Asia Pacific

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has urged companies to agree to pay higher wages to employees in upcoming spring negotiations with labour unions.

Vancouver-based RepliCel Life Sciences Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, has been granted a patent by Japan's Ministry of International Trade and Industry for the applied use of hair follicle mesenchymal stem cells, the company announced January 13.

North Vancouver-based Aurora Control Technologies Corp. (TSX-V:ACU), a manufacturer of inline measurement systems for the photovoltaic industry, has appointed Hauman Technologies Corp. as its market partner for Taiwan, the company announced January 9.

The average number of online purchases by Australians has grown over 46% in the last two years after stalling in the wake of the 2008 global recession. Three in 10 Australians now shop online at least once a week, compared with two in 10 New Zealanders and one in 10 Swiss, according to a study by Swinburne University of Technology. The survey of 1,000 Australians found 73% of online purchases were from local suppliers.

China's parliament, the National People's Congress, has approved a loosening of the regulations governing the country's one-child policy, introduced in 1979 to try to curb the country's burgeoning population. The distorted demographic stemming from the one-child policy means that China has insufficient young people entering the economy to sustain economic growth or pay for the support of the aging population.

Malaysia's stock market was shocked post-Christmas when financial research institute MIDF found that much of the foreign money in the market, estimated at the equivalent of $6 billion earlier in the year, had fled the country. MIDF figured that two days after Christmas only $1.2 billion of foreign money was left. The suggested explanation: mutual fund portfolio managers' account book "window dressing" to improve the appearance of their management.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's drive to reduce the value of Japan's currency to stimulate exports and generate a modicum of inflation to encourage Japanese to spend has boosted tourism. Japan has become one of the most popular destinations for Asian travellers, especially from China, Taiwan, Thailand, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam and India. In 2013, Japan attracted 10 million visitors; this year, the Tokyo government hopes to attract nearly 12 million.

The market for the Internet's virtual currency, Bitcoin, has become a favourite playground for cyber-fraudsters, nowhere more so than in Asia. According to the information technology security firm Trend Micro, four of the countries with the highest computer infections transmitted through Bitcoin transactions, a favourite carriage for spreading malware, are in Asia. Top is Japan, followed by Australia, India and Taiwan.

ACT360 Solutions Ltd. (TSX-V:AKM) has entered into a licensing agreement with India’s Savvica Inc., the Vancouver company announced January 3.

Cambodia has won the unenviable distinction that its levels of corruption have worsened since its Anti-Corruption Unit was formed in 2010.