Masayuki Kitano News

Ten U.S. sailors were missing after a collision between a destroyer and a tanker east of Singapore on Monday, the second involving a U.S. warship and a merchant ship in Asia in about two months, triggering a fleet-wide probe of operations and training. The guided-missile destroyer John S. McCain and the tanker Alnic MC collided while the warship was heading to Singapore for a routine port call. The collision tore a hole in the warship's waterline, flooding compartments that included a crew sleeping area, the U.S. Navy said in a statement. "Initial reports indicate John S.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a regional security forum that Tokyo would offer its "utmost support" to Southeast Asian countries - several locked in maritime rows with Beijing - in their efforts to protect their seas and airspace, as he pitched his plan for Japan to take on a bigger international security role. Abe, in his keynote address on Friday at the Shangri-La Dialogue for security officials and experts from Asia, also stressed the need for all countries to respect international law - often code for criticising China's assertive military stance. Tensions have ratcheted up in the region, where Japan has a festering dispute with China over tiny isles in the sea between the two Asian economic giants.

Singapore's first-quarter growth could be revised higher after data on Friday showed unexpectedly strong industrial output in March, double the pace of market expectations, with output in marine and offshore engineering +45.1% y/y. Manufacturing output in March surged 12.1 percent from a year earlier, far exceeding expectations in a Reuters poll for growth of 6.3 percent. Output rose 6.1 percent on a month-on-month, seasonally adjusted basis, quicker than the median forecast of 1.5 percent. Helping to drive the surprising strength in industrial production was a surge in output in the marine and offshore engineering segment, which jumped 45.1 percent year-on-year.

Reuters - Ministers in 12-nation Trans-Pacific trade talks said on Tuesday they have made progress trying to finalize a deal during a four-day meeting in Singapore, but several issues remain, particularly questions over market access. "While some issues remain, we have charted a path forward to resolve them," said New Zealand Trade Minister Tim Groser, reading from a joint media release at the end of the meeting. "Market access" issues remain one of the main sticking points, the ministers said. Ministers involved in the talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which aims to break down trade barriers across a wide range of sectors, had signalled ahead of the meeting that they were close to reaching a deal.