer, asks applicants how their commitment to the US Constitution informs their work and how they would support the President's policies. Scott Burnell, an NRC spokesperson, said that the agency is adhering to Office of Personnel Management guidelines. However, former NRC chair Greg Jaczko described the questions as a "political litmus test," and suggested they undermine professional expertise. He remarked: "If I saw something like this as chair, I would tell the staff to replace them immediately with relevant professional questions."

U.S. News

Ford agrees to job protection scheme at its Cologne e-car site

Ford has agreed to a job protection scheme at its Cologne electric car plant covering more than 10,000 workers. Company and German employee representatives said voluntary redundancies are planned in response to sluggish adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). "The job cuts are primarily based on voluntary redundancies. The severance payments are generous and significantly better than usual in the automotive industry," works council head Benjamin Gruschka said. Ford has invested $2bn in transforming the Cologne site into an EV production hub.

Reuters

OTHER

Luxury goods market challenged by 'superfake' handbags

The Wall Street Journal reports that a new wave of highly realistic "superfake" luxury handbags is challenging the traditional luxury goods market. These counterfeits, often indistinguishable from genuine products without X-ray or forensic tools, are made with high-quality materials and cost between $500 and $5,000. Sold via encrypted platforms and promoted by influencers, superfakes appeal to younger consumers disillusioned by luxury markups. Factories in China, sometimes run during ghost shifts, use insider knowledge, stolen tech packs, and even genuine items as templates. While some see fakes as potential stepping stones to future customers, others warn of lost sales and eroded brand trust. Despite the threat, the Wall Street Journal notes that luxury brands still invest more in advertising than in anti-counterfeiting measures.

Wall Street Journal

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