HONG KONG -- PetroChina plans to lift spending on resource exploration and development this year, but acknowledged supply risks stemming from the Middle East conflict, as China's energy majors juggle opportunities and challenges in a sector rocked by war.

KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan -- The leader of the Kuomintang, the main opposition party in Taiwan, is set to visit China for a likely meeting with President Xi Jinping, marking the first such encounter in a decade, the party said on Monday.

NEW DELHI -- India has rolled out a 4.97 billion-rupee ($52.5 million) relief scheme for its exporters affected by logistics disruptions due to the Middle East conflict, aiming to cushion them from "extraordinary" escalations in freight rates, heightened insurance premiums and war-related risks.

CANBERRA -- Shares in Australian coal miners have jumped as Iran's effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz chokes off oil and gas supplies, pushing Asia toward other sources of energy.

BRUSSELS -- President Emmanuel Macron is making a four-day trip to Japan and South Korea to elevate France's relations with Asian allies as his government navigates an unpredictable relationship with a volatile U.S. and an increasingly assertive China amid the war in the Middle East.

TOKYO -- Japan cut purchase subsidies for electric vehicles from China's BYD by more than half to 150,000 yen ($936) as part of revisions announced Friday, which favor automakers that use domestically produced batteries.

TOKYO -- Stock in Japan and South Korea plunged on Monday morning , amid reports of possible U.S. ground operations against Iran, in a war now in its second month that has kept Persian Gulf oil supplies severely disrupted.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has made a huge splash since coming to office nearly six months ago. Her popularity propelled her ruling Liberal Democratic Party to a two-thirds majority for the first time in its seven-decade history, and she's taken the global stage by storm with her energetic diplomacy.

Now she is facing the first major test of her time in office as the war in the Middle East roils markets and the nation's economy. The conflict is also posing questions about Japan's security capabilities