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Chinese zodiac predictions, secrets to a long and...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

We have selected five Lifestyle stories from the past seven days that resonated with our readers. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Is the Year of the Snake’s 11th month lucky for you? Forecasts for all signs Feng shui master Andrew Kwan breaks down this lunar month’s prospects for all 12 Chinese zodiac signs in health, love, work and finances. 2. The 15 best K-dramas of 2025 ranked, from Melo Movie to Squid Game 3 The year 2025 was another big

North Korea hates K-culture but loves blatantly...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Even as North Korea spent 2025 pushing a political strategy centred on ignoring South Korea, the country simultaneously copied South Korean products, designs and cultural content – from food packaging to football fan zones – revealing what analysts describe as a contradictory yet calculated pattern of imitation. While Pyongyang continues to warn against the inflow of South Korean culture, it has selectively adopted popular elements and repurposed them as its own through what observers call...

French professor arrested in Hong Kong over drug...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

A woman was found dead in a Hong Kong flat, while her husband – who called police for help – was arrested on suspicion of possessing dangerous drugs, with a source telling the Post the man is an associate professor at City University. The force said it received a call at 4.13pm on Wednesday from the 48-year-old Frenchman, saying his 30-year-old Filipino wife had passed out in their home at Avignon in So Kwun Wat, Tuen Mun. Both were Hong Kong residents. Officers and emergency personnel

Debate on Singapore’s elite schools flares as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

A viral video has reignited a debate on elite schools in Singapore, with users sharing their own childhood experiences and views on whether such an educational environment may lead to insular views of society and indifference to those less better off. In an online clip, user Erica Lee recounts her time in an elite primary school and how her classmates’ families travelled several times a year for the holidays, had chauffeurs to ferry them to and from school, and threw extravagant birthday

Is China’s truck-mounted catapult system enabling...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Pictures have emerged in China that appear to show a truck-mounted electromagnetic catapult system for large drones on a cargo ship apparently converted for military use, triggering speculation on social media platforms. Some images circulating online since the weekend show three linked eight-wheeled low-loader trucks in a line with a large combat drone mounted on a shuttle-like fixture at the rear. The configuration appears to form a ground-based launch track with visible details suggesting

China-Europe travel market’s resilience keeps Air...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Despite China-EU trade frictions, Paris and other European cities remain the top destinations for Chinese travellers, with growing China-France trade and visa-free entry spurring companies like Air France-KLM to explore new opportunities. The Franco-Dutch airline group reported strong inbound demand from Europe in 2025, driven by China’s visa-free policy for travellers from more than 30 European nations, covering both business and leisure segments. In the first three quarters, the company

Bulgaria becomes 21st country to adopt euro in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Bulgaria became the 21st country to switch to the euro as it entered the new year on Thursday, a milestone met with both cheers and fears, nearly 20 years after the Balkan nation joined the European Union. At midnight, Bulgaria gave up the lev currency, which has been in use since the late 19th century, and Bulgarian euro coins were projected onto the central bank’s building. Successive governments in the country of 6.4 million people have advocated joining the euro, hoping that it will boost...

How Chinese robotaxi giants are steering the Middle...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

When hailing a car on Uber, riders usually choose between economy and premium options. But in certain areas in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, the first choice that flashes on the screen is “autonomous”. The availability of driverless cars underscores the urgency of the nation’s push to promote clean energy and reduce dependence on oil and gas. At the forefront of this effort are Chinese robotaxi developers, which see the Middle East as one of their starting points for global...

Hong Kong welcomes 6 babies into world in first hour...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Three girls and three boys were born in Hong Kong’s public and private hospitals in the first hour of New Year’s Day. The CUHK Medical Centre, a private teaching hospital owned by the Chinese University of Hong Kong, delivered the city’s first baby of 2026 at 12am. The newborn boy is his parents’ first child. His mother, who asked to be referred to as Mrs Ho, said she would become a full-time parent to care for her son. She said she was deeply moved and excited to see her baby as the clock...

Trump takes swipe at Clooney and France after actor...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

US President Donald Trump piled on criticism Wednesday of a decision to grant Hollywood superstar George Clooney French passports after a junior government official in Paris labelled the move a “double standard”. An official decree on Monday showed that 64-year-old Oscar winner Clooney, his wife Amal Alamuddin Clooney and their two children had become French citizens. Trump, whose administration has backed anti-immigration parties in Europe, said that Paris was welcome to the Ocean’s Eleven...

China’s Moonshot AI raises US$500 million in latest...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Chinese artificial intelligence unicorn Moonshot AI has raised US$500 million in its recent Series C funding round, according to a report, as start-up rivals MiniMax Group and Zhipu AI gear up for their initial public offerings (IPOs). Moonshot AI, developer of the highly lauded Kimi AI models, saw IDG Capital lay out US$150 million to lead the latest financing round, with existing stakeholders Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings also participating, Chinese technology news outlet

The politicians, athletes, everyday people who made...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Hong Kong’s headlines in 2025 were shaped by a wide cast of newsmakers, from political heavyweights to everyday residents. Among them were former lawmaker Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, gold medallist fencer turned legislator Vivian Kong Man-wai and a local mother who won widespread praise for speaking out after a hot-air balloon festival fiasco. The Post looks back at the figures who dominated the headlines over the past year. Regina Ip “Don’t block my way to the meeting … Move away,” the

US Coast Guard searches for survivors after strike on...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

The United States Coast Guard is searching for survivors of a US military strike against a convoy of suspected drug vessels in the Pacific Ocean, US officials said on ‍Wednesday. President Donald Trump’s administration has carried out more than 30 strikes against suspected drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific since September in a campaign that has killed at least 110 people. In a statement, the US military’s Southern Command said the military had carried out ⁠a strike against three...

Why Japan’s notorious Setagaya murders still haunt...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Early on the morning of December 30, Takeshi Tsuchida got down on his knees to carefully place flowers in front of a black-slab tomb marking the last resting place of Mikio Miyazawa, his wife and their two children.Tsuchida bowed his head, clasped his hands together and offered a silent prayer. Now 78, Tsuchida has retired as head of the Seijo police station in Tokyo’s upmarket Setagaya ward, but he has never been able to move on from the one crime that still hangs over his

Groups welcome updated Hong Kong biodiversity plan...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Concern groups have called for a more concrete timeline and clearer details in an updated action plan for Hong Kong’s biodiversity strategy, which for the first time lists assessing the capacity of ecotourism hotspots as a priority. The government on Wednesday unveiled its updated Hong Kong Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, which covers four strategic areas – nature conservation, deepening mainstreaming, capacity building and collaborative partnering. It lists 30 priority actions and 81...

The silk road: duties and responsibilities of Hong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

To many, senior counsel appear to be an oddity of an antiquated system, reinforced visually by men and women dressed in funny wigs and medieval garb marching in an official procession together with all the judges at the Opening of the Legal Year in January each year. There are only 104 of them in Hong Kong – out of a total population of more than 1,700 barristers. What makes senior counsel special, and are they worth that special status? First, some basic facts about senior counsel. It is a...

Key lessons from China’s ascent over the past 25 years

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

Few developments over the past quarter century have been as consequential or widely debated as China’s ascent to global prominence as the vanguard of a rising Global South. To understand this change, we must look not only at outcomes but at the underlying drivers that made them possible. China’s development over the last 25 years did not occur by accident. It was not the result of any single policy. Rather, it was the cumulative product of farsighted design and vision as well as an evolving...

China launches super-powered AI science system to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

China has built and launched a super-powered artificial intelligence (AI) system designed to tap directly into its national supercomputing network and conduct high-level scientific research on its own. The scheme was launched on December 23, a month after US President Donald Trump unveiled the Genesis Mission – an “AI Manhattan Project” aimed at securing US technological dominance. While the US plan is bound by tight timelines, requiring proof of progress within 270 days, China has already...

China’s Gen Z consumers drive rise in homestay...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

More young Chinese consumers are opting for bed-and-breakfast stays at private villas to ring in the New Year, drawn to the larger space, set-up options and enhanced privacy offered by these properties, leading to a fresh round of competition for hoteliers. That has prompted B&B operators to step up efforts in creating distinct ritualistic experiences – such as group countdown events, fireworks displays and complimentary bottles of wine – to attract more guests while standing out in a crowded...

Chinese man hand-feeds pet snake, suffers serious...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/01/01

A Beijing man who hand-fed his pet snake when it was ill was bitten by the reptile and ended up having his thumb amputated. The incident was reported by China’s state media CCTV on December 18. The man, surnamed Huang, kept the long-nosed viper as a pet because he had been interested in snakes since childhood. Chinese folklore has it that anyone bitten by such a reptile, also known as a “five step snake” in China, will die after walking five steps. Not long ago, Huang’s snake fell ill and

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