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Galloping horses theme of Hong Kong’s Lunar New Year...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

The coming Lunar New Year fireworks display in Hong Kong will feature the theme of galloping horses to welcome the Year of the Horse, with the Jockey Club sponsoring the event for the first time. Jockey Club chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said on Friday that the fireworks show, titled “Prosperity gallops across Hong Kong”, would be a part of a year-long campaign by the betting giant to celebrate the equine zodiac with a series of events from races to museum exhibitions. “For the...

Putin offers Moscow as mediator in Iran crisis amid...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

President Vladimir Putin is mediating in the Iran situation ‍to try to quickly de-escalate tensions, the Kremlin said on Friday, after the Russian leader spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Moscow, an ally of Tehran, has condemned US President Donald Trump’s threats of new military strikes after Iran cracked down on protests that broke out late last month. Israel and the US last ⁠year both bombed Iranian nuclear sites, and Iran fought a...

Ex-Hong Kong Disneyland boss to take reins as CEO of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

A former boss of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort will take the reins at the city’s Kai Tak Sports Park as CEO from April, with the landmark complex looking to the new head to “unlock the full potential” and “amplify its economic impact”. The park said on Friday that Andrew Kam Min-ho would succeed its first CEO, John Sharkey, who was stepping down after a nearly 10-year stint that established the complex as “a premier destination for world-class sports, entertainment, culture and leisure...

TSMC buys up land in Arizona as Taiwan pledges US$500...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Taiwan has committed to driving hundreds of billions of dollars of extra investment into America’s chip industry as part of a US trade deal announced on Thursday, with the island’s biggest semiconductor producer already moving to buy more land in the US state of Arizona. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) – the world’s largest contract chipmaker – confirmed on Thursday that it had bought a second tract of land in Arizona. The 365-hectare (901-acre) plot nearly doubles the...

Chinese scientists unlock possible key to dark matter...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Chinese scientists have made the first direct observation of a quantum effect that was proposed almost 90 years ago and could help detect dark matter, the universe’s invisible “glue”. Soviet physicist Arkady Migdal developed a theory in Leningrad in 1939 about what would happen when a neutral particle – such as dark matter – collided with an atomic nucleus. Migdal believed that the collision would cause the nucleus to recoil and trigger a secondary electronic recoil, generating a detectable...

Hong Kong man in court over seditious acts, media...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

A Hong Kong man accused of threatening to burn down the offices of five local media outlets if they did not publish seditious articles has described his actions as mischief, a court has heard. West Kowloon Court on Friday granted a request by Tse Chun-pan, 43, to adjourn the hearing for two months so that his lawyers could continue negotiations with prosecutors regarding his plea. Tse, who said he was a social security officer, faces one count of knowingly publishing seditious articles and

Malaysia’s Umno chief denies he ‘sidelined’ Najib to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

The president of Malaysia’s Umno has denied abandoning disgraced ex-prime minister Najib Razak to save himself, as fissures emerge in the former ruling party over the mixed legal fortunes of two of its top leaders.Umno grass-roots members have urged President Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to quit Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government in protest after the High Court blocked Najib’s bid to serve the remainder of his jail term under house arrest last month. It also handed the one-time party figurehead

Trump pick for South America command sidesteps China...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Days after the operation that abducted then Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, President Donald Trump’s nominee to command US forces in Latin America dodged pressure from senators to endorse a military-first plan to counter China’s growing influence in the region. Lieutenant General Francis Donovan, who is nominated to lead US Southern Command (Southcom), repeatedly declined to say whether Washington should rely mainly on force projection to push back against Beijing’s expanding footprint. The...

China ‘hardcore grandma’ gains fame for farm...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

An 82-year-old woman from eastern China, affectionately known as the “hardcore grandma,” has captivated many with her remarkable skills in operating field fertilisation drones and her success as a live-streamer selling rice. Born in 1943, Dai Shuying hails from Laomei Village in Xindu Town, Tongcheng, Anhui province. In her youth, she worked as a bookkeeper and was regarded as one of the few “educated individuals” in her village, capable of reading, writing, and performing calculations. While...

Number of registered companies in Hong Kong reaches...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Hong Kong’s corporate landscape expanded to unprecedented levels last year, with the total number of local registered companies reaching a record of nearly 1.56 million by the end of 2025. “By the end of 2025, the total number of local companies and redomiciled companies registered under the Companies Ordinance increased by 96,609 compared with 2024, reaching 1,557,103,” the Companies Registry said in a statement on Friday, noting that it was “an all-time high figure”. Among the total in

HSBC reviews Singapore insurance unit amid high...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

HSBC Holdings’ exploration of options for its insurance business in Singapore may lead to a sale of the unit as the group reallocates resources to its insurance business in Hong Kong and mainland China, according to analysts. “It makes sense for HSBC to consider an exit from Singapore’s insurance market to focus on Hong Kong and mainland China, as so many mainlanders are coming to Hong Kong to buy insurance products here,” said Kenny Tang Sing-hing, chairman of the Hong Kong Institute of...

Why is China’s Xi Jinping putting the political heat...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Chinese President Xi Jinping has refocused national anti-corruption efforts on illegal villas and “private resorts”, luxury developments that have come to symbolise excess and graft over the past two decades. According to newly released excerpts of a speech, Xi singled out the developments for special mention at the central urban work conference in July, highlighting them as examples of the need to improve governance, combat corruption and promote sustainable urban development. “[Officials

Canada to remove 100% tariffs on Chinese EV imports:...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Canada will remove the additional 100 per cent in tariffs it had imposed on Chinese electric vehicle (EV) imports, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Friday during a state visit in Beijing. In place of the higher duties, Carney said, Canada will cap import volume and retain a standard tariff rate of 6.1 per cent to shipments within the 49,000-unit limit. Canada’s additional tariffs, covering all EVs made in China, took effect in October 2024, following a similar move from the United

China dominates global humanoid robot market with...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

China accounted for more than four out of five humanoid robot installations globally in 2025, driven by domestic start-ups AgiBot and Unitree Robotics, as mass production and commercialisation accelerated, according to a report by Counterpoint Research. A total of 16,000 humanoid robots were installed globally in 2025, mainly for data collection and research, as well as in the logistics, manufacturing, and automotive sectors, according to Counterpoint data released on Wednesday. The market

South Korean church’s ‘special force’ targets young...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

A controversial church facing possible disbandment over religious-political collusion in South Korea is aggressively expanding its presence across Australia by targeting young people at universities and shopping centres, according to a former member who has accused the group of weaponising fear to shield it from criticism. The Shincheonji Church of Jesus, founded in 1984 by Lee Man-hee, who claims to be the second coming of Jesus Christ, has an estimated 200,000 followers in the East Asian...

China’s 7,000-year-old sunmao woodwork leads to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

How to beat the United States in gene editing? A research team from Peking University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences had struggled with this question for three years, with no results. Then they decided to draw inspiration from an ancient woodwork tradition and cut DNA like wood. It led to a gene-editing tool with unprecedented efficiency. In the Chinese mortise-and-tenon joint technique known as sunmao, no nails or glue are used. Instead, a protruding “tenon” on one piece fits securely

Malaysia rules 15-year-old fit to stand trial in 2025...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

The 15-year-old male student accused of murdering his schoolmate at a school in Malaysia’s Selangor state has been declared fit to stand trial, following a psychiatric evaluation. His lawyer, Kitson Foong, informed the press that he conveyed the report’s findings to the Magistrate’s Court during closed-door proceedings on January 16. The court subsequently ruled that the accused is fit to stand trial and enter his defense. According to the lawyer, the psychiatric report also recommended the

Hong Kong’s finance chief warns of market volatility,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Hong Kong’s capital market is likely to experience significant fluctuations this year owing to intensifying geopolitical risks, the city’s finance chief has warned, stressing the need for caution in financial management. Six weeks before the government unveils its annual budget, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po pledged to consider whether there is scope to adjust child allowance to encourage more births, after a Post report revealed that Hong Kong’s registered births hit a record low last...

China warns of ‘honey trap’ risks in defence sector...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

Chinese state security authorities have warned of the risk of “honey traps” in the defence and technology sectors, saying that in one case a public official was blackmailed into surrendering state secrets following a trip abroad. In an article published on Wednesday, a social media account affiliated with the National Administration of State Secrets Protection said defence industry personnel were becoming targets of honey traps set by foreign intelligence agencies. According to the account...

Hong Kong marathons throughout the years – SCMP archive

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/16

The Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon attracts tens of thousands of people from all over the world every year but the sporting event had humble beginnings in the city. When Hong Kong held its first international marathon in 1969, there were only 28 participants. In this collection of pictures, we look at how the annual running event has grown throughout the years.

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