HANOI -- Vietnam's first coronavirus vaccine candidate is headed for a final-stage trial, giving a country that has accepted no Chinese-made shots a chance to gain ground on Southeast Asian peers in inoculating its people.

Nanocovax, a recombinant protein vaccine made using animal cells, was developed by a startup called Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology in collaboration with Vietnam Military Medical University. The first-phase trial began in December, followed by the start of the second phase in late February.

The final trial, involving 10

TOKYO/TAIPEI -- Asian stock markets dropped further on Thursday morning, extending a run of losses as investors fret over rising global inflation.

A sharp jump in U.S. consumer prices fueled market concerns over inflation and a possible rise in interest rates. April's 4.2% year-on-year rise in the consumer price index was the sharpest since 2008.

Following falls on Wall Street on Wednesday, Asian indexes also moved lower as investors turned away from the tech stocks that have

TOKYO -- Japan has taken its latest step to bring government at all levels further into the digital age, stung by the experience of last year's slow rollout of economic stimulus payments.

The parliament on Wednesday enacted six laws to promote electronic government, with steps such as ending a widely criticized source of bureaucratic inefficiency -- the use of seals to sign documents.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga made breaking the logjam on e-government one of the early priorities of his leadership, but under his watch Japan's response

TOKYO -- Hitachi has chosen Executive Vice President Keiji Kojima as its first new president in seven years, positioning him to lead the Japanese technology group through its latest growth phase.

"I'm committed to turning Hitachi into a global leader in social innovation," Kojima said during an online briefing on Wednesday. "The assets for competing on the world stage are now in place."

Kojima's resume includes overseeing the development of Lumada, Hitachi's pivotal industrial Internet of Things platform. Lumada is now a

TOKYO -- Japan has the most hospital beds per 1,000 people of any advanced economy, yet a new coronavirus wave has put the country's medical system under strain. Meanwhile, it has vaccinated the smallest share of its population among leading economies.

The cumulative death toll in Japan due to the coronavirus pandemic is about 11,000, a relatively small number compared to the U.S. and major European nations. However, Japan's current plight highlights not only a lack

TOKYO -- Toyota Motor is bullish on prospects for higher sales, forecasting a net income of 2.3 trillion yen ($21.1 billion) for the current business year through next March, up 2.4% from fiscal 2020, while its rivals continue to struggle with semiconductor shortages.

The Japanese auto giant remains confident that hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles will continue to play a major role for the company worldwide in 2030, as it expects to sell 2 million

DUBAI/TOKYO -- The worst flare-up in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in years has raised fears of a further escalation and prompted statements of grave concern from Asia.

What started with protests and physical clashes in Jerusalem has devolved into large-scale shooting this week, with the Gaza-ruling Islamist group Hamas firing hundreds of rockets into Israel and Israel Defense Forces aircraft pounding targets in the enclave.

Reports citing Gaza's Health Ministry said at least 43 people have been killed, including 13 children.

HONG KONG -- BYD, one of China's largest makers of electric cars and buses, is moving ahead with plans to list its semiconductor subsidiary even as rivals scramble to acquire chips to keep up production of their vehicles.

BYD shares rose 4.9% in both Hong Kong and Shenzhen on Wednesday in reaction to the company's disclosure that its board had approved plans for an initial public offering of the chip business on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's ChiNext board.

BYD Semiconductor generated net profit of 58

TOKYO -- Japan's real gross domestic product gained 1.8% in March from the previous month, boosted by exports and housing investment, according to estimates released Wednesday by the Japan Center for Economic Research.

The economy expanded for a second consecutive month to reach 545.19 trillion yen ($5 trillion) in annualized, seasonally adjusted terms. The pace of growth accelerated from 0.3% in February.

Exports grew 3% while housing investment rose 1.6%.