Over 110,000 secure waivers within 1 month after Hong Kong public medical fee reform

More than 110,000 patients secured fee waivers within a month since Hong Kong’s public medical fee reform took effect this year, a jump from 14,000 for a whole year previously, the health minister said while defending the new regime.
Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said on Friday that among the more than 110,000 people with approved waivers, about 53,000 had already received certificates for fee reduction.
The roughly 60,000 patients remaining who had failed to provide income and asset proof…

Shanghai residents offload their gold as prices surge to record highs

Shanghai residents have been flocking to sell gold as the price of the precious metal surges to record highs.
The latest jump in gold prices was fuelled by ongoing economic and geopolitical uncertainties, but prices slumped by 4 per cent on Friday, January 30.

China gives Apple ‘best iPhone quarter in history’ with 38% revenue growth

China has emerged as the brightest spot in Apple’s quarterly earnings, as the US tech giant achieved record iPhone revenue in the world’s largest smartphone market.
Revenue in Apple’s Greater China region, which comprises mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, surged 38 per cent from a year earlier in the first quarter of fiscal 2026, which ended December 27, the Cupertino-based company said on Friday.
That growth, more than double the company’s overall 16 per cent quarterly revenue increase,…

Jiangsu vs Guangdong: why the battle to be China’s No 1 economy is heating up

The southern Guangdong province has been the largest engine powering China’s economic rise for decades. But the region is now in danger of losing its status as the country’s top regional economy, as a rival to the east outpaces its growth.
Jiangsu, home to a wide range of multinationals and hi-tech enterprises, has long been Guangdong’s closest competitor: together, the two provinces account for over 20 per cent of China’s gross domestic product (GDP).
And the region has shown greater dynamism…

Why China Bulang ethnic group in Yunnan blackens teeth when they reach teenage years

China’s Bulang people have an unusual rite of passage known as ranchi in which they dye their teeth black to mark adulthood and social rights.
The ethnic group, with a history spanning more than a thousand years, is mainly found in Yunnan province, southwestern China.
According to the China Statistical Yearbook 2021, there are around 127,000 Bulang people today.

Living in the mountains and forests, they view the colour black as a symbol of beauty and power, believing it protects against evil…

Trump slams allies’ China ties, top generals fall, cross-strait talks

US President Donald Trump criticised UK and Canadian efforts to boost ties with China, as traditional American allies increasingly seek to diversify their global relations.
“It’s ‌very dangerous ⁠for them to do that,” Trump said about a UK pledge of deeper business cooperation with China. “And, it’s even more dangerous, ‌I think, for Canada to get ‌into business ‌with China.” Trump spoke to reporters at the premiere of the movie Melania at ‍the Kennedy Centre in Washington.
UK Prime Minister…

China, Israel continue to collaborate in science and tech despite unrest in Gaza

Although the war in Gaza has clearly cooled diplomatic ties and sparked disputes between China and Israel, science and technology cooperation at a civil level between the two countries has continued.
“I have a feeling that we have a lot of common ground and plenty of opportunities for cooperation in sectors such as energy and agriculture,” said Yaroslav Efimov, head of science and technology at PLANETech, an Israeli non-profit innovation community specialising in climate change-related…

Hong Kong economy grows 3.5% in 2025, beating earlier forecasts

Hong Kong’s economy expanded by 3.5 per cent in 2025, marking the city’s third consecutive year of growth and surpassing an earlier forecast of 3.2 per cent.
Advance estimates released by the Census and Statistics Department on Friday also showed gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter increased by 3.8 per cent compared with the previous year.
Hong Kong’s GDP expanded by at least 3 per cent in each of the first three quarters of 2025, rising 3 per cent year on year in the first…

In his Singapore book launch, sinologist Wang Gungwu recounts own journey through history

Wang Gungwu is widely regarded as a pre-eminent expert on the ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia and the history of China, but at 95, he writes in his latest memoir that he is no longer able to call himself a historian.
In No Borders: Journeys Across Islands and Continents, launched in Singapore on Thursday, Wang writes that while a historian today has the objective of reconstructing the past as it actually happened, the Australian sinologist is no longer interested in this.
Through his studies…

Hong Kong to repeal bus seat belt rules over ‘deficiencies’ in law

Hong Kong’s transport authorities will repeal a new law mandating the use of seatbelts by all bus passengers, barely a week after it became effective, in the face of strong public criticism and the revelation that the legislation actually covers only new vehicles registered in late January.
Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan announced the U-turn on Friday, conceding there were “deficiencies” in the law, as it had failed to reflect the intent of the policy requiring all passengers…

Before Trump’s Fed pick, a new clear favourite emerges for chair in race to succeed Powell

Since returning to the White House a year ago, US President Donald Trump has stepped up pressure on the Federal Reserve. With the term of the current Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, set to end in May, Trump said he would announce his pick to replace Powell on Friday.
Speculation has intensified on prediction markets. On Polymarket and Kalshi, betting volumes on the question “Who will Trump nominate as Fed chair?” had respectively reached about US$294.24 million and US$81.61 million by…

Gradually, then suddenly, the world is waking up to the US threat

In Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, Mike Campbell described how he went bankrupt: “Gradually, and then suddenly.” Over the past weeks, there is a feeling that US President Donald Trump and his administration have reached the “suddenly” bit.
First, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney captivated a World Economic Forum audience when he described the “rupture” in the rules-based order, a “bargain” that “no longer works”: leaving middle countries like Canada with no choice but to dilute their…

The foreigners who fought for Russia, now stuck in POW limbo in Ukraine

“Assemble!” someone bellowed in the prison corridor, cutting through the silence.
Murmurs began echoing off the white walls, and the stairwells filled with people from all over the world: Egyptians, Chinese, Cameroonians, Kenyans, an Italian – all soldiers captured fighting for Russia, now held in a Ukrainian jail.
Some joined the Russian military in search of a better life or to escape their home countries, while others were persuaded by Russia’s war aims. Some say they were tricked or forced…

Trump sues IRS, US Treasury for US$10 billion over leaked tax returns

US President Donald Trump sued the US Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for at least US$10 billion over an unauthorised disclosure of his tax returns to the press during his first term in office, potentially putting American taxpayers on the hook for a massive payout.
The suit was filed on Thursday in Miami federal court by Trump, his sons Donald Jnr and Eric, and the Trump Organization, which manages the president’s real estate holdings. Trump had long criticised the IRS for allegedly…

China’s presence at Scarborough Shoal in South China Sea ‘unprecedented’ in 2025: report

China ramped up its South China Sea patrols in 2025, maintaining an “unprecedented” nearly year-round presence at contested sites like Scarborough Shoal to assert maritime claims, according to a new US-based think tank report.
An analysis published on Thursday by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) – a research programme affiliated with the Centre for Strategic and International Studies – showed a substantial increase in China’s patrol presence as well as a broadening of its patrol…

Can Malaysian football ‘reset’? Mass resignations kick off debate about possible reboot

Malaysia’s football leadership resigned en masse this week in what it called a governance move to protect the sport, but critics say any “reset” will count only if the association explains how allegedly forged eligibility documents were submitted and who will be held responsible.
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) late on Thursday said it had formally informed Fifa and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) that all members of its executive committee for the 2025–2029 term had…

South Korea forced to act after Cambodian worker’s death in freezing greenhouse dorm

South Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labour has apologised to the family of a Cambodian migrant worker who died after living in a makeshift “greenhouse dormitory” and vowed to reinforce protections for foreign workers, following a Supreme Court ruling that found the government liable.
In a statement issued on Thursday after the decision, the ministry said it respects the ruling of the Supreme Court and promised to help swiftly proceed with compensation procedures for the bereaved family of…

4 arrested in crackdown on mainland Chinese firms offering illegal labour in Hong Kong

Hong Kong authorities have arrested two men and two women in an undercover operation targeting those allegedly working illegally as cleaners and renovation workers, after mainland Chinese businesses advertised their services online ahead of Lunar New Year.
Chan Yan-kit, a task force deputy commander of the Immigration Department, said on Friday that the operation was conducted between January 22 and 29, with officers posing as customers to lure suspects into the city before arresting them.
They…

HSBC suffers temporary system shutdown, stopping services in Hong Kong

HSBC, Hong Kong’s biggest bank with a customer base of 6.2 million, suffered a system breakdown on Friday afternoon.
The bank’s mobile banking app could not be accessed, instead showing a message stating the system was under maintenance and would be available at a later time.
A staff member at the bank’s Mong Kok branch said HSBC’s computer network across the city had failed, but did not know the reason for the stoppage.
An HSBC spokesperson said: “Our banking services are gradually returning to…

Singapore begins ban on ‘undesirable’ visitors as airline boarding rules take effect

Singapore’s ban against undesirable visitors began on Friday, with airlines flying to the city state required to bar passengers flagged as risks from boarding.
The new directive is aimed at preventing “undesirable or prohibited immigrants, and those who do not meet Singapore’s entry requirements, from boarding flights bound for Singapore”, according to an Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) statement released on November 28 last year.
Airlines flying into Seletar and Changi airports…