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South Asia

India’s Modi hails ‘great news’ after US slashes tariffs as part of new deal

The pact cuts US duties on Indian goods to 18 per cent and commits India to large purchases of US energy and industrial goods.

US President Donald Trump (right) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shake hands after a joint press conference at the White House on February 13, 2025. Photo: Reuters

Society

Hong Kong to enforce stricter measures at nature spots for Lunar New Year holiday

Authorities step up crowd and environmental controls to prevent a repeat of past incidents as the city braces for 1.4 million mainland Chinese tourists.

The measures follow a series of high-profile incidents in recent years at nature sites across Hong Kong. Photo: Kelly Fung

Hong Kong

Hong Kong triathletes served early Olympic warning, as Bailee Brown hits form

Head coach satisfied with ‘good hit out’ to start year, but Putrajaya event serves as reminder over Los Angeles 2028 qualifying challenge.

Bailee Brown, here in action during the National Games, finished fourth in Malaysia. Photo: Eugene Lee

Cryptocurrency

China tightens crypto crackdown with onshore RWA tokenisation ban

Domestic entities, as well as offshore entities under their control, cannot issue virtual currencies overseas without approval.

The notice also said that no entities can issue yuan-pegged offshore stablecoins without approval. Photo: Shutterstock Images

Military

Taiwan wants an effective reserve force. Will live-fire drills do the job?

Challenges in forging conscripts into fighting force range from inadequate training facilities to eroding public will to defend the island.

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Taiwanese military reservists in pre-combat training during the annual Han Kuang military exercises in July. Photo: EPA
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China Personalities

Cultural currents: how ‘Becoming Chinese’ trend is transforming Western lifestyles

Although trend may not persist indefinitely, cultural imitation driven by digital platforms will resurface time and again, expert says.

Some experts believe that the “Becoming Chinese” trend is a phenomenon that highlights a growing disillusionment among some non-Chinese individuals with their own societal norms. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/RedNote

East Asia

Cryptic error sees South Korea’s Bithumb give away over US$40 billion

Bitcoin ‌prices briefly slumped 17 per cent on the cryptocurrency exchange after the transfers but later recovered.

Bithumb employees pass by an electronic signboard displaying the prices of bitcoin at the cryptocurrency exchange in Seoul on November 21, 2024. Photo: AP

Culture

Our cheat sheet for the best things to do in Hong Kong, February 8-14

Try two new menus at Michelin-starred Hansik Goo, combine alcohol and tattoos at Cordis Hotel’s Alibi bar, or enjoy retro-futuristic neon art at Tai Kwun.

The Garden of Reflection projection-mapping installation at Tai Kwun during last year’s InnerGlow show. Photo: Elson Li

Health & Wellness

How people like 70-year-old Chow Yun-fat keep pushing their endurance limits

Chow ran a half-marathon last year, while silver stars like Natalie Grabow, Jeannie Rice and Hiromu Inada are breaking records. Here’s how.

Actor Chow Yun-fat (middle) runs in the 10km event at the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2026. The 70-year-old is part of a growing number of older people competing in endurance races. Photo: Eugene Lee

Golf

Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune leads compatriot Hideki Matsuyama at Phoenix Open

Five-time major winner Brooks Koepka missed the cut in his second tournament since returning to PGA Tour from the breakaway LIV Golf league.

Ryo Hisatsune has a one-shot lead over fellow Japanese golfer Hideki Matsuyama at the Phoenix Open. Photo: AFP
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People

Exclusive | Inside Indonesia’s inner circle: Hashim Djojohadikusumo on Prabowo’s vision

The Indonesian president’s brother talks ‘fried’ stocks, ‘mosquito’ rivals and MSCI’s Turkmenistan insult in an exclusive interview.

Hashim Djojohadikusumo, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s brother and trusted confidant, poses for a photograph after speaking with This Week in Asia. Photo: Rizky Maulana Yanua

United States & Canada

Pentagon ditches Harvard as Hegseth declares university too ‘woke’

The defence secretary says the Ivy League university ‘no longer meets the needs of the War Department or the military services’.

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People leave Harvard University on April 17, 2025. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

Hong Kong Economy

Hong Kong summons Panama envoy over court ruling on CK Hutchison ports concession

Commerce minister Algernon Yau says Panama ruling to strip Li Ka-shing firm’s subsidiary of canal port rights ‘undermines’ trade rules.

Panama’s Supreme Court of Justice last week stripped the rights from the Panama Ports Company (PPC), a subsidiary of the conglomerate led by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing’s family. Photo: AP

Society

Call for tougher animal welfare laws after invasive turtle found in Hong Kong

Discovery of 85kg alligator snapping turtle in New Territories pond shows how city has fallen behind in biosecurity, experts say.

Yoshi the alligator snapping turtle and Bon Chan, founder of Turtle’s Inn. Photo: Handout

South Asia

‘Many bodies were scattered’: survivor of Pakistan suicide blast that killed 31

The attack was the deadliest in Islamabad since September 2008, when 60 were killed in a suicide truck bomb blast at the Marriott hotel.

Police investigate the scene of Friday’s suicide bombing at a Shiite mosque in Islamabad on Saturday. Photo: AFP
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Opinion

Asian Angle | Thailand’s election will pass verdict on the architecture of elite control

After court rulings removed successive PMs, this election tests whether a popular mandate can finally survive the state’s veto traps.

Pedestrians walk past campaign posters in Bangkok on Tuesday ahead of Thailand’s general election. Photo: AFP

Other Sport

Ready for a trip to the ‘park’? Snowboarding set for Winter Olympics spotlight

The events in what is called the park – half-pipe, slopestyle, big air – form the sport’s core, but there are two more that involve racing.

American Shaun White’s third gold medal win in 2018 stands out as one of the most dramatic contests snowboarding has seen. Photo: AP

China Business

How Chinese consumers’ changing demands are keeping KFC’s owner on its toes

Yum China CEO Joey Wat banks on fast-food firm’s flexible store format and cheaper products to attract more Chinese consumers.

Yum China CEO Joey Wat speaks during the company’s 2025 Investor Conference in Shenzhen. Photo: Handout

United States & Canada

US ‘monster’ who gave grieving families fake ashes jailed for 40 years

Instead of cremating bodies entrusted to them, Jon and Carie Hallford left the corpses to rot around their funeral home, the court heard.

Booking photos show Return to Nature Funeral Home owners Jon and Carie Hallford. Photo: Muskogee County Sheriff’s Office/AP

Today in Photos

Gallery | Pictures of the week: wildfires in Argentina, full moon in Uruguay

A car speeds along a road as smoke from wildfires turns the sky red near Cholila, Argentina. Photo: AP
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Diplomacy

As traditional US allies hedge their bets, will China be the one to cash in?

‘Trump shock’ has prompted a thaw between other Western leaders and Beijing, a trend that raises questions about its deeper long-term impact.

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Mark Carney, one of a number of Western leaders to visit Beijing last month, has warned about “a rupture” in the US-led global order. Photo: Reuters

Business

How Western brands are adapting to China’s changing consumer landscape

Starbucks’ China stake sale signals a seismic shift, as global firms retreat amid rising competition, price wars and evolving consumer tastes.

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Illustration: Henry Wong

Politics

Hope for thaw? Seoul hints at ‘new progress’ in US-North Korea ties

The official’s remarks come amid speculation that US President Donald Trump could seek a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump after their first meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 28, 2019. Photo: AP

Hong Kong Opinion

Opinion | Fee hikes are only half the equation if Hong Kong health reform is to work

If paired with viable service alternatives, clear guidance and a stronger focus on prevention, price rises could become a catalyst for real change.

Illustration: Craig Stephens

Politics

What’s behind plan to adopt multi-operator model for Panama Canal ports?

Panamanian president reportedly vowed his country will ‘never again’ grant concession contracts to run terminals to single company.

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The Port of Balboa, one of two terminals at either end of the Panama Canal controlled by Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison. Photo: EPA
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Video | Other policies such as offering prenatal checks to retirees have been mocked online

Other policies such as offering prenatal checks to retirees have been mocked online.

Deepdive birthrate
05:33

People & Culture

Japan couple spark child neglect concerns for letting son, 12, babysit 5 siblings

Young boy who cooks for, cleans, bathes, his younger brothers and sisters contacts TV station seeking relief from his responsibilities.

A Japanese couple with six children, the youngest less than one year old, rely on their 12-year-old son to babysit, raising concerns about child neglect. Photo: SCMP composite/YouTube

Southeast Asia

Scripts, bank details and military rules: Cambodian scam compound secrets

Mostly run by Chinese criminal gangs and staffed partly by trafficking victims, these complexes have proliferated across Indochina.

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A Thai solider inspects a workstation inside a scam centre in O’Smach, Cambodia, on Monday. Photo: AP

Chinese culture

Reflections | What do common Lunar New Year snacks in China, Singapore and Malaysia symbolise?

Lunar New Year treats in China vary from those in Singapore and Malaysia, for which some question whether they are truly ‘Chinese’.

A tray of Lunar New Year snacks. Many Chinese communities enjoy the same festive favourites at this time of year, but places such as Singapore and Malaysia also gorge on regional treats shaped by foreign influences and migration. Photo: Getty Images

Economics

India’s trade blitz seeks to keep a sinking global order afloat

‘Jolted out of its slumber’ by US tariffs, New Delhi is aggressively diversifying trade alliances to act as a bridge in a polarised world.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (centre) with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (right) and European Council President Antonio Costa at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on January 27. Photo: European Council/dpa