Hi all,

In today's bulletin: US-China officials discuss Phase 1 trade deal, Malaysian PM Muhyiddin Yassin faces leadership test in Parliament, Asian economies begin easing movement restrictions, another oil trader in trouble, Covid-19 could spread via sex, says a China study, and more.

Reading this on the web or know someone who might enjoy receiving Asian Insider? Our sign-up page is here.

US-CHINA TIES ON TRACK?

Top US, China trade officials discussed trade ties between the two economies, raising expectations that relations could be on track and not significantly affected by the spat over coronavirus related issues.

Also there were indications that Washington could be close to signing off on a new rule that would allow US companies to work with China's Huawei Technologies on setting standards for next generation 5G networks.

China's commerce ministry said Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin earlier today agreed during a call to work together to create a favourable environment for implementing the Phase 1 trade deal, reached this year.

The US Trade Representative's office said both sides "also agreed that in spite of the current global health emergency, both countries fully expect to meet their obligations under the agreement in a timely manner". With both economies heading for one of their worst slumps, observers are certainly hoping better sense will prevail.

Latest reports from China said exports from the country rose unexpectedly in April for the first time this year - driven by medical equipment - but a double-digit fall in imports signalled more trouble ahead. In the US, meanwhile, millions continue to seek unemployment benefits, even as parts of the country start to reopen.

Also read:

Associate Editor Ravi Velloor: Playing China by feeling the stones

Global Affairs Correspondent Benjamin Kang Lim: US piles on the pressure as ties with China plumb the depths

MSIAN PARLIAMENT ALLOWS VOTE ON MUHYIDDIN'S LEADERSHIP

Malaysia's Speaker of Parliament Ariff Yusof announced that he will allow a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin moved by his predecessor Mahathir Mohamad to go through.

But it was not clear if the vote will come up during the upcoming one-day sitting on May 18. Alongside, the Speaker rejected a separate confidence vote in Tun Mahathir, who resigned as premier in February.

Malaysia's Bureau Chief Shannon Teoh says analysts believe the motion may not see the light of day as it could be buried, placed behind other government business in parliament's order paper, but the move has created more uncertainty for the ruling Perikatan Nasional alliance.

Go deeper:

Malaysia's PM Muhyiddin facing mutiny by allies

Mahathir seeks no-confidence motion against Malaysian PM Muhyiddin in Parliament

BACK TO WORK FOR ASIAN ECONOMIES?

Parts of Asia were returning to life as usual with people filling up train stations, streets and malls once again - albeit with precautions still in place - as others mulled over the best way forward to restart their economies.

Vietnam has been positioning itself as a safe place to do business, after proclaiming it had succeeded in containing the virus while the city of Hong Kong was seeing more people in popular districts.

In China, Shanghai Disneyland sold out tickets for its May 11 reopening within minutes after sales started at 8am today while in Japan, Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said the government was looking at ways to bring some parts of the country out of lockdown measures.

Elsewhere, India began easing some lockdown measures yesterday while in South Korea, where President Moon Jae In has seen his government's popularity rating hit a high given the fight against coronavirus, there was fresh concern after coronavirus was suspected in a handful of cases in Seoul nightclubs.

Read also:

Indonesia weighs easing coronavirus shutdown from early June to save economy

Australia to ease coronavirus curbs in 3 stages, targets July for full removal

HSBC ACCUSES SINGAPORE OIL TRADER ZENROCK OF 'DISHONEST' DEALS

Another oil-trading firm is in trouble, after the downfall of Hin Leong Trading, the famous oil trading giant that now owes 23 banks almost US$4 billion.

HSBC Holdings filed an application to Singapore's High Court on May 4 to put ZenRock Commodities Trading Pte Ltd under so-called judicial management, saying it had lost confidence in the management of the company and its ability to pay its debts to the bank, which amount to almost US$49 million (S$69.3 million).

Read also:

Hin Leong under interim judicial management

COVID-19 CAN BE SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED, SAYS CHINA STUDY

Chinese researchers at China's Shangqiu Municipal Hospital tested sperm of men infected with Covid-19 and found that a minority of them had the new coronavirus in their semen. This opens up a small chance that the disease could be transmitted sexually, scientists said.

The tests were conducted on 38 men hospitalised with the disease and six of them, or 16 per cent, tested positive for Sars-CoV-2 in their semen. But independent experts said the findings should be viewed with caution and in the context of other small studies that have not found the new coronavirus in sperm.

IN OTHER NEWS

SINGAPORE AIRLINES EXPECTS NET LOSS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN ITS HISTORY: Singapore Airlines (SIA) expects to make a full-year net loss for the first time in its history due to travel restrictions imposed by countries, following coronavirus infections worldwide. The SIA Group said in a Singapore Exchange update on Friday (May 8) that the forecast is despite "strong results" in the first nine months of the financial year that ended in March 2020.

INDIAN POLICE FILE COMPLAINT AGAINST LG CHEM: Indian police have filed a complaint against an LG Chem subsidiary over a toxic gas leak at its chemical plant in the south of the country that killed 11 people and sickened almost a thousand more. Meanwhile, the evacuation area around the factory in Andhra Pradesh has been widened to a 5km radius on Friday (May 8), a day after the gas first began leaking. Around 800 people remain hospitalised.

JAPAN APPROVES REMDESIVIR: Japan yesterday authorised the antiviral drug remdesivir to treat coronavirus patients, becoming the second country to approve the drug after US regulators authorised it on Friday for emergency use against severe cases of Covid-19. Tokyo is looking to approve another drug Avigan, developed by Japanese firm Fujifilm Toyama Chemical, this month if a clinical trial involving 100 patients proves effective.

NEIMAN MARCUS FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY: US luxury department store chain Neiman Marcus group - popular among the well-heeled travellers from Asia - filed for bankruptcy protection, marking one of the highest-profile collapses yet among retailers forced to close stores in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

That's it for today. Thanks for reading. Stay safe and we'll be back with you on Monday.

Shefali