Europe wants a new Plaza Accord for China – seriously?
Alex Lo has been an SCMP columnist since 2012, covering major issues affecting Hong Kong and the rest of China.
Leaders of the G7 rich nations might have gone into this month’s summit in France hoping for a united front against China. But, overshadowed by the conflicts in Iran and Ukraine and alienated by a mercurial US President Donald Trump, the lacklustre gathering came up short.
There was no public agreement on how
When geography is destiny, Gulf states must diversify their defence, expert says in Dalian
The Gulf states should prioritise diverse defences and domestic capability-building to hedge against uncertain US commitments and volatility in the Middle East, according to an expert at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Dalian in northeastern China this week.
Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House, said on Wednesday that regional governments remained deeply reliant on the United States for security but were increasingly uneasy about Washington’s
Hong Kong, mainland police smash HK$16.8 million cross-border phishing syndicate
Hong Kong police and mainland authorities have smashed a cross-border phishing syndicate that swindled victims out of HK$16.8 million (US$2.14 million) by impersonating the Water Supplies Department, resulting in 15 arrests between March and June.
The joint enforcement action, code-named Operation Boldhawk, targeted a criminal chain that sent malicious text messages to residents in the city, Superintendent Hui Yee-wai of the police cyber security and technology crime bureau said on Friday.
“This precisely reflects
China Eastern buys 25 A330neo widebody jets as domestic interest rises in Airbus’ wings
Multibillion-dollar deal marks first Chinese widebody win for the planemaker since 2025, following high-level visits from Paris and Berlin
1 -MIN READ 1 -MIN
China Eastern Airlines has ordered 25 A330neo widebody jets from Airbus, marking the planemaker’s first major long-haul order from a Chinese carrier since last year, as the nation continues to favour the European manufacturer.
The list price of the
European hospitals overwhelmed by heatwave, more misery to come
A deadly European heatwave that has saturated hospitals as temperatures soared to record highs was shifting east on Friday, with authorities warning of more misery on a continent not used to stretches of punishing heat.
At least 101 million Europeans have roasted for several days in temperatures of over 35 degrees Celsius, with an estimated few hundred people, including children, thought to have died as a result, many drowning as they sought respite from the inferno.
Scientists said in a study released on Friday that climate change was responsible for
Hong Kong bookshop owners bailed after arrests on suspicion of sedition
The owners of an independent Hong Kong bookshop have been released on bail two days after being arrested by national security police on suspicion of sedition and money laundering, the South China Morning Post has learned.
A source familiar with the matter said the two owners of Hunter Bookstore – former district councillor for the now-disbanded Civic Party, Leticia Wong Man‑huen, 33, and a 32-year-old local man – were released from Sham Shui Po police station at about 4.45pm on Friday
Asia’s ‘dangerous’ humid heatwaves push human body to its limits
Southeast Asia is among the most vulnerable regions grappling with growing risks from heatwaves and high humidity, while the period of extreme weather has more than doubled globally over the past five decades.
The duration of extreme weather has increased worldwide to an average of 23 days per year from 10 in the 1970s, according to a report by non-profit news organisation Climate Central.
Parts of Southeast Asia, South America and coastal West Africa are among the regions that now experience at least six months of “
Hong Kong court places baby Danny in Social Welfare Department care for 3 years
A Hong Kong court has granted the guardianship of home-born baby Danny to social welfare authorities for three years after his parents were earlier arrested for alleged child neglect.
Danny’s father, Tsang Wai-bong, revealed on Friday that their two-month-old son would be under the Social Welfare Department’s care after the Juvenile Court granted the authorities’ application for a protection order at a closed-door hearing.
Tsang and his partner Kwan Pui-sin, who previously failed to register Danny’s
Chinese translation of Tokyo war trial records fill ‘critical gap’: state media
For the first time, the complete court records from the Tokyo Trial have been published in Chinese, offering the public in China a detailed look at Japanese war crimes, according to state media.
The translation, which spans 40 volumes, took a team of hundreds more than a decade to produce. It filled “a critical gap in domestic historical records”, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday.
The International Military Tribunal for the Far