China moving to improve the business environment for foreign companies, especially in Free Trade Zones (FTZs). China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) announces that it will permit foreign banks in China to apply for approval for a quota increase in their medium to long-term foreign debt for 2019. Per Donald Trump, the United States may take a bite out of Apple products coming from China which previously have escaped a special 10 percent tariffs on Chinese goods. China’ Huawei finds Kiwis not so soft after New Zealand’s intelligence agency blocks it supplying 5G mobile network equipment to the major domestic telecom provider. Maldives’ new finance minister criticizes true price of Chinese projects, which has led to the Maldives returning to an “India First” policy. Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries ordered by South Korea’s Supreme Court to pay USD $365,500 in damages to two groups of South Koreans for forced wartime labor. In post-Carlos Ghosn arrest meeting, France suggests to Japanese official “the head of the Renault-Nissan alliance should be from the French automaker.” European firms with business in South Korea push Seoul to upgrade the country’s business regulations to reach international standards. At the 6th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Connectivity Forum, South Korea’s secretary-general of the ASEAN-Korea Centre states Korea is looking to improve relations with ASEAN countries especially in infrastructure area.