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Politics

‘Remorseless’ Yoon slammed for invoking Jesus in a note from South Korean prison

The ex-president may be a liability to his former People Power Party ahead of local elections on June 3 amid falling approval ratings.

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A news report on the sentencing trial of South Korean former president Yoon Suk-yeol’s insurrection case in February, stemming from his short-lived December 2024 declaration of martial law. Photo: Reuters

China Business

More foreign marques face a do-or-die moment as Chinese buyers shun petrol cars

Following Skoda’s exit from China, other carmakers with falling sales are also likely to close shop this year, analysts say.

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Skoda, Volkswagen’s mass-market brand, shut down its Chinese operations this year. Photo: AFP

Tech Trends

Chinese AI rivals clash over Anthropic’s OpenClaw exit amid global token crunch

Chinese companies are competing to offer the cheapest alternatives to premium US services from the likes of OpenAI and Anthropic.

A lobster-shaped cutout representing OpenClaw stands outside the Baidu offices in Beijing, March 17, 2026. Photo: Reuters

Hong Kong

Gallery | Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences celebrates 30th anniversary

Visitors take part in a workshop co-organised by the Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences and the Jockey Club Lo Wai Chinese Herb Garden on April 6, introducing traditional Chinese herbs and medicine as part of the museum’s celebration activities. Photo: Karma Lo

Southeast Asia

AirAsia X hikes fares by 40%, cut capacity by 10% as Iran war hits fuel costs

Founder Tony Fernandes said the higher prices were ‘unavoidable’ after the average cost of jet fuel more than doubled to US$200 per barrel.

AirAsia planes are parked on the tarmac at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang. Photo: AFP
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Society

Surging oil prices push Hong Kong’s laundry sector to freeze hiring, halt orders

Industry representative says price of industrial diesel has increased by over 190 per cent in just over a month.

The sharp rise in “red diesel” has significantly raised operating costs for laundry businesses, which rely heavily on diesel-powered boilers. Photo: Handout

Arts

Extraordinary tale of Chinese-British collaboration revealed in new exhibition

The London show spotlighting an English botanist sheds light on 18th century science and exchanges between China and England.

The 1776 painting of Huang Yadong by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Huang was brought to England from Guangzhou (Canton) by John Bradby Blake, an employee of the East India Company. This painting owned by the National Trust is part of the “Seeds of Exchange” exhibition at the Garden Museum in London. (Credit: National Trust)

Cricket

Hong Kong Cricket Sixes organisers promise ‘bigger and better’ tournament in 2026

City cricket chiefs confirm next edition will be staged at Tin Kwong Road Recreation Ground over three days from October 30.

Hong Kong players celebrate their outrageous plate final victory over Bangladesh last year. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Food & Drink

Hong Kong’s hottest new openings, from Le Le’s launch to Thong Smith’s debut

Progressive Vietnamese arrives in the form of Le Le, while Bangkok’s cult-favourite boat noodle specialist Thong Smith debuts in Wan Chai.

Dry-aged duck served three ways at Le Le. Photo: Le Le

Science

China’s electric truck revolution: powerful painkiller for the Iran war?

Sales of electric heavy-duty cargo trucks surged by 182 per cent in 2025, with more growth forecast as oil and gas prices soar.

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An electric truck at a supercharging station in Yichang, in China’s central Hubei province. Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images
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East Asia

North Korean silence on Iran signals openness to US talks: Seoul’s spy agency

Pyongyang has not sent weapons and supplies to its long-time ally , nor has it issued messages to mark Iranian leadership changes.

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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and daughter Ju Ae oversee the test-launch of 600 mm-calibre multiple rocket launchers on March 14. Photo: KCNA/Reuters

Society

Search for 81-year-old hiker missing in Tuen Mun enters third day

Veteran mountaineer calls for better safety promotion in Hong Kong after mainland Chinese man’s disappearance on MacLehose Trail on Saturday.

He, the 81-year-old mainland Chinese tourist, went missing while hiking on the MacLehose Trail in Tuen Mun on Saturday. Photo: Handout

China Business

China IPOs jump 56% as regulator eases restrictions to drive tech innovation

Funds raised on the mainland’s three exchanges in the first quarter topped 25.7 billion yuan, compared with 16.5 billion yuan a year earlier.

A close-up view of the bull statues in front of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Photo: Getty Images

Trending in China

Women sumo wrestling was popular in ancient China until rise of Confucian ethics

Grappling partially clothed, sometimes naked, women drew large crowds, emperors but complaints from conservative officials led to sport’s demise.

In ancient China, women’s sumo wrestling was a popular form of entertainment and the country is believed to hold the earliest records of female sumo wrestlers. Photo: SCMP composite/Baidu

Football

Real hope Champions League magic halts Bayern machine, Arsenal in character test

German side are arguably favourites to lift trophy but history is on La Liga team’s side, while Gunners must recover after straight losses.

Real Madrid stars Kylian Mbappe (left) and Jude Bellingham produced some of their best form in the previous round to demolish Manchester City at the Bernabeu Stadium. Photo: AP
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Video | Trump issues fiery, foul-mouthed message to Iran

US president extends deadline, saying Iran has until late April 7 US time to ‘make a deal’ or he would be ‘blowing everything up’.

US president extends deadline, saying Iran has until late April 7 US time to ‘make a deal’ or he would be ‘blowing everything up’
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Middle East

Israel estimates 1,000 Iranian missiles threaten it as war grinds into second month

Iran is firing missiles from dozens of tunnel silos in remote mountain regions that are proving hard to destroy pre-emptively.

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A Thai agricultural worker examines the tail of an Iranian ballistic missile that hit near a cow barn in the Israeli settlement of Shadmot Mehola, in the West Bank. Photo: EPA

East Asia

Japan’s Takaichi seeks urgent summit with Iran as Trump’s Hormuz deadline looms

Japan has been bearing the brunt of the Iran war as the resource-poor nation relies on the Middle East for most of its crude oil imports.

Fuel prices are displayed at a petrol station in Tokyo on March 18. Photo: EPA

Society

Queues stretch past an hour as traffic jams hit mega bridge during holidays

Passenger flows topped 192,000 in two days, marking one of the busiest periods at Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge in recent years, automobile association says.

Traffic at the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge reached peak levels during the first two days of the Easter and Ching Ming holidays. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Markets

Hong Kong’s MPF set to report worst performance in 3 years in March

The MPF funds’ monthly showing was the worst in three years as they tracked the Hang Seng Index, which also fell to a three-year low.

The MPF’s March performance is expected to make for poor reading for the scheme’s 4.8 million members. Photo: May Tse
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People

Singapore police say body found is missing man from boat collision

The body of Chua Muhammad Syafidi was found floating off the Indonesian island of Karimun.

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Chua Muhammad Syafidi. Photo: Facebook/Tower Transit Singapore

Asia

Video | What is Japan’s Penis Festival?

Tourists and residents celebrate the Kanamara Festival with phallus-shaped lollipops while offering prayers for fertility, safe childbirth and safe sex.

Devotees carry a large phallus-shaped portable shrine through the streets of Kawasaki during the Kanamara festival on April 5, 2026. Showcasing phallus-shaped portable shrines and pink penis candies, Japan’s annual fertility festival teemed April 5 with tourists, couples and families elated by its open display of sex. (Photo by Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
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World

Chinese-made drone shot in Iran, Australia’s diplomacy pivot: 5 weekend reads

From a Chinese-made drone shot down in Iran to where Hongkongers went over the holidays, here are five stories you may have missed over the weekend.

Iran says a Wing Long II drone has been shot down over its territory. Photo: Dickson Lee

Health & Wellness

Why internet use can actually lower your risk of dementia

While excessive screen time can harm young brains, a study finds that using the internet wisely can boost cognitive health in older adults.

While young people who are addicted to screens can suffer from “digital dementia”, evidence suggests that internet use can actually be good for the brains of older people. Photo: Shutterstock

Law and Crime

Warning issued after university student loses HK$190,000 in internship scam

Police say fraudsters held a 40-minute online orientation and communicated with the victim entirely in fluent English.

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Police have advised students to verify job offers directly with companies. Photo: Jonathan Wong
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Diplomacy

Orban on the brink: could Hungary’s election dent China’s influence in Europe?

‘Most consequential’ vote is being pitched as a referendum on whether the country should move towards the East or West.

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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s Fidesz is trailing the rival Tisza Party in the polls ahead of the April 12 election. Photo: Reuters

East Asia

‘Irresponsible and reckless’: South Korea’s Lee regrets drones sent to North

The South Korean president said an investigation revealed that government officials were involved in the incursion earlier this year.

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Fragments of a drone lie scattered on the ground in Muksan-ri, North Korea, after being shot down on January 4. Photo: KCNA/Reuters

Society

Housing authorities expand use of smart technologies to support elderly

Government installing door sensors, in-home fall detectors and stair climbers at more public housing estates.

The number of people aged 65 and above in Hong Kong is expected to nearly double from 1.45 million in 2021 to 2.74 million in 2046. Photo: Karma Lo

Tech War

Chip, AI talent race heats up as Taiwan tightens crackdown on alleged poaching

The latest probes are part of Taiwan’s crackdown on mainland Chinese talent poaching, with 100 cases handled since 2020, according to MJIB.

Technicians work on chip processing equipment at a semiconductor manufacturing plant in Suqian, Jiangsu province, in October. Photo: AFP

Markets

Gold may reverse course once Iran war ends, Fed adopts policy easing

Gold has been on a wild ride this year, surging as much as 25 per cent before the war in Iran wiped out almost all the gains.

Customers look at gold jewelry at a store in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China on March 23, 2026. Photo: CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images