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Why Iran’s ambassador to China thinks the US can’t...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Iran does not believe the United States has the leverage to turn Beijing against Tehran, the Iranian ambassador to China has said. Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli’s remarks come amid speculation that Washington may offer Beijing trade concessions or tariff relief in exchange for pressuring Iran into accepting a peace deal during US President Donald Trump’s expected trip to China next week. “Iran and China … share very common views on issues such as security, peace, development in the region and in

How Nvidia’s Corning pact shines light on China’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Chipmaking giant Nvidia’s deepening partnership with US fibre optics maker Corning to replace copper links in next-generation rack-scale artificial intelligence systems is shining a spotlight on mainland China’s optical communications supply chain. The domestic optical value chain is also doubling down on AI scenarios, emerging as the global bedrock for the high-capacity components required to power AI infrastructure. “The global optical fibre and cable market had entered a period of both

Chinese health authority says no need to worry about...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

China’s health authorities have tried to address public concern about the recent hantavirus outbreak by saying there was no cause for concern. The Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday that the country had recorded no human infections from the strain of the virus linked to the current outbreak. It is thought to have its origins in the Andes and the CDC said there were no natural hosts for that particular variant in China. “Hantavirus infections generally do

Janice Tse is the ‘property queen’ of Hong Kong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Janice Tse Siu-wa has emerged as the biggest landlord among Hong Kong ministers after declaring that she has 25 properties in her name in the city, mainland China and the UK. The 61-year-old constitutional affairs chief also revealed that she or her family held shareholdings of more than 1 per cent in eight private companies, including two food-ingredient firms, more than any other principal official has declared. Tse’s portfolio comprises 23...

To negotiate with China, Europe must first figure out...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The clock is ticking: the European Union has about two years to decide if it is willing to make the sacrifices and take the risks necessary to become the economic and political power it envisions itself to be. The EU’s proposed Industrial Accelerator and Cyber Security acts are up for negotiation within the bloc’s policymaking bodies. In around two years’ time, we will know their final form. Beijing has two years to influence this: that work has already started with carrots – proposals for a...

Philippines shifts defence strategy with Japan, eyes...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The recently concluded Balikatan joint drills have marked a shift in the Philippines’ defence strategy alongside Japan, with Tokyo offering the transfer of warships to its Southeast Asian ally, while a top Filipino official for the first time voiced “serious concern” over islands claimed by Beijing and Tokyo. Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnr on Wednesday said Manila now considered the uninhabited Diaoyu Islands, which Japan calls the Senkaku Islands, a security flashpoint in

Spain to repatriate guests as hantavirus-hit cruise...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Passengers aboard a cruise ship affected by a deadly hantavirus outbreak will start being flown to their countries of origin after the vessel arrives in the Canary Islands on Sunday, the Spanish government said on Friday. The MV Hondius is scheduled to reach the port of Granadilla on the island of Tenerife, off the coast of West Africa, on Sunday morning, cabinet minister Angel Victor Torres told journalists. “That same day, we will have planes available and will be able to start getting

Why the UK is unlikely to shut Hong Kong’s London...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The operations of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in London will remain unaffected by a UK spying verdict, observers have said, arguing that the British government is unlikely to seek its closure so as to maintain relations with Beijing. A British court on Thursday found Bill Yuen Chung-biu, the London HKETO’s manager, and Peter Wai Chi-leung, a retired Hong Kong police superintendent, guilty of spying on activists from Hong Kong on behalf of Chinese authorities. The Hong Kong...

Wall Street giants lead China-profit surge despite...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Overseas-invested securities firms collectively saw income from their China businesses skyrocket in 2025, as combined net profits climbed more than fourfold from a year earlier to 2.65 billion yuan (US$390 million), according to their annual reports. However, while the industry’s bottom line surged last year – fuelled by China’s lifting of capital restrictions and a rebound in the capital market – the individual performances of firms showed a widening gap in scale. A South China Morning Post...

Why China-Russia ties are ‘better than alliance’ and...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

China-Russia ties can withstand any potential containment efforts despite Washington’s long-standing hopes of driving a wedge between the two, a senior Chinese policy adviser has said, citing deep-seated US-Russia “contradictions” within what he called a “great triangle” of relations. Wu Dahui, deputy director of the Russian Research Institute at Tsinghua University, said while China and Russia were not formally allies, their relationship was “better than an alliance” and took the form of...

V+Short makes its debut with a bold new vision for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] Hong Kong, May 8, 2026 — PT MNC Digital Entertainment Tbk (“MNC Digital” or “MSIN”) officially unveils V+Short, its premium micro drama platform, in a highly anticipated launch event held at The Peninsula Hong Kong. Designed for a fast-evolving, mobile-first audience, V+Short introduces a new era of storytelling through immersive, bite-sized content that seamlessly blends global appeal with strong local

Tai Po fire: building authorities slammed at inquiry...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The “mechanical mindset” of Hong Kong building authorities has come under scrutiny at a hearing into the deadly Wang Fuk Court blaze, with a former inspection director conceding his team had “blindly” followed outdated guidelines when deciding not to conduct on-site audits of renovation work at the estate. Rudolf Lau Fu-kwok, who was the head of the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit when the fire broke out last November, on Friday told an independent committee tasked with

CUHK hospital to repay HK$4 billion public loan...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) will dip into its reserves to repay a HK$4 billion (US$510.9 million) government loan owed by its debt-ridden private hospital, the institution’s council chairman has said. The finances of the CUHK Medical Centre were on the agenda of Friday’s Legislative Council health panel meeting, but the discussion was rescheduled because the time was exhausted by other matters. Speaking to media after the meeting, council chairman John Chai Yat-chiu said his...

Can India’s rice farmers reap from US$30 million...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

A US$30 million carbon credit deal by tech giant Amazon with India’s Good Rice Alliance will boost carbon markets globally, according to experts, potentially showing agriculture – as well as industry – can be at the heart of emission reductions. The organisation, primarily backed by Bayer and in collaboration with GenZero and Shell, is designed to transform emissions-heavy rice cultivation in India through scientific advances. It helps thousands of smallholder farmers adopt climate-smart

Cathay Pacific to lower fuel surcharges for passenger...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways will lower its fuel surcharge fees for passenger flights by as much as about 14 per cent from May 16, after a series of increases that began in March. For long-haul flights, the surcharge will fall from HK$1,560 (US$199) to HK$1,362 per leg of the trip. For shorter journeys, such as those between Hong Kong and South Asia, the rate will drop to HK$633, down from HK$725. For flights from mainland China to Hong Kong, the surcharge will remain at

Are China and Russia flexing their maritime muscle...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Three People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) warships were spotted transiting the Tsushima Strait en route to the East China Sea last week, as Tokyo closely tracks such passages amid heightened regional tensions. The vessels were two Type 055 guided-missile destroyers and a Type 052D destroyer, according to Japan’s Ministry of Defence and Self-Defence Forces on Saturday. The ministry said the Japanese force’s JS Ootaka conducted “alert surveillance and intelligence gathering” on the Chinese...

Why is a Chinese research ship the latest flashpoint...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Beijing and Manila have traded accusations over a Chinese research vessel near a disputed South China Sea reef, with each side warning of further countermeasures in a sign of lingering tensions between the rival claimants. In a statement issued on Thursday night, the China Coast Guard (CCG) said a Philippine Coast Guard Islander aircraft had “deliberately approached and harassed” China’s Xiang Yang Hong 33 scientific research vessel on Wednesday while the ship was conducting a “legitimate

How China’s sharper tech edge forces South Korea to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

China’s rapid technological gains and aggressive pricing are making it increasingly difficult for South Korean firms to find profitable areas of industrial synergy with their Chinese counterparts, according to experts. Speakers at a recent forum in Beijing urged firms from both countries to pivot towards building more interdependent ecosystems in high-growth sectors such as batteries and artificial intelligence, while also calling for the advancement of negotiations towards an upgraded...

China ‘full-time children’ re-enter job market,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Three years after some Chinese youngsters chose to become “full-time children”, some said it was not a cure-all for their plight in China’s tense job market. The title “full-time children” went viral in 2023 in China, when some young people became a “full-time employee” of their parents. They received monthly salaries from their parents, ranging from 1,000 yuan (US$150) to over 5,000 yuan, depending on their parents’ pensions. In exchange, they kept their parents’ company and helped them

Defiant Starmer digs in after UK Labour’s local...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed on Friday to stay in office to “deliver change” after his Labour Party suffered heavy losses in local election that deepened doubts over his ability to govern. Just under two years after winning a landslide national election, Starmer saw voters punish his Labour government, dealing it a blow in some of its traditional strongholds in former industrial regions in central and northern England. The main beneficiary was the populist Reform UK party of

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