China

China’s Spring Festival has emerged as a high-stakes arena for artificial intelligence and robotics companies, with tech giants Tencent Holdings and Baidu committing a combined 1.5 billion yuan (US$215 million) to their digital red packet campaigns. Chinese social media and gaming giant Tencent announced on Sunday that its AI chatbot app Yuanbao would […]

Hong Kong’s high-speed rail network is launching a limited-time “buy one, get one free” offer for tickets to Shenzhen’s Futian from Tuesday in celebration of its service expanding to 110 destinations in mainland China. The limited-time offer coincides with the launch of 16 new mainland destinations, including stops at major eastern hubs such as […]

Hong Kong lawmakers have urged the government to review its new seat belt policy on buses in six months’ time, including a suggestion that operators use lap belts in certain vehicles offering short-haul rides to make it easier for passengers to alight. A day after the regulation for public and private buses took effect, passengers reported having […]

Beijing’s point man on Hong Kong affairs has called on the city to improve its executive-led governance model, arguing that the legislative and judicial branches should support the government as they perform “on the same stage” rather than undermine one another. Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, on Monday warned against […]

A former People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldier has been sentenced to eight months in prison for illegally carrying passengers in his Tesla Model S luxury car using a ride-hailing platform while in Hong Kong as a tourist. Fanling Court on Monday heard that Zeng Yulin, 39, travelled to Hong Kong from Shenzhen between June and August last year to offer paid […]

Shanghai [China], January 26 (ANI): Consul General of India in Shanghai Pratik Mathur led the 77th Republic Day celebrations in the commercial capital of China on Monday with great pomp and splendour. The celebrations were attended by over 400 friends of India from the local Indian diaspora, Chinese community and the diplomatic and consular corps including […]

DUBLIN, Ireland: Infant milk formula batches produced by French food and beverage maker Danone were being recalled from targeted markets due to a contamination scare from cereulide, a toxin that can cause nausea and vomiting. The scare initially began with Nestle products, and, apart from Danone, privately owned Lactalis also announced a recall of batches […]

WASHINGTON, D.C.: After years of regulatory pressure and legal uncertainty, TikTok has secured a path to remain operational in the United States by reshaping its ownership and data governance structure. TikTok's Chinese parent, ByteDance, said it has finalised an agreement to create a new joint venture majority-owned by American and global investors, a move […]

China’s central bank will support Hong Kong’s monetary authority to double the amount of yuan liquidity available to local banks, helping them increase yuan lending and enhancing the city’s role as an international offshore centre for the mainland currency. People’s Bank of China (PBOC) deputy governor Zou Lan said at the Asian Financial Forum (AFF) […]

BEIJING, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- A Beijing-based commercial space company, InterstellOr, has captured nationwide attention recently with plans to start suborbital rides by 2028, offering tickets priced at 3 million yuan (about 429,534 U.S. dollars) per passenger.Meanwhile, several Chinese commercial space companies like Galactic Energy and Deep Blue Aerospace […]

(Photo credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images)A year after winning her first career Grand Slam in Australia, Madison Keys saw her bid for a repeat end on Monday at the hands of another American looking to follow in Keys' footsteps in winning her first Slam in Melbourne.Sixth-seeded Jessica Pegula swept the ninth-seeded Keys 6-3, 6-4 in a battle of best friends, […]

Hong Kong police have arrested a 70-year-old car driver who fatally struck an elderly cyclist in Tai Po. Police received a report of the accident at 7.25am on Monday. The victim, a man in his seventies or eighties, was struck by a car travelling towards Tai Mei Tuk as he crossed Ting Kok Road near Tai Po Industrial Estate. No identification was found on the […]

(260126) -- ST. PETERSBURG, Jan. 26, 2026 (Xinhua) -- Students learn Chinese calligraphy at the St. Petersburg campus of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Jan. 25, 2026. January 25 marks the Russian Students' Day. The St. Petersburg campus of the National Research University Higher School of Economics […]

Politburo member Zhang Youxia has been suspected of serious violations of discipline and lawChina has launched an investigation into its highest-ranking general Zhang Youxia, the country's Defense Ministry has announced.Zhang, a member of the Communist Party's Politburo and vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), China's top military body […]

Politburo member Zhang Youxia has been suspected of "serious violations of discipline and law" China has launched an investigation into its highest-ranking general Zhang Youxia, the country's Defense Ministry has announced. Zhang, a member of the Communist Party's Politburo and vice-chairman of the Central […]

Hong Kong banks may not cut their prime rates this year, but local interbank rates will still follow US rates lower, benefiting a majority of borrowers, according to a senior executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). Analysts widely expect the US Federal Reserve to cut its key rate by three-quarters of a point this year, but Hong Kong commercial […]

HARBIN, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Train Y783, a themed tourism train bound for Yabuli featuring travel photography services, was inaugurated Sunday in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. Operated by China Railway Harbin Group Co., Ltd., the train marks the company's first offering of its kind this year, allowing passengers to dress in diverse […]

HARBIN, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Train Y783, a themed tourism train bound for Yabuli featuring travel photography services, was inaugurated Sunday in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. Operated by China Railway Harbin Group Co., Ltd., the train marks the company's first offering of its kind this year, allowing passengers to dress in diverse […]

New share listings by Chinese technology firms in Hong Kong have delivered above-average returns on their debuts so far in 2026, as investors faced with a challenging macro environment bet on Beijing’s push for technology self-reliance. Graphics processing unit (GPU) maker Shanghai Biren Technology, semiconductor maker OmniVision Integrated Circuit Group […]

About 75 per cent of paper waste and 40 per cent of plastic items sent to landfills are unclassified, according to official statistics, with environmentalists warning that such unclear records will undermine Hong Kong’s green efforts. However, the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) said it was “unnecessary” to change its waste-tracking system, […]

Taipei [Taiwan], January 26 (ANI): Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) on Monday said that it detected five sorties of Chinese aircraft and eight People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels operating around Taiwan up to 6 am (UTC+8)In a post on X, the MND said that five sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's central and southwestern […]

A balanced diet benefits everyone, but it is especially important for the neurodiverse community, according to Love 21 Foundation, a Hong Kong charity dedicated to improving their physical and mental health. The foundation is one of 13 NGOs selected to receive funding from this year’s Operation Santa Claus (OSC) charity campaign. With its second […]

Hong Kong has ambitious plans to become an international higher education hub. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced as much in his policy address. We are home to top-ranked universities, and the plan seems on track. But are we really preparing our children for these education ambitions? Are we equipping them to join our top-ranked universities? If you […]

The number of foreign and mainland Chinese companies and start-ups in Hong Kong surged by 11 per cent year on year to record highs, the city’s leader has said. At the 19th Asian Financial Forum on Monday, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu highlighted Hong Kong’s “unprecedented achievements” as he announced a cooperation agreement to establish a gold […]

French insurer AXA’s Hong Kong unit, one of the city’s largest life and general insurers, has become the second insurance company to move its domicile to Hong Kong from Bermuda, according to a statement on Monday. At least three other local insurers, including the local unit of Canada’s Sun Life, were planning the same move after a law change in May […]

Federated Hermes, a New York-listed asset-management firm, plans to set up a Hong Kong office to seize opportunities in Asia’s markets amid ongoing global geopolitical tensions. The company confirmed the move a year after CEO Chris Donahue said at the Asian Financial Forum (AFF) that the Pittsburgh-headquartered firm was considering a presence in the […]

A Hong Kong think tank under the chief executive says now is the right time for the city to go paperless on arbitral decisions, a move that could boost its edge as an arbitration hub. The recommendation by the Chief Executive’s Policy Unit (CEPU) follows a recent forum with leading figures from the legal, academic and business sectors exploring pathways […]

Tokyo [Japan], January 26 (ANI): Japan's last two pandas, twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, were seen by visitors at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo on Sunday ahead of their scheduled return to China later this month, as reported by The Taipei Times.Their departure will mark the first time Japan will be without giant pandas since 1972, amid tensions between the two […]

WASHINGTON, D.C.: Despite many U.S. allies opting not to participate, U.S. President Donald Trump inaugurated his Board of Peace that he claimed would help in maintaining a ceasefire in Israel's war with Hamas. Following a week in which his proposal was overshadowed by threats to take over Greenland and then a sharp retreat from that idea, Trump used a […]

As China prepares its digital yuan for wider domestic and cross-border use, the global debate has turned again to a familiar question: is Beijing trying to challenge the US dollar’s dominance? But this misses the more consequential point. The significance of China’s digital currency push lies not in substitution, but in the transformation of the […]

The drone demonstrated unprecedented accuracy using the army's standard issue weapon, according to the Journal of Gun Launch and Control One of China's leading tech companies, Wuhan Guide Infrared, has successfully tested a novel rifle-wielding unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), reporting unprecedented […]

Taipei [Taiwan], January 25 (ANI): Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has criticised China's newly issued standardised tourism contract for travel to Taiwan, saying it fails to resolve the core obstacles blocking the resumption of normal cross-strait tourism exchanges.The contract, released by China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism and scheduled to […]

Guwahati (Assam) [India], January 25 (ANI): A brutal display of batting performance by opener Abhishek Sharma, captain Suryakumar Yadav and left-handed batter Ishan Kishan helped Team India to chase down the 154-run target in just 10 overs against New Zealand in the third T20I at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium.With this victory, the Men in Blue took an […]

New Delhi [India], January 25 (ANI): Foreign Expert Waiel Awwad, in relation to the visit of the President of the European Union, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Sunday that the visit signals a strong interest from both parties to strike a mutually beneficial deal.Awwad further said that the Free Trade Agreement with the European Union would generate a 'lot […]

(260125) -- KIGALI, Jan. 25, 2026 (Xinhua) -- This photo taken on Jan. 21 2026 shows a vehicle traveling on a road constructed by China Road and Bridge Corporation in Rwanda's Northern Province. TO GO WITH "Feature: Chinese-built road transforms lives, boosts economy in northern Rwanda" (Xinhua/Ju Yinhe)

A new action plan released by the Qianhai authorities in Shenzhen aims to strengthen its position as a “key partner” to Hong Kong rather than a competitor, further bolstering the city’s status as a global hub for finance, trade and talent. The 2026 plan, released recently by authorities, is set to deepen cooperation between the special economic zone […]

(260125) -- TOKYO, Jan. 25, 2026 (Xinhua) -- Visitors take photos of giant panda Xiao Xiao at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, Japan, Jan. 25, 2026. Giant pandas Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, currently residing at a zoo in Tokyo, will depart for China on Jan. 27, marking the first time in about half a century that Japan will be without any pandas, local media reported. […]

(260125) -- BEIJING, Jan. 25, 2026 (Xinhua) -- Passengers check train schedules on an electronic screen at Shiyan East Railway Station in central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 25, 2026. A new train schedule will be put into effect in China from Jan. 26. 2026. (Photo by Cao Zhonghong/Xinhua)

(260125) -- ABU DHABI, Jan. 25, 2026 (Xinhua) -- The inaugural flight, operated by Air China between Beijing and Abu Dhabi, lands at Abu Dhabi's Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, Jan. 24, 2026. A direct air route between the Chinese capital of Beijing and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been launched, […]

Hong Kong civil servants have been urged to exercise greater caution and refrain from accepting any offers in the workplace, as stakeholders called on authorities to explain how the head of a government office became embroiled in a bribery case. Ricky Cheng Chun-sang, former director of the Tianjin Liaison Unit, was dismissed last week and placed under […]

(260125) -- BEIJING, Jan. 25, 2026 (Xinhua) -- Jin Shuxian of China performs during the gala exhibition at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Beijing, China, Jan. 25, 2026. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

Tensions are rising again in Uzbekistans eastern Andijon region, where farmers say they are being coerced into voluntarily surrendering their land to local authorities -- plots of farmland that in some cases are later leased to Chinese investors.Uzbek officials maintain that all transfers are voluntary, fully legal, and they are not giving farmland to […]

GUANGZHOU, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- The last conventional train from Guangzhou Railway Station, Train K303, departed here on Sunday, marking the end of conventional train services at this century-old railway hub.

(260125) -- HARBIN, Jan. 25, 2026 (Xinhua) -- A passenger poses for photos on the Train Y783 in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 25, 2026. Train Y783, a themed tourism train bound for Yabuli featuring travel photography services, was inaugurated Sunday in Harbin. It marks the company's first offering of its kind this year. Operated by China […]

GUANGZHOU, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- The last conventional train from Guangzhou Railway Station, Train K303, departed here on Sunday, marking the end of conventional train services at this century-old railway hub.