Colombia

Colombia’s president says he escaped assassination attempt while in helicopter

11 Feb 2026 - 1:13PM

China’s private sector

Luckin’s 30,000th store milestone adds buzz to China’s brewing coffee battle

9 Feb 2026 - 7:04PM

Trump and Colombia’s Petro appear to bury hatchet after months of tensions

US president calls Gustavo Petro ‘terrific’ after their first face-to-face encounter, following months of trading barbs.

4 Feb 2026 - 12:16PM

Colombian President Gustavo Petro meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday. Photo: Colombia Presidency via dpa

Aviation accidents

Plane crash in Colombia kills 15, including politician

A Colombian lawmaker and a legislative candidate were on the twin-propeller plane that crashed in a mountainous region.

29 Jan 2026 - 11:17AM

Spain

Spain busts cocaine trafficking ring that used ‘floating bases’ at sea

Spain seizes 10 tonnes of drugs and arrests 105 suspects, while Portugal intercepts a record haul from a ‘narco-sub’.

27 Jan 2026 - 1:17PM

Crime

Ex-Olympian pleads not guilty to running billion-dollar drug empire

Lawyer for FBI ‘most wanted’ fugitive denies alleged kingpin turned himself in at the US embassy in Mexico.

27 Jan 2026 - 10:55AM

Ryan Wedding being is escorted off a plane by the FBI in Ontario, California on Friday. Photo: FBI via AP

Commodities

Gold surge has analysts eyeing new highs after US$5,100 record

Safe-haven demand spikes amid de-dollarisation fears and supply-chain tensions, as gold buyers seek stability against growing macro uncertainties.

26 Jan 2026 - 3:07PMvideocam

Who is Ryan Wedding? Ex-Olympian accused of running global drug empire arrested

Fugitive Canadian snowboarder from the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics is linked to cartels and faces murder and drug charges.

24 Jan 2026 - 12:00AM

Opinion | From Venezuela to Greenland, Trump is using US power to rewrite the rules

What troubles many is the inconsistency emanating from Washington. When power underwrites rules, principles become negotiable.

23 Jan 2026 - 9:30AMvideocam

Diversify or die: Asian firms face trade uncertainty amid Trump’s Mexico threats

The president’s call for strikes against drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia will add to the cost of trading with the US, analysts say.

20 Jan 2026 - 7:00PMvideocam

Mexico’s Manzanillo seaport, a critical gateway for trade between Asia and the Americas, is seen in May last year after its expansion. Photo: Reuters

Ethnic minorities in Hong Kong

US’ FAA warns airlines to ‘potential risks’ in Mexican, South American airspace

The warnings come a month after a JetBlue passenger jet almost collided with a US Air Force tanker plane near Venezuela ‌.

17 Jan 2026 - 12:34PMvideocam

Letters | South Asians have a unique place in Hong Kong

Readers discuss early settlers in Hong Kong, small businesses in Venezuela, and Donald Trump’s ‘morality’.

17 Jan 2026 - 11:30AM

US-China relations

Opinion | How Trump’s ‘Donroe Doctrine’ is escalating US-China rivalry

Maduro’s capture not only challenges China’s influence in Latin America but also signals a bolder US security posture that could reshuffle great-power competition.

11 Jan 2026 - 9:25PMvideocam

North Korea nuclear crisis

Trump says Colombia’s Petro to visit US, in U-turn from threats to diplomacy

Just days ago, Trump had issued a warning to the South American leader for criticising the US attack that removed Venezuela’s Maduro.

10 Jan 2026 - 3:59AM

US President Donald Trump (right) spoke with Colombian President Gustavo Petro over the phone on Wednesday. Photos: AFP

Opinion | Maduro’s fate in Venezuela hardens North Korea’s nuclear resolve

It confirms Pyongyang’s belief that leaders seen as thorns in the US side who lack nuclear weapons ultimately fall victim to US intervention.

9 Jan 2026 - 5:30AMvideocam

US-Venezuela conflict

Trump invites Colombia’s president to White House after threat of military strike

Invitation comes days after Trump accused Colombia’s Gustavo Petro of ‘making cocaine’ and warning of US intervention.

8 Jan 2026 - 10:45AMvideocam

As I see it | Monroe Doctrine 2.0 portends the end of the US empire

The eerie return of the 19th century foreign policy doctrine indicates a declining empire seeking to consolidate power in its own backyard.

7 Jan 2026 - 10:04AMvideocam

US President Donald Trump (right) speaks as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on during a press conference in Palm Beach, Florida, after he ordered strikes on Venezuela, on January 3. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife were also captured by US special forces during the bombing raid. Photo: Reuters

US-Venezuela conflict

Not just oil: is Trump’s Venezuela takeover also about critical minerals?

Venezuela, Greenland and Colombia all have large deposits of rare earths and other minerals needed by US technology and defence companies.

6 Jan 2026 - 6:15PMvideocam

Maduro open to talks with US on drugs and oil, but silent on CIA strike

Venezuela’s leader sidesteps questions about a reported US land attack while offering to talk ‘seriously’ about cooperation.

2 Jan 2026 - 2:03PM

Luxury Hotels

11 exciting luxury hotel openings in 2026, from London and Florence to Kyoto

These ultra-luxe stays and unique experiences span the globe, from the US and Latin America, to Africa and the Middle East.

1 Jan 2026 - 2:00PM

In 2026, expect to find luxury hotels working harder to raise the bar and stand out in the crowd. Photo: Handout

CIA behind drone strike on ‘big facility’ in Venezuela: sources

Sources divulge details of a US strike mentioned by Trump, as Colombia’s president says US bombed a suspected cocaine factory.

31 Dec 2025 - 4:26PM

Personnel work on a US Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drone at Rafael Hernandez Airport in Puerto Rico. Photo: Reuters

Banking & finance

Hong Kong signs tax treaty with Norway, marking fourth such agreement this year

Treasury chief Christopher Hui said the government plans to begin CDTA negotiations with Slovenia and Oman early next year.

16 Dec 2025 - 6:47PM

China-Latin America relations

Honduras president alleges ‘electoral coup’ amid chaotic vote count

Fraud allegations, claims of US interference and disputed tally sheets mar vote count following Honduras’ November 30 presidential election.

10 Dec 2025 - 3:47PM

US senators warn of China-cartel links forming a global ‘Silk Road of crime’

At a Senate hearing, officials described Chinese money brokers as key to laundering cartel funds and fuelling the illicit fentanyl trade.

30 Dec 2025 - 5:03AMvideocam

US Customs and Border Protection display plastic bags of fentanyl after being seized at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago. US lawmakers say Chinese money brokers and Latin American cartels have merged their operations into a system that blurs the line between trade and trafficking. Photo: Reuters

Trump says any country trafficking drugs into US could be attacked

In response to the threat, Colombia’s Petro says his nation destroys drug labs ‘without missiles’ and warns Trump not to ‘awake the Jaguar’.

3 Dec 2025 - 9:36AM

Packages of seized cocaine lined up in Panama City, Panama in November. A tugboat carrying 13,508kg of cocaine, was intercepted in Panamanian Pacific waters as it sailed to North America from Colombia, according to Panamanian authorities. Photo: EPA