As Hong Kong prepares for another major push in public works, one question deserves far more attention than it has received: are we buying infrastructure in a way that is sustainable for the construction industry and the public as a whole? In his February budget, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po announced that HK$150 billion (US$19.1 billion) will be ...

Singapores Grab reported first-quarter profit that exceeded analysts estimates, helped by resilient demand for ride hailing and delivery in a market rattled by economic and political challenges. Southeast Asias biggest ride-hailing and delivery firm has been trying to boost spending on its platform by incorporating artificial-intelligence features into its ...

A fireworks factory explosion in Liuyang, Hunan province Monday has killed 21 people and injured 61 others, state media said. More to follow...

An ex-Chinese soldier has told how he escaped a Myanmar scam hub after scaling a wall, applying cow dung to mask his scent and subduing an armed guard. Yang Lei, from northeastern China, shared the thrilling story of his escape after he arrived safely back in China. Yang said he led a tour group of 10 people to Thailand, near the Thai-Myanmar border, in ...

Chinese multinational company Landbridge Groups legal claim regarding Darwin Port the first case ever brought against Australia at the international tribunal is likely to yield a multi-year proceeding, which could serve as a buffer to provide some positive impacts for the Australia-China relationship, analysts said. The owner of Landbridge, Ye Cheng, ...

The independent committee tasked with investigating Hong Kongs deadly Tai Po blaze has finished 21 sessions of evidential hearings in three rounds, pointing to multiple apparent loopholes in the supervision of the estates renovation project and the governments regulation of fire hazards. The inferno broke out on November 26 last year when all eight blocks ...

Robots are beginning to reshape everyday life in China as the country accelerates its embrace of embodied artificial intelligence, handling tasks from cleaning homes and directing traffic to repairing equipment in hazardous factory settings. Embodied AI refers to AI embedded in physical machines, such as robots, that can sense their environment, make ...

The sounds of passing cars and birds chirping broke the morning stillness at Penangs Northam Road Protestant Cemetery as visitors began filtering in after 8am. Tour guide Zul Harris arrived in a purple shirt, grey trousers and a black flat cap to greet seven tourists waiting at the gate. Inside, a narrow laterite path ran through the cemetery beneath old ...

A Colombian girl celebrating her 10th birthday was among three people crushed to death at a monster truck display when a vehicle veered out of control and ploughed into spectators, authorities said on Monday. Hellen Velarde was attending Sundays exhibition in the southwestern city of Popayan as a birthday gift when she was crushed by the truck in an ...

Britain is in talks to join the European Unions 90 billion (US$105.13 billion) loan to Ukraine to qualify for Kyivs defence orders that the loan finances but will have to cover some interest payments on the borrowing to be eligible, the European Commission said. Today marks the first high-level discussion on the UKs potential participation in the 90 billion ...

Chinese self-driving technology firm ZYT is edging closer to mass production of semi-autonomous trucks that can improve fuel efficiency and save logistics costs, likely to benefit the countrys manufacturing businesses amid a global energy crisis. The Shenzhen-based start-up, a spin-off from drone maker DJI, has formed partnerships with mainland Chinas top ...

As the Middle East conflict spreads uncertainty among farmers around the world, Chinese farmers are carrying out their spring ploughing as usual and appear largely untroubled. The supply of chemical fertilisers for spring ploughing is ample, an official with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said at a news conference last month, adding that ...

The US Secret Service said a suspect who opened fire on Monday on the National Mall did so after being confronted by officers. Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn said officers returned fire. A bystander was struck by the suspect, Quinn said. Quinn said the motorcade of Vice-President J.D. Vance transited through the area not long before the shooting ...

In global discourse, a script has been handed to us: the United States and China are locked in a tech race. But this is really a misnomer. True competition requires a level playing field. When one runner trips the other to ensure victory, its not a competition; its cheating. So, when Washington deploys an arsenal of sanctions, export controls and diplomatic ...

Chinas top diplomat on the US-Mexico border denounced protectionism as a dead end at the weekend, delivering a pointed defence of open trade just weeks before Mexico, the United States and Canada sit down to review the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) that governs North American commerce. Consul General Fu Xinrong told a business gathering in ...

Russia has ordered a two-day ceasefire in the war against Ukraine to coincide with Victory Day, which marks the anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War 2. The Russian Ministry of Defence announced on Monday that this would apply on May 8 and 9, following an order from President Vladimir Putin, adding that Moscow expects the Ukrainian side to ...

Britney Spears on Monday admitted to reckless driving involving alcohol, in a plea deal that means she will avoid jail. The Toxic singer was arrested in March after police spotted her driving erratically on a freeway in Ventura County, near Los Angeles. She was initially charged with DUI driving under the influence but under the plea deal confirmed on ...

Chinese filmmaker Chloe Zhao, whose films from Nomadland to Hamnet have become awards-season favourites, will join the jury for the Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off next week, organisers announced on Monday. The film extravaganza on the French Riviera, one of the worlds most important annual cinema events, hands out a host of prizes, including the ...

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday pressed China to ramp up diplomatic pressure on Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz even as he stressed that the US has absolute control over the strategic waterway. Lets see [China] step up with some diplomacy and get the Iranians to open the strait, Bessent said in a Fox News interview. Iran is the largest state ...

The China Eastern Airlines plane that crashed into a hillside in 2022, killing all 132 people on board, had its fuel supply cut mid-flight, newly released investigative material shows, which bolsters the theory that the aircraft was intentionally brought down. While China still has yet to release a final report on the accident, findings released by the US ...

Two people were killed and two severely injured when a car ran into a crowd in the centre of the eastern German city of Leipzig on Monday, local broadcaster MDR reported, citing police. A suspect has been arrested. A car hit several people on Grimmaische street and fled the scene, police said in a post on social media. The driver has been arrested and no ...

Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov will visit Hong Kong two days after a 200-strong delegation from the Central Asian country arrived in the city via a charter flight on Monday to explore collaboration opportunities. It was understood that a high-level Hong Kong delegation will also visit Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan soon. Commissioner for Belt and Road ...

A German woman convicted of keeping her young daughter locked up at home for years was sentenced to five years in prison on Monday. The woman, who had kept her daughter confined to the home of the girls grandparents, was found guilty of kidnapping, abduction of a minor and mistreatment of a vulnerable person, according to a court spokeswoman. The ...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis ruling Hindu nationalist party on Monday wrested control of the state of West Bengal, an opposition stronghold, in a key election. The Election Commission of India released partial results showing the Bharatiya Janata Party won at least 124 seats in the 294-member West Bengal assembly, and was leading in 83 others. Final ...

The Supreme Court on Monday restored broad access to the abortion pill mifepristone, blocking a ruling that had threatened to upend one of the main ways abortion is provided across the nation. The order signed by Justice Samuel Alito temporarily allows women seeking abortions to obtain the pill at pharmacies or through the mail, without an in-person visit ...