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Veteran politician Jeffrey Lam to lead Hung Shui Kiu...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Hong Kong authorities have appointed veteran politician Jeffrey Lam Kin-fung to chair the board of directors of the Hung Shui Kiu Industry Park Company – the first government-owned entity established to accelerate the development of the Northern Metropolis megaproject. The Development Bureau said on Friday that the board of directors comprised five bureau chiefs and five non-official members, who were tasked with formulating a “forward-looking development positioning and strategy” for the...

Malaysia’s EV import curbs to protect local car...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Malaysia’s nascent electric vehicle market may be decimated before it gets up to speed, as business experts warn of a sharp drop in demand and delay in the renewable energy transition if the government imposes strict price curbs on imported units from July, in a move to protect the country’s vehicle makers. The ministry of investment, trade and industry (Miti) on Wednesday announced that from July 1, it will only allow the sale of imported EVs that have a cost, insurance and freight (CIF)

Why are China’s coastal fish farms disappearing while...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

China’s coastal aquaculture ponds are shrinking due to environmental policies while India’s are expanding at the fastest rate of any country, according to a new bird’s-eye view of fish farms worldwide. The conclusions are based on a fresh dataset compiled from millions of satellite snapshots of coastal aquaculture around the world in 2022. From 1990 to 2016, the global pond area for aquaculture expanded rapidly. After 2017, the overall area declined, but changes varied between countries. The...

Trump’s Beijing trip, Iran war diplomacy, tech earnings

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

US President Donald Trump will bring a scaled-back group of chief executive officers with him on a trip to Beijing next week, reflecting limited expectations for a summit that may be overshadowed by the war on Iran. The White House considered inviting about a dozen business leaders on the May 14-15 trip, compared with the 29 high-profile executives on Trump’s last visit in 2017, Reuters said, citing unidentified people briefed on preparations. Nvidia, Apple and Boeing are among the companies...

Australian remanded on fresh eat-and-run charges in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

An Australian man has been remanded in custody and hit with fresh charges in Hong Kong for fleeing restaurants without paying more than HK$2,000 (US$255) in bills, just a day after being fined for similar offences. Samuel Anthony Monkivitch, 50, was detained soon after pleading guilty at Eastern Court on Thursday to three charges – two of failing to pay HK$1,200 in bills at a restaurant and a massage parlour, and one of common assault. He was fined HK$3,000 and ordered to use his bail money

New database tracks shifting outcomes of Malaysia’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

An AI-powered database tracking corruption cases against Malaysia’s politicians was independently launched on Friday, putting fresh scrutiny on the status and outcomes of the country’s biggest graft prosecutions across administrations. The Prosecutorial Accountability Watch (PAW), built by civil society group Projek SAMA and hosted with news outlet Malaysiakini, tracks 33 high-profile cases involving current and former elected representatives – from ex-prime minister Najib Razak’s 1MDB-linked...

Trump invites Boeing, Mastercard CEOs to join China...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The administration of US President Donald Trump is inviting American CEOs from Boeing, Mastercard, Citigroup and other major corporations to join his delegation to China next week, according to multiple sources. Trump is visiting China on May 14 and 15 after his scheduled visit for March 31 was postponed following the US-Israeli strikes on Iran. Boeing, Mastercard and Citigroup declined to comment, but sources said several CEOs had received invitations from the White House. A full list of...

Prepare for ‘China shock 3.0’ to the global food economy

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Even as “China shock 2.0” is roiling Western manufacturers, we must, it seems, brace for “China shock 3.0” – to the global food economy – as President Xi Jinping doubles down on the imperative that has obsessed Beijing for decades: food security. “China’s Food Future”, a consultation paper by Systemiq funded by the California-based Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, warns that China is poised to “reshape global agricultural commodity supply chains”. It suggests China is set to apply to...

Fate of China’s ex-defence heads shows party won’t...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The tough sentences handed to former defence ministers Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu showed that Beijing had no tolerance for people with divided loyalties, the Chinese military’s official newspaper said on Friday. The PLA Daily commentary marks the first time an official outlet has accused Li of being disloyal. “The military wields the gun and there must be no one who harbours disloyalty to the party,” the editorial said. “As senior party and military leaders, Wei and Li showed a collapse of

Hong Kong-based mediation body resolves international...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

An intergovernmental mediation body headquartered in Hong Kong resolved a maritime dispute between parties from mainland China and Singapore this month, a success hailed as a milestone for the organisation that has attracted more members since its launch last year. Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah, secretary general of the International Organisation for Mediation (IOMed), revealed the achievement on Friday at a summit, where senior officials reaffirmed Hong Kong’s pledge to act as a mediation centre

Fury in France as national toy revealed to be...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

As the world held its breath over the fate of the Middle East this week, France has been gripped by a very different story: a scandal over a chewy rubber giraffe. Sophie la Girafe, the country’s national toy, has long been a symbol of “made in France” craftsmanship, sold as a gift to newborns across the country. But this week, it was revealed the beloved toy has secretly been manufactured in China for the past decade. Vulli, the company behind the toy, quietly began moving production to China

China confirms it helped Pakistan’s air force during...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

China has confirmed for the first time that it provided on-site technical support to Pakistan during its war with India last year. During the conflict, a Chinese-made fighter shot down at least one of India’s French-made fighters. On Thursday, China’s state broadcaster CCTV aired an interview with Zhang Heng, an engineer from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China’s (AVIC) Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute, a key developer of China’s advanced fighter aircraft and unmanned

Tesla China posts 36% sales rise, as local rivals’...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Tesla’s Shanghai factory reported a big year-on-year rise in deliveries last month as it benefited from local governments’ subsidies and increasing interest in electric vehicles (EVs) amid the global energy shock.The US carmaker said in a statement that the so-called Gigafactory delivered 74,478 units in April, up 36 per cent from the same period in 2025. The number comprises sales in mainland China and exports to overseas markets. However, on a month-to-month basis the factory’s sales in

Japanese bus driver admits he ‘misjudged speed’...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Japanese police have arrested a bus driver on suspicion of negligent driving after a crash on a Fukushima expressway killed a high school student on Wednesday, as investigators look into whether he was speeding and driving without the proper license required to carry passengers for hire. On Friday morning, Fukushima prefectural police searched bus operator Kanbara Tetsudo in Gosen, Niigata prefecture. The arrested driver, Tetsuo Wakayama, 68, told investigators after his arrest on Thursday

China scenic spot entertainer sparks debate for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

A performer at a scenic spot in central China went viral for offering visitors “lollipop kisses”, raising controversy about the boundaries of interactive tourism. Ge’s Fairy Village, a resort in Jiangxi province, combines Taoist culture with forested landscapes and features martial arts-themed hotels. Adult tickets usually cost 130 yuan (US$20). One of its most popular entertainers, known online as “Little Yellow Fish”, has drawn nearly 400,000 followers on mainland social media. Dressed in...

3 dead in Indonesia’s Mount Dukono volcanic eruption,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

Three hikers, including two foreigners, were killed and 10 were missing after a volcano on Indonesia’s eastern Halmahera island erupted on Friday, spewing an ash cloud into the air, a local police chief said. “There are three dead, two foreigners and one resident of Ternate” island in east Indonesia, police chief Erlichson Pasaribu of North Halmahera province told Kompas TV. Earlier, a local rescue ‌agency official said authorities ⁠were rushing to rescue 20 hikers after the eruption of Mount...

Energy crisis dominates Asean summit, forcing...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The spectre of the global energy crisis loomed over the three-day Asean summit in the Philippines as regional leaders converge for a final day of talks in Cebu on Friday. Analysts say that while some major flashpoints were addressed – with Thailand and Cambodia’s joint statement of solidarity being a bright spot – surging fuel costs as a result of the Iran war weighed heaviest on the minds of Southeast Asian leaders. The fuel crisis was the “defining issue”, said Vu Lam, an Asean observer and...

Shanghai’s changing expats, Hong Kong trail sign...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. 2 former Chinese defence ministers handed suspended death sentences Two former Chinese defence ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, have received suspended death sentences after being found guilty of corruption, according to...

Why today’s ‘unravelled’ international order echoes...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

The “unravelled” post-Cold War international order has created conditions that appear to mirror those preceding a great-power conflict, a former senior adviser to the White House has warned. “The international landscape … [is] beginning to look uncomfortably like a pre-war environment,” said Thomas Wright, who served as senior director for strategic planning at the US National Security Council in the Joe Biden administration. “A familiar pattern is taking shape,” Wright said on Wednesday at

North Korea to move artillery capable of striking...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/08

North Korea said on Friday it would deploy new long-range artillery systems this year that were capable of striking South Korea’s capital region and would commission its first naval destroyer in coming weeks. The announcement comes days after South Korea said the North’s newly revised constitution drops all references to Korean unification, in line with leader Kim Jong-un’s vows to terminate ties with South Korea and establish a two-state system on the Korean peninsula. Kim visited a

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