China-led SCO, a counterweight to the West
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Cook Islands PM re-elected despite row over China ties with New Zealand
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown’s securing of another term, despite a dispute with New Zealand over his government’s deals with China, suggests voters are more focused on the cost of living than geopolitical concerns, analysts have said. Brown’s Cook Islands Party is on track to win a fifth consecutive term in government. According to preliminary results from last week’s general election, t...
Xi’s 2026 trip to US
Trump leans on India’s election playbook in push to change how Americans vote
US President Donald Trump cited India’s election system as a model for the US, bringing the world’s largest democracy into a contentious American debate over voter access and election security. Trump said the identification requirements make elections secure and pressed Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register for federal elections and photo ident...
Malaysia holds off on pilot extradition request pending Indonesian drug probe
A decision has yet to be made on whether Malaysian authorities will file an extradition request for a local pilot arrested in Indonesia, according to Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail. Saifuddin said on Tuesday that investigations should be concluded first. “Let the Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) complete their investigations first and decide the next step forward, including...
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How monarchies stay relevant; Pakistan’s new defence pact: 7 Asia highlights
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. How Southeast Asia’s monarchies stay relevant in a volatile region The kings in Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and Brunei have to be attuned to societal or economic changes...
How monarchies stay relevant, Pakistan’s new defence pact: 7 Asia highlights
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. How Southeast Asia’s monarchies stay relevant in a volatile region The kings in Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and Brunei have to be attuned to societal or economic changes...
Malaysian preacher faces backlash over Chinese festival remarks
A preacher and prominent conservative commentator has drawn backlash in Malaysia after questioning why a banner for a traditional Chinese festival was not written in Malay, the country’s national language. Ridhuan Tee Abdullah, an ethnic Chinese Muslim convert known for provocative commentary on race and religion, was criticised by social media users and a Selangor politician for casting a routine...
Chinese navy’s combat software guru Zhao Xiaozhe disappears from academy website
A top naval software expert, whose work helped warships to process battlefield information and support combat decisions, has vanished from the Chinese Academy of Engineering’s online membership list. Zhao Xiaozhe, 63, a vice-admiral in the PLA Navy, once headed the Central Military Commission’s top science and technology body, helping to shape research priorities across China’s armed forces. He is...
Chinese commercial banks gain margin relief, but subdued lending dims outlook
Chinese commercial banks recorded a rare, modest uptick in net interest margin (NIM) in the second quarter of 2026, marking the sector’s first quarterly expansion in the profitability indicator since 2022, even as underlying loan demand remained weak. Average NIM for commercial banks edged up 1 basis point to 1.41 per cent in the June quarter, from 1.40 per cent in the first quarter, according to ...
Hong Kong aiming to revamp heat-stress warning system by end of this month
Hong Kong’s labour minister has said authorities aim to complete a revamp of the city’s heat-stress warning system by the end of this month, following criticism that the alert level was not increased during record-breaking temperatures. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said on Tuesday that changes to the Heat Stress at Work Warning system would require thorough preparatory work a...
Committee probing Tai Po fire delays submission of report till end of October
The independent committee investigating the causes of Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades will postpone submitting its report by a month to the end of October, attributing the delay to the complexity of issues and the large volume of documents it must review. The committee announced on Tuesday that it had sought approval from Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to extend the deadline for submitting...
US transshipment ‘scam’ claims put Asean exporters in a bind
Southeast Asian exporters may soon face a heavier burden of proof to show they are not helping Chinese goods dodge US tariffs after the White House named nine countries in the region as part of what it called a global “Shadow Transshipment Network”. The warning came in a White House report titled “The Great Transshipment Scam”, which alleged that Chinese-origin goods were being routed through lowe...
Why is Chinese state media telling people to stop using English AI terms?
China’s state media has called for English-language terms related to artificial intelligence (AI) to be dropped in favour of standardised Chinese equivalents in a push to boost the country’s “discourse power”. As AI technologies have rapidly spread in China, English terms have entered common speech in the country, such as “agent” and “LLM” for large language model, a commentary published by the Co...
The ugly side of pressure on White House women to maintain Trump’s ‘Maga perfect’ image
Women working in US President Donald Trump’s White House were not surprised that press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced last week she was leaving her job – and they do not think it was just because she wants to spend time with her young children. In an interview with the Daily Mail, several anonymous White House employees spoke of the pressure that Leavitt, executive assistant Natalie Harper a...
Japan’s hotels embrace sleep tourism with brain scans, tea and custom beds
An increasing number of hotels in Japan are offering “sleep tourism” experiences – stays designed to promote high-quality and restful sleep. The trend, which started gaining popularity overseas several years ago, provides hotels with an opportunity to attract new health-conscious guests. A sleep retreat plan called totono-ne, featuring the relaxing effects of tea, is proving a popular offering for...
Zhipu AI’s answer to Project Glasswing marks shift for Chinese cyber safety: researcher
Zhipu AI’s launch of China’s first answer to Project Glasswing signals a shift in how the country’s top artificial intelligence labs approach global cybersecurity, according to a researcher. The Beijing-based firm – now known internationally as Z.ai – announced its new GLM-5.3 model on Friday alongside the launch of its “Shield of Open Source” initiative. The programme offers free security audits ...
Filipino student kills schoolmate, then himself, in live-streamed shooting
A high school student carrying two pistols shot to death a fellow student before killing himself on Tuesday in an attack in a southern Philippine high school campus that he live streamed using a body-worn camera, police and other officials said. It was the second fatal school shooting in the country in just two months. Hundreds of students were evacuated after shots rang out in the high school bui...
At least 2 students killed in Philippine school shooting
Two people have died and another two are injured after a school shooting in a southern part of the Philippines. The shooter, a student carrying a high-powered firearm, took aim at fellow students inside a classroom at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University High School on Tuesday morning, Zamboanga City Mayor Khymer Adan Olaso told local radio station DZMM. One student and the shooter died, while two s...
At least 2 casualties in Philippine school shooting
At least two people were hit in a shooting in a high school on Tuesday in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga, police said. Regional police spokeswoman Major Shellamie Chang said police forces were trying to secure the school campus but she could not immediately provide other details. Witnesses said the campus was Ateneo de Zamboanga University. The university’ president said there were no m...
At least 2 hit in Philippine school shooting
At least two people were hit in a shooting in a high school on Tuesday in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga, police said. Regional police spokesperson Major Shellamie Chang said police forces were trying to secure the school campus but she could not immediately provide other details. Witnesses said the campus was Ateneo de Zamboanga University. Journalists at the scene said the suspect was...
Bangkok gun shop trades bullets for baguettes as Thai firearm ban bites
Loaves of sourdough bread now fill the display window of Suchart and Friends Gun, a firearms shop-turned-bakery in Bangkok’s old quarter where pistols and rifles once lined the glass case. Like all the gun shops in Thailand, it has been banned from importing firearms since a 2023 shooting at a Bangkok mall – one of several mass shootings, including at a school and a childcare centre, that have pe...
China trims US Treasury holdings amid Iran war, Fed uncertainty
China cut its holdings of US Treasuries to a nearly 18-year low in June, as Beijing continued to diversify its foreign exchange reserves amid heightened geopolitical tensions and growing uncertainty over the policy outlook in the United States. Holdings fell to US$633.4 billion in June from US$659.3 billion in May, data released by the Treasury Department of the United States showed on Monday. The...
Why Siberia’s warming landscape could shatter Trump’s Arctic ambitions
As the United States, Russia and China race to turn a melting Arctic into the world’s next major economic gateway, their strategic ambitions face a hidden threat: thawing permafrost. Since returning to office last year, US President Donald Trump has pushed to expand America’s Arctic footprint. This includes investing in icebreakers to counter Russian and Chinese shipping ambitions, unlocking natur...
Hongkong Post scraps permanent contracts for new staff amid financial strain
Hong Kong’s self-financing postal administration will stop offering permanent civil service contracts to new employees as part of cost-saving measures amid a worsening financial outlook. Postmaster General Leonia Tai Shuk-yiu said on Monday that new Hongkong Post employees who pass probation in or after September would be offered two-year contracts on civil service terms, as the organisation faces...
Trump’s decision to scale back South Korea drills unsettles Asian allies: ‘makes no sense’
President Donald Trump’s decision to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea does not just slight a long-time ally but raises broader concerns about the security interests of the United States in Asia and elsewhere. Trump explained his decision by citing South Korea’s refusal to join his war against Iran and pointing to what he said was his good relationship with North Korea’s reclusi...
Huanggang Port points to the future of Greater Bay Area travel
The much-anticipated revamped Huanggang Port, expected to open later this year, should be seen as more than a story about faster clearance. Its deeper significance lies in a question that deserves wider discussion: if border functions can be redesigned, where should border control actually operate? Living in the Greater Bay Area, where people and businesses move across administrative boundaries ev...
Colombian minister’s Caribbean holiday amid earthquake crisis stokes fury
Colombia’s new housing minister has come under fire after it emerged that he took his family on a Caribbean holiday while the country was reeling from a devastating earthquake that left thousands homeless. The August 10 earthquake, which killed nearly 300 people in western Colombia, struck just three days after right-wing President Abelardo de la Espriella took office. The 7.4-magnitude tremor was...
Chinese workers turn bosses into virtual pets for stress relief amid rising quirky trend
AI desktop pets are gaining popularity in China, offering young workers an outlet for workplace frustration and providing bereaved owners with a digital means to preserve memories of their deceased pets. Virtual pets first emerged on messaging platforms in the early 2000s, roaming across screens and interacting with users as they browsed the web, chatted, or watched videos. Advancements in AI are ...
How Hong Kong infrastructure, AI firms are tapping Malaysia’s growth prospects
Hong Kong infrastructure and artificial intelligence (AI) firms are well placed to capitalise on a surge of expansion opportunities in Malaysia, but unlocking this potential will require cultural sensitivity and adapting to local market dynamics, industry insiders have said. The remarks follow the recent opening of Hong Kong’s new Economic and Trade Office in Kuala Lumpur to bolster bilateral ties...