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UK education, income rules likely to hit Hong Kong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/26

Nearly one-third of Hongkongers planning to settle in the UK under the British National (Overseas) visa scheme are retirees, homemakers or students, groups likely to be affected by a proposed income threshold for immigrants, a survey has shown. It also found that 16 per cent of BN(O) visa holders who had only completed secondary school might struggle to meet the tougher English-language requirement, according to a survey by the London-based Sutton Hongkongers group. The survey interviewed 690...

Japanese mayor resigns over repeated hotel visits...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/26

The mayor of Maebashi, the capital city of Gunma prefecture in eastern Japan, on Tuesday tendered her resignation after her repeated hotel visits with a senior city official, assembly members said. Akira Ogawa had long rejected calls from city assembly members to resign, saying that she did not have an affair with the official, who is married. But she made an about-face on Tuesday, submitting a letter of resignation, effective Thursday, to the chairperson of the city assembly, according to

Malaysia’s PM defends Thailand-Cambodia mediator role...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/26

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has insisted his country remains neutral as a mediator in the escalating border row between Thailand and Cambodia, as criticisms mount over his peacemaking role. The backlash reflects how divisive the conflict has become, with some factions in Thailand and Cambodia viewing foreign-brokered truces as harmful to their interests. Analysts say Anwar is keen to avoid provoking such sensitivities, mindful of deep-seated distrust in Thai–Cambodian relations and...

Why China’s space sector is grabbing attention –...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/26

On Saturday, the Beijing-based start-up LandSpace reportedly plans to conduct the maiden launch of its Zhuque-3 rocket – a reusable launch vehicle that could significantly boost China’s space industry by lowering the cost of lifting equipment such as satellites into orbit. The prospect of China mastering reusable rockets – a technology pioneered by US-based SpaceX – has attracted significant attention from aerospace experts, and even drew comment from SpaceX CEO Elon Musk last month. Beyond

Korean mother sentenced to life in prison for New...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

A mother who murdered her two children and stuffed them into suitcases stashed inside a storage locker was on Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment in New Zealand. Lee Hak-yung, a New Zealand citizen originally from South Korea, was earlier this year found guilty of killing her children in a grisly crime dubbed the country’s “suitcase murders”. High Court judge Geoffrey Venning sentenced Lee to life imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of 17 years, saying she had killed children

FBI probes Democrat lawmakers who warned US military...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

The FBI has requested interviews with six Democratic members of the US Congress who in a video message told members of the military they can legally refuse to carry out unlawful orders, a Justice Department official said on Tuesday. The Pentagon on Monday threatened to recall Senator Mark Kelly, a US Navy veteran and one of the six lawmakers, to active duty potentially to face military charges over what Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth described on social media as “seditious” acts. US

Joan Branson, wife of British billionaire Richard...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

Joan Branson, the wife of British billionaire Richard Branson, has died at age 80. Branson announced her death on Tuesday on social media. No other details were disclosed. “Heartbroken to share that Joan, my wife and partner for 50 years, has passed away,” he said. “She was the most wonderful mum and grandmum our kids and grandkids could have ever wished for. She was my best friend, my rock, my guiding light, my world.” Richard Branson is the founder of Virgin Atlantic airline, space tourism...

After peaking, decline of China’s European wine...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

As China’s traditional spirits and premium wines grapple with declining consumption, a significant shift is under way across the beverage landscape. This three-part series examines the challenges faced by Maotai town as its once-coveted baijiu liquor loses its lustre, the impact of economic shutdowns on European wine imports, and the rise of craft beer as a budget-friendly alternative for consumers seeking quality without breaking the bank. Marshall Su, a 30-year-old headhunter based in...

Why next year’s G20 could be make or break for global...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

As South Africa hands over the Group of 20 presidency, something more consequential than a routine rotation is taking place. The moment marks the end of an unprecedented cycle: four consecutive presidencies led by major economies of the Global South – Indonesia, India, Brazil and South Africa. For four years, the G20 was steered by countries whose development priorities, demographic structures and geopolitical positions diverged from those of the Group of Seven. In 2026, the gavel will pass

Brazil’s Bolsonaro begins 27-year prison sentence for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

Brazil’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro to begin serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a failed coup, after he exhausted all appeals. The brash former army captain who fired up Brazil’s right and reshaped the country’s politics was ending a divisive career jailed in a small room at police headquarters equipped with a TV, mini-fridge, and air conditioning. Bolsonaro, 70, was convicted in September over a scheme to stop Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

This Thanksgiving, Trump pardons turkeys and roasts foes

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

US President Donald Trump did not bring much holiday cheer Tuesday when bestowing ceremonial pardons on two Thanksgiving turkeys, dispensing more insults than goodwill at the traditional White House ritual. He joked about sending the turkeys to an infamous prison in El Salvador that has been used to house migrants deported from the United States. He said the birds should be named Chuck and Nancy – after Democratic stalwarts Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi – but “I would never pardon those...

Zelensky ready to advance US-backed Ukraine plan as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday he was ready to advance a US-backed framework for ending the war with Russia and discuss disputed points with US President Donald Trump in talks he said should include European allies. US and Ukrainian officials have been trying to narrow their gaps over Trump’s plan to end Europe’s deadliest and most devastating conflict since World War II, with Ukraine wary of being strong-armed into accepting a deal largely on Russian terms, including...

Trump eyes Christmas deadline to name new Fed chair:...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that a key theme of his interviews for the next chair of the Federal Reserve has been simplifying the US central bank, which he indicated has become too complex in how it manages money markets. “One of the things in terms of the criteria that I’ve been looking for” has been the interplay of the Fed’s various instruments, Bessent said on CNBC Tuesday. “I realise the Fed has become this very complicated operation.” Bessent said his final second-round...

Jakarta bans dog and cat meat sales to curb rabies,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

Indonesia’s capital Jakarta has banned the selling and consumption of dog, cat and bat meat to prevent rabies transmission, the city’s governor announced on Tuesday, in a win for animal rights advocates. “I have signed the regulation … which prohibits the sale of rabies-transmitting animals for food purposes,” Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung said in a statement on social media, a month after promising to do so. The regulation, which Pramono said he signed on Monday, provides a six-month grace...

UK back-pedals on tougher English language test for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

The UK government has rowed back from setting tougher English language requirements on Hongkongers seeking to settle in the country through the British National (Overseas) pathway, saying it will be subject to consultation. Minister for Migration and Citizenship Mike Tapp also said the government would consider extending the pathway to Hongkongers born after the city’s return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, who may not hold BN(O) passports. During a parliament debate on Tuesday about the

Trump eyes possible Xi reunion at Apec as diplomacy...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday that Donald Trump may travel to China in November 2026 for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, one of four possible in-person meetings between the US leader and Chinese President Xi Jinping in the coming year. As with many features of the Trump presidency, this level of contact would be unprecedented, matched only by Trump’s four meetings with Xi in 2017 during his first term. Speaking on CNBC shortly before US markets opened,

What economic cards will China play with Japan?...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

Beijing is expected to calibrate its response to Japan with caution, weighing potential punitive measures against the risk of economic blowback, analysts say. And while China possesses an arsenal of levers – from tourism curbs to export controls – the experts warn that a heavy hand could backfire. “China won’t move abruptly,” said Xu Weijun, an assistant research professor with the Institute of Public Policy at the South China University of Technology. He noted that economic interdependence...

4 more arrested in Paris over US$102 million Louvre...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

French authorities on Tuesday arrested four more people in the probe into last month’s spectacular daylight theft of imperial jewels from the Louvre museum, the top Paris prosecutor said. “They are two men aged 38 and 39, and two women aged 31 and 40, all from the Paris region,” Laure Beccuau said, following earlier charges against four others over the heist. On October 19, a four-person gang raided the Louvre, the world’s most visited art museum, in broad daylight, taking just seven minutes

Chinese civilian firm starts mass production of Mach...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

A private Chinese aerospace company has become the first in the world to start mass production of a low-cost, high-performance hypersonic missile, suggesting a seismic shift in military technology and defence industrial dynamics. On Tuesday, Beijing-based Lingkong Tianxing Technology released a video on its official social media account showcasing the YKJ-1000 hypersonic missile in flight and how it struck a real target in a desert testing range. A company representative said the missile was...

Trump’s calls with Xi and Takaichi hint he won’t let...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/11/25

US President Donald Trump’s phone calls with both his Chinese and Japanese counterparts this week suggest Washington is engaged in a delicate balancing act over the Taiwan issue. These high-level communications are also intended as a message to Japan, and other US allies, that Taiwan is not a top priority for the Trump administration and should not disrupt the stabilisation of Sino-American ties, according to diplomatic observers. On Tuesday morning, Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae...

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