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The transition of the North Atlantic military alliance to a more Europe-led “Nato 3.0” will fail to heal deep-seated strategic rifts between Washington and the European capitals, according to a leading Chinese think tank. In a report published on Monday, the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR) also warned that Nato’s expanding military and defence cooperation with Asia...
Two tankers carrying Iranian oil are signalling Pakistan as their destination – an unusual move that may be an indication they are seeking a safe place to wait as the US blockade takes effect. The Rani and the Amil, which are carrying a combined 1 million barrels of crude, switched their destination signals to Karachi on Tuesday, ship-tracking data show. The two vessels were already outside the Pe...
A Hong Kong court found two prisoners guilty of helping a correctional officer attack a fellow inmate who was left severely wounded after a stick was repeatedly thrust into his rectum. District Court on Wednesday convicted Bosco Lee, 21, and Brian Lam Shing-wai, 22, of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm for their involvement in a brutal assault on a prisoner at Pik Uk Prison in Sai Ku...
Hong Kong’s airport has reported a 16.8 per cent decline in net profit to HK$2 billion (US$255.16 million) for the 2025-26 financial year, with the management citing a significant rise in expenses driven by the third runway’s operating costs and last year’s aircraft salvage operation. In its annual report released on Wednesday, the operator of Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) said revenue gr...
China’s embassy in Bangladesh has joined a number of Chinese diplomatic missions warning the country’s citizens about using illegal matchmaking services to find brides. Anyone who goes to the South Asian country to find a wife using brokers or agencies could face arrest on suspicion of human trafficking, the embassy said in a social media post on Tuesday. Under Bangladeshi law, a human trafficking...
China’s embassy in Bangladesh has joined a number of Chinese diplomatic missions warning the country’s citizens about using illegal matchmaking services to find brides. Anyone who goes to the South Asian country to find a wife using brokers or agencies might face arrest on suspicion of human trafficking, the embassy said in a social media post on Tuesday. Under Bangladeshi law, a human trafficking...
Hong Kong’s flag carrier, Cathay Pacific Airways, will expand its network by including four new destinations in Latin America via Madrid through code-share flights with Spanish airline Iberia. Passengers from Hong Kong will be able to travel to Fortaleza and Recife in Brazil, Buenos Aires in Argentina, and Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic under the new arrangement. Cathay will also increase...
Generative AI chatbots capable of writing emails and computer code, translating, organising a trip or coming up with gift ideas are now readily available – prompting some to ask whether human brainpower could suffer for lack of use. A simple natural-language prompt is usually enough to draw a usable response from a service like ChatGPT or Claude, with the effects making themselves felt in schools ...
Malaysia’s unity government is holding in Putrajaya, but its uneasy alliance is fraying in the states after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) moved into opposition in Melaka even as it is still reeling from a rout by its federal partner Barisan Nasional (BN) in Johor. The split followed a constitutional amendment allowing Melaka’s government to appoint up to seven unelected assem...
When Hong Kong launched its latest Connect programme on July 7, most of the attention focused on gold. That misses the bigger story. Delivery Connect, part of the city’s new gold clearing and settlement system, is not simply another financial initiative but the latest evidence that Beijing has settled on a distinctive model for opening up China’s financial markets. Rather than embracing wholesale ...
The Philippines has begun holding active school shooter drills after a rare act of violence in Tacloban City last month during which two teenage students opened fire, killing three schoolmates and injuring 20 others. On Wednesday, at one educational campus in Manila, hundreds of students and teachers practised barricading classrooms with desks and chairs and staying silent as an armed actor wearin...
Hong Kong needs to diversify the source of its listed companies and investors if it is to reclaim its recently lost crown as the world’s top initial public offering (IPO) venue, according to a government think tank. “Hong Kong should continue to find ways to diversify both its listing issuers as well as potential future investors,” said Benjamin Hung Pi-cheng, chairman of the Financial Services De...
It is part-boat, part-bridge and part-life raft – and in the massive floods in southern China, it has been all rescue vehicle. The foldable, self-propelled pontoon barge has emerged as a powerful new tool in the response to the disaster, used to rescue thousands of people trapped by rising waters in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. One of the biggest rescue operations took place last week at the ...
Hundreds of eager visitors queued up overnight for the opening of the Hong Kong Book Fair on Wednesday, but some slammed organisers for chaotic crowd control. The primary draw for many in the overnight queue outside the Convention and Exhibition Centre was an autograph session with popular local Cantopop girl group Collar, but the queue system sparked heavy criticism. Among the frustrated early bi...
Hong Kong authorities have pledged to fast-track renovation, equipment installation and testing at an upgraded border checkpoint as the legislature prepares to approve the Huanggang Port bill this week, pending an opening date. Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung said the Huanggang Port Hong Kong Port Area Bill, which provides the legal basis for implementing a co-location arrangement at ...
The feud between Samsung Electronics’ device-making and chipmaking divisions is deepening, as employees in the smartphone and home appliance businesses are expressing anger over a nearly 100-fold compensation gap between them and employees in the chipmaking division. Samsung Electronics Company Union (SECU), which is mostly made up of employees in the appliance-making Device Experience (DX) divisi...
More than half of the reading glasses tested by Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog failed to label pupillary distance, a key measurement for aligning lenses to ensure clear vision and reduce the risk of eye strain. The Consumer Council tested 17 models of ready-to-wear reading glasses between January and May, with the claimed magnifying power for all models at +2.50 dioptres – commonly known as 250 deg...
More than half of the reading glasses tested by Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog failed to label pupillary distance, a key measurement for aligning lenses to ensure clear vision and reduced risk of eye strain. The Consumer Council tested 17 models of ready-to-wear reading glasses between January and May this year, with the claimed degree of presbyopia for all models being +2.50 or +2.5 dioptres – com...
Hongkongers buying insurance for their pets have been urged to carefully examine third-party liability terms and pay special attention to coverage related to disputes and animals with a history of aggression. The Consumer Council issued the warning less than a week after more than 900 restaurants became legally allowed to welcome dogs on the premises as part of a government scheme. In a report pub...
Hongkongers buying insurance for their pets have been urged to carefully examine third-party liability terms and pay special attention to coverage related to disputes and animals with a history of aggression. The Consumer Council issued the warning less than a week after more than 900 restaurants became legally allowed to welcome dogs on the premises as part of a government scheme. In a report pub...
It was supposed to be just another hectic day on New Delhi’s roads. Instead, early this month, several e-rickshaws on the Indian capital’s crowded streets reportedly came to a halt mid-ride in separate incidents that left drivers stranded and passengers searching for answers. Videos of the disruption quickly went viral on social media, turning a local transport breakdown into a national debate. Th...
It was supposed to be just another hectic day on New Delhi’s roads. Instead, early this month, several e-rickshaws on the Indian capital’s crowded streets reportedly came to a halt mid-ride in separate incidents that left drivers stranded and passengers searching for answers. Videos of the disruption quickly went viral on social media, turning a local transport breakdown into a national debate. Th...
Chinese motorcycle tycoon Zhang Xue has donated five million yuan (US$735,000) to flood-stricken Guangxi right after clearing a 100-million-yuan (US$15 million) corporate debt, moving many online. Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, in southern China, was hit by heavy rains that caused dam breaches and flooding, which had killed 39 people. On July 9, the founder of motorcycle manufacturer ZXMOTO pos...
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened to close “all other export corridors that benefit the US and its allies”, Iranian media reported, after Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz and the US reimposed a naval blockade of Iranian ports. “Regional energy exports are either shared by all, or denied to all,” the IRGC said in a statement carried by Iran’s IRNA state news agency on Wednesday...
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened to close “all other export corridors that benefit the US and its allies”, Iranian media reported, after Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz and the US reimposed a naval blockade of Iranian ports. “Regional energy exports are either shared by all, or denied to all,” the IRGC said in a statement carried by Iran’s IRNA state news agency on Wednesday...
New Zealand’s interest in joining a newly signed defence pact between Australia and Fiji may mark the start of a broader hard security alliance covering the South Pacific, but analysts warn smaller states’ concerns are likely to go unaddressed. The Ocean of Peace Alliance, signed by Australia and Fiji on July 6, binds Canberra and Suva to come to each other’s defence if attacked. Days later, New Z...
We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China’s satellite engine smashes record, leaves US rival far behind China has tested a satellite engine with a record-breaking operating life, a key technology that could help propel the world’s largest communi...
China’s leading memory chipmaker, ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), has priced its Shanghai initial public offering at 8.66 yuan (US$1.28) apiece, positioning the company for the largest listing by a Chinese semiconductor company on a mainland bourse. The firm, based in Hefei, Anhui province, is expected to raise gross proceeds of 57.9 billion yuan (US$8.5 billion) from the sale of nearly 6.7 b...
A new era began between Spain and the tiny British territory of Gibraltar on Wednesday, as border checks that have long been a source of tension and frustration were finally lifted. Several dozen people and vehicles crossed the border from Spain for the first time without undergoing customs checks a few minutes after midnight. Several hundred people gathered for the occasion, waving Spanish flags,...
A Chinese research university plans to phase out traditional English classes, citing the ability of artificial intelligence (AI) translators to bridge language barriers in real time. In a video posted to the university’s social media account on July 2, Zhao Wei, the provost of Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology (SUAT), announced that the institution would do away with standard English cour...
