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News - South China Morning Post

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A prestigious Central address edged by green

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] The Mid-Levels occupies a distinctive position on Hong Kong Island. Set immediately above Central, the enviable location allows residents to live at the heart of Asia’s financial centre while retaining daily access to established green space – a combination that has long been regarded as a privilege. For many newcomers to Hong Kong, expatriates and internationally mobile professionals alike, residence in this part of...

Panama’s ‘dangerous precedent’: why global ports...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Panama’s decision to invalidate port contracts with a Hong Kong-based conglomerate is sending shock waves through global port investment, analysts warn, creating a destabilising precedent amid rising geopolitical fragmentation. Tensions are escalating in the Central American nation following a top court’s ruling that voided CK Hutchison Holdings’ port concession – a long-term agreement granting rights to operate a port – from the 1990s as “unconstitutional”. The local port authority later

‘Drastic increase’ in food poisoning cases in Hong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Hong Kong’s health authorities have warned of a recent “drastic increase” in norovirus-related food poisoning incidents that are all related to raw oyster consumption, with 20 of them being recorded over the past 2½ weeks. The Centre for Health Protection said on Thursday that it had received 23 reports of food poisoning, involving 69 patients, since January 18. Among them, 20 cases affecting 57 people were related to norovirus, which typically causes food poisoning and acute...

What Xi’s calls with Trump and Putin reveal about...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s unprecedented back-to-back conversations with his US and Russian counterparts have shed new light on how the three powers are positioning themselves.The Chinese leader’s separate talks on Wednesday with US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin also reveal their attempts to stabilise ties as they prepare for in-person summits and grapple with mounting headwinds at home. However, analysts expressed mixed views on whether – and how – China

Japan’s consulate in Hong Kong marks emperor’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Japan’s representative to Hong Kong has said his consulate is making “steady progress” in improving ties with the city, while noting the absence of top local officials at a celebration of the emperor’s birthday amid tensions between Tokyo and Beijing. Jun Miura, the country’s consul general to the city, on Thursday expressed his thanks for the friendship between Japan and Hong Kong at an event marking the 66th birthday of Emperor Naruhito. “While we do not have a guest of honour per se, I...

Bitcoin dips below US$70,000, wiping out gains since...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Bitcoin tumbled through the key US$70,000 level on Thursday ‌as a slide in the world’s largest cryptocurrency showed no signs of stopping. Bitcoin fell by as much as ‍3.8 per cent to a low of US$69,858, its weakest since November 2024, when Republican Donald Trump won the US presidential election, having signalled his intention to support crypto on the campaign trail. Bitcoin has already fallen nearly 8 per cent for the week, taking its losses for the year so far to nearly 20 per cent.

Indonesian village at risk of being swallowed by...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

A 100-metre-deep sinkhole has slowly swallowed part of a village in northwestern Indonesia. Local farmers are struggling to expand their farmland to escape the advancing crater. Staff from the state electricity company fear the sinkhole will reach a high-voltage transmission tower. Authorities say the affected area has expanded from about 27,000 square metres to 30,000 square metres (291,000 to 323,000 square feet).

China eyes gold production surge amid...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

China is charting a course for a major increase in domestic gold output over the next five years, while also advancing a new round of mineral-exploration breakthroughs, to bolster self-sufficiency amid a global shift away from the US dollar and heightened geopolitical tensions that underscore gold’s role as a financial haven. The proposal, outlined by the China Gold Association, aims to upgrade mining and smelting technologies during the country’s 15th five-year plan period (2026-2030) while...

Starmer apologises after Mandelson-Epstein ties spark...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, battling for his political future, apologised on Thursday to victims of Jeffrey Epstein for appointing disgraced Peter Mandelson as US ambassador. Starmer issued the wide-ranging apology after being dogged for days by the decision, following fresh allegations about Mandelson’s cosy ties to late sex offender Epstein which emerged in newly released files last Friday. The latest crisis to hit Starmer’s struggling government has left many doubting his judgment and...

How ‘America first’, in many respects, puts America...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

US President Donald Trump’s trip to Europe to speak at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss alpine town of Davos was possibly one he wished he had never made; such was its failure to impress. First, his plane had to turn back due to a technical problem. Second, he gave a typically hostile speech, but then he lived up to his nickname “Taco” (Trump always chickens out) over threats to invade Greenland that would have imperilled about a third of global trade. Third, he said disingenuously that

Hong Kong ombudsman slams Medical Council’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Hong Kong’s ombudsman has found that the Medical Council’s complaint-handling processes are excessively lengthy and plagued by a persistent backlog of cases, urging the watchdog and authorities to hasten procedures to uphold public confidence. The Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday released its investigation findings into the effectiveness of administrative support provided by the secretariat under the Department of Health for the council’s complaint handling and the government’s regulatory...

In diplomatic U-turn, Vilnius rues Taiwan de facto...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Lithuania “jumped in front of the train and lost” on its decision over Taipei’s de facto embassy, the country’s prime minister said, as Vilnius became the latest European capital to seek to recalibrate ties with Beijing. In an interview with the Baltic News Service on Tuesday, Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene said Vilnius made a mistake in allowing the opening of a Taiwanese representative office in the capital in 2021. The move enraged Beijing, which saw the use of “Taiwanese” –

Epstein, his Hong Kong academic friend and their...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

A Hong Kong academic had a relationship with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, with correspondence revealing a proposed collaboration that he deemed was “a good rebrand” for an island owned by the disgraced American financier, where he hosted parties. The exchange of emails also showed Epstein became interested in the academic’s pursuit of finding people with so-called special abilities, such as mind-reading and other “psychic activities”. These discussions led to Epstein giving

Xi, Trump and why their talks are stoking unease in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Talks between the US and Chinese presidents on Taiwan and arms sales have fanned fears on the island that it is slipping down the ladder of Washington’s strategic priorities in an era of great-power bargaining. The concern compounded unease raised by the release last month of the US’ National Defence Strategy, which made no mention of Taiwan. In a phone call on Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his American counterpart Donald Trump that Taiwan was the “most important” question in...

TSMC Japan plan for advanced chips seen as hedge...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s plan for advanced chip production at a Japanese plant will help it hedge against US tariff threats and the possibility of a Beijing blockade around Taiwan, analysts said, while providing Japanese giants such as Sony and Toyota with local access to advanced chips for artificial intelligence applications. C C Wei, president and CEO of the world’s top chip foundry, known as TSMC and based in Taiwan, said on Thursday after meeting Japanese Prime

‘Faster and safer’: Hong Kong to allow resale home...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Hong Kong’s de facto central bank said on Thursday it will allow most second-hand residential property transactions to be settled through direct bank transfers, giving homebuyers and sellers a faster and safer alternative to cheque-based payments. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority said the expanded Payment Arrangements for Property Transactions (PAPT) scheme would take effect on February 28, covering the bulk of resale home deals in the city. The announcement was made jointly with the Hong

Indian sisters’ suspected suicide sparks debate on...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Indian police said on Thursday an investigation had been launched into the suspected suicide of three young sisters over concerns that they were heavily “influenced” by games and films online that they were later denied access to. Local media reported the sisters, aged 12, 14 and 16, had jumped from their home on Wednesday in the city of Ghaziabad on the outskirts of the country’s capital. Concern among experts and regulators has grown in recent years that too much screen time and addictive...

Chinese scientists build world-first 20GW microwave...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

At the Northwest Institute of Nuclear Technology in Xian, Shaanxi province, sits an unremarkable-looking device called the TPG1000Cs. It could become Starlink’s worst nightmare. The TPG1000Cs is the world’s first compact driver for a high-power microwave (HPM) weapon, capable of delivering an extraordinary 20 gigawatts of power for up to one full minute. Measuring just four metres long (13 feet) and weighing only five tonnes, it is compact enough to be mounted on trucks, warships, aircraft or...

China’s Meituan snaps up Dingdong to deepen push into...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

China’s food delivery giant Meituan said on Thursday that it had agreed to acquire Dingdong, a leading on-demand commerce platform in China specialising in fresh groceries. Meituan said it would purchase all issued shares of Dingdong Fresh Holding, wholly owned by New York-listed Dingdong (Cayman) Limited, for an initial consideration of US$717 million, subject to adjustment, according to a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange. The deal is subject to conditions including antitrust

Hong Kong hiker rescued after falling from cliff,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/02/05

Rescuers in Hong Kong have saved a man who clung to a tree after falling from a cliff while hiking in Tuen Mun. At around 12.10pm on Thursday, the hiker reportedly slipped from the mountaintop and plunged down a cliff off Tsing Shan Monastery Path. He managed to cling to a tree branch and cried out for help. His companion, along with other hikers in the area, alerted authorities. Police and firefighters rushed to the scene, while the Government Flying Service dispatched a helicopter to assist

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