Breaking China, Asia, HK News, Opinions and Insights

A major indicator of China’s factory activity returned to expansion in December, after eight straight months of contraction. Photo: AFP

China’s factory activity breaks 8-month contraction, but headwinds persist

China’s manufacturing PMI rose to 50.1 in December, but analysts said it was too early to point to a sustained recovery.

17 minutes ago

China broadens foreign investment list in renewed pitch for overseas capital

China manufacturing

Science

China builds a record-breaking hypergravity machine to compress space and time

CHIEF1900 will help to recreate catastrophic events such as dam failures and earthquakes inside a lab, university says.

1 hour agovideocam

China Economy

Airbus scores major win in China with orders for 145 A320 aircraft

The flurry of orders worth billions of US dollars marks a big victory for the European aviation firm over US rival Boeing in a key market.

2 hours agovideocam

Society

Hong Kong to step up inspections as new smoking bans take effect on Thursday

Some residents say they are aware of new rules banning smoking while queuing or near certain facilities, whereas tourists note they are not but will comply.

23 minutes ago

Focus

‘No fixed identity’: new Chinese-American writers are telling their own stories

Big Tech

Exclusive | ByteDance to pour US$14 billion into Nvidia chips in 2026 as AI demand surges

Chinese unicorn’s computing needs have climbed across its portfolio of popular apps, cloud unit Volcano Engine and large language models.

4 hours ago

ByteDance plans to spend about 100 billion yuan on AI chips from Nvidia in 2026 if the US company is allowed to sell its H200 graphic processing units in China, sources say. Photo: Handout

Policy

Xi renews call to boost grain output after trade war sharpens food security push

Beijing renews push to fortify domestic crop supplies and modernise agriculture amid a tense geopolitical climate.

4 hours agovideocam

Health & Environment

In India, New Delhi’s smog crisis exposes the high price of clean air

The winter smog has widened the affordability gap among residents, with many lower-income families lacking the means to buy an air purifier.

3 hours agovideocam

People & Culture

How this year’s Yidan Prize laureates reshape modern literacy and skills worldwide

Mamadou Amadou Ly and Uri Wilensky help transform teaching and learning through multilingual education and computational thinking.

In partnership with:

Yidan Prize Foundation

The 2025 Yidan Prize laureates Professor Uri Wilensky (left) and Mamadou Amadou Ly help remove barriers to education by transforming how learners access and engage with knowledge.

China Economy

How China is upgrading its digital yuan for the stablecoin era

Beijing is upgrading its digital currency in response to the rise of stablecoins, but the goal is to create a fundamentally different system.

2 hours ago

A booth promotes the digital yuan at an expo in Beijing. China is upgrading its digital currency as it aims to create an alternative to stablecoins and cryptocurrencies. Photo: AP

Health & Environment

Low-income patients call for more help as steeper Hong Kong hospital fees loom

From January 1, patients will need to pay more for certain services, and while safety net will also be widened, some people have fallen through the cracks.

2 hours ago

Semiconductors

China’s DRAM giant CXMT plans US$4.2 billion IPO on Shanghai’s Star Market

Listing aims to fund wafer expansion and DRAM upgrades as Beijing drives tech self-reliance.

41 minutes ago

Politics

Takaichi is shaping up as Japan’s Thatcher. How long can she last?

The prime minister has defied the odds by winning back LDP voters with sweeping immigration, economic policies and a tough stance on Beijing.

5 hours agovideocam

Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi prepares to welcome Central Asian leaders during a summit in Tokyo on December 20. Photo: Reuters

China Business

China’s second-hand boom fuels bruising battle for trade-in traffic

Recycling platform ATRenew is scaling up as China’s young consumers shed the stigma around second-hand shopping.

6 hours ago

Two women use their mobile phones at a store in Beijing on November 29, 2025. Photo: AFP

Americas

Oil tankers still arriving in Venezuela despite US blockade, data shows

A US blockade on sanctioned vessels has scared many vessel owners, but some still make journey.

1 hour ago

Diplomacy

US envoy hosts Quad meeting in Beijing as PLA’s drills around Taiwan continue

Some analysts, however, say Quad is losing significance under Trump despite this latest show of unity and deterrence by the regional bloc.

31 Dec 2025 - 6:34AMvideocam

Middle East

Students join protests in Iran as economic hardship fuels discontent

Iran’s leadership acknowledges protests stem from economic pressures as the nation’s currency hits a record low.

2 hours ago

Shopkeepers and traders protest in the street against the economic conditions and Iran’s embattled currency, in Tehran on Monday. On Tuesday, protests erupted at 10 universities across the country. Photo: Fars News Agency via AFP

Southeast Asia

Will Ocean Infinity finally solve the flight MH370 mystery in Indian Ocean?

A new deep-sea search, armed with advanced tech and drones, restarts to find the Malaysia Airlines plane that vanished nearly 12 years ago.

3 hours agovideocam

A man walks pasts a mural representing the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 at an alley in Shah Alam, near Kuala Lumpur. Photo: AFP

Health & Wellness

Hong Kong callisthenics athlete on the sport’s benefits for body and mind

Yau Ka-wing went from ‘nerd’ to ripped Hong Kong representative at contests in Asia and Europe. He shares why callisthenics is so accessible.

1 hour ago

Companies

Exclusive | US anti-piracy firm Vobile buys top floor of Bank of America Tower at a discount

The Emmy-winning firm has bought the top floor of the US bank’s Admiralty office for US$25.4 million – more than 60 per cent below its peak.

5 hours ago

OPINION

Chow Chung-yan

Opinion | Be a potato: the lesson of the resilient staple resonates as 2026 approaches

4 hours ago

Alex Lo

As I see it | Why China is Myanmar’s only real hope

4 hours ago

Letters

Letters | Annual spending cap protects the medically and financially at risk

2 hours ago

SCMP Editorial

Editorial | China provides substance to Cambodia-Thailand peace efforts

6 hours ago

SCMP Editorial

Editorial | Powerful PLA drill shows US arms sales don’t help Taiwan Strait stability

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Harry’s View | 31 Dec 2025

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Politics

Cosco executive Zhang Yong made deputy in Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong

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Semiconductors

China’s DRAM giant CXMT plans US$4.2 billion IPO on Shanghai’s Star Market

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Society

Hong Kong to step up inspections as new smoking bans take effect on Thursday

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Why has Beijing turned down the heat in the Taiwan Strait in the second half of 2025?

PLA warplanes and ships have been less active around the island in the second half of the year, Taiwanese data shows.

25 Dec 2025 - 9:58AMvideocam

Beijing is pinning hopes for Taiwan reunification on KMT – but not all of them

24 Dec 2025 - 9:53PMvideocam

‘Urgent’: has mainland China changed tone for Taiwan peaceful reunification?

23 Dec 2025 - 3:43PMvideocam

Open Questions series

Diplomacy

Open Questions | Political scientist Ivan Krastev on European vertigo in a post-American world

While melancholy Europe frets that the US and China will shape the future, middle powers are jostling for a place at the big table.

29 Dec 2025 - 9:04AMvideocam

Diplomacy

Open Questions | George Yeo on superpower ‘headaches’ and why the US dollar could crack

Singapore’s former foreign minister also discusses Trump, the latest China-Japan dust-up, and rivalry between Hong Kong and the city state.

22 Dec 2025 - 10:02AMvideocam

Science

Open Questions | Sci-fi writer Liu Cixin on why he’ll be happy if AI surpasses humans

Acclaimed author of the Three-Body trilogy also discusses his ‘dark forest’ theory, and the struggle to come up with original ideas.

15 Dec 2025 - 10:05AMvideocam

China Economy

Open Questions | Economist Huang Yiping on why China’s AI push must be ‘job-oriented’

Dean of Peking University’s National School of Development says ‘balance’ needed in AI development to protect employment, ‘human well-being’.

8 Dec 2025 - 10:07AMvideocam

Key Industries:

Tech

China’s Qwen and DeepSeek edge out US AI models in Christian values benchmark

US start-up Gloo’s Flourishing AI Christian benchmark tested how the output of AI models ‘help people flourish’, CEO Pat Gelsinger said.

17 Dec 2025 - 7:00AM

The questions in FAI-C were reviewed by a panel of Biblical experts, including theologians, pastors, psychologists and scholars of ethics. Photo: SCMP

Semiconductors

China’s DRAM giant CXMT plans US$4.2 billion IPO on Shanghai’s Star Market

Listing aims to fund wafer expansion and DRAM upgrades as Beijing drives tech self-reliance.

41 minutes ago

Tech Trends

China-founded Tripo AI updates 3D content platform as users more than double

‘This shows that we’re on the right track,’ founder and CEO Simon Song Yachen says.

6 hours ago

Tech Trends

China’s tech giants offer lavish year-end bonuses amid AI talent war

ByteDance is expanding its bonus pool by 35 per cent from a year earlier, as well as increasing the budget for pay rises by 150 per cent.

30 Dec 2025 - 9:00PM

ByteDance lifted pay floors and ceilings across all job roles to remain globally competitive in talent compensation. Photo: Shutterstock Images

Diplomacy

How Takaichi’s Taiwan comments fuelled Beijing-Tokyo row with no end in sight

Dispute over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan could ultimately hinge on the US-China-Japan triangle, analysts say.

30 Dec 2025 - 9:01AMvideocam

Military

A look at China’s ‘Flying Shark’ J-15 jet that made waves near Japan

Fighter in service for more than a decade often patrols potential conflict hotspots including the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.

28 Dec 2025 - 11:00PMvideocam

Science

Chinese 6G smart surface could allow stealth jets to use radar as a power source

The technology could help power future communications systems and shift the dynamics of electronic warfare, team says.

28 Dec 2025 - 6:00AMvideocam

China Economy

Wild goose chase? France works to rouse China’s appetite for foie gras imports

French producers hope their famed pate can win a slice of China’s market, but price sensitivities and domestic competition could mean their goose is cooked.

27 Dec 2025 - 6:09AMvideocam

China’s factory activity breaks 8-month contraction, but headwinds persist

China’s manufacturing PMI rose to 50.1 in December, but analysts said it was too early to point to a sustained recovery.

China broadens foreign investment list in renewed pitch for overseas capital

China builds a record-breaking hypergravity machine to compress space and time

CHIEF1900 will help to recreate catastrophic events such as dam failures and earthquakes inside a lab, university says.

Airbus scores major win in China with orders for 145 A320 aircraft

The flurry of orders worth billions of US dollars marks a big victory for the European aviation firm over US rival Boeing in a key market.

Hong Kong to step up inspections as new smoking bans take effect on Thursday

Some residents say they are aware of new rules banning smoking while queuing or near certain facilities, whereas tourists note they are not but will comply.

‘No fixed identity’: new Chinese-American writers are telling their own stories

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Exclusive | ByteDance to pour US$14 billion into Nvidia chips in 2026 as AI demand surges

Chinese unicorn’s computing needs have climbed across its portfolio of popular apps, cloud unit Volcano Engine and large language models.

Xi renews call to boost grain output after trade war sharpens food security push

Beijing renews push to fortify domestic crop supplies and modernise agriculture amid a tense geopolitical climate.

In India, New Delhi’s smog crisis exposes the high price of clean air

The winter smog has widened the affordability gap among residents, with many lower-income families lacking the means to buy an air purifier.

.css-f84qeq{font-family:Roboto Condensed,Roboto Condensed fallback,sans-serif;font-style:italic;}How this year’s Yidan Prize laureates reshape modern literacy and skills worldwide

Mamadou Amadou Ly and Uri Wilensky help transform teaching and learning through multilingual education and computational thinking.

How China is upgrading its digital yuan for the stablecoin era

Beijing is upgrading its digital currency in response to the rise of stablecoins, but the goal is to create a fundamentally different system.

Low-income patients call for more help as steeper Hong Kong hospital fees loom

From January 1, patients will need to pay more for certain services, and while safety net will also be widened, some people have fallen through the cracks.

China’s DRAM giant CXMT plans US$4.2 billion IPO on Shanghai’s Star Market

Listing aims to fund wafer expansion and DRAM upgrades as Beijing drives tech self-reliance.

Takaichi is shaping up as Japan’s Thatcher. How long can she last?

The prime minister has defied the odds by winning back LDP voters with sweeping immigration, economic policies and a tough stance on Beijing.

China’s second-hand boom fuels bruising battle for trade-in traffic

Recycling platform ATRenew is scaling up as China’s young consumers shed the stigma around second-hand shopping.

Oil tankers still arriving in Venezuela despite US blockade, data shows

A US blockade on sanctioned vessels has scared many vessel owners, but some still make journey.

US envoy hosts Quad meeting in Beijing as PLA’s drills around Taiwan continue

Some analysts, however, say Quad is losing significance under Trump despite this latest show of unity and deterrence by the regional bloc.

Students join protests in Iran as economic hardship fuels discontent

Iran’s leadership acknowledges protests stem from economic pressures as the nation’s currency hits a record low.

Will Ocean Infinity finally solve the flight MH370 mystery in Indian Ocean?

A new deep-sea search, armed with advanced tech and drones, restarts to find the Malaysia Airlines plane that vanished nearly 12 years ago.

Hong Kong callisthenics athlete on the sport’s benefits for body and mind

Yau Ka-wing went from ‘nerd’ to ripped Hong Kong representative at contests in Asia and Europe. He shares why callisthenics is so accessible.

Exclusive | US anti-piracy firm Vobile buys top floor of Bank of America Tower at a discount

The Emmy-winning firm has bought the top floor of the US bank’s Admiralty office for US$25.4 million – more than 60 per cent below its peak.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Opinion | Be a potato: the lesson of the resilient staple resonates as 2026 approaches

As I see it | Why China is Myanmar’s only real hope

Letters | Annual spending cap protects the medically and financially at risk

Editorial | China provides substance to Cambodia-Thailand peace efforts

Editorial | Powerful PLA drill shows US arms sales don’t help Taiwan Strait stability

Your Hong Kong weekend food guide for January 2-4

Cosco executive Zhang Yong made deputy in Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong

China’s DRAM giant CXMT plans US$4.2 billion IPO on Shanghai’s Star Market

Hong Kong to step up inspections as new smoking bans take effect on Thursday

China’s factory activity breaks 8-month contraction, but headwinds persist

‘It’s worth a million dollars’: locals, tourists get gold fever in Australia

Why has Beijing turned down the heat in the Taiwan Strait in the second half of 2025?

PLA warplanes and ships have been less active around the island in the second half of the year, Taiwanese data shows.

Beijing is pinning hopes for Taiwan reunification on KMT – but not all of them

‘Urgent’: has mainland China changed tone for Taiwan peaceful reunification?

Open Questions | Political scientist Ivan Krastev on European vertigo in a post-American world

While melancholy Europe frets that the US and China will shape the future, middle powers are jostling for a place at the big table.

Open Questions | George Yeo on superpower ‘headaches’ and why the US dollar could crack

Singapore’s former foreign minister also discusses Trump, the latest China-Japan dust-up, and rivalry between Hong Kong and the city state.

Open Questions | Sci-fi writer Liu Cixin on why he’ll be happy if AI surpasses humans

Acclaimed author of the Three-Body trilogy also discusses his ‘dark forest’ theory, and the struggle to come up with original ideas.

Open Questions | Economist Huang Yiping on why China’s AI push must be ‘job-oriented’

Dean of Peking University’s National School of Development says ‘balance’ needed in AI development to protect employment, ‘human well-being’.

China’s Qwen and DeepSeek edge out US AI models in Christian values benchmark

US start-up Gloo’s Flourishing AI Christian benchmark tested how the output of AI models ‘help people flourish’, CEO Pat Gelsinger said.

China’s DRAM giant CXMT plans US$4.2 billion IPO on Shanghai’s Star Market

Listing aims to fund wafer expansion and DRAM upgrades as Beijing drives tech self-reliance.

China-founded Tripo AI updates 3D content platform as users more than double

‘This shows that we’re on the right track,’ founder and CEO Simon Song Yachen says.

China’s tech giants offer lavish year-end bonuses amid AI talent war

ByteDance is expanding its bonus pool by 35 per cent from a year earlier, as well as increasing the budget for pay rises by 150 per cent.

How Takaichi’s Taiwan comments fuelled Beijing-Tokyo row with no end in sight

Dispute over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan could ultimately hinge on the US-China-Japan triangle, analysts say.

A look at China’s ‘Flying Shark’ J-15 jet that made waves near Japan

Fighter in service for more than a decade often patrols potential conflict hotspots including the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.

Chinese 6G smart surface could allow stealth jets to use radar as a power source

The technology could help power future communications systems and shift the dynamics of electronic warfare, team says.

Wild goose chase? France works to rouse China’s appetite for foie gras imports

French producers hope their famed pate can win a slice of China’s market, but price sensitivities and domestic competition could mean their goose is cooked.

Exclusive | ByteDance to pour US$14 billion into Nvidia chips in 2026 as AI demand surges

How this year’s Yidan Prize laureates reshape modern literacy and skills worldwide

Opinion | Be a potato: the lesson of the resilient staple resonates as 2026 approaches