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An independent committee investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades will hear concluding remarks from the government on Thursday as the final round of hearings on the tragedy continues. The legal representative for nine residents of the fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Tai Po will also deliver a concluding statement before the judge-led panel on the second last session of the...
An independent committee investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades will hear concluding remarks from the government on Thursday as the final round of hearings on the tragedy continues. The legal representative for nine residents of the fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Tai Po will also deliver a concluding statement before the judge-led panel on the second last session of the...
An independent committee investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades will hear concluding remarks from the government on Thursday as the final round of hearings on the tragedy continues. The legal representative for nine residents of the fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Tai Po will also deliver a concluding statement before the judge-led panel on the second last session of the...
Hong Kong’s introduction of pet-friendly dining in designated restaurants has drawn significant public criticism, leading some lawmakers to call for tighter vetting of licences. Since the scheme began on July 9, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has received about 20 complaints as of Wednesday. The department earlier said most complaints involved minor issues such as leash length and s...
For generations, jeepneys – brightly painted minibuses that are among the Philippines’ cheapest and most used forms of public transport – have run on diesel, but recent fuel shocks are forcing thousands of small operators and drivers to weigh volatile prices against the debt needed to go electric. Diesel prices spiked anew by nearly 5 pesos this week, as renewed tensions in the Gulf threatened to ...
From rare earth elements to commercial drones, Washington has become all too familiar with the strongest weapons in Beijing’s manufacturing arsenal – the materials and products where China holds a strategic advantage in production, extraction or any other link in the supply chain. After those near-monopolies provided Chinese policymakers considerable leverage in last year’s trade dispute, US think...
Every four years, billions of football fans spend a month arguing about offside decisions, whether Ronaldo or Messi is a grass-grazing horned mammal, and whether football is finally “coming home”. For nations, however, the Fifa World Cup is far more than football. Beyond the national pride that comes with simply qualifying, the tournament offers an unparalleled opportunity to capture the world’s a...
In the first half of this year, leisure travel within China exploded. As the summer travel season builds towards the Mid-Autumn Festival and the “golden week” that follows National Day on October 1, domestic travel has emerged as one of China’s most important, if underappreciated, drivers of consumption and growth. During the extended Chinese New Year holiday, travel and consumer spending boomed. ...
The Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC) recorded a major jump in investment income during its second year of operation, as it expanded its role as the city’s “patient capital” engine driving local economic development. The wholly state-owned investment firm generated about HK$6.46 billion (US$824 million) in investment income in 2025, a stunning 175 per cent year-on-year increase, according to...
After vanishing from a market near her home 35 years ago, a woman in southern China has finally been reunited with her birth family. However, injuries found on her face and the failure of nearby broadcast appeals to reach her parents fuelled online speculation about how she disappeared. Zhong Fenglin, 37, once lived near a market in Nanning, Guangxi, where her parents sold ginger and garlic. In 19...
Every year, summer rains cause flooding in China. They also bring high-stakes work for officials. Once an evacuation order goes out, local governments have long checked on families by calling them on the phone. Xie Yunshi, an official in the suburbs of the Chinese capital, told Beijing Daily that when waters rose in the past, his department would organise a dozen people to call every single family...
US lawmakers are pushing for more scrutiny of Chinese investment in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, as Washington’s strategic competition with Beijing expands beyond semiconductors and artificial intelligence into the healthcare sector. Bipartisan US senators on Wednesday unveiled legislation aimed at increasing transparency around foreign influence in the pharmaceutical industry, amid growing ...
Hong Kong suspended classes on Thursday morning after the city’s weather forecaster issued a red rainstorm warning, which was lowered to amber in less than two hours. The red warning was raised at 7.40am. It was then replaced by the amber signal at 9.25am that was cancelled at 10.20am. The Education Bureau said students attending morning and whole-day schools were not required to go to class while...
Hong Kong suspended classes on Thursday morning after the city’s weather forecaster issued a red rainstorm warning, which was lowered to amber in less than two hours. The red warning was raised at 7.40am and replaced by the amber signal at 9.25am. The Education Bureau said students attending morning and whole-day schools were not required to go to class while the red warning was in force. School...
Hong Kong suspended classes on Thursday morning after the city’s weather forecaster issued a red rainstorm warning. The Education Bureau said students attending morning and whole-day schools were not required to go to class after the signal was raised at 7.40am. Schools should nevertheless keep their premises open to care for students who have already arrived, the bureau added. The Hong Kong Obser...
Japan has voiced concern about the United States’ campaign against the International Criminal Court (ICC), exposing a diplomatic bind for Tokyo as it seeks to defend a tribunal it has long championed without provoking its most important security ally. Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday that Japan “places great importance on the eradication and prevent...
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that arch foe Iran has freed an American citizen detained since December 2024 and allowed her to leave the country. “She is now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition,” Trump posted on social media, adding: “The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran!” Trump – who in recent days has ordered a resumption of strikes again...
Setting a timer to take a short break after every 25 minutes of study, compiling a “mistakes booklet” to learn from past errors and using artificial intelligence to boost English skills are among the strategies used by top scorers in this year’s university entrance exam in Hong Kong. However, some of the 24 high achievers of this year’s Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) exams said they would no...
A former senior adviser for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors was sentenced to more than three years in prison for lying to federal investigators looking into whether he shared confidential data with Chinese intelligence operatives, the Justice Department said. John Harold Rogers, 64, was convicted at trial on February 3 of making false statements to investigators about sharing information on...
The United States launched a new wave of strikes against Iran on Wednesday to curb its ability to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, as US President Donald Trump warned he could widen attacks unless the Islamic republic returned to talks. US Central Command said the strikes began at 1900 GMT and targeted Iranian military capabilities used to threaten vessels freely transiting the vital wat...
Washington is moving to strengthen its artificial intelligence posture towards China, with lawmakers advancing new export control bills and the Trump administration deepening cooperation with leading US AI firms as concerns grow that Beijing is rapidly closing the technological gap. A senior Anthropic executive said on Wednesday that the United States holds a six-to-nine-month lead in frontier AI ...
On July 12, a coalition of 14 nations – the United States, Philippines, Australia, Canada, Britain, Japan, New Zealand, and seven European states including Germany, Italy and the Baltic nations – issued a statement marking the 10th anniversary of the South China Sea ruling at The Hague in 2016. The document recycled familiar arguments, urging compliance with the ruling and framing it as a cornerst...
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Wednesday that he is rolling out a new screening programme for “testosterone deficiency” among troops, calling it necessary to allow them to operate at their “absolute best”. The screenings will be conducted annually as part of service members’ required medical screenings for those 30 and older, he said. Troops under 30 can volunteer to be tested. In ...
The United States’ nominee for director of national intelligence told lawmakers on Wednesday he could be “extremely helpful” in shaping economic strategy with China during a confirmation hearing that framed Beijing as a leading economic and geopolitical challenge. Jay Clayton, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, appeared before the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on his nomination,...
US President Donald Trump’s attorney general nominee, Todd Blanche, faced tense bipartisan questioning at a US Senate panel on Wednesday about the roll-out of the Epstein files and a settlement that gave the president sweeping tax immunity. Blanche, the president’s former personal lawyer, was pressed by Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas about the Justice Department’s decision to settle Trum...
French lawmakers on Wednesday adopted a bill that will create a legal right to assisted dying for adults with incurable illnesses, capping an intense ethical and political debate. The legislation will, under strict conditions, allow a person who requests it to receive a lethal substance. The substance could be self-administered or, if the person is physically unable to do so, administered by a d...
The European Union has accused China – along with Russia – of trying to “reshape the global order in line with their interests” and “fostering a return to a sphere-of-influence logic”, in an explosive new position paper that contains some of the bloc’s strongest ever official criticism of Beijing. The paper, which was adopted by the EU’s 27 foreign ministers on Monday without any announcement, acc...
China’s global image has rebounded from its pandemic-era lows, with international views of both the country and President Xi Jinping improving as confidence in the United States has declined, according to a new Pew Research Centre survey. The survey, released on Wednesday, polled more than 45,000 people across 37 countries spanning every region of the world, including many advanced economies and e...
A man who threatened on social media in May to shoot Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage was arrested, London police said on Wednesday, as concerns grow over the security of politicians following the killing of Ann Widdecombe, a former member of parliament. The man was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of sending threatening communications to a member of parliament, the Metropolitan Police said. “I...
While a score of seven points out of a maximum of 42 in Hong Kong’s Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) exams might seem low to some, for non-verbal student Tam Chun-yu it is a massive accomplishment, achieved by typing his answers with just one finger. At the Hong Kong Red Cross John F Kennedy Centre, Tam, 20, was among candidates receiving their DSE results on Wednesday, securing level 2 passes...
