1 hour ago China backs Three Gorges megaproject, hot on heels of giant Tibet dam

China’s top economic planner has flagged a megaproject to expand shipping capacity on the Three Gorges, slated to span the coming five-year plan, while also calling for greater investment to drive strategic initiatives. In a report submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on Wednesday, Zheng Shanjie, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), underscored the need to push major infrastructure projects such as the new shipping channel on the...

Politics

2 h. ago Britain fires Mandelson as US ambassador over links to Jeffrey Epstein

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer sacked his ambassador in Washington Peter Mandelson on Thursday following fresh revelations about the diplomat’s friendship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Dubbed the “Prince of Darkness” during his years as a media spin doctor, Mandelson was twice forced to resign from Tony Blair’s Labour government in the late 1990s and early 2000s over allegations of misconduct. In a statement, the foreign ministry said the prime minister had asked Foreign...

Politics

2 h. ago Hong Kong lawmakers pass controversial tobacco control bill to cut smoking rate

Hong Kong lawmakers have passed a controversial tobacco control bill that aims to further lower the city’s smoking rate, with a minister saying the proposed measures have already considered a variety of opinions. The Tobacco Control Legislation (Amendment) Bill was passed on Thursday after the second and third readings, following a last-ditch effort by two lawmakers to delay and amend the government-proposed measures earlier this week. Among the 83 lawmakers who attended the meeting, 74...

Politics

3 h. ago Malaysia calls on China to push C919 jet globally as AirAsia circles deal

Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke has called on the Chinese state-owned maker of the C919 passenger jet to set its sights on the global market and be more aggressive in boosting its international standing, as AirAsia nears a deal to become its first foreign buyer. Loke made the comments on Wednesday while speaking at a Malaysian Chamber of Commerce Hong Kong and Macau (Maycham) event, where he outlined a series of updates on his country’s transport industry – from air travel to...

Politics

3 h. ago China's teapot refiners face fresh test from crackdown on tax evasion

China's teapot refiners face fresh test from crackdown on tax evasion  Reuters

Politics

3 h. ago Foreign Tier 1 ADAS Suppliers in China Industry Research Report 2025 | Strengthening Local Research, Partnering with Chinese Firms, and Integrating Domestic ADAS Innovations Define Core Entry Paths

Foreign Tier 1 ADAS Suppliers in China Industry Research Report 2025 | Strengthening Local Research, Partnering with Chinese Firms, and Integrating Domestic ADAS Innovations Define Core Entry Paths  Yahoo Finance

Economics

3 h. ago China will implement policies to stabilise foreign trade, vice commerce minister says

China will implement policies to stabilise foreign trade, vice commerce minister says  Reuters

Politics

4 h. ago ‘Not desperate’: why India remains firm on US tariff talks as it seeks a deal

India is keen on tariff talks with the United States, but it is expected to stand its ground even as their bilateral relations sour on issues ranging from trade to foreign policy. In the face of the 50 per cent tariff imposed on Indian goods, Delhi is neither “desperate nor cornered”, according to analysts. Signalling a hardening of America’s position on the tariff issue, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Friday that he expected New Delhi to say “sorry” and cut a deal with...

Economics

6 h. ago Charlie Kirk boasted about Trump’s win in Seoul, told Japan to fight globalism

In the week before his fatal shooting, right-wing US political activist Charlie Kirk cheered the boom of conservative young men in South Korea and warned about a “globalist menace” in Tokyo on his first speaking tour of Asia. Kirk, 31, who helped amplify Republican President Donald Trump’s agenda to young voters with often inflammatory rhetoric focused on issues such as gender and immigration, was shot in the neck on Wednesday at a speaking event at a Utah university. In Seoul on Friday, he...

Politics

6 h. ago Philippines protests China’s plan for nature reserve at hotly disputed shoal

Philippines protests China’s plan for nature reserve at hotly disputed shoal  The Hindu

Events

9 h. ago Russian tourists to make over 2 million trips to China in 2025

Russian tourists to make over 2 million trips to China in 2025  chinadailyasia.com

Politics

10 h. ago China Drugmaker Stocks Drop on Report of Potential Trump Curbs

China Drugmaker Stocks Drop on Report of Potential Trump Curbs  Bloomberg.com

Politics

12 h. ago China eyes C919 jet breakthrough as Malaysian airline in talks to buy aircraft

Malaysian low-cost airline AirAsia has shown strong interest in acquiring the Chinese C919 passenger jet, its executive said, as part of its strategy to tap into Southeast Asia’s 700 million-strong population and capitalise on growing China-Asean business ties. “We’re in active discussions to buy the C919,” Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A – an investment holding company of AirAsia – told the Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong on Wednesday. “We’re the first foreign airline to be working with...

Politics

12 h. ago AirAsia eyes deal for C919 passenger jet, in bid to tap China

Malaysian low-cost airline AirAsia has shown strong interest in acquiring the Chinese C919 passenger jet, its executive said, as part of its strategy to tap into Southeast Asia’s 700 million-strong population and capitalise on growing China-Asean business ties. “We’re in active discussions to buy the C919,” Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A – an investment holding company of AirAsia – told the Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong on Wednesday. “We’re the first foreign airline to be working with...

Politics

13 h. ago White House adviser calls for US to defend its AI lead against Chinese advances

The White House on Wednesday reiterated its call to defend its artificial intelligence lead against a quickly advancing China by exporting “cohesive AI tech stacks” that integrate not just chips but also algorithms and applications to foreign countries. Michael Kratsios, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, told a Senate subcommittee hearing that the US once commanded a “comfortable” lead in AI over closest competitors, such as China, in 2020, but by 2024 the gap...

Events

15 h. ago China’s Victory Day parade heralds new vision but old wounds linger

Eighty years on, the Global South’s pursuit of a just world order remains overshadowed by the unresolved legacies of the second world war. At China’s Victory Day parade last week, President Xi Jinping warned that the world stands at a crossroads – between peace and war. He urged nations to learn from history to prevent a repeat of the catastrophe that engulfed the world eight decades ago. In the lead-up to the commemoration, concerns intensified over Japan’s perceived lack of genuine remorse for...

Politics

15 h. ago Why Asia still hasn’t emerged from the shadows of World War II

Eighty years on, the Global South’s pursuit of a just world order remains overshadowed by the unresolved legacies of the second world war. At China’s Victory Day parade last week, President Xi Jinping warned that the world stands at a crossroads – between peace and war. He urged nations to learn from history to prevent a repeat of the catastrophe that engulfed the world eight decades ago. In the lead-up to the commemoration, concerns intensified over Japan’s perceived lack of genuine remorse for...

Events

19 h. ago Hong Kong private jet centre aims to fly high after upgrade of terminal

Hong Kong’s only fixed-base operator for private jet support services is betting its newly expanded terminal building will help it cash in on a boom in initial public offerings (IPOs), a surge in mega-events and rising Middle Eastern investment. The Hong Kong Business Aviation Centre (HKBAC) unveiled the upgraded building, part of a HK$500 million (US$64.1 million) expansion plan, at the city’s airport on Wednesday. Transport minister Mable Chan said Hong Kong’s mega-event economy would receive...

Politics

20 h. ago As Chinese imports drop, peak season freight trade bound for U.S. slows to a crawl

As Chinese imports drop, peak season freight trade bound for U.S. slows to a crawl  CNBC

Politics

21 h. ago Bali floods kill 9, affect 600, disrupts travel in Indonesian tourist hotspot

Floods on Indonesia’s holiday island of Bali have killed at least nine this week and affected 600 people, blocking off major roads in the capital and disrupting a busy travel destination, officials said on Wednesday. Continuous heavy rains between Tuesday evening and Wednesday caused the floods and killed five people in Bali’s capital, Denpasar, Abdul Muhari, the spokesman of the country’s disaster mitigation agency, said in a statement. Four more people were killed in the regions of Jembrana,...

Events