The deaths of 72 captive tigers at a private park popular with tourists in northern Thailand have renewed scrutiny of a lucrative industry that campaigners warn treats wild animals as “entertainment”. The outbreak at Tiger Kingdom in Chiang Mai b...

China’s Lunar New Year box office slid to its weakest level since 2020, weighed down by the absence of major breakout films, despite the country leading global single-market takings so far this year. Cinemas generated 5.75 billion yuan (US$831 mill...

Hong Kong labour authorities are investigating the cause of a fatal industrial accident involving a worker who fell to his death from the third floor of a food factory while setting up scaffolding. The force received a report on Tuesday at around 1.3...

France’s feud with the US ambassador to Paris took another turn on Tuesday with the French foreign minister saying the top US diplomat in France must explain himself after ignoring a French summons. The minister suggested that Ambassador Charles Ku...

India and Brazil are stepping up efforts to boost trade cooperation among developing economies and regional blocs as a hedge against mounting global trade uncertainty, after signing agreements in New Delhi ranging from rare earths to digital infrastr...

Three men remain unconscious after a crush at one of Japan’s best-known traditional festivals, casting a shadow over a 500-year-old rite that draws thousands of nearly naked participants each winter. The incident occurred shortly after 10pm on Satu...

In the early days of 2026, there has been an unexpected turn in China’s global relations. Some US allies have started reaching out to China just as China faced complications in ties with some friendly countries in the Global South. The underlying c...

A constitutional battle for control over Malaysian Borneo’s energy wealth has moved to the country’s highest court, delivering a fresh test of whether Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim can hold together a ruling coalition of disparate interests. The s...

A Hong Kong court has convicted 13 parents and a merchant who offered HK$20,000 to HK$200,000 (US$2,600 to US$25,600) to bribe a kindergarten administrator at the city’s biggest international school group in exchange for enrolments. Deputy District...

Hong Kong’s MTR Corporation will begin operating its long-awaited new signalling system on the Tsuen Wan line on March 15, marking a critical milestone in a major infrastructure overhaul designed to enhance the reliability of the city’s ageing ra...

Human rights cannot be used to “whitewash hegemony”, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a UN meeting, warning against any single country acting as a “human rights teacher”. Wang delivered his remarks via video link to a high-level meeti...

Thailand led the list of destinations for Chinese tourists travelling overseas during this year’s extended Lunar New Year holiday, as former favourite Japan saw arrivals plummet amid a political dispute with China over Taiwan. The Southeast Asian n...

A scenic spot in northern China has ignited controversy by featuring live horses in a carousel ride, where six horses are secured to a rotating iron frame, raising significant concerns regarding animal welfare and public safety. The tourist attractio...

Hong Kong should increase funding for university research to position itself as a global education hub, a leading academic has said, citing a growing trend of students choosing Asian destinations for tertiary studies. Professor Dennis Lo Yuk-ming, pr...

Japanese trade minister Ryosei Akazawa warned against any tariff moves that could leave the country worse off than under a Japan-US trade deal agreed to last year, during a phone call with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as a new round of US tar...

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer issued a statement on President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a new levy after the Supreme Court struck down “reciprocal” and fentanyl tariffs imposed last year. The 15 per cent global tariff takes eff...

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, unleashing the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. As the conflict reaches its four-year mark, here’s a look at the state of the conflict and some of the consequences ...

The 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of Sabah early Monday morning is the strongest to hit Malaysia in over a decade. Malaysian Meteorological Depart­ment Director General Mohd Hisham Mohd Anip said that based on the department’s...

When Brazilian K-pop fan Tami spotted a social media post last month selling a rare Polaroid photo signed by ZeroBaseOne member Zhang Hao, she jumped at the opportunity. The seller identified himself as a South Korean named Park Chae-ah, according to...

Zhu Ziqiang, one of the world’s leading experts in electric motor engineering, has left his four-decade career in Britain to take up a full-time position at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. In his new role as chair professor of electrical machines...

Hong Kong’s conservation authorities have defended their handling of heavy visitor flows to Sai Kung’s country parks over the Lunar New Year holiday, saying crowd levels at the popular spots stayed under control despite concerns about overcrowdin...

US President Donald Trump has pushed back on reports that the Pentagon was concerned that an extended military campaign against Iran could prove difficult, even as he insisted his preference was still to strike a diplomatic deal. “Everything that h...

Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison has condemned the uninvited takeover of its Panama ports by the country’s authorities, calling it unlawful and the “culmination of a campaign” against its subsidiary that operated the terminals. The conglomerate, led ...

Standard Chartered Bank, one of Hong Kong’s three note-issuing banks, reported a 16 per cent profit jump for 2025, as strong wealth management growth helped it weather rising bad debt from the city’s commercial real estate slump. The London-based...

We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. South Korea’s ex-...

A girlfriend of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, the powerful leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel who was killed by the Mexican military, was key to finding him in Tapalpa, a picturesque village of holiday homes in western Mexico. The 59-year-old ...

China will accelerate investment in alternative nickel supply sources and strengthen its role across the metal’s wider supply chain, analysts said, after the United States finalised a deal with Indonesia on Thursday that will give America unrestric...

Action will be taken against any Singaporean who fights overseas for foreign causes, Coordinating Minister for National Security K Shanmugam has said, emphasising the importance of racial and religious harmony in maintaining peace in Singapore. He al...

South Korea’s former president Yoon Suk-yeol has filed an appeal against his life sentence for insurrection stemming from his 2024 martial law declaration, his lawyers said on Tuesday. The Seoul Central District Court on Thursday found Yoon guilty ...

For his family’s first overseas trip together, Tang Junjie carefully planned a holiday to Japan during China’s longest Lunar New Year break on record. Flights were booked months in advance by the 22-year-old from Sichuan province, who had already...

Malaysian tour guide Syazni Nabilah Che Kamarudin and her family have immersed themselves in this year’s Lunar New Year festivities, handing out red packets and dressing up in traditional Chinese attire. “This year is especially meaningful for me...

China has added 20 Japanese entities to its export control list and 20 more to a watch list scrutinising the trade of select goods, increasing economic pressure on Tokyo in a move that widens the scope of the countries’ prolonged diplomatic row to ...

South Korea last week protested to the US over a rare stand-off between American and Chinese fighter jets in the Yellow Sea, according to media reports. Analysts said the move signalled Seoul was reluctant to see US forces stationed in South Korea mo...

After being sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for national security offences on February 9, Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying will decide if he wishes to appeal. He may challenge his convictions and/or sentences and has about two weeks to m...

An unidentified assailant detonated an explosive device next to a patrol vehicle in Moscow early Tuesday, killing himself and a police officer, and leaving two other officers injured, officials said. The attack happened minutes after midnight near th...

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been given a promotion in the ruling party structure during a rare party congress, state media reported Tuesday. The Workers’ Party Central Committee on Monday named Kim Yo-jong – previou...

The authorities in Shanghai have arrested a group of self-styled doctors who carried out “bloodletting therapy” claiming it would remove “evil energy” from people. Footage of three people performing the therapy on a man, which was released by...

Hong Kong’s finance chief will unveil new measures in his budget to strengthen the city’s growing intellectual property (IP) economy, focusing on nurturing top-tier talent and helping local tech firms evaluate their patents, the South China Morni...

Every spring, South Korea and the United States stage one of their largest combined military exercises in a show of force that North Korea invariably denounces as a rehearsal for war. This year, Seoul wants to dial them back, wagering that smaller dr...

A day after the Mexican army killed the country’s most powerful drug lord, the picturesque town where it happened was a study in contrasts. Tourist shops in Tapalpa were open Monday, and workers were on the job. But gunshots also rang out, and in t...

Global investment banks are rallying behind a more bullish view of Hong Kong’s housing market, with JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs joining Morgan Stanley in forecasting double-digit price gains after a stronger-than-expected rebound. Morgan Stanl...

As US President Donald Trump prepares for a high-stakes summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing from March 31 to April 2, analysts say recent US policy reversals, including a Supreme Court of the United States ruling striking down broad tari...

Prosecutors portrayed a Utah mother and children’s book author as a money-hungry killer Monday on the first day of a murder trial in her husband’s death, while her defence team urged jurors not to make judgments before hearing her side. Kouri Ric...

The Wassenaar Arrangement has long been seen as a symbol of China’s isolation from the global community. This major international regime controls the export of weapons and advanced technologies, and its 42 member states include nearly all developed...

Authorities in the northern Portuguese city of Porto have discovered the body of a woman believed to have died two years ago in her flat, national media reported on Monday. The remains were found on January 21, according to Correio da Manhã newspape...

African nations have long been asking: who really opens their market, on what terms and how fast? Earlier this month, China provided a clear answer when it stated that starting on May 1, China will apply zero tariffs on imports from 53 African countr...

The United States on Monday accused China of dramatically swelling its nuclear arsenal and doubled down on claims that Beijing had conducted secret nuclear tests, demanding again it be part of any future arms control treaty. Washington said the lapsi...

The British Academy Film Awards and BBC apologised on Monday for a racial slur that was broadcast during Sunday’s show while two stars of the film Sinners were on stage. The Tourette syndrome campaigner who shouted the slur said he was “deeply mo...

The son of US film director Rob Reiner pleaded not guilty to the fatal stabbing of both of his parents when he appeared in a Los Angeles court on Monday. Nick Reiner faces two counts of first-degree murder over the double killing that sent shock wave...

A US judge permanently barred the Justice Department on Monday from releasing a prosecutor’s report on the criminal case accusing US President Donald Trump of unlawfully retaining classified documents following his first term in office. Florida-bas...