Breaking China, Asia, HK News, Opinions and Insights

Beijing wants to fill the void as Washington steps back from its leadership role on the world stage under US President Donald Trump and his “America first” policy. Photo: Reuters

China urged to win ‘hearts and minds’ to fill leadership void as US retreats

Experts pushing Beijing’s vision for a new world order say nation can offer an ‘important alternative’ but it needs to improve its messaging.

2 hours agovideocam

Japan’s retreat from global health funding hands China diplomatic opening

US-China relations

Economy, Trade & Business

TikTok reaches deal on new US venture with American investor group

The deal was signed on Thursday, with the landmark move ending years of legal and political uncertainty.

3 hours agovideocam

Science

Chinese team builds optical chip AI that is 100 times faster than Nvidia’s A100

Researchers harnessed the power of light to create a chip that could perform complex generative tasks with vastly improved energy efficiency.

3 hours ago

Society

Fallen firefighter honoured in funeral as Hongkongers gather to pay tribute

Procession with full honours held for Ho Wai-ho as hearse travels past site of fire in Tai Po en route to final resting place in Gallant Garden.

3 minutes agovideocam

Focus

As Trump upends US foreign policy, analysts see fresh openings for China

Diplomacy

China reportedly sticking to its soybean deal with US, but worries remain

Beijing secures 7 million tonnes of soybeans, passing halfway mark of its US purchase agreement. However, little has been shipped so far.

1 hour agovideocam

China secures 7 million tonnes of soybeans, passing halfway mark of its US purchase agreement. Photo: The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS

Diplomacy

Trump signs defence bill restricting investment in Chinese tech, military firms

Key provisions target contracts with Chinese biotech companies and outbound investment in technologies with military applications in China.

4 hours agovideocam

Health & Environment

Indonesian elephants tasked to help in flood recovery spur conservation debate

The four elephants deployed to lift debris in Aceh last week after flooding were also involved in the 2004 post-tsunami recovery efforts.

46 minutes ago

Travel & Leisure

The journey ahead: AI paves the way for tourism business of the future

AI travel technology company Dida’s innovative solutions aim to bridge the gap between the industry and travellers.

In partnership with:

Dida

United States & Canada

Update | Brown University shooting suspect found dead after manhunt

Announcement came after a Swat operation targeted a storage facility in New Hampshire days after university shooting.

42 minutes ago

Providence Police Officers join state and federal law enforcement agents searching for the Brown University shooter, in Salem, New Hampshire. Photo: Reuters

China Business

China’s pharmaceutical industry transforms into a global innovation powerhouse

The China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index, a new gauge, highlights top drug makers on the mainland for the first time.

3 hours ago

Politics

US arms deal supports Taiwan’s effort to reassure Trump on defence burden

Weapons package underpins Taipei’s move towards an asymmetric ‘porcupine’ strategy as Washington presses allies to do more.

1 hour agovideocam

Society

Taiwan restoration experts help families say goodbye to Hong Kong fire victims

Mortuary specialists prepare bodies of Tai Po fire victims for dignified funerals, offering closure to grieving families.

3 hours ago

Taiwanese specialist Kuo Chang-chen and a team of experts are helping restore the bodies of the Tai Po fire victims. Photo: Dickson Lee

China Business

Can rising lithium costs save China’s energy storage firms from a price war?

China’s battery makers raise prices amid lithium rebound and global AI energy demand.

4 hours ago

Deegares says it is raising prices of lithium batteries by 15 per cent. Photo: Handout

China

US highlights Panama security ties as China-linked canal ports deal stalls

US envoy’s coastguard visit near Panama comes as Beijing presses for Cosco control and Washington pushes back.

19 Dec 2025 - 4:59AMvideocam

Politics

South Korea’s top court seeks to restore trust after martial law controversy

The changes target high-stakes national security cases amid mounting criticism over delays and alleged bias.

4 hours agovideocam

Europe

EU agrees US$106 billion loan for Ukraine, but without Russian assets

EU leaders reach a compromise after plans to use frozen Russian assets failed to gain backing.

54 minutes ago

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky after a press conference in Brussels on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Military

Beijing condemns Washington’s landmark US$11 billion arms sale to Taiwan

US State Department approves massive deal that includes billions in Himars and howitzer equipment, drones and software.

18 Dec 2025 - 10:07PMvideocam

Army Tactical Missile Systems are on the Taiwanese military’s shopping list. Photo: AP

Southeast Asia

Singapore arrests US-sanctioned yacht captain linked to tycoon Chen Zhi

Police said Nigel Tang was arrested for his ‘suspected involvement in money laundering offences’ related to the alleged scam empire boss.

52 minutes agovideocam

Tech

China to remain biggest buyer of chipmaking equipment through 2027: SEMI

China chipmakers are projected to continue outspending the world on wafer fab equipment through 2027, report says.

5 hours ago

OPINION

Xiaogang Wu

Opinion | Fix housing to help young Hongkongers feel they belong here

33 minutes ago

Wenran Jiang

Opinion | Mark 2025. It’s the year China became a peer power to America

40 minutes ago

Letters

Letters | Asia is not built for extreme weather. This must change

16 minutes ago

SCMP Editorial

Editorial | Hong Kong right to strike a balance on New Year’s events

5 hours ago

SCMP Editorial

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27 minutes ago

Society

Fallen firefighter honoured in funeral as Hongkongers gather to pay tribute

46 minutes ago

Health & Environment

Indonesian elephants tasked to help in flood recovery spur conservation debate

52 minutes ago

Southeast Asia

Singapore arrests US-sanctioned yacht captain linked to tycoon Chen Zhi

55 minutes ago

Europe

EU agrees US$106 billion loan for Ukraine, but without Russian assets

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Lifestyle

5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, December 19-21

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WWII: 80 years on

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Simon Li, executive director of the Hong Kong Holocaust and Tolerance Centre, with students (from second left) Kavira S. Kazimoto, Gem Peduche and Josue Camarena, at Andrews University’s Hong Kong campus. Photo: Handout

SCMP Series WWII: 80 years on

After The War | Virtual reality and the Nanking massacre: where does historical immersion become trauma?

Amid push in China for museum digitalisation, one educator seeks to help students ‘feel history without being flooded by it’.

14 Dec 2025 - 4:20PM

After The War | How the post-WWII order was formed and why China wants to reshape it

8 Sep 2025 - 4:11PMvideocam

After The War | Chinese scholars slam Western ‘historical nihilism’ on World War II

2 Sep 2025 - 5:16PM

Open Questions series

Science

Open Questions | Sci-fi writer Liu Cixin on why he’ll be happy if AI surpasses humans

Acclaimed author of the Three-Body trilogy also discusses his ‘dark forest’ theory, and the struggle to come up with original ideas.

15 Dec 2025 - 10:05AMvideocam

China Economy

Open Questions | Economist Huang Yiping on why China’s AI push must be ‘job-oriented’

Dean of Peking University’s National School of Development says ‘balance’ needed in AI development to protect employment, ‘human well-being’.

8 Dec 2025 - 10:07AMvideocam

Diplomacy

Open Questions | Ex-PLA colonel Zhou Bo on Taiwan reunification, lessons from the Ukraine war

Commentator and former senior colonel on Beijing’s row with Japan, lessons from the Ukraine war and why playing global policeman is a trap.

1 Dec 2025 - 3:57PMvideocam

China Economy

Open Questions | ‘A mistaken view’: US economist Nicholas Lardy on the ‘peak China’ hypothesis

The veteran China watcher talks Beijing’s need for financial reform and how US-China economic convergence could still be on the horizon.

24 Nov 2025 - 10:09AMvideocam

Key Industries:

Big Tech

China’s DeepSeek challenges Google DeepMind with new AI model

DeepSeek’s V3.2-Speciale equals Google’s Gemini 3 Pro in reasoning capabilities, the Chinese start-up says.

2 Dec 2025 - 4:51PM

A shop advertising DeepSeek in Hong Kong. Photo: Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Banking & Finance

Sanofi signs with Hong Kong biotech firm Insilico to spur AI drug discovery

French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi will collaborate with Hong Kong-based biotech firm Insilico Medicine in a deal worth up to US$1.2 billion to speed up the drug-discovery process using artificial intelligence.

22 minutes agovideocam

China Business

Exclusive | Hong Kong’s Insilico, Aramco to partner on sustainable fuels and materials

AI drug discovery unicorn Insilico Medicine is set to sign a deal with Saudi Arabia’s Aramco and a subsidiary during Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu’s official visit to the country.

23 minutes agovideocam

China Business

China’s pharmaceutical industry transforms into a global innovation powerhouse

The China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index, a new gauge, highlights top drug makers on the mainland for the first time.

3 hours ago

China is gaining a solid reputation as a pharmaceutical innovation hub, according to global consultancy Idea Pharma. Photo: AP

Military

Why China’s rapid military build-up is ‘hardly the whole story’

The PLA has been moving fast to modernise its arsenal and warfare strategy, but it’s seen as ‘seriously deficient’ in some areas.

18 Dec 2025 - 6:03AM

China Economy

Surviving the shocks: what China and the US learned from 2025’s trade war

Businesses and officials faced a year of disruption – and in some cases, resilience – as tariffs and export controls roiled global markets.

17 Dec 2025 - 8:07AMvideocam

Diplomacy

Why ‘relative stability’ in US-China ties is unlikely to last

The temperature has lowered after a downward spiral since Trump’s return to the White House, but relations may face ‘strong headwinds’ again.

16 Dec 2025 - 6:18AMvideocam

Military

Why has reference to Taiwan attending Rimpac been removed from US defence bill?

Senators’ bid to ‘strongly encourage’ invitation is removed from compromise bill, raising questions in Taipei.

14 Dec 2025 - 8:40PMvideocam

Some of the naval ships taking part in the 2024 Rimpac exercises, as seen from the Japanese JS Kunisaki. Photo: Reuters

China urged to win ‘hearts and minds’ to fill leadership void as US retreats

Experts pushing Beijing’s vision for a new world order say nation can offer an ‘important alternative’ but it needs to improve its messaging.

Japan’s retreat from global health funding hands China diplomatic opening

TikTok reaches deal on new US venture with American investor group

The deal was signed on Thursday, with the landmark move ending years of legal and political uncertainty.

Chinese team builds optical chip AI that is 100 times faster than Nvidia’s A100

Researchers harnessed the power of light to create a chip that could perform complex generative tasks with vastly improved energy efficiency.

Fallen firefighter honoured in funeral as Hongkongers gather to pay tribute

Procession with full honours held for Ho Wai-ho as hearse travels past site of fire in Tai Po en route to final resting place in Gallant Garden.

As Trump upends US foreign policy, analysts see fresh openings for China

China reportedly sticking to its soybean deal with US, but worries remain

Beijing secures 7 million tonnes of soybeans, passing halfway mark of its US purchase agreement. However, little has been shipped so far.

Trump signs defence bill restricting investment in Chinese tech, military firms

Key provisions target contracts with Chinese biotech companies and outbound investment in technologies with military applications in China.

Indonesian elephants tasked to help in flood recovery spur conservation debate

The four elephants deployed to lift debris in Aceh last week after flooding were also involved in the 2004 post-tsunami recovery efforts.

.css-f84qeq{font-family:Roboto Condensed,Roboto Condensed fallback,sans-serif;font-style:italic;}The journey ahead: AI paves the way for tourism business of the future

AI travel technology company Dida’s innovative solutions aim to bridge the gap between the industry and travellers.

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Update | Brown University shooting suspect found dead after manhunt

Announcement came after a Swat operation targeted a storage facility in New Hampshire days after university shooting.

China’s pharmaceutical industry transforms into a global innovation powerhouse

The China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index, a new gauge, highlights top drug makers on the mainland for the first time.

US arms deal supports Taiwan’s effort to reassure Trump on defence burden

Weapons package underpins Taipei’s move towards an asymmetric ‘porcupine’ strategy as Washington presses allies to do more.

Taiwan restoration experts help families say goodbye to Hong Kong fire victims

Mortuary specialists prepare bodies of Tai Po fire victims for dignified funerals, offering closure to grieving families.

Can rising lithium costs save China’s energy storage firms from a price war?

China’s battery makers raise prices amid lithium rebound and global AI energy demand.

US highlights Panama security ties as China-linked canal ports deal stalls

US envoy’s coastguard visit near Panama comes as Beijing presses for Cosco control and Washington pushes back.

South Korea’s top court seeks to restore trust after martial law controversy

The changes target high-stakes national security cases amid mounting criticism over delays and alleged bias.

EU agrees US$106 billion loan for Ukraine, but without Russian assets

EU leaders reach a compromise after plans to use frozen Russian assets failed to gain backing.

Beijing condemns Washington’s landmark US$11 billion arms sale to Taiwan

US State Department approves massive deal that includes billions in Himars and howitzer equipment, drones and software.

Singapore arrests US-sanctioned yacht captain linked to tycoon Chen Zhi

Police said Nigel Tang was arrested for his ‘suspected involvement in money laundering offences’ related to the alleged scam empire boss.

China to remain biggest buyer of chipmaking equipment through 2027: SEMI

China chipmakers are projected to continue outspending the world on wafer fab equipment through 2027, report says.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Opinion | Fix housing to help young Hongkongers feel they belong here

Opinion | Mark 2025. It’s the year China became a peer power to America

Letters | Asia is not built for extreme weather. This must change

Editorial | Hong Kong right to strike a balance on New Year’s events

Editorial | Restoring safety and unity key for Australia in Bondi shooting aftermath

Fallen firefighter honoured in funeral as Hongkongers gather to pay tribute

Indonesian elephants tasked to help in flood recovery spur conservation debate

Singapore arrests US-sanctioned yacht captain linked to tycoon Chen Zhi

EU agrees US$106 billion loan for Ukraine, but without Russian assets

5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, December 19-21

Hong Kong stocks head for longest win streak in 3 weeks as US inflation cools

After The War | Virtual reality and the Nanking massacre: where does historical immersion become trauma?

Amid push in China for museum digitalisation, one educator seeks to help students ‘feel history without being flooded by it’.

After The War | How the post-WWII order was formed and why China wants to reshape it

After The War | Chinese scholars slam Western ‘historical nihilism’ on World War II

Open Questions | Sci-fi writer Liu Cixin on why he’ll be happy if AI surpasses humans

Acclaimed author of the Three-Body trilogy also discusses his ‘dark forest’ theory, and the struggle to come up with original ideas.

Open Questions | Economist Huang Yiping on why China’s AI push must be ‘job-oriented’

Dean of Peking University’s National School of Development says ‘balance’ needed in AI development to protect employment, ‘human well-being’.

Open Questions | Ex-PLA colonel Zhou Bo on Taiwan reunification, lessons from the Ukraine war

Commentator and former senior colonel on Beijing’s row with Japan, lessons from the Ukraine war and why playing global policeman is a trap.

Open Questions | ‘A mistaken view’: US economist Nicholas Lardy on the ‘peak China’ hypothesis

The veteran China watcher talks Beijing’s need for financial reform and how US-China economic convergence could still be on the horizon.

China’s DeepSeek challenges Google DeepMind with new AI model

DeepSeek’s V3.2-Speciale equals Google’s Gemini 3 Pro in reasoning capabilities, the Chinese start-up says.

Sanofi signs with Hong Kong biotech firm Insilico to spur AI drug discovery

French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi will collaborate with Hong Kong-based biotech firm Insilico Medicine in a deal worth up to US$1.2 billion to speed up the drug-discovery process using artificial intelligence.

Exclusive | Hong Kong’s Insilico, Aramco to partner on sustainable fuels and materials

AI drug discovery unicorn Insilico Medicine is set to sign a deal with Saudi Arabia’s Aramco and a subsidiary during Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu’s official visit to the country.

China’s pharmaceutical industry transforms into a global innovation powerhouse

The China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index, a new gauge, highlights top drug makers on the mainland for the first time.

Why China’s rapid military build-up is ‘hardly the whole story’

The PLA has been moving fast to modernise its arsenal and warfare strategy, but it’s seen as ‘seriously deficient’ in some areas.

Surviving the shocks: what China and the US learned from 2025’s trade war

Businesses and officials faced a year of disruption – and in some cases, resilience – as tariffs and export controls roiled global markets.

Why ‘relative stability’ in US-China ties is unlikely to last

The temperature has lowered after a downward spiral since Trump’s return to the White House, but relations may face ‘strong headwinds’ again.

Why has reference to Taiwan attending Rimpac been removed from US defence bill?

Senators’ bid to ‘strongly encourage’ invitation is removed from compromise bill, raising questions in Taipei.

The journey ahead: AI paves the way for tourism business of the future

Update | Brown University shooting suspect found dead after manhunt

Opinion | Fix housing to help young Hongkongers feel they belong here