Top Asia Pacific Breaking News: Latest Updates

HONG KONG (AP) - China's exports rose 14.1% in April from a year earlier, the government said Saturday, despite the Iran war and lingering impacts from higher U.S. tariffs. The data were released just days ahead of a planned meeting next week between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing. That beat analysts' estimates and was a significant improvement from March's 2.5% year-on-year expansion. Exports to the U.S. rose 11.3% from the year before, up from a 26.5% drop in March. Imports climbed 25.3%, slower than the 27.8% growth in March but still robust. The Trump-Xi summit comes at a time when relations are beset by multiple issues, with efforts to end the war in Iran eclipsing the usual sources of friction.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Rescuers on Saturday recovered the body of an Indonesian woman who was caught in a volcanic eruption at Mount Dukono on Indonesia 's remote island of Halmahera a day earlier, as search operations continued to find the bodies of two Singaporeans, officials said. The slain hikers were among 20 who set out to ascend the 1,355-meter (4,445-foot) volcano in defiance of safety restrictions and became stranded when Dukono erupted early Friday, spewing a thick ash column that rose about 10 kilometers (6 miles) into the air. The woman, identified by authorities only as Enjel and known as a local hiker, was located Saturday afternoon, about 50 meters (165 feet) from the rim of the main crater, said Iwan Ramdani, who heads local Search and Rescue Office.

SEOSAN, South Korea (AP) - A Malta-flagged tanker carrying 1 million barrels of crude oil arrived off South Korea's west coast Friday after passing through the Strait of Hormuz in mid-April, a South Korean refinery said. Like many other Asian nations, South Korea imports much of its crude oil from the Middle East. The latest shipment of 1 million barrels reportedly equals 35-50% of South Korea's daily crude oil consumption. With Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz jolting the world economy and causing a spike in fuel prices, the prolonged Iran war has also raised concerns about a looming energy crisis in South Korea's trade-dependent economy.

HONG KONG (AP) - Pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai once hoped U.S. President Donald Trump could help stop the imposition of a controversial national security law. The law not only took effect but was also used to sentence him to 20 years in prison. Ahead of an anticipated trip by Trump to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping next week, Lai's son said his family is now hoping that Trump can help secure his father's release. Lai, a prominent critic of Beijing, founded a pro-democracy newspaper that was shut down during a crackdown following the city's massive anti-government protests in 2019.

CEBU, Philippines (AP) - Southeast Asian leaders adopted a contingency plan Friday to mitigate the impact of the Iran war on their people and economies but acknowledged it will be difficult to enforce complex steps like establishing a regional fuel reserve to ensure a steady supply. The Philippines, among the worst affected by fuel price spikes caused by the Iran war, hosted the group's annual summit on the central island province of Cebu. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the summit stripped of the traditional pomp and pageantry in keeping with the economic headwinds worldwide. ASEAN's contingency plan calls for actions including the ratification possibly this year of an agreement that will pave the way for coordinated emergency fuel sharing, planning a regional power grid and fuel stockpile and diversifying the region's sources of crude oil.

Model minority. Perpetual foreigner. The centuries-old stereotypes of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders as passive bystanders in American culture and politics still persist, despite U.S. history being full of examples to the contrary. The way to change that, scholars believe, is by teaching younger generations that history. A free, digital textbook overseen by the UCLA Asian American Studies Center aims to be a high-caliber guide to help high school and college educators nationwide teach more effectively about AAPI experiences. "Foundations and Futures: Asian American and Pacific Islander Multimedia Textbook" is the culmination of years of work by 100 contributors, from curriculum developers to illustrators.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korea said Friday it will deploy new long-range artillery systems this year that are capable of striking South Korea's capital region and will commission its first naval destroyer in coming weeks. The announcement comes days after South Korea said North Korea's newly revised constitution drops all references to Korean unification, in line with leader Kim Jong Un's vows to terminate ties with South Korea and establish a two-state system on the Korean Peninsula. Kim visited a munitions factory Wednesday to inspect the production of 155-mm self-propelled gun-howitzers to be deployed at an artillery unit in the southern border area within this year, the North's official Korean Central News Agency reported.

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A man accused of killing two University of South Florida students from Bangladesh will face the death penalty if convicted, prosecutors indicated Friday. The Hillsborough State Attorney's Office filed a notice to seek the death penalty a day after a grand jury indicted Hisham Saleh Abugharbieh, 26, on two counts of first-degree murder and several other charges. Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, both 27-year-old doctoral students from Bangladesh, disappeared April 16. Limon was last seen at the off-campus apartment complex where he lived with Abugharbieh, and Bristy at a campus science building. Abugharbieh was arrested about a week later and has remained in jail.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Paraguay's President Santiago Peña said Friday that his country deeply values its ties with Taiwan, in a show of solidarity with the island democracy a day after Beijing asked the South American nation to sever diplomatic relations with Taipei. Paraguay is the only country in South America to recognize Taiwan and one of just 12 worldwide. Beijing considers Taiwan its own territory and has ramped up a campaign over the past few years to lure Taiwan's diplomatic allies, in addition to increasing military pressure around the island. At a military honors event, Peña said the ceremony symbolizes the unwavering determination between both sides to continuously deepen their ties and partnership, according to an interpreter.

BANGKOK (AP) - Family members and activists have called for the release of imprisoned Chinese journalist Dong Yuyu due to health concerns. Dong, an editor at a major state-owned newspaper, the Guangming Daily, was taken away while meeting a Japanese diplomat for lunch in 2022. He was sentenced to seven years in prison for espionage in 2024. "Yuyu is now effectively facing a death sentence," the family said in a statement Thursday. Dong was hospitalized at a prison-affiliated hospital in the city of Tianjin on April 27, according to his family. Doctors there found heart arrhythmia and a lung tumor his family feared was malignant.