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Can Japan regain shipbuilding might with US$6.3...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/10

Japan is forging ahead with an investment plan that could see as much as 1 trillion yen (US$6.3 billion) pumped into its shipbuilding sector as it tries to wrest back greater control of a key strategic industry. However, analysts said money alone would not be enough to restore Japan’s former standing in a sector now dominated by China, with higher costs, labour shortages and years of lost capacity all standing in the way. The effort has taken on greater urgency as turmoil in the Middle East

Chinese business ‘hired lobbying firm with ties to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

A lobbying firm led by one of Donald Trump Jnr’s hunting buddies helped a Chinese company ⁠make its case to a US national security watchdog, public filings show.The case involved a US ⁠start-up that was seeking to have the Chinese firm removed as one of its investors. The watchdog rejected the US firm’s request for ⁠a national security review of the Chinese firm’s investment, according to a document seen by Reuters, handing a rare win to a Chinese company in Washington. The decision has not...

Hong Kong developers roll out 1,300 homes as prices...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Hong Kong developers are preparing to launch nearly 1,300 units in the coming days and weeks, with some edging up prices amid improving homebuying sentiment. On Sunday, 261 units at La Mirabelle I will be released, with average prices ranging from HK$15,335 (US$1,958) to HK$19,613 per square foot after discounts of up to 15 per cent, according to Sino Land, one of the project’s developers. The pricing marks a 1 per cent increase on the previous batch, which Sino said reflected the quality of

US judge orders Pentagon to restore press access to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

A US judge in Washington ruled ⁠on Thursday that the Pentagon is ⁠hampering journalists in defiance of a court order that required it to restore access to credentialed reporters covering the seat of US military power. US District Judge Paul Friedman said the Defence Department must comply with his earlier order that sided with The New York Times newspaper and other news organisations ‌challenging restrictions imposed on them last year. “The Department cannot simply reinstate an unlawful

Will Trump’s Iran war ‘loyalty test’ spell the end of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

The US-Israel war on Iran could push Nato closer to becoming a “nominal” alliance, although it was unlikely to disband any time soon, a Chinese observer said. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised the transatlantic defence alliance since returning to the White House last year, accusing allies of “free‑riding” on US security and demanding greater military and financial contributions. That rhetoric has only intensified in recent weeks, with accusations that Nato was failing to...

Middle East crisis is pushing China to deepen Latin...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

The Iran war has been framed as a Middle East crisis with global energy consequences. That is true, but incomplete. It is also reshaping China’s strategic map. The disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, the jump in oil prices and the shock to shipping and energy markets have reinforced a lesson for Beijing: vulnerability begins with concentration. When one region becomes more unstable, the value of diversified suppliers, routes and external partners rises. That is why Latin America matters more

Netanyahu corruption trial to resume on Sunday after...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial will resume on Sunday, the Jerusalem District Court confirmed, after emergency restrictions imposed during the conflict with Iran were lifted. A court statement on Thursday said that “the return to work of the judicial system” means Netanyahu’s trial is cleared to continue, beginning with a hearing on Sunday set to include testimony from a defence witness. Court business in Israel had been interrupted by the conflict but the

Russian special envoy in US to meet Trump...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Russian ⁠President Vladimir Putin’s special ⁠envoy Kirill Dmitriev is currently in the United States and is meeting members of US President Donald Trump’s administration for ‌discussions on a peace deal for Ukraine and US-Russia economic cooperation, sources with knowledge of the visit said on Thursday. The visit comes before the US decision on ⁠whether to extend sanctions relief on Russian oil, ‌which expires on April 11 and could also be on the agenda. The ‌United States issued a 30-day

Brazil on track to fill China beef export quota by...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Brazil is set to exhaust its annual beef export quota to China by early May, industry officials said, as cattle prices hit a nominal record and Beijing’s import restrictions forced exporters across South America to scramble for alternative markets. The benchmark price for finished cattle tracked by the Centre for Advanced Studies on Applied Economics at the University of Sao Paulo reached R$365 (US$71.57) per arroba (per 11.5-15kg) on Wednesday, a gain of 12.5 per cent over the past 12

Melania Trump says rumours linking her to Jeffrey...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

US first lady Melania Trump on Thursday rejected what she called “lies” about her relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in a rare White House address where she also called on Congress to hold public hearings for his victims. The first lady denied having ties to Epstein or knowledge of his crimes in a brief but strongly worded statement, saying the “lies” linking her to the disgraced financier “need to end today”. “I am not ‌Epstein’s victim,” said Melania Trump, while also...

Russia criminalises denial of ‘Soviet genocide’ by...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Russia has formally designated Nazi crimes against the Soviet population during World War II as genocide and criminalised their denial, after President Vladimir Putin signed amendments to the country’s criminal code, the Kremlin said on Thursday. The term “genocide of the Soviet people” has increasingly been used in Russia in recent years. Authorities have also proposed repurposing a closed museum dedicated to the Soviet-era Gulag system into one focused on victims of Nazi crimes. Moscow has...

Chinese-American playwright Alex Lin channels family...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Six years ago, Chinese-American playwright Alex Lin was pursuing a career in tech, doing what she called “the stable thing” and promising herself she’d write when there was more time. The pandemic gave her that time – and with it the chance to change lanes. Success came relatively quickly. In the past year alone, she premiered not one but two plays off-Broadway in New York City and landed on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, which highlights people who are making a significant impact in their...

Trump’s tariff threat on European cars escalates...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

US President Donald Trump said he plans to impose a 20 per cent tariff on all cars imported from the European Union unless the trade bloc “soon” removes import duties and other barriers to US goods, escalating global trade tensions. “Based on the Tariffs and Trade Barriers long placed on the US and it great companies and workers by the European Union, if these Tariffs and Barriers are not soon broken down and removed, we will be placing a 20% Tariff on all of their cars coming into the US

UK tracked Russia submarines in alleged Atlantic...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Britain said on Thursday it had tracked and deterred three Russian submarines on an alleged month-long “covert operation” in UK waters in the North Atlantic near vital undersea cables and pipelines.Disclosing details of the joint mission with Norway and other unspecified allies, British Defence Secretary John Healey said there was no evidence the Russian vessels had damaged the subsea infrastructure. The UK minister said he was revealing the operation, which involved British warships and...

Greenland hits back at Trump amid Nato tensions:...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said on Thursday that he represents a proud nation seeking to maintain global order, pushing back against the latest comments about ‌the Arctic island by US President Donald Trump. Trump on Wednesday vented his frustration with Nato as relations reached a crisis point over the Iran war, stating that the military alliance was not around when needed, and that he still ⁠remembered Greenland, a “BIG, POORLY RUN, PIECE OF ICE”. “What is important

Workplace sexual harassment complaints jump by 38% in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Workplace sexual harassment complaints in Hong Kong have jumped by 38 per cent year on year, according to the equality watchdog. The Equal Opportunities Commission recorded 315 such complaints in 2025, up from 228 the previous year, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau said in a written response to legislative inquiries on Thursday. Employment-related harassment complaints climbed from 156 in 2024 to 207 last year. Non-employment-related cases, which include unwanted sexual conduct...

Hong Kong seeks to raise bond issuance ceiling to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

A proposed increase in the Hong Kong government’s borrowing cap for its bond programmes to HK$900 billion (US$115 billion) will be sufficient to finance infrastructure projects over the next three years, officials have said, while leaving the door open to further rises in the long run if needed. Andrew Lai Chi-wah, permanent secretary for financial services and the treasury, made the remarks on Thursday during a Legislative Council subcommittee meeting scrutinising the plan to lift the...

Hormuz toll debate: China experts propose...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

While the world remains divided over the unresolved issue of toll collection in the Strait of Hormuz, some Chinese experts have proposed pegging fees to oil prices or using exportable digital tokens from China for settlements. If tolls were to be imposed in this strategic chokepoint for global energy trade, settlement mechanisms could be “innovative”, said Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University. “Tolls and settlements could be tied to oil prices or...

Hong Kong spent HK$1.13 billion on Legco poll, up by...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

Hong Kong spent HK$1.13 billion (US$144.27 million) on the Legislative Council election last year, or nearly 35 per cent more than on the previous poll, with authorities citing rising technology expenses, staff salaries and venue rentals for the increased expenditure. In a written response to lawmakers’ inquiries that came to light on Thursday, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau revealed the revised budget for the Registration and Electoral Office for the 2025-26 financial year

For Asia, US-Iran ceasefire offers little relief –...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/09

The two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran is a real diplomatic breakthrough. It has reopened the Strait of Hormuz, triggered a relief rally in global markets and eased the immediate fear of a spiralling energy shock. But its strategic significance lies less in the relief it has produced than in the uncertainty it leaves behind. The truce is time-limited, tied to negotiations and built around temporary safe passage rather than a settled regional order. The ceasefire terms and...

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