南華早報

Hong Kong’s IPO haul more than doubles to HK$388b in first…

Funds raised through initial public offerings in Hong Kong more than doubled year on year to over HK$388 billion (US$49.4 billion) in the first nine months of 2026, already surpassing the total amount for the whole of last year, according to Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po. Adding to the positive outlook, Clara Chan Ka-chai, CEO of the government-owned Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC), noted on Sunday that more than 30 of its portfolio firms were preparing to apply for Hong Kong...

• #IPO
• #Hong Kong

Flight to Okinawa diverts back to Hong Kong after suspected…

A flight bound for Okinawa returned to Hong Kong airport on Sunday morning after its landing gear was suspected to have failed to fully retract after take-off. Hong Kong Airlines said the crew of flight HX676, which departed at 8.57am, decided to return to ensure flight safety, in line with standard procedures. “[The flight] encountered a suspected incomplete landing gear retraction issue after take-off,” the airline said. The aircraft landed safely at 10am, with no injuries reported on board....

• #Hong Kong transport
• #China
• #Japan
• #Hong Kong
• #Hong Kong Airlines

‘Chaotic’ Asian Games raise doubts over Japan’s ability to…

Japan is traditionally seen as a reliable host for major sporting events but an Asian Games dogged by organisational woes has tarnished that image and raised questions over future bids, experts say. The Games in Aichi-Nagoya saw a catalogue of mishaps, from athletes bused to the wrong venues to the North Korean national anthem played for the South Korean hockey team. There were not enough beds for the over 17,000 athletes and officials, a bigger number than the Olympics. Countries complained of...

• #China
• #Sapporo
• #North Korean
• #Thai
• #South Korean
• #Asian Games

How crayfish raised in desert are nipping away at China’s f…

On the edge of western China’s Taklamakan Desert, in a county where sand covers 90 per cent of the land, an unlikely harvest is heading to market: Australian freshwater crayfish. As China begins its National Day “golden week” holiday, a farm in Maigaiti county, in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region’s Kashgar prefecture, is pulling 250 to 300kg (551 to 661lbs) of the premium crustaceans from its ponds every day. Native to Australia’s rivers and streams, freshwater crayfish are now being raised...

• #China food security
• #Xinjiang
• #China
• #China economy
• #Food and agriculture
• #Environment

Trump, burger, Hormuz: meet the Iranian team behind billboa…

Huge billboards on the walls of Tehran mocking US President Donald Trump and depicting American drones under the boot of an Iranian soldier are providing a chronicle of Iran’s war with the United States and Israel. Khaneh-ye Tarrahan, or Designers’ House, produces the billboards with anti-US messaging for prominent locations in Tehran where they are seen daily by large crowds of passers-by, including the city’s famed Valiasr Square. The team created a towering portrayal of Trump’s lips sewn and...

• #US-Israel war on Iran
• #Iran
• #Donald Trump
• #United States
• #War and conflict
• #Middle East

How an architect is using art and technology to preserve To…

Opened in the 1950s, Sai Woo was a two-storey restaurant in Toronto’s Chinatown, with a traditional Chinese banquet hall on the upper floor. Designed for wedding celebrations, the space featured a canopy with two columns, a golden dragon entwined on one and a phoenix on the other. Lazy Susans sat atop the round banquet tables. Chinatown was also home to Charlie’s Meat and Seafood, a white-tiled butcher shop that opened in 1971. Inside was a glass display case filled with cuts of meat. On the...

• #Art
• #100 Top Tables 2022 - Chinese
• #Being Chinese
• #Chinese diaspora
• #University of Toronto (Canada)

Mars shelter problem can be solved with engineered yeast: p…

Future settlers on Mars would need houses, but they must either spend huge sums transporting construction materials from Earth or use enormous amounts of energy to melt Martian soil into bricks. Scientists in Hong Kong say they have developed a quick and low-cost “living” building material made from genetically engineered yeast, gelatin and sand that can be 3D printed under conditions simulating the Martian environment. Their study, published online last month in Chem Circularity, an...

• #Problem

‘Don’t pass the buck’: can a haze lawsuit clear Indonesia’s…

For months, the air over West Kalimantan has been thick enough to taste. Now, some of the province’s residents are taking the government to court over it. Indonesia’s worst wildfire season in 11 years has been sending plumes of toxic haze drifting across borders to Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines since at least August. But nowhere has been worse hit than West Kalimantan, where more than 48,000 hectares (185 square miles) of land and forest have burned since the start of the year,...

• #Indonesia
• #Prabowo Subianto
• #Gibran Rakabuming Raka

New AI laws should target data governance and safety to bui…

Hong Kong should enact laws on data governance and underlying safety standards to ensure the responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI), experts have said, as the government pledged to tackle disputes or crimes involving the technology’s application with tailored legislation. They also said that legislation was needed to define liability boundaries, which could bolster business and public confidence in expanding its adoption. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said in his recent policy...

• #AI

New Mong Kok bookshop opens amid harsh winter for indie boo…

Small independent bookstores tucked away in walk-up tenement buildings above neon-lit streets have long made Mong Kok a sanctuary for Hong Kong book lovers, until recently when one after another was forced to close due to economic headwinds or political uncertainty. Defying the trend, 41-year-old bibliophile Grace Lau invested a six-figure sum to launch New Year Bookshop, a move driven by passion and lower rents that some in the community regarded as a bold gamble on the neighbourhood’s literary...

• #Hong Kong society
• #Hong Kong

3 students arrested in Malaysia over murder of girl found d…

Three male students have been detained by police in connection with the murder of a Form Four female student whose body was discovered at a school in Yong Peng, Malaysia’s Johor state, on Saturday. The victim, identified as 16-year-old Irene Sofiya Mohd Khairool Faisal, was found dead inside the school hall at around 5.30pm, Sinar Harian reported. Police arrested the three 16-year-old suspects, who attend the same school as the victim, just hours after the body was uncovered. One of the suspects...

• #Malaysia
• #Crime

Celine’s effortless chic to Messika’s rare blue diamond: Hi…

With only a few days left, Paris Fashion Week continues to deliver good collections that showcase the best of French fashion. Here’s what you need to know about the top shows of day 5 and 6: Hermès, Celine, Loewe and Givenchy, plus a dispatch from Messika’s high jewellery show. Celine’s Michael Rider knows how to please fashion people. His shows – both the clothes and the events themselves – are always refreshing. Held under a thatched roof reminiscent of a Polynesian hut in the courtyard of...

• #Paris Fashion Week
• #Fashion
• #Luxury brands
• #Hermès
• #Celine
• #Givenchy

Letters | Why universities in Asia shouldn’t be reaching fo…

Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at [email protected] or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words. I am writing in response to the op-ed, “3 easy wins to modernise Hong Kong’s education system” (September 4), particularly its argument that assessment must adapt to artificial intelligence. The most useful change would not be another rule telling students whether artificial...

• #Unesco
• #Asia
• #AI
• #Tommy Tong Sun-wing
• #Leo Tolstoy
• #artificial intelligence

Malaysia offers Chinese buyers Singapore’s comfort at price…

Malaysia is proving to be a middle ground for many Hong Kong and mainland Chinese investors looking to buy property in a country that provides the stability Singapore offers, but with competitive price points similar to those found in Thailand, according to analysts. Data from Juwai IQI, a property portal with 7 million listings across 111 countries, showed that in the first half of 2026, Malaysia was the fourth-highest destination for inquiries received from Chinese buyers. That compared with...

• #International Property
• #Asia housing and property
• #Property financing
• #Property investment
• #Property policies
• #Malaysia

As AI floods China’s screens with microdramas, viewers are…

Two decades after stepping away from the spotlight, iconic actress Joey Wong made an unexpected return to the screen – not through a traditional production, but via artificial intelligence-powered reconstruction. In a two-minute video by NetEase this summer, Wong, one of the most well-known actresses of the 1980s and 90s, had some of her most celebrated roles recreated, including the beautiful ghost in A Chinese Ghost Story and an alluring snake demon in Green Snake. The revival is just the tip...

• #Artificial intelligence (AI)
• #China
• #AI: Industry Trends
• #China technology
• #Technology
• #Social media

Young Chinese hire ‘life stand-ins’ to cook and care for el…

From cooking and attending hospital visits to doing the actual quarrelling, paid “life stand-ins” are stepping in to manage these tasks, along with errands and awkward moments that many young Chinese would rather avoid. This trend, known as the “stand-in economy,” is gaining traction among time-strapped consumers who are willing to pay for convenience when daily responsibilities exceed their time, patience, or expertise. First widely reported by mainland media in 2024, the movement has since...

• #Trending in China
• #Li Na

‘My heart aches’: Cornell boss breaks silence over rape cas…

Cornell University president Michael Kotlikoff said he was “deeply disturbed” by a student’s 2024 rape allegation that has drawn national outrage. “My heart aches when I think of what she experienced,” Kotlikoff said in a video message released on Saturday, saying the university must “do everything we can to prevent what happened to Jane Doe” from happening again. Lawyers for a Jane Doe last month filed a civil lawsuit against the Ivy League university, its leaders, the Chi Phi fraternity, her...

• #United States
• #Sexual harassment and assault
• #Education
• #Cornell University (US)

Hong Kong’s cancer research drawing global attention, says…

Hong Kong is playing a central role as part of a broader regional hub for research breakthroughs, the head of a leading global cancer organisation has said, adding that the city’s success in reducing its smoking rate has set an example for others to follow. Cary Adams, CEO of the Union for International Cancer Control, praised the city’s tobacco control efforts as the organisation held the World Cancer Congress in Hong Kong last month for the first time. “We’ve all become aware globally that the...

• #global
• #Hong Kong

Trump shares Senator Cotton’s phone number in daylight savi…

US President Donald Trump shared online the supposed phone number of a Republican US senator on Saturday in an escalating dispute over making daylight saving time permanent. In a social media post, the president urged people to call a phone number he said belonged to Senator Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican who opposes the Trump-backed Sunshine Protection Act. The act would end the twice-yearly practice ‌of changing clocks by one hour. Trump says most Americans want more afternoon sunlight,...

• #United States
• #Donald Trump
• #US Politics
• #Tom Cotton

Opinion | To become a dog-friendly city, Hong Kong needs do…

Since July, Hong Kong has permitted dogs in approved dining premises under a tightly regulated scheme. More than 2,200 restaurants applied, with more than 980 taking part within the first month. On the surface, these are straightforward changes to the rules around where dogs are allowed. But they reflect something more significant: a changing relationship between Hong Kong and the dogs who also call it home. Small companion breeds are familiar in urban life, while larger dogs, local mixed breeds...

• #Pets in Hong Kong
• #Animal welfare in Hong Kong
• #Hong Kong society
• #Hong Kong
• #Pets
• #Animals

Name and shame: Japan’s tame answer to jobseeker sex harass…

Final-year students invited to recruiters’ apartments for help with their applications. Coffee dates with alumni who promise to explain how the company works. Inappropriate interview questions about boyfriends, marriage plans and sex lives. For young women in Japan, looking for a job has long entailed submitting themselves to the skewed power dynamics of the recruitment process. And before Thursday, no official legal safeguards existed to protect these jobseekers from such...

• #Japan
• #Women and gender
• #Jobs
• #Sexual harassment and assault
• #Crime
• #Yamanashi Gakuin University

7 thematic jewellery collections for October, from Bulgari…

Rooted in ancient symbols and Renaissance architecture, this season’s stand-out jewellery collections bring fresh energy to iconic motifs and precious gemstones. Bibi Van Der Velden From ancient Egypt to the art deco movement, the scarab motif has been a near-constant in jewellery. Dutch designer Bibi Van Der Velden is a big fan, with her scarab rings becoming a signature of her brand. The designer recently expanded her collection with The Scarab Pinky Rings, five smaller rings designed...

• #Jewellery
• #High Jewellery
• #Luxury brands
• #Luxury Spend It
• #Bulgari
• #Chanel

Pressure helps produce record-setting gold, overall medal t…

There has been a common theme running through Hong Kong’s Asian Games gold medallists when it comes to talking about the pressure of being on top: Siobhan Haughey and James Christie both referred to it as a privilege, and it would not be a surprise to discover it is an entirely alien concept to Coleman Wong Chak-lam. Before Saturday, Hong Kong had never won a medal in men’s tennis at the Games, let alone gold. Faced with making history, adding another title to the city’s growing collection and...

• #Asian Games 2026
• #Hong Kong China Rugby
• #Coleman Wong Chak-lam
• #Rosanna Law Shuk-pui
• #Wong Tsz-to

Sinking city, rising rage: Bangkok’s floods fuel fury over…

As floodwaters surged from Bangkok’s drains, Fon’s car sank faster than her hopes of escaping the floods unscathed. She had bought it less than a month earlier. “I woke up at 5am but it was too late,” the 24-year-old said, recalling her decision last weekend to wait until dawn to move her car to a nearby shopping centre. “My car was already submerged. I hadn’t even started making the payments and it’s gone.” Relentless rain paralysed Thailand’s capital this September, dumping a month’s worth of...

• #Thailand
• #Bangkok
• #Anutin Charnvirakul

Fibre or protein – which is more important? ‘It’s about bal…

With proteinmaxxing and fibremaxxing trends both taking over, it can be difficult to understand which is more important. Should we focus on eating enough protein each day and hitting our targets, or should fibre be the priority for gut health and well-being? To answer these questions, we spoke to two dietitians, who shared their expert advice and explained how protein and fibre can complement each other. “Both are important,” says Dr Linia Patel, a UK-based women’s health dietitian, performance...

• #Wellness
• #Healthy eating
• #How to age well

Editorial | No silver bullet for Hong Kong’s falling birth…

Despite a government cash incentive for young couples to have children, Hong Kong’s birth rate continues to fall. It is driving the ageing of a society in which one in four people is projected to be 65 or over by 2028. Unless the trend is arrested, one in three residents is projected to be 65 or over by the 2040s. One projection puts the number of elderly residents at 2.74 million by 2046. Granted, it is not all bad news. One reason for the population ageing is increased longevity. But the fact...

• #Hong Kong society
• #Hong Kong population
• #Hong Kong

Latvian leader poised for big win in election shadowed by P…

Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs’ party was on course to win the largest share of votes in an election on Saturday amid growing security threats from Russia, putting him in a strong position ahead of coalition talks to form the next government. The United List secured 35.6 per cent of the vote, according to an exit poll released by LTV public broadcaster. If confirmed, this would be the best result of any party in Latvian parliamentary elections since the Baltic nation regained...

• #Latvia
• #Russia
• #Vladimir Putin
• #Ukraine war

China, Africa boost law enforcement ties in crackdown on cr…

From online-gambling rings in eSwatini to SIM swapping in Kenya and cybercrime networks in Zambia, a wave of cross-border fraud is drawing African governments and China into closer security cooperation. China hosted East African security ministers and police chiefs in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, on September 10 for talks on terrorism, kidnapping, online fraud and other cross-border threats. China’s public security minister, Wang Xiaohong, said Beijing would strengthen law-enforcement...

• #China
• #Myanmar
• #Interpol
• #Hudson Institute
• #South Africa
• #Eswatini

Opinion | Baby bonuses fail to address the fear of falling…

When one of my seniors from medical school was pregnant during her surgical residency, she planned the exact date of her C-section so she could complete her training on time. When I asked why she didn’t consider taking maternity leave to recuperate afterwards, she said she couldn’t bring herself to lag behind her peers. “I didn’t want motherhood to slow me down,” she said. In medicine, it is common for women to delay childbearing until after their early career years, often into their...

• #Hong Kong society
• #Singapore
• #5050
• #Education
• #Education in Hong Kong
• #Hong Kong population

Tennessee prisons chief resigning after botched execution o…

The head of Tennessee’s prison system is resigning, Governor Bill Lee announced on Saturday, the first major shake-up since the stunning failed execution of Christa Pike landed her on a ventilator at a hospital. Frank Strada, commissioner of the Department of Correction, will step down this month, Lee said. Strada said in a statement that resigning was “in the best interest of Tennesseans” while an independent review determines what happened on Wednesday when the state failed to execute Pike...

• #Christa Pike

Fifa Asean Cup: Gianni Infantino jeered but trophy cheer fo…

More than 30,000 Hong Kong fans gave Gianni Infantino their raucous verdict on his leadership of world football on Saturday, before and after watching the city team beat Cambodia 2-0 to be crowned inaugural Fifa Asean Challenge Cup champions. Infantino, the Fifa president, was lustily booed when he delivered the trophy to the pitch alongside local football association president Pui Kwan-kay before kick-off. When he returned to present the spoils to Hong Kong, the stadium PA was raised to an...

• #FIFA
• #Hong Kong
• #Infantino

Probe launched into luxury One Stanley project over alleged…

Authorities have launched a probe into the building quality of a luxury residential development in one of Hong Kong’s most expensive neighbourhoods in the Southern district after receiving a complaint from an owner that insufficient steel bars were used during construction. The Buildings Department said on Saturday it was “very concerned about the matter” relating to One Stanley in Stanley, but stressed that its previous inspections did not find any imminent danger. The department said it would...

Flames, smoke seen at Aramco facility south of Saudi capital

Flames and smoke were seen rising from a facility belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco south of the kingdom’s capital Riyadh on Saturday, an AFP journalist said. The circumstances remained unclear but in recent weeks Aramco, majority-owned by the Saudi state, has come under attack from the Houthi group targeting the kingdom as part of the war in Yemen where Riyadh is backing the internationally recognised government. Aramco remains the flagship company of the Saudi economy and one of the largest...

• #Saudi Aramco
• #Saudi Arabia
• #Middle East
• #Yemen
• #War and conflict
• #Houthis

Chinese art takes long march home from US museums

Christie’s auctioneer Rupert Banner leans forward with practised showmanship as bidding stalls on a rare Yongzheng bowl near New York’s iconic Rockefeller Centre. He pauses as if willing offers from thin air, scanning dozens of in-person buyers and phone banks connecting with China, London, Texas. It will be a bad look if the frenzy abates for this delicate peach-decorated bowl highlighted on Christie’s glossy Chinese sale catalogue and online advertising. But bidding soon resumes with a...

• #US-China relations
• #Art
• #Chinese culture
• #History
• #Hong Kong
• #China

US to deploy NMESIS anti-ship system on Japanese island clo…

The US is set to deploy one of its signature anti-ship missile systems to the Japanese island closest to Taiwan, an unprecedented move that comes as tensions in the region between Beijing and Tokyo continue to simmer. The ground-based US uncrewed missile platform known as the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) will be deployed on Yonaguni Island in Japan’s Okinawa prefecture during biennial joint exercises this month, according to the regional bureau of the Japanese...

• #China
• #Philippines
• #US
• #NMESIS
• #Taiwan
• #Batanes Islands

SCMP Best Bets: Patch a Grand prospect for punters at Sha T…

Jay Rooney GRAND PATCH - R6 (2) Had plenty of excuses first up and looks well placed to atone here   Owen Goulding HELENE SUPAFEELING - R11 (1) Trialled well leading in, has drawn a good gate and will get a strong gallop to chase   Paul Lally CONGHUA GALAXY - R10 (9) Terrific third on his local debut up the straight and should strip fitter   Phillip Woo GRAND PATCH - R6 (2) Resumed a badly held-up fourth and has since won a trial   Trackwork Spy SOLID STATE - R11 (2) Looks far better placed back...

‘No brainer’: Growing trend of Chinese tourists booking bus…

Business-class flights, once largely the domain of company reps on paid trips, are becoming more popular among tourists in China who do not mind spending a bit extra for a comfortable ride from start to finish, industry insiders said. Businesspeople once occupied 90 per cent of the spacious seats, but have lost that edge to leisure travellers who can buy their way out of economy class but not into first class, said Wong Hong, director general of the 18-member Association of Asia Pacific...

• #China travel
• #Chinese tourists
• #Tourism
• #China
• #China economy
• #Shenzhen

Hong Kong public universities’ non-local fees jump by up to…

Hong Kong public universities will raise undergraduate tuition fees for non-local students studying general courses by up to 26 per cent in the 2027-28 academic year, marking the sharpest increase in recent years as institutions adjust to an expanded quota. Non-local students admitted to the University of Hong Kong’s (HKU) medicine and dentistry programmes will face the steepest jump, with annual tuition rising by 137 per cent to HK$590,000 (US$75,187) to recover the high costs of clinical...

• #Hong Kong

North Korea test-fires intermediate-range missile amid mine…

North Korea said on Saturday it test-fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile that it claimed has manoeuvrable flight capabilities designed to evade missile defences in South Korea and Japan. The latest test comes amid heightened tensions between the two Koreas over border landmine blasts. Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, said her brother supervised the test of the missile, which she described as strategic, implying it was designed to deliver nuclear...

• #Wonsan
• #Moscow
• #Korean war
• #Pyongyang
• #Seoul
• #Kim Jong-un

How US-China tech ties are deepening as RISC-V chips go mai…

As global adoption of the open-source RISC-V chip architecture accelerates, US intellectual property provider MIPS is collaborating with Chinese firms at an unprecedented level, according to a senior executive, highlighting how cross-border cooperation persists despite intense tech rivalry between Washington and Beijing. MIPS, which was acquired by US chipmaker GlobalFoundries last year, was driving RISC-V standardisation “very closely with China”, chief technology officer Yankin Tanurhan said...

• #Semiconductors
• #US-China tech war
• #Alibaba
• #Artificial intelligence (AI)
• #Hong Kong
• #United States

Meet the doctor baking some of the UK’s best Cantonese-insp…

Doctor by weekday, baker by weekend, Hai Lin Leung runs her award-winning microbakery Lucky Yu from her East London home.

• #Food and Drinks
• #Chinese cuisine
• #Asian Cuisine
• #Chinese culture
• #Chinese overseas
• #Asian diaspora

No draw fears for Richards as Lahore bids for a 1,000m hat-…

Jamie Richards thinks an inside draw could actually help rather than hinder Lahore as he goes for a straight-track hat-trick in the Class Three Shing Mun Handicap (1,000m) at Sha Tin on Sunday....

Meet Will Arnett’s rumoured new girlfriend – Guess heiress…

The Arrested Development actor is reportedly dating the Los Angeles creative who runs Mimchik – worn by Blackpink’s Jennie, Kristen Stewart and SZA.

• #Fame and celebrity
• #Get to Know
• #Sex and relationships
• #Fashion
• #Hollywood
• #Social media

Why Big Trouble in Little China is both problematic and pro…

John Carpenter’s cult classic, which bombed at the box office, blended problematic elements with progressive representation for the 1980s.

• #American cinema
• #Cinema
• #Fame and celebrity
• #Hollywood
• #Asian-Americans
• #Tsui Hark

‘Balanced and acceptable’: labour chief defends helper wage…

Chris Sun says the 2.35 per cent increase to HK$5,220 reflects Hong Kong’s stronger economy, but unions and employers’ groups remain unsatisfied.

Chinese troops line up for Russia’s Tsentr-2026 exercise as…

The mass drill involved tens of thousands of personnel from SCO countries to apply lessons from Ukraine war, Moscow says.

• #China-Russia relations
• #Pakistan
• #Mongolia
• #Kyrgyzstan
• #Tajikistan
• #Russia

Police smash burglary ring that recruited illegal immigrant…

The force says the syndicate targeted village houses and upscale homes during holidays when residents were away.

• #Crime in Hong Kong
• #China
• #Hong Kong

‘Cancer saved me’: Hong Kong survivor finds new purpose ahe…

75-year-old Raymond Lo says a liver cancer diagnosis three decades ago taught him to live differently, and he is now preparing to paddle 65km to support others.

• #Hong Kong society
• #Hong Kong sports
• #Cancer
• #Hong Kong Cancer Fund
• #Hong Kong