Hello everyone. This is Cissy from Hong Kong. It’s been a hectic week for the tech industry. Asian tech giants have started to report their July-September quarterly earnings even as they absorb the shock re-election of Donald Trump as US president.

It’s also been a busy time for Asian media outlets, including us, covering what Trump’s second term will mean for trade, defence, markets and more. It appears the consensus is that first and foremost his return to the White House will bring uncertainty for the region, although there are a few voices arguing that Trump won’t take the world by surprise this time.

One of his biggest impacts will likely be on immigration. Chinese citizens, many of them middle class, who made the risky Darién Gap crossing to reach the US during the pandemic years are now worried about being deported under Trump. Parents in China, meanwhile, some of whom have even sold their property in order to send their sons and daughters to study in the US, are increasingly worried their children will not be allowed into the country.