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Ascletis trial shows drug candidate ASC47 boosts...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Biotech firm Ascletis Pharma said ASC47, its muscle-preserving weight loss drug candidate, could boost the efficacy of the popular anti-obesity medication semaglutide by 56.2 per cent, as Chinese drug makers eye a growing share of this lucrative market. That finding came from a trial that Ascletis conducted in the US for 28 participants with obesity, which aimed to assess the drug candidate’s safety and ideal dose, according to the company’s statement on Monday. The treatment duration was

China unveils largest known radiation-proof robot for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

China has built and tested a giant robot that could carry the equivalent of 10 African elephants to perform maintenance work on future fusion reactors, bringing the country closer to its decade-long goal of building an “artificial sun”. The remote handling test platform, which consists of three arms, has passed expert evaluation and acceptance, according to a report on September 15 by the state-owned Science and Technology Daily. The evaluation showed that the giant main arm of the robotic...

Udder brilliance? Japan wins Ig Nobel Prize for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

A Japanese research team that painted cows with zebra-like stripes to protect them from biting flies has received this year’s Ig Nobel Prize in Biology, marking the country’s 19th consecutive win at the tongue-in-cheek science awards. The prize, awarded in a ceremony at Boston University on Thursday, honours research that “first makes people laugh, then makes them think”. While painting cows like zebras may sound absurd, the research points to a serious application in chemical-free pest

Why Hong Kong’s commercial property market could do...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

For one of the biggest disconnects between financial markets and economies in Asia, look no further than Hong Kong. The dramatic revival of the city’s stock market this year has catapulted it to the top of the global rankings for initial public offerings (IPOs). Mainland Chinese companies are lining up in droves to list in Hong Kong, showcasing the city’s position as the dominant offshore dollar funding centre in Asia. In both local currency and US dollar terms, the Hang Seng Index has been

Israeli lawmaker’s Taiwan visits repeatedly violate...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Beijing has strongly condemned an Israeli lawmaker’s visit to Taiwan, calling the politician a troublemaker and accusing him of undermining bilateral relations. In Taipei last Tuesday, Knesset member Boaz Toporovsky met Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te, who thanked the Israeli parliament for “staunchly backing Taiwan’s international participation”, according to Lai’s office. In response, Beijing’s embassy in Tel Aviv said on Sunday that Toporovsky, from the liberal Zionist Yesh Atid

Hongkongers rush to stock up on essentials as Super...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Hong Kong residents flocked to wet markets and supermarkets to stock up on food and other supplies on Monday ahead of the rapidly approaching Super Typhoon Ragasa, with one shopper comparing the rush with that seen during Lunar New Year. From baked goods and fresh vegetables to poultry and meat, many shoppers were storing food to meet their needs for the whole week after the Hong Kong Observatory warned the storm would severely affect the city in the next two days. At one bakery, located in

Passengers escape injury as truck with steel rods...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Passengers on a double-decker bus bound for Hong Kong’s airport have escaped injury after a truck laden with steel bars rammed into it, with some rods piercing the upper deck’s rear windows. Bus E23 decelerated on North Lantau Highway due to slowing traffic ahead and was rear-ended by the construction truck at around 9am on Monday, a spokeswoman for Citybus said. “The truck was suspected to have failed to brake in time, causing a traffic accident. Some of the steel bars from the construction...

What would it take for Singapore to recognise a...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Singapore will reconsider its position on recognising a Palestinian state if the situation continues to deteriorate, or if Israel takes further steps to extinguish a two-state solution, Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan has said. Singapore has always supported a negotiated two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. “We will recognise the State of Palestine when it has an effective government that accepts Israel’s right to exist and categorically renounces

Asean’s failure to meet Myanmar junta over election...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Myanmar and Asean leaders are locked in a “diplomatic impasse” with the military junta determined to prevent the bloc from interfering with its plans for a general election later this year, according to observers. Four foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations last week postponed their planned trip to Myanmar to discuss the election, which is set to begin in December, and other matters. The diplomats from Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines were

Super Typhoon Ragasa: Shenzhen to evacuate 400,000;...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Cities in China’s southern provinces are bracing for Ragasa, the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year, with Shenzhen warning of “disastrous calamities” ahead and preparing to relocate hundreds of thousands of people. The National Meteorological Centre said on Sunday that Ragasa, the 18th typhoon this year, had intensified into a super typhoon on Sunday morning and was expected to bring strong winds and heavy rainfall to wide areas of the country’s southern and eastern regions. It is...

Tian Kuang Festival – from sun-dried dragon robes to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

The ancient Chinese Tian Kuang Festival has evolved into a modern ritual where people now sun-dry clothes and bathe their beloved pets to bring good fortune. Rich in history and folklore, it derives from the imperial custom of “Drying Dragon Robes” and offers both practical benefits and a unique avenue for cultural expression. It is also known as the Washing and Sunning Festival and it falls on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month. While it is an important holiday for the Han people, it

Over 10,000 evacuated in Philippines as Super Typhoon...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

More than 10,000 people sheltered in schools and evacuation centres in the Philippines on Monday as heavy rains and gale-force winds from Super Typhoon Ragasa lashed the country’s far north. The typhoon, which is gaining strength as it proceeds on a collision course with southern China, is expected to make landfall over the Philippines’ Babuyan Island. The sparsely populated islands lie about 740km (460 miles) south of Taiwan, where smaller-scale evacuations were also under way. As of 11am,...

Singapore founder of celebrity favourite Aupen issued...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Singapore handbag brand Aupen and its founder Nicholas Tan have been issued correction directions under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) for allegations made about Singapore’s intellectual property authority. Tan published multiple allegations about the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) on his Instagram account on September 9, 15 and 16. The September 15 post was also published on Aupen’s Instagram page. These Instagram posts and stories

Emergency exit, slide of Hong Kong Airlines plane...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

The emergency exit door and inflatable evacuation slide of a Hong Kong Airlines plane were triggered “inadvertently” after landing in Osaka on Sunday, causing no injuries but delaying the return flight for 70 passengers. The carrier said on Monday it had reported the incident on flight HX612, which landed at Osaka Kansai International Airport at 7.15pm the day before, to the relevant authorities and would cooperate fully with the investigation. Hong Kong Airlines said the emergency exit door

Will Kim Jong-un’s ‘good memory’ of Trump lead to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has responded positively to a recent overture by US President Donald Trump, even as analysts say the prospects for another summit between the two leaders remain slim due to their wide differences over denuclearisation. Kim said he could meet Trump again, provided the US were to drop its insistence on North Korea’s denuclearisation, noting he had “good memory” of Trump, according to Pyongyang’s state media. The comments by Kim followed a statement by Trump at

Long-awaited iPhone 17 helps Apple take bite out of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

For the past four years, some Apple customers have been waiting for a significant redesign before buying a new iPhone. The time has come for those consumers, with the iPhone 17 Pro, Pro Max and iPhone Air going on sale. It is the first time since 2020 that Apple has rolled out several new phone designs. Alongside the new handsets, it also released the Apple Watch SE, Watch Series 11, Watch Ultra 3 and AirPods Pro 3 into stores on Friday. The new phones, which bring a fresh look in addition to...

China is killing the race for critical minerals with...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Hidden within the granite wilderness of central China lies an antenna so vast it dwarfs New York City five times over – a 500-kilowatt electromagnetic leviathan originally built to whisper to submarines. Now, it is broadcasting China’s dominance in the global scramble for critical minerals. As nations race to secure lithium, cobalt and rare earths for green tech supremacy, Chinese geologists are deploying this monster – and its cousins – to detect ore and energy resources buried kilometres...

Trump’s US$100,000 visa threatens India’s US$280...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Donald Trump’s sticker shock on H-1B visas risks disrupting Indian tech firms’ US projects, and is forcing Prime Minister Narendra Modi to once again deal with the fallout from America First policies. The US president’s order on Friday – which requires a US$100,000 fee for H-1B applications – will hurt margins of Indian outsourcers who use the programme to deploy engineers to client sites. That is a blow to India’s US$280 billion IT services sector, which is already grappling with sluggish...

Malaysians primed to pump cheaper petrol, but with...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

Malaysians will be able to buy even cheaper petrol – but only up to 300 litres (79 gallons) per month – from next Tuesday under a sweeping new fuel subsidy scheme announced on Monday, aimed at reducing the country’s bloated subsidy expenditure. Fuel subsidies have long strained the budget, with nearly 20 billion ringgit (US$4.7 billion) spent annually in recent years – about 8 per cent of total expenditure. Under the old system, all motorists enjoyed unlimited RON95 petrol at 2.05 ringgit (49

What is China’s five-year plan, and why is it so...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/09/22

As next month’s fourth plenary session of the Communist Party’s Central Committee approaches, global attention is turning to China’s next five-year plan, which will be discussed at the gathering and will offer insights into how Beijing plans to navigate uncertainties amid rising tensions with the US. China has used five-year plans – a strategy and time frame similar to that of the former Soviet Union – in the more than seven decades since the establishment of the People’s Republic. In that

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