Human Times

APAC Edition

9th April 2026

THE HOT STORY

Singapore government offices told to restrict use of air-conditioning

Government offices in Singapore are being told to reduce electricity consumption in a bid to boost the nation’s energy resilience. Measures highlighted by the National Environment Agency include managing operating times and settings for air-conditioning, and turning off non-essential equipment when not in use. Singapore is just one of many countries which is taking steps to save energy as the conflict in the Middle East tightens global supplies. South Korea is considering curbs on driving to ameliorate the impact of the conflict, while government facilities in the Philippines have shortened their work week to save energy.

Bloomberg

WORKFORCE

China's former mining workers confront change

As China shifts focus from coal to renewable energy, many former miners are struggling to adapt. While Shanxi province aims to develop tourism and other sectors, experts warn that coal remains essential for energy security. Nevertheless, Yang Haiming, a retired coal miner from Datong, has transitioned successfully from mining to running a restaurant that serves lamb skewers to tourists visiting the Yungang Grottoes. Hang Kan, who directs the Yungang Research Institute that oversees the grottoes and is a representative in the National People's Congress, last year called for accelerated development of the culture and tourism industry into “a strategic pillar” that “promotes people's welfare" in Shanxi.

Yahoo News Australia

Understaffed immigration area at Incheon airport causes problems

Incheon International Airport is experiencing significant delays in processing foreign arrivals, with wait times reaching nearly two hours during peak periods. The Justice Ministry reported that foreign arrivals surged to 3.26m from January to March, a 16.4% increase from the previous year. However, staffing levels at immigration checkpoints have decreased, with only five or six officers available for foreign passport holders. The airport's immigration office requested 276 additional personnel, but only six were approved. An industry insider observes: "Airport services are failing to keep pace with the massive influx of overseas visitors."

The Korea Times

TECHNOLOGY

Ikea NZ rolls out automated picking system to boost online orders

Ikea New Zealand has launched a new automated picking system developed by AutoStore and Swisslog, capable of increasing order fulfilment speeds by up to 20 times, as part of its push to support growing e-commerce demand. The system uses robots to retrieve items from a grid of up to 10,000 bins, with around half of orders processed fully automatically, and is expected to improve efficiency while supporting future growth despite ongoing supply chain uncertainties.

New Zealand Herald

CYBERSECURITY

Anthropic says its new AI model is a cybersecurity ‘reckoning’

AI company Anthropic has built a new model that it claims is too powerful to be released to the public. Anthropic will instead make the Claude Mythos Preview available to a select 40 or so technology companies, including Apple, Amazon and Microsoft, which will use it to find and patch security vulnerabilities in critical software programs. Anthropic - which has recently been in dispute with the Pentagon over the use of its technology - said it had no plans to roll out its new technology more widely. The company said it was announcing the new model’s capabilities in the particular area of identifying security vulnerabilities in software in a bid to highlight what it believes will be a new, scarier era of AI threats, the New York Times reports. Anthropic's Logan Graham described the new model as “the starting point for what we think will be an industry change point, or reckoning, with what needs to happen now.”

ECONOMY

Japan's consumer confidence slumps amid Iran war, casting doubt on April rate hike

Japan’s consumer confidence fell sharply in March to a near one-year low according to a new government survey, marking the steepest decline since 2020, as rising fuel costs driven by the Iran conflict weigh on households and businesses. The sentiment index dropped 6.4 points to 33.3, with over 93% of households expecting prices to rise in the coming year, reflecting growing inflation concerns linked to surging energy costs after disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. The deterioration in sentiment, alongside surveys showing nearly 80% of firms expect the conflict to hurt business, is complicating the Bank of Japan’s upcoming rate decision, with analysts suggesting policymakers may delay an April hike amid heightened economic uncertainty.

Reuters

CORPORATE

Samsung forecasts record profit on AI boom

Samsung Electronics has forecast first-quarter operating profit of 57.2tn won ($38bn), up more than eightfold year-on-year and exceeding its full-year 2025 profit, driven by a strong AI-led memory chip supercycle, with sales expected to rise 68% to 133tn won despite higher energy costs linked to the Middle East conflict. The company is expected to report full earnings later this month.

CNBC

Financial Times

Reuters

INTERNATIONAL

Lufthansa cabin crew union calls one-day strike in Germany

Lufthansa cabin crew union UFO is calling on staff at the core brand and its ‌subsidiary airline Cityline to hold a one-day strike today. The union said the airline had shown no flexibility in talks over working conditions for the 19,000 cabin crew members or the redundancy package for roughly 800 employees of Cityline, ‌which ⁠is set to wind down. “This situation could have been avoided – the responsibility lies with Lufthansa, which has so far not even managed to put forward a proposal suitable for negotiation,” UFO chief Joachim Vázquez Bürger said.

Reuters

Riyadh firms extend work from home

Reuters reports that some Western and Saudi firms in Riyadh extended work-from-home advisories earlier this week amid mounting concern over the US-imposed deadline for Iran ‌to open the Strait of Hormuz or face "hell." The advisories, which were sent out on Monday and Tuesday, related to work in Riyadh's King Abdullah Financial District, Faisaliah Tower, Business Gate and Laysen Valley, people familiar with the matter said. The locations are home to offices for major US banks and tech firms including Microsoft and Apple, and also Saudi entities such as the sovereign wealth fund. The US and Iran have now agreed a two-week ceasefire that would open the Strait of Hormuz shortly before President Donald Trump’s deadline for Tehran to meet his demands or face strikes that he said would kill “a whole civilisation.”

Reuters

Trump proposes to cut 9,400 TSA workers

The Trump administration is proposing to cut more than 9,400 workers and just over $1.5bn from the 60,000-employee Transportation ‌Security Administration (TSA), according to a budget document for the Department of Homeland Security - which oversees the agency that handles airport security operations - that is part of the White House budget proposal for the next fiscal year. President Donald Trump last week proposed mandating smaller airports to use private security instead of TSA as a first step toward privatisation of the agency, which was created after the September 11, 2001, attacks. The American Federation of Government Employees, the union that represents TSA security officers and which opposes privitisation, said it would make air travel less safe.

Reuters

OTHER

Apple's foldable iPhone set for September

Apple plans to launch its first foldable iPhone in September, coinciding with the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max release. Despite concerns raised by a Nikkei Asia report about manufacturing delays, sources indicate that Apple is on track for the launch. The foldable model aims to compete with existing products from Samsung and other brands, featuring improved screen quality and durability. The expected price exceeds $2,000, which may impact consumer interest but could enhance Apple's revenue. Hardware chief John Ternus is leading the initiative as part of a broader three-year redesign strategy.

Nikkei Asia

Los Angeles Times

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