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Hong Kong police arrest clinic operator over sales of unapproved ‘cancer vaccine’
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Hong Kong police arrest clinic operator over sales of unapproved ‘cancer vaccine’

Hong Kong authorities have arrested a 28-year-old man in charge of a clinic accused of selling a laboratory reagent as an unapproved vaccine against more than 20 types of cancer. The arrest followed a joint operation by the Department of Health and police, during which investigators raided 13 premises linked to the company, said Frank Chan Ling-fung, an assistant director of health who oversees dr...

Man arrested over theft of HK$5,885 in foreign currency on Bangkok to Hong Kong flight
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Man arrested over theft of HK$5,885 in foreign currency on Bangkok to Hong Kong flight

Hong Kong police have arrested a man on suspicion of stealing nearly HK$6,000 (US$765) in foreign currency while flying to the city from Thailand, with a passenger allegedly capturing the incident on camera and reporting it to cabin crew. The force said the 57-year-old man was arrested for the alleged theft after the HK Express flight landed in the city shortly before midnight on Wednesday. While ...

Can Singapore be the ‘natural choice’ to bridge Asean and Central Asia?
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Can Singapore be the ‘natural choice’ to bridge Asean and Central Asia?

Singapore is positioning itself as a bridge between Central Asia and Asean, as both regions increasingly look to each other amid growing disruption to global trade and intensifying superpower rivalry. The political appetite exists, but analysts say trade benefits will still hinge on overcoming obstacles such as geography and a lack of connectivity. Singapore’s Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong pitch...

Chevron to expand Venezuela oil operations with US$7 billion plan
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Chevron to expand Venezuela oil operations with US$7 billion plan

Oil giant Chevron confirmed that it would expand operations in Venezuela after US President Donald Trump announced an ambitious deal to develop the nation’s oil reserves and give the Pentagon a stake in the profits. Chevron, the only US oil company with a major presence in Venezuela, said on Wednesday that it had been assigned additional acreage in the Orinoco Belt, where it has active operations....

US Chevron to expand Venezuela oil operations with US$7 billion plan

US Chevron to expand Venezuela oil operations with US$7 billion plan

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Oil giant Chevron confirmed that it would expand its operations in Venezuela, just days after President Donald Trump announced an ambitious deal to develop the nation’s oil reserves and give the Pentagon a stake in the profits. Chevron, the only US oil company that has a major presence in the country, said on Wednesday that it had been assigned additional acreage in the Orinoco Belt, where the com...

China urges global AI cooperation, not rivalry, ahead of Xi-Trump summit

China urges global AI cooperation, not rivalry, ahead of Xi-Trump summit

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China’s science and technology minister Yin Hejun has called for global cooperation to manage the opportunities and risks posed by artificial intelligence, as Beijing and Washington face renewed trade and tech tensions ahead of a planned meeting between their leaders later this month. Speaking at the G20 Innovation Ministerial Meeting held in the United States, Yin said the development of AI and o...

In Bishkek, US envoys shadow the SCO summit in challenge on Beijing and Moscow’s turf

In Bishkek, US envoys shadow the SCO summit in challenge on Beijing and Moscow’s turf

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As China and Russia rallied dozens of countries in Bishkek to shape a multipolar world order, Washington’s envoys were splitting the spotlight by meeting several Central Asian presidents in the Kyrgyz capital this week. The manoeuvring showed that the US was likely to continue its outreach to the region and seek to blunt Beijing’s influence, but it would be “unrealistic” for Washington to force Ce...

China-Egypt joint drills a show of Beijing’s military reach

China-Egypt joint drills a show of Beijing’s military reach

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China is beginning to match its economic presence abroad with the military reach required to operate across it. The clearest evidence came from Egypt. Chinese J-16 fighters flew there recently, supported by YU-20 tankers that refuelled them in the air. The Chinese jets are taking part in Egypt’s “Eagles of Civilisation” alongside Egyptian Rafales and MiG-29s. This is the first time China has sent ...

Indonesian wildfire haze forces 1.4 million students to move to online learning

Indonesian wildfire haze forces 1.4 million students to move to online learning

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About 1.4 million students in six Indonesian provinces ⁠had shifted to online ⁠learning due to poor air quality ⁠triggered by forest and land fires, an official said on Wednesday. As of September 2, around 1.43 million students from 12,874 schools in six of the provinces hit hardest by forest and land fires had been studying remotely, Gogot Suharwoto, an education ministry official, told the media...

China’s US$10.8b trade short cut: new Pinglu Canal prepares to supercharge Asean shipments

China’s US$10.8b trade short cut: new Pinglu Canal prepares to supercharge Asean shipments

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Aptly dubbed the Pinglu 001, the first command and management vessel for the Pinglu Canal was delivered on Monday and will soon enter service as China prepares to open the strategic waterway designed to support surging trade with Southeast Asia. The delivery marks one of the final steps before the 72.7 billion yuan (US$10.8 billion) megaproject is expected to officially open later this month after...

How Japan aims to convert ageing warships into leverage to counter China

How Japan aims to convert ageing warships into leverage to counter China

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Japan’s plans to transfer ageing warships to the Philippines and Indonesia could turn older military hardware into geopolitical leverage, deepening regional security ties while helping Tokyo counterbalance Beijing’s growing influence, observers say. Such transfers, they said, fit into Tokyo’s broader security assistance toolkit to strengthen partners’ capabilities and forge longer-term defence rel...

Education Bureau steps in after students wait in rain for uniform and hair checks

Education Bureau steps in after students wait in rain for uniform and hair checks

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Hong Kong education authorities have reminded a school to consider the needs of students when enforcing rules after many were forced to wait in a long line outside the campus in the rain to have their uniforms and hair checked on the first day of the new academic year. The Education Bureau also made a similar call to another school, where students deemed to have failed with hair grooming rules wer...

Man arrested as Hong Kong customs seizes HK$42 million worth of ‘space oil’

Man arrested as Hong Kong customs seizes HK$42 million worth of ‘space oil’

SCMP

Hong Kong customs has arrested a man and seized HK$42 million (US$5.3 million) worth of the illegal narcotic “space oil” from a drug workshop fitted with a semi-automated production line capable of producing up to 160,000 cartridges in a short period. Senior investigator Chan Kit-lun of the Customs and Excise Department’s drug investigation bureau said officers intercepted a suspicious man on Tues...

Man arrested as Hong Kong customs seize HK$42 million worth of ‘space oil’

Man arrested as Hong Kong customs seize HK$42 million worth of ‘space oil’

SCMP

Hong Kong customs has arrested a man and seized HK$42 million (US$5.3 million) worth of the illegal narcotic “space oil” from a drug workshop fitted with a semi-automated production line capable of producing up to 160,000 cartridges in a short period. Senior investigator Chan Kit-lun of the Customs and Excise Department’s drug investigation bureau said officers intercepted a suspicious man on Tues...

Saleswoman arrested over aggressive sales tactics, third suspect linked to Opatra

Saleswoman arrested over aggressive sales tactics, third suspect linked to Opatra

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Hong Kong customs officers have arrested a woman for allegedly using aggressive tactics to sell skincare products at a local beauty chain formerly operating under the Opatra London brand, bringing the number of arrests in the case to three, the South China Morning Post has learned. A source said the saleswoman, who is in her twenties, was suspected of pressuring a customer into making purchases at...

Has India’s Modi found new mediator clout after talks with Putin, Iran?

Has India’s Modi found new mediator clout after talks with Putin, Iran?

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian leader Masoud Pezeshkian at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit have put the spotlight on New Delhi’s ability to mediate major conflicts. Positioned between Russia and the West, and with working ties across rival camps in the Middle East, India is seen by some analysts as a potent...

Ireland must prepare for Northern Ireland reunification vote, foreign minister says

Ireland must prepare for Northern Ireland reunification vote, foreign minister says

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– Ireland needs to be prepared for a vote on whether to reunify with the UK’s Northern Ireland region, Irish Foreign Minister Helen McEntee has said. “I do believe that there will be a border poll at some stage,” McEntee told reporters in Wicklow, Ireland, ahead of a European Union foreign ministers meeting on Wednesday. “It is for the people of Northern Ireland to decide this and it is only where...

Frontier AI at a cost: what Anthropic’s Fable 5.1 means for the US-China model race

Frontier AI at a cost: what Anthropic’s Fable 5.1 means for the US-China model race

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Anthropic’s powerful new Claude Fable 5.1 model has widened its lead in performance benchmarks over Chinese rivals, even as budget-friendly open-weight models from China continue to gain commercial traction globally. The American company said on Wednesday that Fable 5.1, along with a restricted-access version called Mythos 5.1, was the world’s most advanced model for software coding and complex kn...

Iran wins SCO backing against US strikes. Will it be enough?

Iran wins SCO backing against US strikes. Will it be enough?

SCMP

As the US resumes strikes on Iran to force an end to the six-month-old war, Tehran is turning to multilateral groupings like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and Brics for political and diplomatic cover. At the SCO summit in Bishkek on Tuesday, world leaders made veiled references to the instability in the Middle East without naming the United States directly, in apparent tacit backing ...

Iran wins SCO backing against US strikes: will it be enough?

Iran wins SCO backing against US strikes: will it be enough?

SCMP

As the US resumes strikes on Iran to force an end to the six-month-old war, Tehran is turning to multilateral groupings like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and Brics for political and diplomatic cover. At the SCO summit in Bishkek on Tuesday, world leaders made veiled references to the instability in the Middle East, without naming the United States directly, in apparent tacit backing...

Hello, sailor: Thailand’s Pattaya rolls out welcome mat for USS Abraham Lincoln crew

Hello, sailor: Thailand’s Pattaya rolls out welcome mat for USS Abraham Lincoln crew

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At Risa’s Massage, Fai cancelled her holiday to be at work this week; suitmaker Tito has laid on a made-in-24-hours special for US Navy visitors and hawker Pui is aiming to sell 15 watches in the five days the USS Abraham Lincoln will be in Pattaya. On Wednesday, the Thai resort city began to welcome over 5,000 sailors and Marines, finally on shore leave after being at sea for a record 286 days. I...

Hong Kong to mark National Day with 23-minute fireworks show featuring sunflowers

Hong Kong to mark National Day with 23-minute fireworks show featuring sunflowers

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Hong Kong will stage a 23-minute fireworks display over Victoria Harbour on China’s National Day on October 1 under the theme “Eternal Radiance”. The HK$18 million (US$2.3 million) extravaganza, exclusively sponsored by insurance provider Sun Life Hong Kong, will mark the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Coordinated by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, the ...

ICAC sets integrity standards for government computers to fight misuse

ICAC sets integrity standards for government computers to fight misuse

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Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has unveiled standards for the use of government computer systems after uncovering loopholes, including requiring bureaus and departments to ensure compliance when requesting digital project funds. Danny Woo Ying-ming, commissioner of the ICAC, said on Wednesday that an investigation had found that some procedures for government computer...

Hong Kong watchdog sets integrity standards for government computers to fight misuse

Hong Kong watchdog sets integrity standards for government computers to fight misuse

SCMP

Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has publicly unveiled its standards for the use of government computer systems after uncovering loopholes, including requiring bureaus and departments to self-check their compliance when requesting digital project funds. Danny Woo Ying-ming, commissioner of the ICAC, said on Wednesday that an investigation by his agency had found that so...

EU trade enforcers descend on Beijing demanding China fix ‘untenable’ imbalances

EU trade enforcers descend on Beijing demanding China fix ‘untenable’ imbalances

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A delegation from the European Commission has been locked in talks with Chinese officials in Beijing, as the sides look to find a diplomatic off-ramp from a looming trade war before an October deadline set by Brussels. The EU team was spearheaded by Denis Redonnet, the bloc’s top trade enforcement officer, who was recently made point person on China trade policy – a recognition that in EU circles,...

Walmart’s Sam’s Club accelerates expansion in China as membership passes 10.7 million

Walmart’s Sam’s Club accelerates expansion in China as membership passes 10.7 million

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US membership-only retailer Sam’s Club has sped up its expansion in China this year, with the launch of its sixth Beijing location on Monday drawing long queues of eager shoppers. The Walmart-owned warehouse retailer has found a winning formula in China, with its value pricing and exclusive goods attracting middle-class consumers even as some foreign brands shut down stores or pull out of the coun...

Chinese couple’s surgery fundraising highlights how sudden fame ignites support, backlash

Chinese couple’s surgery fundraising highlights how sudden fame ignites support, backlash

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A woman in China, suffering from severe scoliosis, has gone viral after accusations that she is “making money by doing nothing” surfaced. This scrutiny followed the revelation that her boyfriend, Yan Ruize, worked gruelling food-delivery shifts to fund her much-needed surgery. He Ling, 23, hails from southwest China’s Sichuan province and was diagnosed with congenital scoliosis – a sideways curvat...

India defies Iran war oil shock to keep 8% growth on track

India defies Iran war oil shock to keep 8% growth on track

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India’s stronger-than-expected first quarter growth has bolstered analysts’ confidence that it can sustain its momentum through the rest of the financial year and remain the world’s fastest-growing major economy – even as it remains exposed to high oil prices caused by the US-Iran war. The Indian economy grew 7.8 per cent in the April-June quarter, comfortably beating the Reserve Bank of India’s f...

China’s No 2 foundry Hua Hong invests US$2b in new fab to meet surging AI-driven demand

China’s No 2 foundry Hua Hong invests US$2b in new fab to meet surging AI-driven demand

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Major Chinese foundry Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor is pouring US$2 billion into a massive capacity expansion in the Chinese chip production hub of Wuxi, racing to meet skyrocketing domestic demand for AI infrastructure and bypass US tech curbs. The fresh capital would fund the construction of a new 12-inch speciality line, its third facility in the eastern Chinese city, the country’s second-larges...