Around Asia Pacific & Oceania [12.03.14]

Taiwan

• Taiwan President Ma Ying-Jeou to Step Down as Party Chairman (Wall Street Journal) 

"Move Comes After Kuomintang (KMT) Suffered Heavy Defeat in Local Elections

President Ma Ying-jeou said Tuesday he will resign as chairman of Taiwan’s ruling Nationalist Party after voters rebuked his handling of economic and social policies in local elections.

The resounding defeat for Nationalist candidates over the weekend was widely interpreted as a vote of no-confidence in Mr. Ma’s policies.

Several KMT heavyweights have also resigned since the election drubbing, including Premier Jiang Yi-huah and party secretary-general Tseng Yung-chuan. The 81-member cabinet also resigned en masse Monday, a standard procedure in Taiwan after a president or premier steps down.  

The elections on Saturday were seen as a barometer of the presidential election in early 2016, with the opposition Democratic Progressive Party now seen in a better position as the Nationalists plunge into an internal power struggle.

The DPP won 13 out of 22 races for city and county heads, while the Nationalists, also known as the Kuomintang or KMT, won just six—down from 15 in the prior election. Three seats were won by independent candidates."

Japan
Business & Economy
Auto

• Honda CEO Takanobu Ito Rethinks Car Maker’s Priorities (Wall Street Journal) 

China
Business & Economy

• The Troubles With Trying to Build a Chinese Version of GE (Wall Street Journal) 
• China's Xiaomi Enters Indonesian Market (China Tech News)