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Bronze Age cemetery offers up clues to how ancient...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Pottery vessels containing traces of alcohol from a Bronze Age cemetery in northwestern China indicate that people at the time consumed beverages made using a fermentation starter of rice and a red mould. Archaeologists said the drink, similar to red rice wine, played a key role in their mortuary rituals, and its presence at the Mogou cemetery suggested a tradition that probably served to strengthen the bond between the living and the dead. Researchers from Northwest University in Xian, the...

China university offers US$11,000 ‘micro’ overseas...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

A privately run college in China has come under fire for asking students who failed exams to pay as much as 79,800 yuan (US$11,000) to join a nonexistent “micro study abroad” programme to have their fail record removed. Xian Technology and Business College, financed by Beijing Northern Investment Group, is a little-known institute in Xian, Shaanxi province, northwestern China. In mid-December, some parents complained to the news outlet Benliu News that teachers at the school coerced them into...

‘Holding on to hope’: Hong Kong fire survivors make...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Retired Hong Kong civil servant Ng Kook-yiu takes a shuttle bus every day from his transitional housing flat to the fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. “I long to see my home, where I spent four decades of my life. It breaks my heart to see it each time, but it is still my home,” the 76-year-old said. Ng lived alone in the housing estate before the city’s deadliest blaze in decades engulfed seven of its eight buildings on November 26, killing at least 161 people. Like other residents who

China’s offshore yuan breaks major benchmark as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

China’s offshore yuan strengthened further on Thursday, dipping below the benchmark rate of seven against the US dollar – another sign of the currency’s continued appreciation after a brief breach of the same threshold on Wednesday evening. The recent fluctuations mark the currency’s first appreciation past the major psychological marker in 15 months, suggesting a change in market sentiment and providing more support for the global investors and economists who have argued the currency has

Philippine court upholds murder verdict in drug war...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

The Philippine Supreme Court has upheld the murder conviction of three policemen who killed a teenage boy at the height of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs in 2017, a watershed moment that legal analysts say affirms the country’s justice system. In a decision made public on Monday, the court found Arnel Oares, Jeremias Pereda and Jerwin Cruz guilty of murdering 17-year-old high school student Kian delos Santos while conducting an anti-drug operation in the city of Caloocan in...

Chill to deepen on Boxing Day as Hongkongers wake up...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app. Hongkongers woke up to a cold Christmas Day, but the weather is expected to get even colder on Boxing Day, with temperatures set to drop further to 13 degrees Celsius (55.4 Fahrenheit). The Hong Kong Observatory said on Thursday that the city was “appreciably cooler” under the influence

Australia investigates after car with Hanukkah sign...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Australian police are investigating a “suspicious fire” after a car carrying a sign celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah was set ablaze on Thursday in Melbourne. The empty car, which had a “Happy Chanukah” sign fixed to the roof, was scorched by the fire while parked in a house driveway, images on national broadcaster ABC television showed. It was set alight in the early hours of Thursday morning in the Melbourne suburb of St Kilda East, Victoria police said in a statement, describing

Southern California drenched by powerful Christmas...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Flash flood warnings were in effect in Los Angeles and most of southern California on Wednesday as one of the worst Christmas storms in recent memory brought heavy rain and fears of deadly mudslides. Driven by an atmospheric river known as “the Pineapple Express”, which moves heavy moisture from the tropical climes of Hawaii to rain on the West Coast, the storm is expected to deliver months’ worth of rain over the next few days. California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency

Singapore’s viral moments of 2025: politician...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

From political gaffes and diplomatic stumbles to courtroom fury and security breaches, many of Singapore’s viral moments in 2025 showed how quickly everyday incidents in the city state could turn into national focal points. Passionate online discussions have revealed deep concerns about power, accountability and how the country sees itself – and is seen by others. Locker-room rage Singapore’s acting sports minister came under fire after he was caught calling the Hong Kong men’s football team...

9 held over use of 45 fake surveying equipment...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Hong Kong police have arrested nine employees of a company suspected of using surveying equipment with 45 forged certificates in five hospital expansion projects and a government construction site. The force said on Thursday that it had apprehended six men and three women, aged 23 to 48, from acoustic and environmental services consultancy Novox for allegedly forging at least 45 certificates from four testing centres since 2022. The surveying equipment was used to measure air quality, noise

China’s AI toy boom: Huawei, JD.com, UBTech make big...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Huawei Technologies in late November sold more than 10,000 units of its artificial intelligence toy, Smart Hanhan, in the first week of its release, as similar smart playthings seize a growing share of consumer spending worldwide. Shenzhen-based Huawei’s AI-powered emotional support plush toy, which costs 399 yuan (US$57), provides a user with interactive companionship via movement recognition, voice and touch. For example, when a user asks Smart Hanhan to count sheep, it often adds playful...

Malaysia arrests 2 over video of man in headscarf...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Two people have been arrested in Malaysia after a viral video showing a man wearing a headscarf while drinking alcohol at a hair salon triggered religious sensitivities in the Muslim-majority country. The 28-second clip widely shared across social media showed a man wearing a green headscarf drinking a can of beer, prompting public anger over what many viewed as a mockery of Islamic practices. Alcohol is considered haram, or forbidden, in Islam, and the headscarf is commonly associated with...

Free for all or fees for all? Hong Kong’s legal aid...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

“Justice is open to all – like the Ritz” is a quote often attributed to Sir James Mathew, a 19th-century Irish judge.This is another way of saying that while in theory justice and the courts are open to everyone, in practice only those who can afford to pay the hefty fees can get their day in court. The adversarial system, which is the model adopted in common law jurisdictions, has proved extremely popular in many countries and regions. In particular, cross-examination, which has sometimes

Hong Kong’s new legislators must strengthen child...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

The Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance becomes operational in Hong Kong on January 20, and will enhance child protections. It contains a mechanism for the early and effective detection of child abuse cases. It requires particular professionals to report if, during their work, they come to suspect a child has been suffering serious harm, or is at real risk of it. The acts considered serious harm include inflicting physical injury, forcing or enticing a child to participate in a

Guest house rates hit 5-year high as tourists flock...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Tourists planning to spend Christmas in Hong Kong have fuelled a surge in guest house bookings since October, driving occupancy and room rates to their strongest levels in five years. But those arriving without reservations may end up paying double the price, according to an industry leader. David Leung Tai-wai also told the Post that the government’s push to promote the “mega-event” economy risked wasting public funds if officials failed to equally promote affordable lodging. The founder and...

Chinese team tackles a century-old puzzle in physics:...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Chinese researchers have proposed a simple yet powerful theory to explain one of physics’ oldest puzzles: why time only moves forward and why travelling to the past remains impossible. Physicist Cai Qingyu and his team at Hainan University in southern China have developed a fresh explanation at the quantum level for why we cannot unscramble an egg or grow younger, even though the laws of physics perfectly allow time to go backwards. Unlike earlier theories, their framework does not rely on...

China mall installs glass windows on men’s toilet...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

A shopping centre in southern China has installed special glass on the doors of men’s toilet cubicles that becomes transparent when people smoke inside, winning applause online. The move involving bathrooms at Shenzhen’s Shuibei International Centre and Shuibei Jinzuo Building, two jewellery shopping malls in Guangdong province, trended on social media on December 16. The glass uses a special technology that is normally opaque and cuts off the power in a few seconds after it detects smoke,...

Safety gaps, outdated facilities hobbling Malaysian...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/25

Traveller safety and outdated facilities remain pressing issues that could undermine Malaysia’s tourism ambitions if left unaddressed, according to Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing. Tiong said many attractions lack basic infrastructure upgrades, particularly in destinations frequented by repeat visitors. “Some foreign visitors tell us that when they came 10 years ago, the facilities were like this, and 10 years later, nothing has changed,” he added. While Malaysia has

Pope Leo celebrates first Christmas as pontiff

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/24

Pope Leo held the first Christmas mass of his pontificate on Wednesday, greeting thousands of faithful in St Peter’s Square before the service. During the mass, Leo said Christmas was a feast of “faith, charity and hope” and criticised a “distorted economy” that “leads us to treat human beings as mere merchandise”. Before, he spoke in front of St Peter’s Basilica to offer Christmas wishes and thank those who had come to follow the mass on outdoor screens despite rainy weather. “St Peter’s is...

Why has Beijing turned down the heat in the Taiwan...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/24

All eyes are on how Beijing’s “Chinese dream” of eventual Taiwan reunification will unfold at a time when the leader of the United States – Taipei’s top international backer – appears less likely to intervene in case of a cross-strait conflict. In the third of a three-part series, Amber Wang looks at how PLA activity may reflect the wider political picture. In the past five years, People’s Liberation Army activity near Taiwan has been seen by many observers as a key indicator of when and

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