TOKYO -- The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is proceeding with a U.S. proposal to set an international rule on what companies are subject to a digital services tax, the intergovernmental organization told about 140 countries and regions participating in the negotiations.

The OECD discussed a number of calculations under the proposal put forward by the U.S. in April. The tax would affect about 100 global companies that exceed a certain standard based on profit margin and revenues.

The organization is aiming to reach

BEIJING (Reuters) -- A remote-controlled Chinese motorised rover drove down the ramp of a landing capsule on Saturday and onto the surface of the Red Planet, making China the first nation to orbit, land and deploy a land vehicle on its inaugural mission to Mars.

Zhurong, named after a mythical Chinese god of fire, drove down to the surface of Mars at 10:40 a.m. Beijing time (0240 GMT), according to a post on the rover's

HANOI -- Vietnam has gone on high alert nationwide to contain COVID-19 outbreaks in the north, even as the country holds a general election Sunday for 69 million voters to select 500 members of parliament.

Vietnam reported 131 more local coronavirus cases Friday, pushing its community tally in the latest wave since April 27 to 1,892. Bac Giang Province, the epicenter, recorded 99 infections. Bac Giang and neighboring Bac Ninh -- home to around 20 industrial

TOKYO -- Leading carmakers such as Ford Motor and Toyota Motor are catching up with tech giants in the global race to develop self-driving technology as indicated by new patent data.

The two companies claimed the top two positions on a list of most competitive firms in terms of patents related to autonomous driving technology. The list was compiled by Nikkei and based on a survey of patents registered in the U.S. by the end of January conducted by Patent Result Co., a Tokyo-based company that analyzes such

TOKYO -- The fate of roughly 120 million doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine remains up in the air in Japan after the government paused the rollout the very same day it gave the green light for emergency use.

With Japan lagging behind such countries as the U.S. in vaccinations, Tokyo's mixed messages have drawn criticism. Still, the vaccine's road to real-world deployment remains rocky as fears over its potential side effects loom large.

The health ministry on Friday

TOKYO -- Japanese beverage company Kirin Holdings is stepping up support for coffee growers in Vietnam, as it looks to cash in on growing consumer demand for sustainable products.

The company is training farmers in sustainable production methods, including soil management, helping them obtain certification from an international accreditation organization that promotes sustainable farming. The company aims to extend support to farms in 700 locations, double the current figure, by the end of the year.

Kirin Holdings foresees growing sales of sustainably produced food and beverages as consumer awareness

KATHMANDU (Reuters) -- Nepal plunged into fresh political turmoil on Saturday as President Bidya Devi Bhandari dissolved parliament and fixed general elections in November amid a worsening COVID-19 outbreak.

The surprise announcement comes after a presidential statement said neither the caretaker Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, nor opposition leader Sher Bahadur Deuba were able to demonstrate a majority to form a new government by the Friday deadline set by Bhandari.

"The president has dissolved the House of Representatives and ordered the first phase of general elections on

BALI -- "Here in Bali, we believe in the law of karmaphala -- that our actions will determine what we receive in return, good or bad," says Gede Robi, frontman of rock band Navicula and the lead in "Palau Plastik," a new documentary about the sources and consequences of, and possible solutions to the scourge of plastic waste that pockmarks so many of Indonesia's 17,000 islands.

The movie-length documentary, translated from Bahasa Indonesia as Plastic Island,

NEW YORK -- After meeting with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said his country will always stand with America in "defending liberal democratic international order," a pledge meant to show the strength of the alliance while not directly criticizing China.

Moon met Harris at latter's ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex, ahead of his meeting with President Joe Biden. It followed the same schedule as Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga,