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The detention of a Chinese national accused of posing as a Filipino for more than two decades has sharpened concerns in the Philippines that identity fraud could be used to gain access to sectors vital to national security. Immigration authorities arrested Lawrence Ke Sy, president, largest incorporator and majority shareholder of Maxipro Development Corp., on June 27, although the arrest was only...
The US Army has used up much of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during its five-month war with Iran, according to three people familiar with the data, raising concerns about the military’s readiness for future conflicts. The missiles are principally the Army’s surface-to-surface weapons, known as Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM). The...
Hong Kong-based conglomerate Jardine Matheson has said it ended a 44-year-old undergraduate scholarship programme for Oxford and Cambridge universities to “maximise impact” for more students, while a former recipient has called the scheme a “life-changing” opportunity. Students starting their studies later this year will be the final cohort of “Oxbridge” undergraduates covered by the programme, ac...
A Chinese physical AI start-up’s brief claim to global dominance in robotics has run into controversy, underscoring the intense US-China competition to develop next-generation artificial intelligence and the challenges of evaluating autonomous systems. In June, Spirit AI, a Hangzhou, Zhejiang province-based firm founded in 2024, briefly overtook United States tech giant Nvidia to take the top spot...
South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung urged on Tuesday authorities to step up support for people affected by a record heatwave in the country, calling it a national disaster after scorching conditions were blamed for 19 deaths. Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Lee ordered officials to take necessary measures to protect the daily lives of people and inspect power systems as demand for air conditioni...
When Fifa president Gianni Infantino pushed a plan to bring private investors into a new commercial entity tied to the World Cup, critics warned it risked selling part of football’s most valuable asset. Erick Thohir, chairman of the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI), disagreed. He backed the now-scrapped scheme – despite opposition from regional bodies including the Asian Football Confedera...
When Fifa president Gianni Infantino pushed a plan to bring private investors into a new commercial entity tied to the World Cup, critics warned it risked selling part of football’s most valuable asset. Erick Thohir, chairman of the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI), disagreed. He backed the now-scrapped scheme – despite opposition from regional bodies including the Asian Football Confedera...
A woman from eastern China, abandoned at birth, has returned with her Swedish adoptive parents to reunite with her birth family after 23 years. Known as Lisa in media reports, she was born in Huaiyuan county, Anhui province. Mainland media reported that a midwife took her away shortly after her birth in 2003, with her impoverished parents’ consent, after assuring them they could not afford to rais...
A woman from eastern China, abandoned at birth, has returned with her Swedish adoptive parents to reunite with her birth family after 23 years. Known as Lisa in media reports, she was born in Huaiyuan county, Anhui province. Mainland media reported that a midwife took her away shortly after her birth in 2003, with her impoverished parents’ consent, after assuring them they could not afford to rais...
A documentary broadcast on China’s state television has revealed details of test launches involving the world’s first operational hypersonic glide weapon system, the DF-17, highlighting its flexibility. Monday’s episode of Securing Victory – a series marking the 99th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on August 1 – was devoted to the PLA Rocket Force, which oversees land-based missi...
A Hong Kong civil servant has been charged with misconduct in public office for allegedly issuing bogus fixed-penalty littering notices to five people, triggering court-issued arrest warrants and the wrongful arrest of an innocent person. Law Yui, a 41-year-old foreman with the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), was charged by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on ...
A Hong Kong shipping industry body has estimated that as many as 80 of its ships and 1,600 seafarers are stuck in or near the Strait of Hormuz, with the sector forced to contend with more than five months of on-and-off conflict in the Middle East. Richard Hext, chairman of the Hong Kong Shipowners Association, shared the figures on Tuesday as the industry group revealed its recommendations for the...
Japan’s immigration agency on Tuesday proposed tougher requirements for granting permanent residency to foreigners, including requiring applicants to maintain income above the average for Japanese households and a certain level of projected pension benefits. The proposed guidelines are part of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s push to create an “orderly society” in which Japanese and foreign nationa...
Having created one of the runaway television hits of this summer’s Fifa World Cup, Lenovo is plotting to up the AI ante for the women’s version next year in Brazil. In addition to building digital twins for all 1,248 players to enhance semi-automated offside technology for the 2026 finals, labelled “the first AI World Cup”, and rolling out an analytical tool aimed at “democratising football”, the ...
A US vow to fund a port in the Solomon Islands could offer clues to Washington’s intentions in a region that has reeled from American aid cuts, yet remains part of the tug of war between superpowers. Analysts say the latest bid reflects a desire to ensure Honiara partners with Western allies in sectors with security implications, while renewing the once “anaemic” relationship with the region as Ch...
Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment China (AMEC), the country’s top chip-tool maker, says its preliminary profit will nearly quadruple in the first half of the year as robust demand for home-grown semiconductors continues amid US sanctions. Based on unaudited figures, the company said its income between January and June was at least 2.7 billion yuan (US$400 million), representing a year-on-year g...
When Russian-born Belgian mathematician Yurii Nesterov reached retirement age in 2023, he found himself at the centre of a technological storm. The accelerated gradient algorithm he derived with pen and paper 40 years ago had become the engine driving the rapid advancement of modern artificial intelligence (AI). Faced with the full explosion of the AI age, the academic – hailed as the “master of i...
The banning of British band Massive Attack from Singapore for pro-Palestine acts during their concert has split opinion in the city state, with some lamenting what they see as laws that are too strict and others urging foreigners to comply with local rules. At their gig on Wednesday, the two-man band held up a Palestinian flag and shouted “Free Palestine” along with members of the audience. Under ...
Hong Kong’s retail sales rose by 4.6 per cent year on year in June, extending the growth streak to 14 months, with the government expecting continued economic growth, rising incomes and a steady increase in visitors to support the sector. The value of retail sales for the month reached HK$31.5 billion (US$4.01 billion) with the retail sales in the first half of the year marking a 9.6 per cent incr...
The internet cafe was supposed to become obsolete. Instead, it has become indispensable. Across East Asia, these businesses are quietly evolving into temporary homes, budget hotels, co-working spaces and, for some, an unofficial social safety net. The debate in Hong Kong over overnight internet cafes is simply the newest chapter in a much bigger regional story. Hong Kong authorities have stepped u...
Malaysian police have identified a Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) security screener as a person of interest after a Malaysia Airlines pilot allegedly carried more than 70,000 Ecstasy pills through four layers of checks before the drugs were intercepted in Jakarta. Bukit Aman narcotics chief Hussein Omar Khan said on Tuesday that the airport employee assigned to the screening area used b...
The alleged ringleader in the fatal assault of an entrepreneur during a bar fight last month told a Hong Kong court that he was deprived of basic necessities while being held in a “filthy” police cell. Tsang Wai-ching, 40, was escorted to Kowloon City Court on Tuesday to face a murder charge over the attack on 32-year-old Issac Yeung Kam-chuen at an upstairs bar on Cameron Road in Tsim Sha Tsui on...
US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” on Monday assured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel’s withdrawal in Gaza would only begin after Hamas’ complete disarmament, following his objections. Two members of Netanyahu’s security cabinet had urged a vote to tear up the deal championed by Trump after the board released a text that called for Israel to begin a phased withdrawal. Netany...
On the South Atlantic coastline, Angola stands out as rare ground on which the United States has been willing to vie with China for influence in Africa. It was the only country on the continent visited by former US president Joe Biden, albeit in the twilight of his term in December 2024. During the trip – the first by a sitting US president – Biden made the case for investment in the strategic Lob...
Three lions have died of suspected heatstroke at Tokyo’s Tama Zoological Park amid Japan’s record-breaking “cruelly hot” summer as officials boost animal welfare measures to cope with climate-fuelled extreme weather. The zoo’s lion exhibit has been suspended since July 23 when 10 out of its 16 big cats started showing “loss of appetite and decreased activity” from the heat, a spokeswoman told Agen...
The Li Ka Shing Foundation has partnered with The Walt Disney Company to offer 24,000 foreign domestic helpers free tickets to watch the latest Toy Story movie in the newest collaboration between the organisations to support Hong Kong’s migrant workers. The charitable foundation, established by tycoon Li Ka-shing, said on Tuesday that screenings for Toy Story 5 would be arranged across six local c...
The Li Ka Shing Foundation has partnered with The Walt Disney Company to offer 24,000 foreign domestic helpers free tickets to watch the latest Toy Story movie in the newest collaboration between the organisations to support Hong Kong’s migrant workers. The charitable foundation, established by tycoon Li Ka-shing, said on Tuesday that screenings for Toy Story 5 would be arranged across six local c...
The Li Ka Shing Foundation has partnered with The Walt Disney Company to offer 24,000 foreign domestic helpers free tickets to watch the latest Toy Story movie in the newest collaboration between the organisations to support Hong Kong’s migrant workers. The charitable foundation, established by tycoon Li Ka-shing, said on Tuesday that screenings for Toy Story 5 would be arranged across six local c...
Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog has warned of suspected fraudulent e-visa application websites, including for the UK and US, which request personal data from unsuspecting applicants, with victims suffering losses of up to HK$1,700 (US$216). The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data said on Monday that it had received 16 inquiries or complaints over the past three months about the provi...
Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog has warned of suspected fraudulent e-visa application websites that request personal data from unsuspecting applicants, with victims suffering losses of up to HK$1,700 (US$216). A spokesman for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data said in a statement on Monday that the office had received 16 inquiries or complaints over the past three months about t...
