PODCAST

News - South China Morning Post

All the latest breaking news from Hong Kong, China and around the world

All Episodes

Trump calls Nato ‘cowards’ over lack of support in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

President ⁠Donald Trump assailed ⁠Nato allies on Friday ⁠over their lack of support for the US-Israel war against Iran, calling the long-time US allies “cowards”. “Without the U.S.A., Nato IS A PAPER TIGER!” Trump said in a social media post. Trump has ‌been calling for major US allies and others, none of which were consulted or advised on the war, to help secure the safety of shipping through the Iran-controlled Strait of Hormuz. The conflict has roiled global markets, killed thousands and...

Iran detected and damaged a US F-35 stealth jet in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

The first known combat damage to an F-35 fifth-generation fighter aircraft from a likely Iranian attack suggests that stealth jets can be detected by electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor systems, according to Chinese analysts. US Central Command reported that the stealth fighter was forced to make an emergency landing during a combat mission over Iran on Thursday. “We are aware of reports that a US F-35 aircraft conducted an emergency landing at a regional US airbase after flying a combat...

Norway crown princess says she was ‘manipulated’ by...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit said in an interview broadcast Friday that she was “manipulated” by convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, whom she accused of extorting others. A commoner who married Crown Prince Haakon in 2001, Mette-Marit’s name appears multiple times in Epstein documents released by the US Department of Justice earlier this year. The files revealed an unexpectedly close friendship between the pair and raised questions in Norway about whether Mette-Marit can become...

Swire Coca-Cola wins HK$32 million government deal...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Swire Coca-Cola has won a HK$31.9 million (US$4 million) contract to supply Bonaqua water to some Hong Kong government offices, following a HK$52.9 million procurement scandal last year. According to a Government Logistics Department notice, Swire Coca-Cola was awarded the 27-month contract on Tuesday to supply more than 1.46 million bottles of drinking water to offices on Hong Kong Island and parts of the outlying islands. The selection followed an open tender launched in December. In its...

Hong Kong should use ‘safe haven’ status to draw...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Hong Kong should leverage its position as a “safe haven for investment” to attract foreign capital amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, the head of InvestHK has said, noting that more companies using Dubai as a hub have shifted to the city to diversify risk. The call came as finance chief Paul Chan Mo-po on Friday continued his six-day visit to Beijing, where he met Li Yunze, minister of the National Financial Regulatory Administration. They discussed how Hong Kong could support

China’s rare earth magnet exports to the US keep...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

China’s exports of rare earth permanent magnets to the United States continue to fall, at a time when Washington and its allies are stepping up efforts to reduce reliance on the country’s critical mineral supply chains. Shipments of permanent magnets to the US totalled 994 tonnes in January and February, down nearly 22.5 per cent year on year, according to data released on Friday by China’s General Administration of Customs. This marked the seventh consecutive month of decline. Over the two...

Trump releases AI policy to pre-empt state rules

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

The ⁠White House released an artificial intelligence policy on Friday that aims to pre-empt state rules, ensure protections for children and shield communities from prohibitive energy costs. The Trump administration has been pushing for a single legislative framework that can be applied uniformly across the country, rather than leaving states to form their own plans. US President Donald Trump ⁠in December said he would withhold federal broadband funding from states ‌whose laws to regulate...

Former Shaolin Temple abbot indicted for bribery and...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Prosecutors have formally indicted Shi Yongxin, the former abbot of the famed Shaolin Temple, four months after his arrest and following a string of financial and sexual scandals. Prosecutors in Xinxiang, Henan province, have formally charged Shi with embezzlement, misappropriation of funds, non-state official bribery and offering bribes, according to a Friday report from state news agency Xinhua. The 60-year-old former abbot led the Shaolin Temple for over 25 years and was ousted in July

Can the US reopen the Strait of Hormuz? Many military...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

US air strikes may have weakened Iran’s ability to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, but in the short term it is probably too risky to provide a military escort for oil tankers because of the threat from drones and mines, according to Chinese analysts. Multiple media reports have said the United States was considering the use of ground troops to open the waterway, but many military observers have argued this would not be enough without further protracted fighting. The strait is a vital shipping...

China’s Unitree Robotics rides humanoid tide as it...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Unitree Robotics, a Hangzhou-based maker of quadruped and humanoid robots, has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) on Shanghai’s Star Market, seeking to raise 4.2 billion yuan (US$610 million) as revenue and profits surge on the back of rising interest in embodied artificial intelligence. The listing application has been formally accepted by Shanghai’s exchange following a “preliminary review” on Friday. The 10-year-old company recorded revenue of 1.71 billion yuan last year, up 335

China’s Russian oil imports spike in early 2026, but...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

China’s imports of discounted Russian crude oil surged in January and February, though analysts suggest volumes could moderate in the coming months as the war in Iran increases global competition for Russian oil. In the first two months of the year, Russia’s shipments of crude to China rose 40.9 per cent year on year to 21.8 million tonnes, according to Chinese customs data released on Friday. But the total import value rose just 5.8 per cent in US dollar terms. “China has been an

India steps up regional energy diplomacy, supplies...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

India’s move to supply Bangladesh with diesel as fuel prices soar amid the Iran war reflects its “first responder” role in the region and clout through the use of its critical commodities to deepen ties with neighbouring states. If the fuel shortages were to persist, however, India would have to balance between its own energy demand and that of its neighbours, according to observers. Bangladesh will be importing 45,000 tonnes of diesel from India by April, with 5,000 tonnes having been

Why the world may now need an Iranian nuclear bomb

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

If you think the Israeli-American war of aggression against Iran is bad, it could get a lot worse. For the first time, a senior American official has openly acknowledged that Israel possesses nuclear warheads and could deploy them in the war. “Israel is getting hit harder than they’ve ever been hit before in their history,” said David Sacks, the White House’s artificial intelligence and crypto tsar, on the All-In Podcast. “If this war continues for weeks or months, then Israel could just be...

Why Philippines struggles to tap its US$1 trillion...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

As the Philippines forms partnerships with several countries to harness its potentially huge wealth of critical minerals, analysts have called for a coherent road map to develop the country’s mining industry to globally competitive standards. President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s administration has signed multiple agreements over the past months, including a memorandum of understanding with the United States to cooperate on diversifying global critical mineral supply chains. The accord, signed

China offers US olive branch with fentanyl raids...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

China this week announced a major crackdown on fentanyl precursors, a move widely seen as a gesture of goodwill ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned visit. But analysts warned that while this might address one major US grievance, it remained to be seen whether the United States would reciprocate and help the two sides move on to tackling other serious disputes, such as tariffs. The crackdown in the central province of Hubei started in December and included a raid on a company in the...

Taiwan’s opposition parties join forces for local...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Taiwan’s two main opposition parties are set to join forces in local elections, a midterm contest this autumn that analysts say could lay the groundwork for potential cooperation in the 2028 leadership race to challenge the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The elections, scheduled for November and commonly known as the “nine-in-one” elections, will determine local officials and councillors across nine categories, ranging from mayors and county magistrates to village chiefs, as well

Trump’s Pearl Harbour joke falls flat in Japan over...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

People across Japan have recoiled in shock over US President Donald Trump’s joke about the attack on Pearl Harbour in the presence of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in the White House, perceiving the incident as an insult to a long-time ally of Washington. The Japanese leader won some approval at home for her measured response even as she stiffened visibly over Trump’s comments at the joint press conference in the Oval Office on Thursday. Addressing a question from a Japanese reporter about...

Strait of Hormuz tensions flare as Iran tightens grip...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Global concerns are rising over the fate of ships and crews trapped in the Strait of Hormuz amid the intensifying Middle East conflict, as reports spread that Iran is rolling out screening processes and steep transit fees for vessels using the waterway. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) called for the establishment of a “safe maritime framework” to ensure the swift evacuation of merchant ships confined within the Persian Gulf, after holding a special session on the Middle East...

Chongqing mayor under investigation as China’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

The mayor of China’s southwestern metropolis of Chongqing has been placed under investigation by the country’s top anti-corruption agency. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) issued a statement on Friday saying that Hu Henghua, mayor of Chongqing and deputy secretary of the city’s Communist Party municipal committee, was under investigation for “serious violations of discipline and law” – a term commonly used to refer to corruption. Chongqing is among China’s four

13 arrested over HK$113 million laundered using...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/20

Hong Kong police have arrested 13 people on suspicion of laundering more than HK$113 million (US$14.4 million) using the government’s “iAM Smart” app in scams run by a syndicate. The force said on Friday that nine men and four women, aged between 38 and 75, were suspected of using victims’ “iAM Smart” accounts to launder money through “mule” bank accounts. “The syndicate placed fake job advertisements in newspapers, claiming to be hiring cleaners,” said Wong Yuk-yan, acting superintendent

21,574 results