Asia News Wrap: 2024 was S. Korea's hottest year in 50 years, and more

Here are a few stories from around Asia you may have missed this week.

2004 was South Korea's hottest year in half a century 

South Korea saw its hottest year in half a century in 2024. The country's nationwide average temperature was 14.5 degrees Celsius in 2024, making it the warmest year since 1973, said the climate report from the Korea Meteorological Administration released on Tuesday. South Korea saw 103.6 abnormally warm days based on daily low records and 76.7 abnormally warm days based on daily high records. Abnormally warm days, as defined by the administration, refer to days when daily low and high temperatures fall outside the 10 percent of historical averages for that time of the year. The average summer temperature was 25.6 degrees Celsius, making the summer of 2024 the hottest since 1973. Based on average summer temperature records, it was 1.9 degrees Celcius hotter than previous years.

Tokyo gets Japan's second baby batch

A Tokyo hospital got Japan's second "baby hatch" on Monday for accepting babies in cases of unwanted pregnancies to prevent parents from abandoning them in unsafe conditions. Newborns within four weeks of age can now be placed in a basket in a quiet room with a discreet entrance at a hospital in Tokyo run by the Sanikukai Foundation. Sanikukai is only Japan's second medical institution to open a baby hatch after the Catholic-run Jikei hospital in Kumamoto Prefecture opened one in 2007. The scheme, open 24 hours a day, is meant to be an "emergency, last-resort measure" to save babies' lives," Hitoshi Kato, head of Sanikukai Hospital, told a news conference. There are still "mothers and babies with nowhere to go," he added. As of May last year, 179 babies and toddlers have reportedly been left at Jikei's baby hatch.

Dozens injured in Malaysia after gas pipeline fire 

Dozens of people in Malaysia were being treated in hospitals on Tuesday after a massive fire broke out at a gas pipeline operated by state energy giant Petronas, showering flaming debris from the sky and shattering windows. Authorities said a blaze in Puchong on the outskirts of the capital Kuala Lumpur had been extinguished. At least 305 people were affected, including those left homeless after some 190 homes were damaged. Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the state government and Petronas would take full responsibility for restoring the area, adding that the process could take a year.

Thailand's economic activity slows in February

Thailand's economic activity eased in February due to slowing activity in manufacturing and services, according to the central bank, which said it was monitoring any impact on the tourism sector from last week's earthquake in the region.

Tourism, a key driver of the Thai economy, also slowed in February from the previous month.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand reported that the number of Chinese tourists to Thailand in the first two months of this year reached 1 million, down 12 percent from 1.18 million in the same period of 2024, mainly due to economic problems and safety concerns. 

The central bank said Friday's quake, which was centered on Myanmar but collapsed a skyscraper under construction in Bangkok, could dent tourism further. "The earthquake may affect tourism confidence and public spending, but it still needs to be assessed," Bank if Thailand Senior Director Pranee Sutthasri told a news conference.

The quake came ahead of "Songkran", the Thai New Year, next month, also known as the water festival and a major attraction for foreign visitors.

The number of foreign tourists dropped 13.9 percent in February from the previous month, while manufacturing declined 1 percent month on month.

(Cover: A boat sails past commercial and residential buildings at sunset in Seoul, South Korea, on Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024. /CFP)