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How group live-streaming thrives in China, reshapes...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Under a cascade of flashing lights, a group of young girls dances to the beat as artificial rose petals gently fall. But who really controls the performance? Viewers. With just a few taps, they send virtual gifts or cast votes to decide which song to perform, which idol stays and which is swapped out. Meanwhile, the host keeps the energy high with live commentary, thanking viewers by reading their usernames. In 2023, group live-streaming surged in popularity, filling the void left by the 2021...

What is Hong Kong’s headquarters economy – and how it...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Hong Kong’s so-called headquarters economy, in which the city serves as a regional and global base for corporate headquarters, is spurring recovery in the commercial real estate sector as analysts forecast an improved investment environment this year. The city’s battered office market showed signs of stability in 2025, with 2.1 million sq ft (195,000 square metres) of net absorption for the full year, the largest annual total since 2018, according to CBRE. Central recorded the biggest...

8 dead in biotech workshop blast in central China

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Eight people have been confirmed dead in a blast at a biotechnology factory in central China early on Saturday. The explosion ripped through a workshop in Shanyin county, Shanxi province, operated by Jiapeng Biotechnology, a company involved in bio-feed, coal and related products, building materials, and paint manufacturing. The county government said the rescue operation had concluded and the company’s legal representative had been taken into police custody. Officials from Shuozhou, the city...

Hong Kong ‘will deepen technology, industry links...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Hong Kong will deepen the integration of technological and industrial innovation through opportunities brought by the nation’s blueprint to drive economic growth, the financial secretary has pledged just weeks ahead of his budget address. Paul Chan Mo-po also said on Sunday that Hong Kong must make better use of its strengths as an international financial centre to accelerate industrial development as it entered the first year of the country’s latest five-year plan. “The 15th five-year plan

AutoFlight unveils world’s largest flying car as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Chinese aviation start-up AutoFlight, backed by electric vehicle (EV) battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), is emblematic of mainland China’s ambitions in the flying car market, part of the country’s broader push to dominate the low-altitude economy. The Shanghai-based company on Thursday unveiled Matrix, a five-tonne (11,000lbs) class electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, which it described as the largest of its kind in the world after completing a flight...

Hong Kong government defends estate administrator...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

The provisional administrator of the housing estate ravaged by Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades will attend hearings of an independent committee “as necessary” to represent the “common interest” of the owners’ corporation, the home affairs chief has said following criticism that residents lacked legal representation in the probe. Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak Mei-kuen on Sunday defended Hop On Management, the firm appointed by the government as the administrator of the...

Woman ejected from Malaysia biker event over ‘too...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

A woman was told to leave after turning up in a skirt and a low-cut top at the RXZ Forever Legend motorcycling gathering in Kota Baru, Malaysia’s Kelantan state. At the same time, another 30 women were given headscarves to wear after they were found not to be properly covered under the organiser’s dress code guidelines, Sinar Harian reported. RXZ Forever Legend programme director Muhamad Huzaifah Abdul Halim said personnel had been stationed at the entrance to monitor visitors. “The woman

How 2 landmark Central deals boost sentiment in Hong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

When Alex Barnes and his team finally closed the two largest single-tenant office leasing deals Central has seen in more than a decade, the outcome was decisive – but the path there was anything but quick. Barnes, the co-CEO in Greater China and managing director in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau at JLL, advised quantitative trading firm Jane Street Asia on a record-setting lease at Central Yard, followed months later by a six-floor commitment from hedge fund Qube Research & Technologies at Two...

China women pay for ‘companions’ in role-playing...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

An orphan, trained as a cold-hearted assassin, learns what love truly means from a master thief. On a sunny Sunday afternoon, however, she kills her lover, granting him freedom as her final gift. Joyce, from Shenzhen in southern China, played this female killer in a script-killing game, and after a 10-hour plot unfolding, tears streamed down her face upon reaching this ending. She is one of many participating in the recently booming romantic script-killing games in China. In traditional...

Warm temperatures expected over Lunar New Year...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hongkongers can expect a warm Lunar New Year with maximum temperatures climbing to 23 degrees Celsius (73.4 Fahrenheit) when the three-day holiday begins on February 17. According to the Observatory’s nine-day weather forecast, temperatures on the first day of the holiday will range between 19 and 23 degrees, with mostly cloudy skies and sunny intervals...

Indonesia’s 68,000-year-old handprint: the birth of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

The faint outline of a hand in a cave in Indonesia’s Sulawesi has been recognised as the world’s oldest known rock art, shattering a long-held scientific theory that human artistic expression first flourished in Ice Age Europe. Dating back at least 67,800 years, the faded stencil was found hiding beneath a more recent chicken sketch in Metanduno cave on Muna Island. Researchers say the finding, which was published in the scientific journal Nature on January 21, proves that ancient humans in...

China executed a series of Myanmese crime bosses....

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

In less than a week, China conducted a series of executions on a scale rarely seen in recent decades. In all, 16 core members of mafia-like crime syndicates were put to death for a range of crimes, from murder to fraud and human trafficking. While all of the victims in the cases were Chinese nationals, many of the condemned were citizens of Myanmar, a largely Buddhist country not known for executing crime bosses. Yet, China was able to convince authorities in Myanmar to hand over...

Hong Kong’s Miss Nepal hopeful follows in mother’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

In 1994, Deepmala Kharel Dhakal’s mother competed in the first Miss Nepal beauty pageant. Thirty-two years later, the Nepali-Hongkonger is preparing to follow in her footsteps. The 23-year-old was crowned Miss Nepal Hong Kong International on Thursday. Victory at the event guarantees entrance into the national competition later this year. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Kharel Dhakal has an impressive resume. She landed a job as an investment strategist with BlackRock after graduating from the...

All you need to know about the Year of the Horse

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Worker scalded by hot oil at biodiesel facility in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

A 33-year-old worker was rushed to hospital in the early hours of Sunday after being scalded by hot oil at a biodiesel facility in Hong Kong’s Tseung Kwan O. The man, surnamed Tsang, was performing his duties at ASB Biodiesel at 22 Chun Wang Street at Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate when the accident happened. With investment from Shanghai Partner Energy Group, ASB Biodiesel operates a specialised facility that converts waste cooking oil, acidified grease trap oil and animal fat into

China’s Year of the Horse shoppers let emotional...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

As the Year of the Horse approaches, Chinese consumers are hunting online for mascots, dolls and charms themed after the zodiac animal, favouring soft, round and playful designs over formal styles, in what industry observers say places more weight on emotional fulfilment than on material possessions or brand prestige. This craze is boosting retail sales for plush toys and gold accessories, as is evident in toymaker Pop Mart’s sold-out Have a Good Run series of plush pendants, as well as brisk...

Thailand election: conservatives led by caretaker PM...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Thailand’s conservative Bhumjaithai Party edged into the lead in Sunday’s election as its stability message appeared to cut through with the electorate, while the reformist People’s Party struggled to convince voters it had the remedy to years of economic drift and political turbulence. Unofficial results published by the Election Commission late on Sunday put Bhumjaithai, headed by caretaker prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul, on its way towards 100 seats, and the People’s Party behind on

23 cases of smuggled orchids recorded as holiday...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

Hong Kong wildlife protection authorities have recorded 23 cases of smuggled orchids in the first month of the year, with the number expected to rise in the coming weeks as Lunar New Year approaches. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department also pledged to step up patrols and enforcement at borders during the holiday season, when such crimes tend to peak. Endangered Species Protection Officer Jenny Lau Yuen-yung said the department discovered 23 cases of illegally imported

How a deadly tumour cell protein could help fight...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

A protein secreted by deadly tumour cells could be a powerful weapon against Alzheimer’s disease, Chinese researchers have found. While Alzheimer’s disease and cancer are common in ageing populations and are among the leading causes of death worldwide, it is unusual for them to occur in the same person. A Chinese research team said late last month they had identified a protein from cancer cells that could explain why patients with a history of cancer were less likely to develop Alzheimer’s...

As China intensifies offshore tax hunt, exporters...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/08

For those in China’s cross-border trade business, a sweeping tax crackdown is beginning to be felt. Heightened scrutiny of unreported overseas income is reshaping cost structures, squeezing margins and forcing exporters to rethink how they operate across borders. “It has taken a real bite out of profits,” said Henry Huang, a Zhejiang-based exporter who now faces higher taxes yet little room to pass on costs to price-sensitive customers in the United States and Europe. “It’s hitting everyone

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