An emergency alert is issued when areas experiencing a heatwave are forecast to hit perceived temperatures of 38°C or an actual temperature of 39°C for one day.

Barisan Nasional’s sweeping victory in the Johor state election has strengthened its hand within Malaysia’s unity government, while exposing cracks in Pakatan Harapan’s traditional support base, say analysts.

The morning after Johor, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition faces some grim electoral calculations, says CNA’s Leslie Lopez.

The prototype reusable rocket by Japan's space agency reached a height of about 10m and then landed, in a flight that lasted about 40 seconds.

This will be Mr Tharman's first state visit to Malaysia, Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Sealed during a landmark visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the pact covers tighter defence cooperation, including with naval exercises, as well as stronger ties in trade, diplomacy, culture, sport and science.

There was no immediate word on damage or casualties.

Barisan Nasional's Johor rival, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, won the remaining eight seats in the closely watched contest, losing ground from the 12 seats it secured in 2022.

The 15 who died were reportedly Indian tourists. Twenty-one people survived the accident. 

Police seized evidence that included 74kg of gold bars as well as US$5.8 million and S$17.2 million (US$13.3 million) in cash.

Streets were largely deserted in Taiwan's port city of Keelung, which is expected to be one of the hardest hit areas on the island.

Typhoon Bavi, described as one of the largest storms to hit Taiwan in more than 30 years, has already caused significant damage in parts of Asia.

Once on the edge of financial ruin, the South Korean chip giant has rebounded to debut on Wall Street in what is the largest US listing by a foreign company.

Pundits expect Barisan Nasional (BN) to retain Johor, while a think tank said Pakatan Harapan could wrest several marginal seats from BN if there is a 65-per-cent turnout among Chinese voters.

SK hynix’s NASDAQ listing raised US$26.5 billion, making it one of the largest stock sales in history.

China's space agency hailed the landing as a "major breakthrough in Chinese reusable rocket technology".

The Thai-flagged Mayuree Naree was hit on Mar 11 while travelling through the Gulf waterway early in the US-Israeli war with Iran, leaving three Thai crewmen dead and requiring 20 others to be rescued.

Authorities in India’s tech capital Bengaluru are banning the use of drinking water for non-essential activities including washing vehicles, watering gardens and construction work.

The Batanes Islands are located less than 200km from self-ruled Taiwan - which China considers part of its territory.

The cryptocurrency exchange's co-CEO Richard Teng believes blockchain will be the future of financial services, but says wider adoption will depend on greater regulatory clarity and increased institutional participation.