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Chinese cousins in their 50s redesign, revitalise ethnic fabric, model, sell clothing globally
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Chinese cousins in their 50s redesign, revitalise ethnic fabric, model, sell clothing globally

A pair of Chinese cousins in their 50s have redesigned ethnic brocade and promoted it by cross-dressing in women’s clothing made from the fabric, despite facing objections from their family. Uncle Yang, 56, hails from Fujian province in southeastern China, while his older cousin, Uncle Song, is from Heilongjiang province in northeastern China. Although they grew up separately, they reunited for th...

‘Too fast’, ‘too low’: pilot pressed on with landing despite warnings in Miami crash
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‘Too fast’, ‘too low’: pilot pressed on with landing despite warnings in Miami crash

One pilot of the Amazon Prime Air cargo plane that crashed in Miami on Sunday cautioned they were flying “too fast” just over a minute before touching down on the runway they overran, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The pilot continued to comment on the plane’s speed while automated warnings sounded in the cockpit. However, the other ‌pilot did not give a clear verbal response, acco...

4 Chinese nationals charged over Singaporean man’s Malaysia airport kidnapping
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4 Chinese nationals charged over Singaporean man’s Malaysia airport kidnapping

Four Chinese nationals, including a woman, claimed trial at the Sessions Court in Balik Pulau, Malaysia’s Penang state, on Thursday to charges of kidnapping a Singaporean man. The accused: Liu Ting Jun, 46; Huang Jin, 39; Wang Hao Yu, 32; and Guan Siqi, 24, pleaded not guilty after the charge was read to them in Mandarin before Sessions Court Judge Ahzal Fariz Ahmad Khairuddin. According to the ch...

Toddler with heart and brain conditions dies after being found unresponsive in bed
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Toddler with heart and brain conditions dies after being found unresponsive in bed

A 23-month-old girl with heart and brain conditions has died after her parents found her unresponsive at their Hong Kong flat, the South China Morning Post has learned. Police said they received a report from the infant’s mother at 5.30am, saying her daughter had passed out at their light public housing flat at 20 Olympic Avenue in Kai Tak. They added that paramedics arrived shortly afterwards and...

August was hottest month ever recorded globally, scientists say

August was hottest month ever recorded globally, scientists say

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The EU’s climate monitor said on Thursday that August was the hottest single month ever recorded globally, with ocean temperatures also reaching unprecedented highs as western Europe capped its warmest summer. In response to the assessment by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, the UN warned that until humanity weaned off fossil fuels, the planet would only push deeper into uncharted territory....

Trump touts ‘most successful’ presidency, promises US$5,000 to citizens in speech

Trump touts ‘most successful’ presidency, promises US$5,000 to citizens in speech

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US President Donald Trump kicked off the Republican Party’s midterm campaign season in Dallas on Wednesday night, headlining the opening of a highly unusual convention aimed at rallying voters ahead of November’s high-stakes battle for control of Congress. “This has been the most successful two years financially and every other way in the history of the presidency,” he said, as the crowd chanted “...

AIIB eyes new platform to pool private capital for Asia’s US$1.7tr infrastructure needs

AIIB eyes new platform to pool private capital for Asia’s US$1.7tr infrastructure needs

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The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is developing a new platform to pool capital from institutional investors, aiming to roughly quadruple the private capital it mobilises for infrastructure projects across Asia, according to a senior officer. The mechanism will allow insurers, pension funds, and other institutional investors to co-invest in infrastructure debt alongside the bank acros...

Rubio defends US strikes on boats, warns of drug cartel ‘cancer’

Rubio defends US strikes on boats, warns of drug cartel ‘cancer’

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended controversial strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats during a visit to Ecuador on Wednesday, arguing Latin American cartels would “eat these countries alive” if left unchecked. Hailing a new generation of conservative leaders emerging across the region who are allied with President Donald Trump, Rubio said Washington was finding partners willing to b...

Philippines races to find survivors of ferry fire that killed at least 5

Philippines races to find survivors of ferry fire that killed at least 5

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The Philippines has deployed coastguard, military and civilian vessels in a race to find survivors on a smouldering passenger-and-cargo ferry off the western island of Palawan, after ‌a fire on board killed at least five people and left more than 80 missing. Drone footage released by the coastguard showed the blackened ferry surrounded by clear blue-green waters, with the vessel still generating s...

Fire engulfs Philippine ferry, killing 5 and leaving 86 missing

Fire engulfs Philippine ferry, killing 5 and leaving 86 missing

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At least five people were killed and 86 remain missing for after a fire erupted aboard a ferry near a tourist hotspot in the Philippine province of Palawan, the coastguard said on Thursday. The blaze broke out on the MV June Aster on Wednesday evening about 2.2km (1.3 miles) offshore, the coastguard said, adding that five casualties had been brought ashore. Video shared by the coastguard on social...

Fire engulfs Philippine ferry, killing 5 and leaving 87 missing

Fire engulfs Philippine ferry, killing 5 and leaving 87 missing

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At least five people were killed and 87 remain unaccounted for after a fire erupted aboard a ferry near a tourist hotspot in the Philippine province of Palawan, the coastguard said on Thursday. The fire aboard the MV June Aster broke out on Wednesday evening about 2.2km (1.3 miles) offshore, the coastguard said, adding that five casualties had been brought ashore. Video shared by the coastguard on...

Is the Philippine military ‘massively underfunded’?

Is the Philippine military ‘massively underfunded’?

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The Philippines’ military modernisation road map is set for delays over budget constraints, with critics calling out what they say is President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s “lip service” approach and questioning his commitment to the ambitious project. In 2024, Marcos approved a revised 1.9 trillion Philippine pesos (US$30 billion) plan to acquire newer military assets until 2034, aiming to enhance the ...

Is the Philippine armed forces ‘massively underfunded’?

Is the Philippine armed forces ‘massively underfunded’?

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The Philippines’ military modernisation road map is set for delays over budget constraints, with critics calling out what they say is President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s “lip service” approach and questioning his commitment to the ambitious project. In 2024, Marcos approved a revised 1.9 trillion Philippine pesos (US$30 billion) plan to acquire newer military assets until 2034, aiming to enhance the ...

China’s Communist Party quietly signals social stability push with new high-level body

China’s Communist Party quietly signals social stability push with new high-level body

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China’s ruling Communist Party has signalled a renewed push for social stability by quietly setting up a high-level party group about a year ahead of its 21st national congress. The creation of the Leading Group for Social Governance of the party’s Central Committee underscores the growing focus on internal security and grass-roots governance ahead of the next five-yearly congress, expected to be ...

Social media must join the fight against teen suicides

Social media must join the fight against teen suicides

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As we observe World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10, the global community reflects on a sobering reality: suicide remains a leading cause of death among young people. Every year, more than 720,000 people die by suicide – each life a story cut short, a family shattered, a community left to grapple with unbearable loss. In Hong Kong, the Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention ...

China wife exposes husband’s US$1.5 million insurance-buying affair involving 180 hotel stays

China wife exposes husband’s US$1.5 million insurance-buying affair involving 180 hotel stays

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A Chinese man’s seven-year affair with an insurance agent has ignited a legal dispute, revealing dramatic details uncovered by his wife. Guo, from Liuzhou in Guangxi province, southern China, is married to Zhen, with whom he shares a two-year-old daughter, according to Hongxing News. In 2017, Zhen discovered flirtatious messages exchanged between her husband and Li, an insurance agent eight years ...

Over 65% of cars sold in China are now EVs as Iran war drives electric shift

Over 65% of cars sold in China are now EVs as Iran war drives electric shift

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China’s electric vehicle (EV) adoption rate has hit an all-time high, as the Iran war drives motorists to shift away from petrol cars despite a sluggish automotive market. A record 65.2 per cent of the 1.54 million cars sold in mainland China last month were either pure electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed. The figure broke the previous r...

Softer focus on national security in Hong Kong’s 5-year plan? Why it won’t happen

Softer focus on national security in Hong Kong’s 5-year plan? Why it won’t happen

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When Hong Kong’s leader John Lee Ka-chiu steps up to the Legislative Council podium next Wednesday, he will break from decades of political tradition. Lee’s coming policy address will summarise his four years in office while setting out what is expected to be his most ambitious and forward-looking governance agenda to date, as it will serve as an execution document to complement the city’s inaugur...

Japan’s protest over Russian soldier statue aggravates ‘summer of tension’

Japan’s protest over Russian soldier statue aggravates ‘summer of tension’

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Russia has rebuffed a strongly worded complaint from Japan about the unveiling of a statue in the city of Khabarovsk depicting a Soviet soldier smashing an imperial-era border marker bearing the emblem of the Japanese emperor, with analysts suggesting the bilateral relations will inevitably remain chilly. The 15-metre granite monument to the Soviet Union’s victory over Japan in 1945 shows a soldie...

Iran likely to reverse-engineer captured US underwater drone

Iran likely to reverse-engineer captured US underwater drone

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Iran’s capture of a US military underwater drone gives Tehran an opportunity to study and potentially reverse-engineer the vessel, delivering a setback for the Pentagon and drone maker Anduril. The US military and Anduril have downplayed the significance of the drone falling into Iranian hands. The vessel, a Dive-LD autonomous underwater vehicle designed for long-range surveillance and other under...

US says China ‘on track’ to fulfil farm purchases ahead of Xi’s Washington visit

US says China ‘on track’ to fulfil farm purchases ahead of Xi’s Washington visit

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The Trump administration on Wednesday said that China is on track to meet its agricultural purchase commitments, with the sector expected to feature prominently in the deliverables for US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s talks in Washington later this month. “China is ramping up their purchases,” said Luke Lindberg, the US Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural...

Susquehanna latest to pick up larger office space in Hong Kong’s Central, sources say

Susquehanna latest to pick up larger office space in Hong Kong’s Central, sources say

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US investment firm Susquehanna International Group has agreed to lease more than 4,808 square metres (51,762 square feet) of office space at the Cheung Kong Center II, a prime office skyscraper developed by CK Asset Holdings in Hong Kong’s main business zone of Central, according to market sources. Neither Susquehanna nor CK Asset immediately replied to the South China Morning Post’s requests for ...

Tate brothers lose bid for release from US jail pending extradition fight

Tate brothers lose bid for release from US jail pending extradition fight

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Social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate lost their bid for release from a Miami jail on Wednesday as they contest extradition to Britain, where they are wanted on rape charges. In denying bail for the Tate brothers, Miami-based US Magistrate Judge Lauren Louis said the brothers’ wealth and frequent international travel made them “quintessential flight risks”. “While [the brothers] may not...

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker fourth Trump-Kim handshake

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker fourth Trump-Kim handshake

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China is willing to help broker a possible meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, sources have said just weeks before Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected in Washington for a bilateral summit. Multiple people familiar with the matter told the South China Morning Post that Beijing was stepping up to play an “active” and “constructive” role in reviving US-...

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker 4th Trump-Kim handshake

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker 4th Trump-Kim handshake

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China is willing to help broker a possible meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, sources have said just weeks before Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected in Washington for a bilateral summit. Multiple people familiar with the matter told the South China Morning Post that Beijing was stepping up to play an “active” and “constructive” role in reviving US-...

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker another Trump-Kim handshake

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker another Trump-Kim handshake

SCMP •

China is willing to help broker a possible meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, sources have said just weeks before Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected in Washington for a bilateral summit. Multiple people familiar with the matter told the South China Morning Post that Beijing was stepping up to play an “active” and “constructive” role in reviving US-...

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker a fourth Trump-Kim handshake

Once sidelined, China stands ready to broker a fourth Trump-Kim handshake

SCMP •

China is willing to help broker a possible meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, sources have said just weeks before Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected in Washington for a bilateral summit. Multiple people familiar with the matter told the South China Morning Post that Beijing was stepping up to play an “active” and “constructive” role in reviving US-...

US sanctions Chinese-language Xinbi Guarantee marketplace over cyber scams

US sanctions Chinese-language Xinbi Guarantee marketplace over cyber scams

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The Trump administration sanctioned Chinese-language marketplace Xinbi Guarantee on Wednesday, along with two affiliated organisations, as part of a wider crackdown on transnational cybercrime. The US Department of Justice also announced it had seized Telegram channels and cryptocurrency wallets tied to the platform, which has over 650,000 users, freezing more than US$52 million in potentially lau...

US drone ban proposal to combat China’s dominance concerns American police, farmers

US drone ban proposal to combat China’s dominance concerns American police, farmers

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Greg Reverdiau, an Arizona-based drone trainer, said he saw something highly unusual for politically polarised America when he waded through public comments on a US government proposal to restrict foreign-made drones: a consensus. Reverdiau, the founder of Pilot Institute, which helps aviators obtain licences, said he reviewed over 3,800 comments submitted to the Federal Communications Commission ...