Hong Kong’s police chief blamed “fake news” and misinformation for stirring up hatred towards the force on Saturday, while the city’s No 2 official said the government was still weighing its options for curbing the trend, including a law scho...

Hong Kong’s leader has vowed to “boldly push ahead” with patriotic education, which she called an important policy the city has failed to implement even after its return to Chinese rule, to rectify the moral values of the younger generation.Chi...

Organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games have launched a campaign to stop volunteers selling their uniforms through auction sites, in the latest embarrassing glitch to the Games less than two weeks ahead of the opening ceremony.As well as contraven...

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing.Hongkongers have rushed to sign-up for the government’s HK$5,000 (US$644) e-voucher scheme, undeterred by lo...

China has backed an Africa-led mediation process to resolve a dispute between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt over the operation of a massive hydropower dam on the Blue Nile.China’s envoy to the United Nations, Zhang Jun, said Beijing supported efforts f...

China’s process for approving initial public offerings (IPOs) in foreign capital markets will require an additional layer of oversight, as the cyberspace regulator is being formally inserted into the procedures, according to draft rules proposed by...

As Hong Kong businesses eye their slice of the government’s HK$36 billion voucher scheme to encourage spending, the city’s consumer watchdog has warned shoppers to read the fine print before grabbing early-bird offers popping up everywhere.The Co...

Bangladesh authorities have opened an investigation after at least 52 people were killed and 20 injured in a blaze at a juice-making factory, the latest industrial accident in a country with a track record of poor working conditions.The fire started ...

Haiti has asked Washington and the United Nations to send troops to help it secure its ports, airport and other strategic sites after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, a government minister said.“We definitely need assistance and we’v...

At 10am in the morning, Nauman Pasha begins his workday. After putting on his headphones and settling down into his high-backed chair, he flips on the switch on his computer.But instead of meeting his colleagues over Zoom, he starts bantering with hu...

Candidates deemed not patriotic enough to run in coming Hong Kong elections will be informed of the reasons behind their disqualification, the city’s No 2 official has said, pledging to ensure transparency in the mandatory vetting process. Chief S...

Saying goodbye to his only daughter at Hong Kong airport, 80-year-old James Leung* struggled to hold back his tears.The former restaurant manager never expected his 39-year-old daughter to pack up and go to Britain for good, after spending her entire...

South Korea’s push to develop its defensive capabilities saw it successfully test a submarine-launched ballistic missile last weekend, but some Chinese analysts have warned it risks a new arms race in east Asia.Sunday’s launch from an underwater ...

Hong Kong will be well protected against coronavirus variants with a vaccination rate of 80 to 90 per cent, a government adviser on the inoculation drive has said amid rising momentum for the jabs.Professor Lau Yu-lung, chairman of the Scientific Com...

New World Development’s decision this week to compensate owners of the flats it plans to demolish at The Pavilia Farm apartment complex could slash the valuation of the property and reduce the amount of bank loans available to mortgage borrowers.Sl...

Artist and tour guide Louke Spigt makes ends meet by offering tours to some of the millions of foreign visitors who pour into the Dutch capital Amsterdam each year seeking culture, cannabis and excitement.But even she has misgivings about their retur...

In May, when Singapore tightened its measures for four weeks to combat a surge in Covid-19 cases, it cost the government S$800 million (US$591 million) in relief measures. The money helped businesses, including fitness studios, performing arts organi...

Hong Kong’s taxi operators will have more bargaining power to deal with skyrocketing premiums if they fix drivers’ bad habits and slash the number of road accidents, the head of a leading insurance industry body has said.Selina Lau Pui-ling, CEO ...

Imagine, if you will, a neighbourhood watch patrolling cyberspace in the dead of night, searching out ne’er-do-wells lurking in the dead of night.Except, these culprits sneaking around are kids, using an adult’s accounts to play games at night an...

Before Covid-19 hammered the Malaysian economy, Kuala Lumpur native Jeremy Johnson made 7,000 ringgit (US$1,670) a month as the general manager of a coffee company, and even had a car as part of his work benefits.His family of six were firmly entrenc...

“The Legislative Council yesterday passed legislation decriminalising homosexual acts between consenting men aged 21 and above in private, ending an 11-year debate” was the opening line of a story in the Post on July 11, 1991. That means today, J...

Hong Kong has fallen well behind other similarly developed economies in vaccinating vulnerable old people in care homes, a Post check has found.Although identified by the government as a key priority group, too few have received their jabs and offici...

Hi-tech hub Shenzhen in southern China is reviewing legislation to support the development of its new economy and the use of digital technology in the city.That includes a new law on data use that will take effect in January after it was adopted last...

Decades after burnishing his reputation as a wealthy daredevil mogul in a series of boating and hot-air balloon expeditions, Richard Branson is poised to promote his burgeoning astro-tourism venture by launching himself to the final frontier.Branson�...

Beijing welcomes the clarity provided by the White House’s statement that US support for Taiwan does not extend to independence, Chinese analysts say, but tension is likely to remain high over the growing closeness between Washington and Taipei.Kur...

Chinese regulators blacklisted 25 more apps associated with the ride-hailing platform Didi Chuxing on Friday, the latest blow to the company as it reckons with a government crackdown at home and litigation overseas.App stores in China, where some 90 ...

Huawei Technologies Co. executive Meng Wanzhou has suffered a major blow in her battle against extradition to face fraud charges in the United States, after a Canadian judge ruled on Friday that a trove of documents provided by HSBC bank could not be...

Over the past two years, social unrest and the Covid-19 pandemic have caused interruptions to in-person teaching and learning in Hong Kong.While these disruptions have created opportunities for the development of education technology and innovation i...

Japan is famous for running on consensus. But the decision to proceed with the pandemic-postponed Tokyo Olympics has shredded it.On one side, the Japanese public face concerns about the coronavirus at a time when only 16 per cent are fully vaccinated...

China wants American firms to invest more in its old industrial base of Jilin province, which borders both Russia and North Korea, to help rejuvenate the state-dominated region amid growing tensions between Beijing and Washington.Dozens of corporate ...

Sydneysiders are braced for a longer and tighter lockdown after Australia’s biggest city recorded 50 new daily cases on Saturday.“Things are going to get worse before they get better,” New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian said at a ...

As the UK government finalises plans for the forthcoming COP26 climate summit, World Population Day tomorrow will underline how much demographic issues have risen up the political radar in recent years, especially on the sustainability front.In part,...

Election chiefs in Macau have taken the unprecedented step of disqualifying 21 opposition figures from the coming legislative elections for failing to pledge allegiance to the city and its mini-constitution.Tong Hio-fong, president of the Electoral A...

Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger called for serious dialogue between China and the United States to avoid “catastrophe”, during a Beijing event celebrating his historic trip to China 50 years ago.The 98-year-old again warned against f...

One question rippled through the queue outside a makeshift inoculation centre in Rio de Janeiro’s beachside neighbourhood of Copacabana on a recent morning: “Which vaccine are they using?”Despite the world’s second-highest death toll and infe...

The demonisation of China has gained momentum in the American body politic. Not a day goes by without some major figure warning about the China threat. In April, a 281-page bill entitled “Strategic Competition Act of 2021” was tabled in the US Co...

The Biden administration added another 23 Chinese companies to its trade blacklist on Friday – 14 over their role in suspected human rights abuses in the country’s far-west Xinjiang region, five for their ties to China’s military, and another f...

Hong Kong restaurants will have to provide more eco-friendly tableware and customers may need to bring their own containers for takeaway meals under a government proposal to eventually ban disposable plastic items.The plan, which was released on Fri...

From London to Tokyo to Sydney, the speed and intensity of the Covid-19 Delta variant’s spread has magnified the immense challenge of returning to a semblance of normal life, even with vaccinations and containment efforts.The spread of the highly t...

Taliban officials said on Friday the Sunni Muslim insurgent group had taken control of 85 per cent of territory in Afghanistan, and its fighters were tightening their grip on strategic areas.Government officials dismissed the assertion by a Taliban d...

Two members of the US Senate’s influential banking committee have called on the US Securities and Exchange Commission to conduct an inquiry into Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing over its US$4.4 billion initial public offering last week.Senat...

Travel via the Tai Lam Tunnel, a transport link between Ting Kau and Yuen Long in Hong Kong’s western New Territories, is set to become more expensive, after its operator announced on Friday tolls would be increased by up to 9 per cent from July 18...

China has signalled it has no plans to lower its guard against Covid-19 as the threat posed by the highly transmissible Delta variant increases.Li Bin, vice-minister of the National Health Commission, said authorities would continue to focus on preve...

China overtook Germany to become the world’s top exporter in the machinery and equipment sector last year, according to an industrial association.Machinery exports from China reached €165 billion, (US$195 billion) around 15.8 per cent of the tota...

The joy has gone for French decathlete Kevin Mayer, while Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has pulled out because of the lack of buzz.Athletes set to compete at the Tokyo Olympics are struggling to hide their disappointment at spectators being ban...

Hong Kong’s largest opposition party has urged the city’s leader to clarify how authorities will proceed with disqualifying district councillors after more than 100 politicians from the camp quit amid reports unseated ones would have to return HK...

A British police officer on Friday admitted murdering Sarah Everard whose killing sparked anger and soul-searching across the country about what police, government and society can do to stop male violence against women.Wayne Couzens, 48, a London off...

Hong Kong television star Mat Yeung Ming should not have been allowed to reverse his guilty plea for careless driving and illegal window tinting, according to prosecutors, who also want to overturn his acquittal on a separate charge.Acting deputy dir...

China is holding military drills in the Yellow Sea off its east coast for the next five days, according to a notice put out by the maritime safety authority and the People’s Liberation Army.A no-go zone has been declared from Friday to Tuesday in a...

Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged China and Europe to restore their damaged bilateral ties during talks with EU diplomatic chief Josep Borrell, as the two sides continue a dispute over Beijing’s policies in Xinjiang and Hong Kong.The online meeting be...