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News - South China Morning Post

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Iran war exposes fragility of Gulf-Asia supply chains

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Since the Iran war began late last month, it has threatened shipping across the Middle East’s two most important maritime chokepoints – the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb – through which much of Asia’s energy imports and manufactured exports flow. For Gulf states and their major trading partners in Asia, the conflict is forcing a hard question: what, if anything, can protect supply chains if US security guarantees can no longer be taken for granted? Analysts say the usual answers –...

Beyond a ‘buffer zone’: how the Iran war is...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Central Asian governments are leveraging the diplomatic fallout from the US-Israel war on Iran to assert their autonomy and reinforce their long-standing strategy of balancing major powers, according to analysts. For decades, the five former Soviet republics have been seen as Russia’s “backyard”. However, as the conflict in Iran deepens, these nations are moving to recalibrate their geopolitical ties, signalling a shift away from their role as a passive buffer zone for great powers. The shift...

China pet shop owner finds dumped cat with touching...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

A pet shop owner from southwestern China discovered an abandoned cat with a note and cash, uncovering an elderly person’s final, loving gesture for their pet. On March 7, the woman surnamed Sun, who runs a pet shop in Chuxiong, Yunnan province, found a grey pet carrier outside her shop. Hearing a kitten meowing, she opened it to find a tabby cat surrounded by cat food. “I was furious, thinking an irresponsible owner had abandoned it,” Sun said. But as she looked closer, she found a crumpled...

Middle East conflict could divert new capital to Hong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

The conflict in the Middle East could divert new capital to Hong Kong due to the city’s stability and regulatory certainty, the treasury minister has said, while pledging to keep markets operating smoothly amid energy price shocks caused by the war in Iran. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu said on Sunday that the government would step up efforts to attract family offices and become a commodity trading hub as investors increasingly factored in

Blackpink’s Jennie, Art Basel, Cj Hendry: the top...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

With two weeks of Hong Kong arts month remaining, the city will continue to host a rich array of events, from a pop culture convention to a slew of art exhibitions. The South China Morning Post highlights some of the best shows taking place in the rest of March. From ComplexCon to classical concerts Pop culture festival ComplexCon will return to Hong Kong for its third edition on March 21 and 22, with headliners including Jennie from K-pop powerhouse Blackpink and American rapper Yeat, making...

China mall shuffle: as EVs exit, who’s filling the...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Several years ago, prime ground-floor spaces in major shopping malls across Beijing and Shanghai’s business districts were commonly occupied by electric vehicle (EV) showrooms, with staff often escorting customers to car parks for test drives. Many of these stores have now closed amid sluggish EV sales – yet mall owners have not been left disappointed. Instead, a new retail landscape is emerging, filled with tenants who are proving to be even more effective at drawing crowds and boosting

Underwater and unprotected: why Asean and the EU must...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

What does the world’s digital economy rest on? Thousands of kilometres of fibre-optic cable lying on the ocean floor and, increasingly, in the crosshairs of great-power rivalry. The confluence of recent subsea cable disruptions, gaps in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) and intensifying great-power competition has elevated this underwater infrastructure from a technical and commercial concern to a security issue – characterised as “this century’s hidden battleground”. It

Turkey says Iran feels ‘betrayed’ by US attacks...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Turkey’s powerful foreign minister said on Saturday that there is no serious initiative to resume negotiations between the United States and Iran but that he believes Iran is open to backchannel talks. The comments by Hakan Fidan came as Ankara is striving to stay out of the widening war in the Middle East. Ankara, which has good relations with both Washington and Tehran, had attempted to mediate a solution between them before the US and Israel attacked Iran two weeks ago, triggering the...

Playing the harp amid sirens: why a Hongkonger...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

While hundreds of Hongkongers stranded in the Middle East have scrambled for flights home after the US-Israel war against Iran broke out, a devoted Christian from the city has chosen to stay in Israel, saying she has experienced far worse before. The outbreak of war was unsettling, but Gloria Mok Chong-ngar said she found a way to maintain her inner peace in Jerusalem’s bomb shelters. “The sirens kept ringing last week, sometimes as frequently as every few minutes, but I would play the harp

Japan hotels keep luring Hong Kong families, global...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

For Hong Kong’s Topaz Family Office, investing in hotels in Japan holds up as a sound decision even as a Middle East war clouds the macroeconomic environment. The wealth manager has made Japan a central plank of its pivot into hospitality and real estate over the past two years, driven by a sharp post-pandemic tourism rebound. The investment thesis now looks increasingly robust thanks to multiple structural tailwinds and a growing pool of institutional capital flowing into the same

Inside the coconut cartel: how Chinese money squeezes...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Hands knotted by a lifetime of hard work, Supon Haochareon says Thai farmers in his position do not get to retire. Instead, the 81-year-old and his wife Lamduan, 74, must tend more than 300 trees in Samut Sakhon, an hour west of Bangkok, agonising each year as prices slump and their coconuts grow smaller in the withering heat. This month brought the lowest prices on record: two baht (six US cents) per coconut – less than a stick of chewing gum – virtually wiping out all profit from their...

Why Japan’s Type-12 missile deployment may complicate...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Japan has deployed its domestically produced long-range missiles near the East China Sea – a move that could be interpreted by Beijing as crossing a “strategic threshold”, analysts said. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said on Monday that the upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missiles would be deployed at Camp Kengun in the southwestern Japanese prefecture of Kumamoto by the end of this month. Army vehicles carrying the first batch of missile launchers were reportedly spotted...

Chinese bubble tea chain Mixue straps in for theme...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

A budget bubble tea chain from China best known for its cheap ice creams and drinks may soon be adding roller coasters and immersive shows to its menu. Mixue, boasting more stores than McDonald’s and growing rapidly outside China, is planning to build a theme park at its headquarters in Zhengzhou, the capital of central China’s Henan province. The park will be based on its Snow King mascot, a singing snowman that has become one of Chinese retailing’s most recognisable intellectual properties...

To stay competitive, Hong Kong must embrace...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

When people picture Hong Kong, they often imagine a relentless concrete jungle – a vertical city where glass and steel dominate the skyline. Yet a quiet revolution is beginning to reshape how our city develops. Last week, the Civil Engineering and Development Department and Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department jointly launched the Hong Kong Nature-based Solutions Design Guidelines. This landmark document signals a shift in how we think about infrastructure and urban planning. It...

‘AI may know me better’: why Hongkongers turn to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

Joe*, a 20-year-old Hong Kong student, began seeking emotional support for dating advice, family relationships and stress management a few months ago to ease his anxieties. He asked questions during his commute to school, while studying in the evening and even when he could not sleep late at night. His go-to chatbot: OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which he accesses through the artificial intelligence (AI) aggregator app, Poe. “To a certain extent, AI may know me better than my friends,” Joe said. Joe is...

‘Cyber heartbreak’ wave sweeps China social media as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

A wave of “cyber heartbreak” has swept social media in China as young people “mourn” loving artificial intelligence (AI) partners suddenly “cancelled” by system upgrades or entirely wiped out by server shutdowns. The bizarre phenomenon, dubbed “cyber widowhood”, sees devastated users write eulogies on social media as the tech industry pivots away from emotional companionship towards cold, calculating efficiency. Falling in love with AI often begins out of curiosity or simple

Southeast Asia’s scam compound survivors suffer in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/15

For many of those rescued from Southeast Asia’s scam compounds, escape is not the end of the ordeal. They leave behind the locked gates, surveillance and violence, but often return home carrying injuries, trauma and the stigma of having been forced to scam others. Just as difficult is what comes next: trying to explain the experience to the people waiting for them. “Some of them are not able to tell their family members or their community what has happened,” said human rights advocate Andrey...

How are military helicopters evolving to adapt to the...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/14

The increasing military use of drones has raised questions about the future role of helicopters as countries such as China and the United States increasingly pivot towards the use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). Traditionally, helicopters have been used for a wide range of functions ranging from transport to surveillance, but these functions are now increasingly being taken over by pilotless aircraft. Both the Chinese and US armed forces are increasingly building up their UAS fleets –...

How the war on Iran struck the shores of Sri Lanka

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/14

There are places in the world where you expect war to intrude. And then there are places where its arrival feels surreal. For me, the Sri Lankan city of Galle has always belonged firmly to the latter category. The old fort, perched above the Indian Ocean, has the feel of a tropical cousin to Cartagena’s walled city. Inside its ramparts is an improbable mix: Western expatriates, boutique hotels, a long-standing local Muslim community and wealthy Sri Lankans who have restored colonial houses

American flag raised at US embassy in Venezuela for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/03/14

The American flag was raised on Saturday over the US embassy in Venezuela for the first time since 2019, a move that highlighted the recent shift in relations between the two countries since then President Nicolas Maduro was captured by American troops in January. Though the flag is now waving, the building is undergoing renovations and it remains unclear when it will fully reopen. The move comes after several statements from US President Donald Trump in support of Maduro’s successor, acting...

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