Venezuelas legislature on Thursday adopted a bill that throws its oil industry open to private investors, in line with US demands following the toppling of leader Nicolas Maduro. Lawmakers in the South American country adopted reforms to a hydrocarbons bill that roll back decades of tight state control over foreign investment in the sector. To lure private ...

As Shanghai resident Adam Liu drives his new Mercedes CLA a German-manufactured car he has long revered this edition of the luxury vehicle is carrying another point of pride: a smart system hailing from his home country. The recently launched pure-electric vehicle was assembled in Rastatt, Germany, but engineers at Beijing-based ByteDance designed its ...

British Columbia Premier David Eby said Alberta separatists who have sought help from Washington in their quest to gain independence from Canada are carrying out an act of immense disloyalty. To go to a foreign country and to ask for assistance in breaking up Canada, theres an old-fashioned word for that and that word is treason, said Eby, the leader of ...

Today, double-digit tariffs imposed by the United States are the new baseline. Breaking decades of low single digits norms, the US rolled out a reciprocal tariff framework in April 2025, setting a 10 per cent baseline and layering on higher rates for specific countries. Embedded in the US national security strategy, this reorientation leaves little scope ...

A man falsely claiming to be an FBI agent showed up to a federal jail in New York on Wednesday night and told officers he had a court order to release Luigi Mangione, authorities said. Mark Anderson, 36, of Mankato, Minnesota, was arrested and charged with impersonating an FBI agent in a foiled bid to free Mangione from the Metropolitan Detention Centre, ...

The mayor of Greenlands capital on Thursday called on media professionals and content creators to act responsibly after a failed attempt by a German comedian to hoist the US flag. Bavarian comedian Maxi Schafroth, 41, attempted to run up the Stars and Stripes on a flagpole near the cultural centre in Nuuk before he was confronted by angry passers-by. When ...

New World Development (NWD), the embattled Hong Kong property developer, said late on Thursday that its parent, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE), has been approached by potential investors after reports that CTFE may sell part of its stake to Blackstone. Bloomberg reported early that Blackstone the worlds biggest asset manager was in discussion to become ...

Hong Kong authorities are investigating the discovery of a severely decomposed whale carcass discovered on a beach in Sai Kung. Authorities were alerted to the decomposed carcass, measuring 11 metres (36.1 feet) in length, on Thursday after villagers found it on the beach at Ham Tin Wan, in Sai Kung East Country Park. The Agriculture, Fisheries and ...

The European Union has listed Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation over Tehrans bloody crackdown on nationwide protests, the blocs top diplomat said in a post on social media on Thursday. Kaja Kallas, the EUs foreign policy chief, said that foreign ministers unanimously agreed on the designation. Any regime that kills thousands ...

US President Donald Trumps border tsar Tom Homan said Thursday that the number of immigration enforcement officers in Minnesota will be reduced only after cooperation from state officials, and that he has zero tolerance for protesters who assault his officers or impede their work. Homan addressed reporters for the first time since the president sent him to ...

Chinas leadership has paid tribute to Liao Xilong, praising the late general for his loyalty to the Communist Party and military service. Liao, 85, who was in charge of overhauling military logistics, died on January 23, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday, the day of his funeral. [Liao was] a time-tested and loyal communist warrior, an ...

Chinese President Xi Jinping received a unique gift from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Beijing on Thursday: the official match ball from Sundays fixture between Manchester United and Arsenal, according to media reports. Starmer is on an official visit to China, the first by a British leader since 2018. While Starmer is an ardent Arsenal fan, Xi is ...

The top US envoy to China called on Thursday for fair and reciprocal trade between the worlds two largest economies and expressed concern about projections that Chinas dominance of global manufacturing will grow even further in the years to come. US Ambassador David Perdue told business and government leaders in Beijing that China should be congratulated on ...

Morgan Stanley expects Chinas humanoid robot sales to grow 133 per cent to 28,000 units this year, while noting that falling production costs will gradually make owning robots more accessible. The US investment bank revised its forecast from the 14,000 units previously on the back of the rapid growth of the industry in the worlds second largest economy. The ...

Nearly three-quarters of Americans expect China to overtake the US in power and global influence at some point if it has not done so already, according to a survey by a US foreign policy institute. Releasing the results of a national poll earlier this month, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said 47 per cent of the 1,500 adults surveyed agreed ...

Hong Kong travellers continue to favour Japan as a holiday destination despite ongoing geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Tokyo, thanks to unaffected flight routes and a weaker yen, local industry operators have said. Travel agencies also identified mainland China as the top destination for Hong Kong travel groups, as they gathered at an exhibition ...

A French aeronautics services company and a Hong Kong aircraft engineering company signed a joint venture deal on Thursday to establish an aircraft dismantling and parts trading facility in the city, with operations targeted to begin within the year. But the projects launch will hinge on the availability of a separate plot of land with barge and truck ...

British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said on Thursday it plans to invest US$15 billion in China through 2030, signalling renewed momentum in UK-China commercial ties. The investment the biggest deal announced so far during UK Prime Minister Keir Starmers trip to Beijing aimed at strengthening trade ties will support expanded medicines ...

A Chinese court has executed 11 people, including several citizens of Myanmar, linked to a notorious telecoms fraud group based in the Southeast Asian country for crimes including fraud, drug trafficking and murder. The Wenzhou Intermediate Peoples Court in eastern Zhejiang province carried out the executions of people who formed the core leadership of the ...

Chinese liquor stocks jumped on Thursday ahead of Lunar New Year, with retailers reportedly building inventories of spirits typically consumed at family reunions and corporate banquets. Shares of Kweichow Moutai Chinas best-known baijiu maker and the most valuable stock on the mainland market climbed more than 9 per cent in afternoon trading to 1,445 ...

Hong Kong police have arrested a supervisor from a cleaning company for suspected animal cruelty after more than 110 fish died while a pond was being cleaned at a public housing estate in Tseung Kwan O. The woman, a 51-year-old supervisor from Fai Kee Environmental Cleaning, was taken into custody on Wednesday. She was later released on bail and was ...

Indonesia is fighting to save its financial reputation after a disastrous two days saw stock prices plunge by 8 per cent. Authorities are racing to pass new rules to prevent a downgrade that has already scared investors into pulling billions of dollars out of the local market. The rout, which knocked off about US$80 billion in overall market value, came ...

Disabled residents and a former lawmaker have slammed Hong Kongs town planning authorities for failing to consider accessibility needs and overlooking potential fire safety risks in an approved development plan in Wan Chai, calling for a review to make the area more barrier-free. Former social welfare sector lawmaker Tik Chi-yuen said on Thursday that the ...

Private jet holidays, AI-powered cat litter boxes and human-grade fresh dog food inspired by Hong Kongs char siu rice are all the rage at this years Hong Kong Pet Show, as exhibitors express confidence in the purchasing power of the citys pet owners. Humans, dogs and cats jostled alongside each other on Thursday, the opening day of the expo at the Hong Kong ...

After testing Teslas driver assistance system FSD earlier this month, Chinese economist Ren Zeping exclaimed that autonomous drivings large-scale real-world implementation was progressing much faster than he thought. Though driverless taxis are so far only being tested in designated areas in Chinese cities, he prophesied that autonomous driving would soon ...