Chinese state-owned firms set up semiconductor funds amid calls for ‘patient’ capital

Companies backed by the state and provincial governments in China have announced new funds to focus on the semiconductor industry, which requires a large amount of time and resources to grow, at a time when the country is in need of more “patient capital”.

China Life Insurance, the country’s largest life insurer, backed by the State Council, said it would establish a partnership with total capital of 5 billion yuan (US$737 million) that “principally invests in companies operating in the semiconductor industry”

An employee packages semiconductor power devices for export in Fuzhou, in China’s central Jiangxi province. Photo: Getty Images

Could China’s lunar laser tower bring Nikola Tesla’s free energy dream to life?

Chinese scientists show how wireless electricity may become reality on the moon, with laser network to beam solar energy into dark craters

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The Earth rises over the lunar horizon. China and the United States have stepped up efforts to establish a long-term presence on the moon. Photo: Shutterstock

Legendary inventor Nikola Tesla’s dream of transmitting electricity wirelessly never became a reality on Earth.

But more than a century later, Chinese scientists believe the concept could find its first practical application on the moon .
Their proposal focuses on the moon’s south pole, where crater rims receive

How can Hong Kong age well?

NEW SCMP Hong Kong Series

With Hong Kong’s population rapidly greying, the South China Morning Post’s Health Matters series examines how older adults and the next generation of retirees can meet the challenges of ageing while maintaining health and quality of life.

Updated: 12 Jul, 2026

Elderly pictured in Cheung Sha Wan. Photo: Jelly Tse

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Confronting cancer in Hong Kong

As cancer is the leading cause of death in Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post’s Health Matters wellness series explores how well the city has tackled the disease while offering

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Five Guys to open in Beijing as more US chains hunger for success in China

American burger chain Five Guys will debut its first Beijing store next month, the company said last week, joining a group of US fast-food brands newly entering or accelerating their expansion in China.

Chains including Wendy’s, Chili’s, Texas Chicken and Popeyes are hoping to grab a slice of the world’s second-largest consumer market as they face saturation at home, analysts said.

Five Guys opened its first China outlet in Shanghai in 2021 and drew large crowds. It plans to


‘I’m lonely’: why are 50% of Hong Kong’s elderly socially isolated – and what can help?

In the first of a five-part Health Matters wellness series on ageing in Hong Kong, Fiona Sun examines rising social isolation among the elderly, its serious health risks and how activities and community support are helping seniors stay socially engaged.

Chow Kam-shim, 92, and her husband Lau Moon-wing, 100, still face off against opponents every day on the boccia court at their residential home for the elderly in Hong Kong’s Po Lam.

Focused and steady, the couple send coloured leather

For elderly couple Lau Moon-wing (left) and Chow Kam-shim, mornings often include yum cha with friends. Photo: Edmond So

Brace for heavy rain and squally thunderstorms, Hong Kong Observatory warns

Hong Kong’s observatory has warned of heavy showers and squally thunderstorms over the city in the coming week, but said it remains uncertain whether the low-pressure trough driving the storms will develop into a tropical cyclone.

A spokesman for the Hong Kong Observatory said on Sunday that convective clouds associated with a broad trough of low pressure have been affecting the central South China Sea and are expected to bring heavy rain and thunderstorms to the city on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“Whether the area of low pressure will further develop into a


65 arrested as Hong Kong police raid unlicensed nightclubs, gambling dens

Hong Kong police have arrested 65 people in a crackdown on a criminal syndicate accused of running unlicensed nightclubs and gambling dens, where suspects allegedly served illicit drugs and hired illegal workers as hostesses.

Superintendent Ching Chi-yan said on Sunday that the force’s intelligence indicated a criminal syndicate was running illegal nightclubs inside industrial buildings in Hung Hom, as well as gambling dens in other areas of Kowloon West, prompting the operation.

“Over the past two days, the Kowloon West regional crime headquarters launched a large-scale


Why China’s ethnic unity law marks shift in policy towards assimilation

Ethnic minority delegates leave the Great Hall of the People following asession of the National People’s Congress, China’s top legislative body, in Beijing on March 9. Photo: AP

China’s new law on ethnic unity signals a shift in Beijing’s focus from handling specific ethnic matters to assimilation, according to a party ethnologist.

However, it has triggered concerns from the United States and the European Union about forced assimilation and the potential for “extraterritorial application”.

An article about the law published in the Beijing Daily on Monday sought to clarify the fundamental transition in China’s ethnic policy.

“The enactment of


South Korea under emergency advisory as heatwave days increase

Scientists warn that extreme weather events such as heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense as a result of human-induced climate change

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A woman uses a fan to shelter from the sun on a street in Seoul Sunday. Photo: AFP

South Korea issued its first-ever emergency heatwave alert on Sunday under a new warning system launched this year, advising people to halt outdoor activities and keep cool.

The new warning system was introduced to better deal with a rising number of heatwaves in South Korea, which have become longer


Beijing renews attacks on landmark South China Sea tribunal on ruling’s 10th anniversary

Beijing has denounced a “thoroughly illegal” international tribunal that ruled against its expansive claims in the South China Sea , with a senior diplomat describing it as a “thorn” in the side of its relationship with the Philippines on the 10th anniversary of the decision.

In an article published in People’s Daily on Sunday, Jing Quan, the ambassador to the Philippines, said clearing its “lingering toxic legacy” was a matter of the utmost urgency.

“The most important task for Manila today is to …