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News - South China Morning Post

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Russia launches missile, drone barrage at Ukraine as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Russia launched a barrage of ballistic missiles and drones at Ukrainian cities in overnight attacks, officials reported on Thursday as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Moscow was “hesitating” about another round of US-brokered talks on stopping the fighting. Washington has proposed further negotiations next week between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Miami or Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, which was the location of the last meeting, Zelensky said late on...

CK Hutchison pursues ‘all legal options’ on Panama...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison has vowed to pursue all available legal options to defend its interests after a Panama court last month nullified its right to operate two ports along the country’s canal, while acknowledging that keeping the operations running was beyond its control. The conglomerate headed by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s family said on Thursday that it had invited the Panama government to enter consultations to resolve the court verdict and protect its rights and interests in the...

China’s Lenovo warns of ‘prolonged’ memory crunch,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Lenovo Group, the world’s largest personal computer (PC) maker, warned of the “prolonged impact” of a global memory crunch after reporting a 21 per cent profit drop in the December quarter, while pinning hopes on a shift to artificial intelligence-powered devices to drive growth. “This structural imbalance between supply and demand [for memory chips] is not simply a short-term fluctuation,” Yang Yuanqing, chairman and CEO, said on Thursday after the earnings release. “It is likely to have a...

Xi’s new year message to military reveals PLA...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

China has deployed a section of its mysterious cyberspace force to the South China Sea to remain “ready for action”, with the unit making a rare appearance in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Lunar New Year greeting to the military. Xi conveyed his Lunar New Year message to multiple branches of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) via video on Wednesday from Beijing’s Bayi Building – the headquarters of the powerful military command body, the Central Military Commission – according to state...

‘Superman’ Li Ka-shing tops Hong Kong’s billionaire...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Tycoon Li Ka-shing has added more than US$6 billion to his net worth, boosting his standing as Hong Kong’s richest individual and contributing to a US$65 billion increase in the assets of the city’s 50 richest people, according to Forbes. Li, whose business interests span real estate, infrastructure and pharmaceuticals via companies such as CK Asset Holdings and CK Hutchison, had a net worth of US$45.1 billion this year, up from US$38.9 billion in 2025, according to a list compiled by the...

Hong Kong customs seizes HK$2.7 billion of illicit...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Hong Kong authorities recorded a 36 per cent increase in illicit cigarette busts last year, seizing HK$2.7 billion (US$345.4 million) worth of goods, as the customs chief warned of a new tactic of children being used to smuggle tobacco across the border. At a press conference on Thursday to review its work in 2025, the Customs and Excise Department reported that the number of illicit cigarette cases rose to 29,037 – a 36 per cent increase from 21,283 the previous year – despite higher duties

Bookings up but bottom lines flat for Hong Kong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Hong Kong restaurateurs expect earnings from family reunion dinners in the lead up to Lunar New Year to either remain stable or decline compared with last year despite an increase in bookings, citing a weak economy and a preference among customers for more affordable menu options. Lee Kwong-hoi, CEO of Star Seafood Restaurant Group, which runs 14 outlets across Hong Kong, said while bookings for reunion dinners had risen by 10 per cent year on year menu prices continued to hover around

Chinese premier tours rare earths production hub amid...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

China’s premier has vowed the country will consolidate its advantages in traditional industries like rare earths while also striving to accelerate innovation in frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence, as Beijing prepares to unveil its latest five-year plan. Premier Li Qiang made the call during a visit earlier this week to Ganzhou in the central Chinese province of Jiangxi – one of the world’s largest production bases for heavy rare earth elements, a strategic resource

Meta’s WhatsApp accuses Russia of blocking its...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

US messenger app WhatsApp, owned by Meta Platforms, accused authorities in Russia on Thursday of trying to fully block its service to drive Russians to a state-owned app, which it alleged was used for surveillance. “Trying ‌to isolate over 100 million users from private and secure communication is a backwards step and can only lead to less safety for people in Russia,” the world’s most popular messaging service said in a statement. “We continue to do everything we can to keep users...

The Philippines rebukes China over travel ban on...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Beijing has defended its travel ban on more than a dozen Philippine municipal officials that Manila said could harm ties between the two countries, after a diplomatic spat took yet another retaliatory turn. Angelica Escalona, spokeswoman for the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, said on Wednesday that while Beijing had the right to ban the officials from entering China, its decision to do so was not helpful. “While preventing the entry of foreign nationals into their territory is a...

China delivery firm offers kneeling service to send...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

A delivery company in central China has sparked controversy by introducing a range of services including kneeling and kowtowing to replace in-person family visits during the Spring Festival. On February 9, UU Paotui, based in Henan province, launched a time-limited service on its app, offering three packages for customers to send Lunar New Year greetings. The first option includes the purchase and hanging of couplets and the Fu character, along with basic door cleaning which costs 39 yuan

Driver, passenger arrested after BMW hits 3 vehicles...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

A driver and his passenger were arrested after their car, which had an expired licence and allegedly contained small amounts of the drug etomidate, hit a police vehicle, a taxi and a bus while attempting to evade officers on a northern Hong Kong road. The crash on Thursday left three people injured including two police officers. The driver and a woman were arrested at the scene on suspicion of offences including dangerous driving, failing to stop for police and possession of suspected

US-China trade war truce could help break-up efforts

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

The United States and China are set to extend October’s trade war truce by up to a year when US President Donald Trump visits Beijing, the South China Morning Post reported exclusively on Thursday.Trump would probably meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in the first week of April, potentially after arriving on March 31 for a three-day trip, the newspaper said, citing unidentified sources. The timing is still under discussion, as Beijing weighs scheduling around the April 5 Ching Ming...

Number of births in Hong Kong plunges to record low...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

The number of babies born in Hong Kong plunged to a record low of 31,100 in 2025, while the city’s provisional population estimate rose 0.1 per cent year on year to 7.51 million. The Census and Statistics Department on Thursday also revealed a net inflow of 29,100 Hong Kong residents in 2025. Some 50,000 deaths were recorded in the year. The figures revealed the decline in Hong Kong’s birth rate to be much worse than previously estimated by the government. A government spokesman did not

Hong Kong police arrest 3 men over HK$700,000 dried...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Hong Kong police have arrested three men on suspicion of burglary after allegedly stealing HK$700,000 (US$89,549) worth of products – including fish maw and shark fin – from a dried seafood shop. Tsang Ka-chun, senior inspector of the Kowloon district crime squad, said on Thursday that the break-in took place on Monday at a ground-floor shop in Kowloon City. The suspects allegedly prised open the store’s electric shutter and floor lock to gain entry, making off with a high-value haul of dried...

Alibaba’s Qwen tops 120 million orders in 6 days amid...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Chinese consumers placed over 120 million orders on Alibaba Cloud’s flagship artificial intelligence app Qwen within six days, signalling growing acceptance of AI-powered shopping as the company joined other mainland Chinese tech giants in a multibillion-yuan holiday campaign. Nearly half the orders came from residents in counties and hinterland areas, with around 1.56 million people aged 60 and above making their first online purchases through Qwen, according to a statement on Thursday from...

China’s carmakers cut supplier payment cycles amid...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Major Chinese carmakers have cut their lengthy supplier payment cycles – previously used to offset costs and stay competitive in the country’s vast auto market – from nearly a year to less than 60 days, a government-backed industry consortium said, following heightened efforts from Beijing to police the cutthroat sector. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said in a statement on Thursday that the 17 assemblers it recently investigated took an average of 54 days to pay

Is Japan’s US$550-billion promise to Trump just a...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Despite US President Donald Trump having congratulated Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on her recent election triumph, Tokyo is under pressure to deliver on colossal investments promised in the United States. Ahead of the possible announcement of the first projects this week and Takaichi’s scheduled visit to the White House next month, what exactly has Japan pledged, what uncertainties remain, and what is at stake? What was agreed? In July, Japan agreed to invest US$550 billion through...

Hong Kong banks’ profit growth slows as rising bad...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Hong Kong’s retail banks posted 7.3 per cent pre-tax profit growth last year, as rising bad debts and a narrower net interest margin offset growing income from wealth-management services. The city’s 30 retail banks recorded lower growth in aggregated pre-tax profit than in 2024, when profits increased 8.4 per cent, according to data from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). The annual growth was much slower than the 62 per cent jump in 2023, when the city had just reopened the border with...

Singapore budget: city state set for US$12 billion...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/12

Singapore expects a surplus of S$15.1 billion (US$12 billion) or 1.9 per cent of gross domestic product for the 2025 financial year, more than double an initial projection of S$6.8 billion, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has said as he unveils an aggressive bid to pursue AI ambitions in his annual budget speech. The higher revenues came from corporate income tax and asset-related revenue collections such as stamp duty and vehicle quota premiums, Wong said on Thursday. For the 2026 financial

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