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A horrific train crash that killed 16 passengers on the outskirts of Jakarta has prompted Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto to pledge 4 trillion rupiah (US$230 million) to overhaul level crossings across Java after officials identified one such intersection as a key point in the chain collision. The pledge targets one of the key weaknesses in Indonesia’s rail network: crossings that are ungua...
African eels, frozen meat and rare earths now have one thing in common – at least in China. The commodities are among a wide variety of products that can enter the country tariff-free as part of a policy to help redress the continent’s massive trade imbalance with China. The zero-tariff policy has applied to 33 “least-developed” African countries since 2024 and, from May 1, has been expanded to in...
As one of the most frequently portrayed Chinese emperors in modern costume dramas, Qing dynasty Emperor Qianlong is also renowned for his obsessive habit of impressing seals onto his art collections. The Qianlong Emperor (reigned 1735–1796, died 1799) was exceptionally long-lived even among rulers, and he is celebrated for ushering in a prosperous era alongside his father, Yongzheng, and grandfath...
Hong Kong police have arrested a 44-year-old man for allegedly trafficking more than HK$800,000 (US$102,110) of suspected heroin. The force said on Friday that officers from the Tuen Mun district anti-triad unit were conducting an operation at around 9.50am the day before, when they found a man acting suspiciously outside a flat on Yan Po Road. After stopping the man for questioning, officers foun...
Hong Kong police have arrested a 44-year-old man for allegedly trafficking more than HK$800,000 (US$102,110) of suspected heroin. The force said on Friday that officers from the Tuen Mun district anti-triad unit were conducting an operation at around 9.50am the day before, when they found a man acting suspiciously outside a flat on Yan Po Road. After stopping the man for questioning, officers foun...
Asia’s gold rush is starting to lose some of its lustre, as surging oil prices due to the Iran war dampen rate-cut hopes that recently helped fuel one of the metal’s strongest rallies in years. A surge in energy costs has revived inflation concerns and made central banks less likely to cut rates, and this has made interest-bearing assets more attractive, according to analysts. Gold prices fell by ...
Sales of vaping products persist on some online platforms delivering to Hong Kong despite a ban on the import, sale and public use of alternative tobacco products, prompting authorities to step up monitoring and enforcement. The South China Morning Post on Friday found several online platforms selling e-cigarette products, with some websites displaying contact details using country codes from Mala...
Sales of vaping products persist on some online platforms delivering to Hong Kong despite a ban on the import, sale and public use of alternative tobacco products, prompting authorities to step up monitoring and enforcement. The South China Morning Post on Friday found several online platforms selling e-cigarette products, with some websites displaying contact details using country codes from Mala...
Sales of vaping products persist on some online platforms delivering to Hong Kong despite a ban on the import, sale and public use of alternative tobacco products, prompting authorities to step up monitoring and enforcement. The South China Morning Post on Friday found several online platforms selling e-cigarette products, with some websites displaying contact details using country codes from Mala...
Sales of vaping products persist on some online platforms delivering to Hong Kong despite a ban on the import, sale and public use of alternative tobacco products, prompting authorities to step up monitoring and enforcement. The South China Morning Post on Friday found several online platforms selling e-cigarette products, with some websites displaying contact details using country codes from Mala...
China’s latest electric vehicle (EV) innovations – from ultra-fast battery charging to headlights capable of projecting films – have drawn strong attention at Beijing’s Auto China show, underscoring how the country’s automotive technology is pulling ahead of global rivals. As domestic carmakers and key suppliers recast vehicles as “mobile living spaces” powered by artificial intelligence and digit...
Thousands of visitors have flocked to Hong Kong’s East Dam to view its rare volcanic rock columns at the start of the five-day Labour Day “golden week” holiday, prompting a lawmaker to suggest charging an entrance fee to maintain the Unesco global geopark. Drawn by the city’s natural scenery and well-established hiking trails heavily promoted on mainland Chinese social media, many tourists are inc...
The world’s eyes have been fixed on the oil tankers clogging the Strait of Hormuz. But the US-Israel war on Iran has exposed a quieter vulnerability: the undersea cables that form the digital backbone of the Middle East. Last week, a media outlet affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps highlighted that the strait functioned not only as a crucial chokepoint for oil and gas shipment...
If the “China shock” of the early 2000s was about China catching up, then “China shock 2.0” is about the country redefining the boundaries of what is economically possible across manufacturing sectors, according to Columbia University professor Adam Tooze. Amid complaints about the trade and industrial policies accelerating China’s rise in many sectors – including aviation, space, artificial intel...
A viral video of three elephants sent from Malaysia to a zoo in Japan has sparked public anger after online users said the animals appeared distressed when visitors called their names in Malay – which many viewers interpreted as a sign of homesickness. The footage showed the three pachyderms – Dara, Amoi and Kelat – responding to the Malaysian visitors, while another widely shared clip led social ...
Hundreds of protesters clashed with Australian emergency services workers in a remote town following the arrest of a man suspected of murdering a five-year-old indigenous girl, police said on Friday. Australia’s prime minister, the Northern Territory’s police commissioner and a spokesperson for the victim’s family all appealed for calm after an angry crowd of roughly 400 indigenous people gathered...
The Trump administration is arguing that the war in Iran has already ended because of the ceasefire that began in early April, an interpretation that would allow the White House to avoid the need to seek congressional approval. The statement furthers an argument laid out by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth during testimony in the Senate earlier Thursday, when he said the ceasefire effectively paused...
Hong Kong residents flocked to Shenzhen on Friday, drawn by ‘better service’ at restaurants and family-friendly attractions as the Labour Day “golden week” holiday began. Affordability has also lured droves of Hongkongers across the border, with families budgeting about HK$1,000 (US$128) for a full day in the tech hub, covering restaurants, dental clinics, indoor amusement parks and ice-skating ri...
The Pakistan Navy has received the first of its Chinese-built Hangor-class attack submarine fleet, as Beijing and Islamabad step up defence cooperation. A commissioning ceremony was held for the advanced submarine – named the PNS/M Hangor – in the Chinese city of Sanya on Hainan Island on Thursday, according to a statement from Pakistan’s military. Asif Ali Zardari, the country’s president, and na...
Japanese police arrested a man for allegedly incinerating his dead wife at the zoo where he worked, officials and local media said on Friday, following the discovery of human remains. Police arrested Tatsuya Suzuki on Thursday evening on suspicion that he “transported the victim’s body to a tourist facility” in the northern island of Hokkaido and “destroyed it through incineration there”, a local ...
Vigloo, a South Korean micro drama production company, has gone all-in on artificial intelligence this year, betting that automation can fundamentally reshape how content is made. The company has begun spending roughly 30 per cent of its budget on AI-driven workflows, and the change is already having a dramatic impact. It can now produce a show in just one month rather than three, and at one-fifth...
A Chinese actor who is well-known for playing dominant bosses in miniseries and has taken part in 200 such productions has become unemployed due to the impact of AI technology. In March, to make ends meet, Zhang Xiaolei, 28, began doing farm work in the northwestern province of Qinghai, Red Star News reported. Starting with some basic dancing skills, Zhang was introduced by his friend to a miniser...
About a dozen visitors were seen removing small crabs and shells from a tombolo on Hong Kong’s Sharp Island on Friday, the first day of mainland China’s five-day Labour Day “golden week” break, prompting conservation officers and volunteers to confront them and issue warnings. At around 3.30pm on Friday, a South China Morning Post reporter observed the visitors, often accompanied by their families...
About a dozen visitors were seen removing small crabs and shells from a tombolo on Hong Kong’s Sharp Island on Friday, the first day of mainland China’s five-day Labour Day “golden week” break, prompting conservation officers and volunteers to confront them and issue warnings. At around 3.30pm on Friday, a South China Morning Post reporter observed the visitors, often accompanied by their families...
Mainland Chinese tourists may have come for the tombolo but left with a deeper understanding of Hong Kong’s coral reefs and marine life after the government stepped up promotion and protection efforts on Sharp Island in Sai Kung. That was the view of visitors touring the island on Friday morning, Labour Day – a Hong Kong public holiday and the start of the mainland’s five-day “golden week” break. ...
Mainland Chinese tourists may have come for the tombolo but left with a deeper understanding of Hong Kong’s coral reefs and marine life after the government stepped up promotion and protection efforts on Sharp Island in Sai Kung. That was the view of visitors touring the island on Friday morning, Labour Day – a Hong Kong public holiday and the start of the mainland’s five-day “golden week” break. ...
Mainland Chinese tourists may have come for the tombolo but left with a deeper understanding of Hong Kong’s coral reefs and marine life after the government stepped up promotion and protection efforts on Sharp Island in Sai Kung. That was the view of visitors touring the island on Friday morning, Labour Day – a Hong Kong public holiday and the start of the mainland’s five-day “golden week” break. ...
Hong Kong has recorded more than 242,000 trips by mainland Chinese visitors on the first day of their Labour Day “golden week” break, with many heading to the countryside for scenic views and others opting for “city walks” to explore picturesque locales. Some early arrivals headed straight to the countryside after getting off at the West Kowloon rail terminus on Friday morning. University student ...
Hong Kong has recorded more than 242,000 trips by mainland Chinese visitors on the first day of their Labour Day “golden week” break, with many heading to the countryside for scenic views and others opting for “city walks” to explore picturesque locales. Some early arrivals headed straight to the countryside after getting off at the West Kowloon rail terminus on Friday morning. University student ...
Hong Kong has so far recorded more than 208,000 trips by mainland Chinese visitors for the first day of Labour Day “golden week” break across the border, with many heading to the countryside for scenic views and others opting for “city walks” to explore picturesque locales. Some early arrivals headed straight to the countryside after getting off at the West Kowloon rail terminus on Friday morning....
