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China’s chipmakers pour revenue into R&D, outpacing...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/06

China’s chip champions channelled a larger proportion of revenue into research and development (R&D) than their US peers, first-quarter earnings show, as Beijing presses ahead with its tech self-reliance drive amid an artificial intelligence boom. Beijing-based Moore Threads spent half of its revenue on R&D in the quarter ended March 2026, while Shanghai-based MetaX spent 45 per cent over the same period, according to exchange filings. By contrast, US chipmakers such as AMD and Intel have...

An Asian alternative to Nato? How Cica is rethinking...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/06

As ceasefires fail, peace talks stall and the Strait of Hormuz remains under a blockade, the deepening Middle East crisis has exposed the structural limitations of global security frameworks. The US-Israel war on Iran since February has strained United Nations bodies and left Nato reeling over US President Donald Trump’s threats to leave the transatlantic security alliance. With the risk of a protracted war looming, there is an often overlooked security grouping – whose member states include...

Joyous reunion of Iranian boy with China classmates...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/06

An eight-year-old Iranian boy who left his primary school in China for his mother country in January and later lost contact with his teachers for 42 days has returned to the campus, thrilling his classmates. On April 27, when the boy named Radin, dressed in the school’s uniform, appeared in a classroom at Shaoxing Boya International School, his excited classmates all came to hug him closely, the Yueniu News reported. “I asked my teacher not to tell them the news so this could be a surprise,”...

Will Hong Kong’s lending clampdown wean helpers off...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/06

Anna, a domestic helper from the Philippines, had managed her finances well until she took out two loans over the past few months for a friend she described as being “like a mother to me”. The 37-year-old, who asked to be identified only by her first name, now has to pay creditors about HK$9,000 (US$1,149) a month – almost twice her salary – leaving her extremely stressed about her debt. “My friend said she needed the money and asked if I could borrow from banks under my name, saying she

Boy, 13, shoots 2 dead at Brazil school

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

A teenage boy shot dead two staff members and injured two other people, including a student, at a school in northeast Brazil on Tuesday, prompting panicked students to try to escape over a wall, authorities and a witness said. A 13-year-old boy was arrested over the attack at Sao Jose Institute in Rio Branco, the capital of Acre state, the local government said in a statement. Eduardo Rodrigues Cavalcante, who works as a receptionist at a hotel next to the school, said that when the shooting...

Trump admin sued over dumping of White House debris,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

Debris from the demolition of the White House East Wing that was dumped at a nearby public golf course has tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals, the National Park Service said. An interim report by a Virginia engineering firm says the toxic metals, along with PCBs, pesticides, petroleum by-products and other chemicals were detected at levels above laboratory reporting limits in soil at the East Potomac Golf Links, a historic golf course that US President Donald Trump

Residents passed from pillar to post as warnings...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

China urges US to drop trade probe as key Trump-Xi...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

China urged the United States to drop its latest Section 301 investigations into alleged excess capacity, calling the probe legally flawed at a Washington hearing just days before a planned summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. “[It] lacks sufficient statutory basis and supporting evidence” and “circumvents several established multilateral mechanisms”, Michelle Zang, speaking on behalf of the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC), a state-backed trade body, told the

How China-Gulf ties can turn energy vulnerability...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

For decades, the Strait of Hormuz has been a narrow passage with a big footprint. Whenever it comes under tension, the world is reminded that energy security is less a policy construct than an everyday reality for Asia’s economies, factories and prices. For China, Japan, South Korea, India and Southeast Asia, it has always been more than just a Middle Eastern problem. It is an Asian economic issue. This is why we should not interpret the latest Gulf tensions solely in terms of naval forces,...

Deadly hantavirus may have spread between humans on...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that it suspects some rare human-to-human transmission of the deadly hantavirus took place between very close contacts on board a luxury cruise ship hit by seven confirmed or suspected cases. Human-to-human transmission is not common, and the UN health agency reiterated that the risk to the wider public was low from a disease typically spread from contact with infected rodents. A Dutch couple and a German national have died, while a British

Trump dismisses China friction over Iran war, touts...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday rejected suggestions that China has challenged his administration over the Iran war, highlighting his “very good relationship” with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping ahead of their planned summit next week. Speaking at a White House fitness event, Trump told reporters that when it comes to Iran, “we haven’t been challenged by China. They don’t challenge us,” adding that Xi “wouldn’t do that – I don’t think he’d do that because of me.” Iran is set to be on the...

Trump assails Pope Leo again, just before Rubio’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

US President Donald Trump has renewed his criticism of Pope Leo, potentially complicating a fence-mending visit that Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to make to the Vatican on Thursday. In an interview with conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, Trump said the first American-born pontiff was helping Iran and also making the world less safe with his comments about the importance of not treating immigrants with disrespect. “The pope would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to

Italy PM Meloni warns over AI deepfakes after false...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni ⁠said on ⁠Tuesday that fake images ⁠of her generated by artificial intelligence were circulating online, warning that such false photos could deceive the public and target people unable to defend themselves. Meloni said ‌in a statement that several fake photos of her had been created with AI and passed off as real by political opponents. She posted one such image appearing to show her sitting on a bed wearing underwear. ⁠The original post included

Panama minister blasts China’s ship crackdown, tells...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

Panama’s foreign minister has called on a group of opposition lawmakers visiting China to deliver a firm message defending the country’s sovereignty, as tensions over a wave of detentions of Panamanian-flagged vessels show no signs of easing. Javier Martinez-Acha Vasquez said on Monday that the lawmakers should relay a clear message to their Chinese counterparts on Panama’s behalf. “I can only suggest that you convey that Panama respects China, but Panama first respects the Constitution of

Fire services to be ‘gatekeepers’ for safety, Hong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/05

Hong Kong’s security chief has reaffirmed that fire services will act as the gatekeeper for safety after a legal vacuum was exposed during an inquiry into the city’s deadliest blaze in decades, stressing the department’s existing manpower could cope with expanded oversight duties. Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung on Tuesday reiterated the pledge earlier made by Fire Services Department Director Andy Yeung Yan-kin during the hearings into the inferno at Wang Fuk Court in Tai

Can the US Democrats beat Trump by becoming more like...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/02

The US Democrats have pursued “selective Trumpification” since losing power in 2024, but their strategy of borrowing from the president’s agenda and mimicking his abrasive style risks undermining their branding as guardians of American institutions, according to a Chinese academic.Two years ago, the Democrats lost the presidency to Donald Trump, along with control of the Senate. That shut them out of power in Washington and left them struggling to regain momentum and political...

She answered an advert for a part-time helper. Then...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/02

A 25-year-old Hong Kong woman was cheated out of more than HK$2.25 million (US$287,190) in one month after falling prey to a job scam, prompting calls for tighter rules requiring online employment platforms to verify employers. The victim said on Saturday at a press briefing held by the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions that she came across a posting for a “part-time helper” job offering HK$90 an hour in January. She had quit her job as a research assistant at a local university late last...

Taiwan’s William Lai lands in eSwatini on trip...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/02

Beijing has labelled Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te’s surprise visit to eSwatini, the island’s sole African ally, a political “stunt”. In a Facebook post on Saturday evening, Lai said he arrived earlier in the day. The eSwatini government also confirmed his arrival on its own Facebook page. “Hello to my fellow citizens. I arrived earlier today in our diplomatic ally eSwatini,” Lai wrote, adding that his foreign affairs and security teams had spent days securing a revised route that...

Iran will not accept ‘imposed’ peace, Trump not...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/02

A senior Iranian military officer said on Saturday that renewed fighting with the US was “likely”, hours after President Donald Trump said he was not satisfied with an Iranian negotiating proposal. Iran delivered the new draft to mediator Pakistan on Thursday evening, state media reported, without detailing its contents. The war, launched by the United States and Israel in late February, has been on hold since April 8, with one failed round of peace talks having taken place in Pakistan since...

Hongkongers queue at betting shops ahead of record...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/02

Hongkongers are forming long queues at betting stations for the chance to win a share of the HK$228 million (US$29.1 million) snowball draw – the city’s largest Mark Six jackpot. The winning numbers are set to be announced late on Saturday evening, with the turnover reaching more than six times the amount for the previous draw of over HK$63 million. For the latest draw, bettors have wagered more than HK$391 million as of 8.30pm. Earlier on Saturday, a South China Morning Post photographer...

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