China - North Korea's closest ally and biggest trading partner - expressed shock at the news of his death and pledged to continue making "active contributions to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and in this region".
But now Asia's travel market is booming, fuelled by the region's growing middle class with China set to overtake Europe as the world's second biggest aviation market
Price growth has been one of the biggest problems facing China over the past few years, not least because it imports most of the oil and commodities it consumes.
But other nations including China, India and South Korea were left exposed. They have until the end of June to show that they're cooperating - or face being cut off from the US financial system. So what would that mean for them?
China experienced its biggest political scandal in a generation earlier this year when politician Bo Xilai was sacked and his wife found guilty of murdering a British businessman
The answer is that India, unlike its rival Asian giant China, has no truly national language of its own. Hindi, the official language of central government, is an artificial and largely unspoken 20th Century construct.
He and his party say nuclear energy has a role to play in resource-poor Japan's future. Mr Abe has also called for a tough stance on the territorial row with China over East China Sea islands that both countries claim.
The Beijing to Guangzhou bullet train is expected to complete the trip between northern and southern China in less than eight hours, with further plans to connect to Hong Kong in the future.
