Nordic News, Business and Life in Asia
Follow the latest business developments connecting the Nordic countries
with Asia. ScandAsia covers companies, investment, trade, technology,
energy, manufacturing and new opportunities across the region.
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Novo Nordisk will lose patent protection for its blockbuster drug Ozempic in several major markets from Saturday. The patent expiry opens the door for other manufacturers to produce cheaper generic …
Novo Nordisk will lose patent protection on Saturday Read More
AstraZeneca plans to build a cell therapy manufacturing and supply base, as well as an innovation centre, in Shanghai, according to Reuters. The facility will produce CAR-T cell therapies, a …
AstraZeneca aims to be first with full cell therapy capabilities in China Read More
China will introduce revised rules for imported food from June 1, tightening oversight of overseas manufacturers, according to the General Administration of Customs. The new regulations require foreign food producers …
China tightens food import rules, affecting overseas exporters including Nordic producers Read More
Danish furniture brand Fritz Hansen is testing a new retail concept in Singapore that combines a showroom with a restaurant, according to Tatler. The concept, launched at Henderson Road, pairs …
Danish brand Fritz Hansen tests new retail concept in Singapore Read More
Danish shipping and logistics company Maersk has opened a new fully automated warehouse in Singapore, marking its largest investment in the country to date, according to a press release from …
Danish giant Maersk opens SGD 200 million automated warehouse in Singapore Read More
A Swedish solar company is making a move into Thailand. The company Midsummer has opened a new regional office in Bangkok, aiming to expand its presence and bring innovative solar …
Midsummer enters Thai market with innovative solar solutions Read More
Trade between Sweden and Thailand is picking up speed. New figures show that Swedish exports to Thailand reached around SEK 6.5 billion (THB 22.3 billion) in 2025, Embassy of Sweden …
Trade between Sweden and Thailand hits new momentum Read More
Danish jewellery company Pandora has signed a memorandum of understanding with Vietnam Singapore Smart Energy Solutions JSC to use electricity from a solar farm for its production facility in Vietnam. …
Pandora signs solar power deal for Vietnam facility Read More
Chinese battery materials company Putailai is turning to Southeast Asia after scrapping a planned project in Sweden. The company said on 11 March it will invest 297 million USD in …
Chinese Putailai ditches Sweden plans for Malaysia plant Read More
The stakes are high in one of the world’s largest pork markets. Vietnam ranks as the sixth biggest producer globally. Yet nearly half of its pork still comes from small-scale …
Danish expertise to boost Vietnam’s pork industry Read More
Sweden’s telecom giant Ericsson has entered Vietnam’s airport sector through a new partnership with state-owned operator VNPT, according to a press release by Ericsson. The collaboration will deliver next-generation mobile …
Ericsson partners with VNPT to upgrade Vietnam’s airports Read More
Sweden’s Candela, Norway’s Ocean Sun and Singapore’s Canopy Power have joined forces to develop floating solar-powered charging stations for electric vessels in remote parts of Asia-Pacific. The partnership aims to …
Swedish, Norwegian and Singapore firms team up on floating solar charging for electric boats Read More
True Corporation has confirmed that the share sale between Norway’s Telenor and Arise Digital Technology was completed on 13 March. Under the deal, Arise acquired shares equal to 24.95 percent …
Telenor completes True stake sale Read More
Indonesia is reviewing a possible scheme under which Norway would buy carbon credits from planned floating solar power projects in the country. Eniya Listiani Dewi, Director General of New and …
Norway eyes carbon credits from Indonesia floating solar projects Read More
China became Norway’s largest salmon market for one week in February, as shipments ahead of Lunar New Year pushed it past Poland. More than 4,000 tonnes of Norwegian salmon were …
China briefly becomes Norway’s biggest salmon market Read More
China has summoned representatives from Danish shipping giant Maersk and Swiss-based MSC to a meeting on international shipping practices. The move comes after Panama cancelled contracts for two canal ports …
China summons Maersk after Panama ports takeover Read More
Norwegian seafood exports to Asia have been disrupted after new fighting in the Middle East led to airspace closures across the region, IntraFish reports. The conflict, involving attacks between Israel, …
Middle East conflict disrupts Norwegian seafood exports to Asia Read More
A growing number of Chinese technology companies are moving their headquarters to Singapore in order to attract Western investors and expand globally, Asia Tech Review reports. The strategy has even …
Chinese tech firms “Flip” to Singapore with investments reaching Finland Read More
China Eastern will resume direct flights between Shanghai Pudong and Stockholm Arlanda from 22 June 2026. The route will operate three times a week with an Airbus A330-200, marking the …
China Eastern will resume Shanghai–Stockholm flights from 22 June Read More
Danish cookie maker Kelsen Group, responsible for the popular Kjeldsen cookies, says it is closing subsidiaries in China and Hong Kong. The company links the move to a change in …
No fortune for this cookie; Kelsen Group stops in China and Hong Kong Read More
Vietnam-based VinEnergo, part of the Vingroup group, says it has secured agreements to develop a 10 gigawatt (GW) overseas portfolio of renewable energy projects. A GW is a measure of …
Vietnam’s VinEnergo teams up with Denmark’s GreenGo Read More
The Danish Dairy Board has completed a three-year consumer campaign in the Philippines on EU organic dairy, INSIDER PH reports. The project was co-funded by the European Union and led …
Danish Dairy Board ends EU-backed organic dairy campaign in the Philippines Read More
Swedish telecom firm Ericsson and Malaysia’s 5G network provider Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) say they deployed scam-message detection in DNB’s network, in a press release on 3 March. The companies …
Ericsson and Malaysia’s DNB trial 5G tool to detect scam transmitters Read More
ScanCom International A/S says it will cease operations and close the company, citing several difficult years after Covid-19 and a continued challenging market outlook in a press release on 2 …
Danish furniture maker ScanCom will close after 30 years Read More
Self-driving vehicles are now part of daily operations for the Swedish furniture giant in China, INGKA reports. IKEA has introduced autonomous electric vehicles at its store in Hefei, Anhui Province, …
IKEA in China adopts self-driving transport after successful trial Read More
Fresh Norwegian salmon shipments to Vietnam are being delayed after flight cancellations across Middle East transit routes. Several retailers in Ho Chi Minh City said suppliers have cancelled or postponed …
Vietnam retailers warn of Norwegian salmon shortages due to war in the Middle East Read More
Yubico AB, a Swedish tech company that makes the YubiKey, has opened a new global headquarters in Singapore. A YubiKey is a small physical security “key” you plug in or …
Swedish cybersecurity firm Yubico opens Singapore as third global headquarters Read More
First Sweden. Now Norway. In just a matter of weeks, major discoveries of rare and critical metals in the Nordic region have reignited hopes that Europe could loosen Beijing’s grip …
The ground beneath Scandinavia is starting to shift Europe’s dependence on China Read More
Hong Kong’s Centre for Food Safety has told the trade to halt certain poultry imports from affected areas in Denmark and Sweden. The move follows reports of highly pathogenic H5N1 …
Hong Kong suspends poultry imports from Denmark and Sweden after H5N1 outbreaks Read More
The EFTA–Singapore Digital Economy Agreement (ESDEA) entered into force for Singapore and Norway today, Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry announced in a press release. The agreement sets rules to …
Norway and Singapore enters into trade deal Read More
Danish shipping company Maersk has decided to pause some of its ships sailing through the Red Sea because of the growing military conflict involving the U.S., Israel and Iran. In …
Maersk stops Red Sea shipping due to Middle East conflict Read More
Construction has officially begun on Horizon X, a new generation ferry for Swedish operator Gotlandsbolaget, The Embassy of Sweden in Manila reports. The vessel is being assembled at the shipyard …
Sweden’s new green ferry is being built in the Philippines Read More
Vietnam is pushing hard to become a global shipbuilding nation and Denmark could play a key role. Under a new national strategy to 2030, with a vision to 2050, Vietnam …
Vietnam accelerates shipbuilding strategy with Denmark in focus Read More
Milestone Systems, a Copenhagen-headquartered video technology company, has opened a new Experience Centre in Singapore, expanding its regional footprint in Asia. The centre is intended to act as a hub …
Danish video tech firm Milestone Systems opens new experience centre in Singapore Read More
Panama has transferred the day-to-day running of the Balboa and Cristóbal ports at the Panama Canal to APM Terminals, part of Denmark’s Maersk, and MSC during an 18-month transition period. …
Panama gives Maersk temporary control of two ports previously held by Hong Kong Read More
Norway’s Kongsberg Maritime has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with PT PAL Indonesia, the country’s largest state-owned shipyard. The agreement was signed at PT PAL’s headquarters in Surabaya on 24 …
Kongsberg Maritime signs MoU with Indonesia’s PT PAL Read More
Swedish carmaker Volvo Cars is recalling more than 40,000 of its electric EX30 SUVs worldwide due to a potential battery overheating risk, Reuters reports. The batteries were produced by a …
China-linked battery issue forces Volvo to recall 40,000 SUVs Read More
Big money is moving across the oceans. Two giant oil tankers have just secured contracts worth up to USD 94,000 per day – and operations in both Norway and Singapore …
Oil tanker company with operations in Norway and Singapore secures million-dollar deals Read More
Novo Nordisk and China’s United Laboratories International Holdings have announced promising results from a clinical trial of a new experimental obesity drug, the company reports in a press release. In …
Novo and Chinese partner report strong weight loss results Read More
Nordic-affiliated companies and Philippine firms working with Nordic partners are now invited to compete for the Sustainability Leadership Award 2026. The award recognizes companies that demonstrate measurable results in environmental …
Nordic-Philippine firms invited to apply for sustainability award Read More
Danish-founded United Plantations has reported its highest net profit in the company’s 120-year history, according to the Danish-Malaysian company’s own financial statement. The plantation group reported a net profit of …
120-year-old Danish-founded plantation firm reports strongest results ever Read More
At the 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE), Sweden is for the first time featured as a guest country of honor, Newsflare reports. The China International Import Expo (CIIE) is …
Sweden named guest of honor at major China trade fair Read More
When Swedish entrepreneur Elias Ek arrived in Taiwan in 2000, there was no clear roadmap for foreigners wanting to start a business. Over the years, he learned the system the …
Elias Ek’s Entrepreneurial Taiwan Read More
Start By Checking What You are Actually Buying Many people compare premiums without checking what the policy actually covers, and then feel the car insurance price is too high. Third-party …
Why New Car Insurance Premiums Feel High: The Real Reasons Behind the Price Read More
A Finnish company has secured a key role in China’s growing LNG shipping industry, The Digest reports. Finland’s technology group Wärtsilä has won an order to supply LNG cargo handling …
Wärtsilä secures key role in China’s expanding LNG fleet Read More
Norwegian biometric technology company Next Biometrics has secured its first contract in Malaysia, supplying fingerprint readers to government authorities, according to Biometric Update. The company’s Oyster III device will be …
Norwegian company wins first fingerprint order in Malaysia Read More
Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Nio recorded weak sales across Europe in January, with particularly sharp declines in Nordic markets, according to EV. In Norway – Nio’s first European market – …
Chinese EV maker Nio struggles in Nordic markets Read More
Norway’s Halten Bulk has signed a contract with Chinese yard Jiangsu SOHO Marine Heavy Industry to build two 7,100 DWT bulk carriers, with options for two more, according to The …
Norwegian company orders new ships from China Read More
Sweden’s White Pearl Technology Group AB (WPTG) said on 16 February it has signed a letter of intent to acquire Saltycustoms, a corporate merchandise, design and digital fulfilment company with …
White Pearls signs LOI in Malaysia and Singapore Read More
There has undoubtedly never before been a more vibrant time for Swedish-Vietnamese trade relations than now. Swedish investments into Vietnam, paired with various bilateral collaborations, are at an all-time-high, and …
Modernising the heritage and deepening the trade relationship key goals for Swedish Ambassador Johan Ndisi Read More