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Tycoon Li Ka-shing and his family-backed conglomerate, along with Henderson Land Development and the Lee Shau Kee Foundation, have pledged 15 million yuan (US$2.2 million) each to support relief efforts for victims of the deadly flash floods along the Nepal-Tibet border. Li family-owned CK Asset Holdings, CK Hutchison Holdings and the Li Ka Shing Foundation, as well as Henderson Land and the Lee S...
A proposed troop access pact between the Philippines and Britain is the latest sign of Manila’s aim to draw in more European and other powers sharing similar concerns about security in the South China Sea and the continuous flow of goods along the vital waterways. The visiting forces agreement would allow troops from both countries to train and operate temporarily on each other’s soil, a move anal...
Property-ownership complications and low public awareness have slowed landlords’ registration of Hong Kong subdivided flats under new housing regulations, industry observers have said, after the government received only 42.5 per cent of the applications expected in the first phase. Monday marked the deadline for the initial six-month “early bird” registration phase under the Basic Housing Unit Ord...
Chinese chipmakers are setting increasingly aggressive targets to source production equipment locally, adding pressure on domestic toolmakers to come up with machines that are reliable in the exacting environment of high-volume wafer production. Several new wafer fabrication plants, or fabs, in the country were setting explicit localisation targets, according to Jie Chen, chairman of Britech Semic...
A Hong Kong secondary school has begun the new academic year without a principal while authorities vet a replacement for the former head, who was fired for swearing at security guards during a Singapore study trip. Former lawmaker Edmund Wong Chun-sek, who is also a manager of San Wui Commercial Society Secondary School, said on Tuesday that the Education Bureau was currently conducting background...
Shenzhen, the southern Chinese city home to US-sanctioned telecoms giant Huawei Technologies and drone maker DJI, has seen an influx of investors and business leaders amid rising global interest in Chinese artificial intelligence and robotics. On Tuesday, the tech hub hosted investor conferences led by three international financial institutions – HSBC, UBS and Nomura – with AI, robotics and other ...
The US threat of sanctions on China because of Beijing’s relationship with Iran isn’t credible. The artificial intelligence bubble and its own precarious bond market make the US more vulnerable to a shock than China. Even if the US risks massive self-harm and kicks major Chinese institutions off SWIFT, the global messaging system enabling dollar-based cross-border payments, it will merely accelera...
A Thai court has sentenced a 25-year-old activist to two years in prison for violating the country’s strict royal insult law, a rights group said, with her lawyer on Tuesday vowing to appeal. A criminal court convicted Tantawan Tuatulanon on Monday over a live streaming she aired near a royal motorcade in March 2022, legal advocacy group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said in a statement. Th...
We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Why US visa pause could have ‘real consequences’ for Asian applicants Asian workers and families already facing years-long waits for US visas could be pushed deeper into u...
Malaysian police have crippled a cross-border drug syndicate with the seizure of 86.2kg of methamphetamine worth 4.31 million ringgit (US$1 million) in Penang and Selangor. The bust resulted from intelligence sharing between Malaysian and Thai police after Thai authorities seized 166kg (370lbs) of suspected methamphetamine from a Malaysian man in Hua Hin on August 8. Penang police chief Dennis Lim...
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation should take on a bigger global role in technology and security, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday, describing the Eurasian bloc as having vast potential. At the SCO’s summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Xi said the group had shown “strong vitality” since its founding 25 years ago amid the “sobering lessons of the Cold War”. In a veiled reference to Washi...
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation should take on a bigger global role in technology and security, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday, describing the Eurasian bloc as having vast potential. At the SCO’s summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Xi said the group had shown “strong vitality” since emerging a quarter of a century ago amid the “sobering lessons of the Cold War”. In a veiled referenc...
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on world leaders to create an environment of “universal security”, and firmly prevent external forces from interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. At the 10-member Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on Tuesday, Xi said the grouping should safeguard regional stability. He called the Eurasian security bloc a ...
Foreign investors are expected to keep adding to their China A-share holdings, though the pace of buying is likely to slow from the surge in the first half of the year, according to a UBS analyst. “We still expect net inflows in the second half, but the pace will be somewhat slower than in the first half,” said Meng Lei, China equity strategist at UBS Securities, at UBS’s annual China A-share stra...
Two years ago, Narendra Modi skipped the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) summit in Astana entirely, sending his foreign minister instead. That absence was redressed first at last year’s summit in Tianjin and again this week in Kyrgyzstan, where India’s prime minister stood shoulder to shoulder with China’s Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of other SCO member s...
Parts of eastern and southern China are bracing for heavy to torrential rain over the next three days, with authorities warning of floods, landslides and mudslides, as Typhoon Saudel re-forms over the South China Sea. Several airports could be affected, including Guangzhou Baiyun, Shenzhen Baoan, Zhuhai Jinwan, Xiamen Gaoqi, Fuzhou Changle, Wenzhou Longwan, Ningbo Lishe and Hong Kong International...
Parts of eastern and southern China are bracing for heavy to torrential rain over the next three days, with authorities warning of floods, landslides and mudslides, as Typhoon Saudel re-forms over the South China Sea. Several airports could be affected, including Guangzhou Baiyun, Shenzhen Bao’an, Zhuhai Jinwan, Xiamen Gaoqi, Fuzhou Changle, Wenzhou Longwan, Ningbo Lishe and Hong Kong Internationa...
Japan eased overtime regulation starting on Tuesday in a move meant to help spur economic growth but criticised as a relapse into the country’s ingrained workaholic culture. The move comes after the government led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi – a self-proclaimed workaholic – adopted a growth strategy in July, calling for revisions to the current oversight of work hours. The change in part refl...
US financial institutions Citigroup and Invesco have separately announced that they would continue to expand their presence in Asia, even as the financial industry faces geopolitical uncertainties and Beijing tightens its control on overseas investment. Citi would boost the headcount of its north Asia and Japan corporate banking desk network by 25 per cent following double-digit growth in client a...
US financial institutions Citigroup and Invesco have separately announced that they would continue to expand their presence in Asia, even as the financial industry faces geopolitical uncertainties and Beijing’s tightened control of overseas investment. Citi would boost the headcount of its north Asia and Japan corporate banking desk network by 25 per cent following double-digit growth in client ac...
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s party swept to victory in special elections on Monday, boosting the leader’s parliamentary majority as a trade war with the United States escalates. Carney’s Liberal Party secured three seats, taking the district of Chicoutimi-Le Fjord in French-speaking Quebec from the opposition Conservatives, and two other districts in Ontario and British Columbia that were...
A veteran mainland Chinese economic crime investigator and former police official has been appointed to lead the discipline inspection and supervision group at Beijing’s top office overseeing Hong Kong affairs. Hua Liebing, a former director of the Ministry of Public Security’s economic crime investigation bureau, fills the vacancy at the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) left by Geng Cha...
A veteran mainland Chinese economic crime investigator and former police official has been appointed to lead the discipline inspection and supervision group at Beijing’s top office overseeing Hong Kong affairs. Hua Liebing, a former director of the Ministry of Public Security’s economic crime investigation bureau, fills the vacancy at the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) left by Geng Cha...
Hua Liebing, former director of the Public Security Ministry’s economic crime investigation bureau in mainland China, has been appointed to head the discipline inspection and supervision group of Beijing’s top office overseeing Hong Kong affairs. The new appointment was revealed on Tuesday when the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) updated its organisation chart on its website, filling th...
Heavy rain and internet outages have marred the first day of operations for Hong Kong’s fully automated convenience stores, but visitors say they appreciate the new robot shop manager’s work. The “Galbot Stores”, operated by wheeled humanoid robots, opened two outdoor outlets in Hung Hom and Wan Chai and an indoor unit in Kai Tak on Tuesday, marking the city’s first fully automated retail roll-out...
Primary school pupils returned to class across Hong Kong on Tuesday with a mix of excitement and anxiety over the year ahead, as the education chief pledged to strengthen mental health support in schools. During a visit to the Hong Kong Taoist Association Wun Tsuen School, Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin announced the launch of a new campaign aimed at improving student well-being. “...
Primary students across Hong Kong returned to class on Tuesday with a mix of excitement and anxiety over the year ahead, as the education chief pledged to strengthen mental health support in schools. During a visit to the Hong Kong Taoist Association Wun Tsuen School, Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin announced the launch of a new campaign aimed at improving student well-being. “This ...
As a sensor sounded, scientist Akiko Takii hurried to a bear trap deep in the forests of Nagano in Japan, where rising nationwide attacks have brought fear and resulted in the culling of thousands of the animals. “It’s a small bear, I think, about a year and a half old,” Takii said as she peered at the 15kg (33lbs) Asiatic black bear thrashing in the cage. “It must have just parted from mum.” Its ...
Twelve people were killed and several more injured in Russian air attacks on Kyiv and the surrounding region on Tuesday, authorities said, in the sixth consecutive day of strikes on the Ukrainian capital. Attacks both in Ukraine and Russia continue as efforts are ongoing to find a solution to end the deadliest conflict on the European continent since World War II, which started with Moscow’s full...
Nine people were killed and over a dozen injured in Russian air attacks on Kyiv and the surrounding region on Tuesday, authorities said, in the sixth consecutive day of strikes on the Ukrainian capital. Attacks both in Ukraine and Russia continue as efforts are ongoing to find a solution to end the deadliest conflict on the European continent since World War II, which started with Moscow’s full-s...
