It is the first time an Asian country has occupied a top three spot.

BBC: Scotland business

The JRFU says awarding the tournament to an Asian country will help to spread the sport to a new audience.

BBC: Japan to bid for 2015 World Cup

The two men have concluded the first free-trade agreement between America and an East Asian country.

ECONOMIST: America and South Korea

"Daw" is an honorific title in the southeast Asian country, which also is known as Burma.

CNN: British envoy: Suu Kyi 'robust,' 'in good spirits'

Meanwhile, the Philippines is hardly the only Southeast Asian country to experience an investment mania in recent years.

WSJ: Business Asia: Investing: It's More Frustrating in the Philippines

Some researchers think Homo erectus evolved in East Africa, where many of the oldest fossils have been found, but the discovery in the 1990s of equally old Homo erectus fossils in the country of Georgia has led others to suggest an Asian origin.

FORBES: The First Human Technology

Singapore law-enforcement agencies "are assisting the European authorities in their investigations into an international match-fixing syndicate that purportedly involves Singaporeans, " a spokesman for the Southeast Asian country's police force said.

WSJ: Singapore Aids Probe Into Soccer Match-Fixing

The diversity of an East Asian cruise means that almost every day is a new stop, often in a new country, with a chance to learn about a new unique culture and ancient traditions.

BBC: Cruise ports of call: East Asia for history buffs

It may be an exaggeration, but rising Asian immigration has indeed been a boon to many communities and economies across the country.

FORBES: Move up http://i.forbesimg.com t Move down

An early signing of a free-trade agreement between India and the ten-country Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is expected.

ECONOMIST: Banyan