3 h. ago GLOBALink | Chinese opera artists present "Carmen" in Saudi Arabia

GLOBALink | Chinese opera artists present "Carmen" in Saudi Arabia  Xinhua

Culture

3 h. ago Japan ‘scary person rental service’ deals with mistresses, debt collection, bullies

A Japanese company has become an online hit for offering a “scary person rental service” to help clients sort out a range of “troubles”. An online user, known in Japan by the handle @yukitichqn, posted screenshots of the service’s web page on social media on August 28. The post has received 300,000 likes and 36,000 reposts. Called a “scary person rental service”, the service rents out menacing-looking members of staff with tattoos, hinting at their potential for violence. The firm promises that...

Economics

9 h. ago T3 typhoon signal to remain in force in Hong Kong for the rest of Sunday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. The Hong Kong Observatory has said the No 3 typhoon signal will remain in force for the rest of Sunday, with a tropical cyclone expected to skirt about 200km (124 miles) southwest of the city on Monday morning. The forecaster issued the No 3 signal at 2.40am on...

Politics

9 h. ago Ferry services suspended as T3 remains in force in Hong Kong for rest of Sunday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Some after-school classes and ferry services have been suspended in Hong Kong after the Observatory issued the No 3 typhoon signal, which it said would remain in force for the rest of Sunday. The forecaster issued the No 3 signal at 2.40am on Sunday, as Tropical Storm...

Politics

9 h. ago Hong Kong to issue T8 signal on Sunday night as Tropical Cyclone Tapah approaches

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong will issue a No 8 typhoon warning signal between 9pm and midnight on Sunday, as Tropical Cyclone Tapah approaches closest to the city the next morning, the Observatory said. The storm is expected to pass within 200km (124 miles) southwest of the city on...

Politics

9 h. ago T8 signal to be issued at 9.20pm as Hong Kong cancels all school classes on Monday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong will issue a No 8 typhoon signal at 9.20pm on Sunday, as Tropical Cyclone Tapah is expected to make landfall over western Guangdong the following morning, the Observatory said, with all schools suspending classes on Monday. “Tapah is expected to skirt within...

Politics

9 h. ago ‘Homestay’ heartache hits China as operators lament lack of business

After four years leasing out private holiday accommodation beside the sea in the west of Guangdong province, a downturn in demand has led Chen Mei to regret getting involved in the industry. “I thought domestic demand would rebound quickly after the [Covid-19] pandemic, but price wars have actually intensified across the industry, squeezing profits year by year,” she said. “I’ve begun scaling back operations. If I could choose again, I wouldn’t have invested in the industry.” Chen’s downbeat...

Events

11 h. ago Trump admin launches immigration crackdown in Massachusetts, reports say

The Trump administration has launched an operation in Massachusetts to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants, The New York Times and Boston media reported on Saturday, quoting the US Department of Homeland Security as saying it was targeting “criminal aliens” living in the state. DHS and its US Immigration and Customs Enforcement arm are calling the operation Patriot 2.0, modifying the name of a May deportation surge that led to the arrest of 1,500 people in the state, according to the...

Politics

12 h. ago Anthropic’s Claude restrictions put overseas AI tools backed by China in limbo

An abrupt decision by American artificial intelligence firm Anthropic to restrict service to Chinese-owned entities anywhere in the world has cast uncertainty over some Claude-dependent overseas tools backed by China’s tech giants. After Anthropic’s notice on Friday that it would upgrade access restrictions to entities “more than 50 per cent owned by companies headquartered in unsupported regions” such as China, regardless of where they are, Chinese users have fretted over whether they could...

Politics

13 h. ago US woman who registered dog to vote in 2 elections charged with 5 felonies

A Californian woman accused of registering her dog to vote and casting two ballots in the dog’s name has been charged with five felonies, authorities said on Friday. Laura Lee Yourex, 62, allegedly registered her dog, Maya Jean Yourex, to vote and cast two mail-in ballots – in the 2021 California gubernatorial recall election of California Governor Gavin Newsom and the 2022 primary election, Orange County District Attorney spokeswoman Kimberly Edds said. The first ballot was counted; the second...

Politics

16 h. ago RFK Jnr’s family members say he’s a threat to Americans’ health

Members of Robert F. Kennedy Jnr’s family are calling for him to step down as health secretary following a contentious congressional hearing this past week, during which the Trump cabinet official faced bipartisan questioning about his tumultuous leadership of federal health agencies. Kennedy’s sister, Kerry Kennedy, and his nephew, Joseph P. Kennedy III, issued scathing statements on Friday, calling for him to resign as head of the Health and Human Services Department. The calls from the...

Events

19 h. ago Mail on hold: 88 postal operators suspend services to US over tariffs

Postal traffic to the United States plunged more than 80 per cent following Washington’s imposition of new tariffs, with 88 operators worldwide fully or partially suspending services, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) said on Saturday. The UPU, the United Nations’ postal cooperation agency, was working on “the rapid development of a new technical solution that would help get mail moving to the United States again”, its director general Masahiko Metoki said in a statement. US President Donald...

Economics

24 h. ago Thailand’s next PM Anutin reaffirms promise to hold fresh election

Thailand’s next prime minister on Saturday pledged to make good on his promise to lead the fractured interim government to new polls. Conservative tycoon Anutin Charnvirakul was confirmed by parliament on Friday, ending a week-long power vacuum following the ousting of his predecessor Paetongtarn Shinawatra. The construction magnate cobbled together a coalition of opposition blocs to shut out Pheu Thai, the electoral vehicle of the once-dominant Shinawatra dynasty’s patriarch Thaksin. Anutin...

Politics

27 h. ago Israel’s army urges Gaza City residents to move to ‘humanitarian zone’

The Israeli military said on Saturday that Palestinians in Gaza City, the enclave’s largest urban area, should leave for the south, warning that the military was operating throughout the city. Israeli forces have been carrying out an offensive on the suburbs of the northern city for weeks after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the military to capture it. Netanyahu says Gaza City is a Hamas stronghold and capturing it is necessary to defeat the Palestinian Islamist militants,...

Politics

28 h. ago India’s Modi hails US ties after Trump’s ‘always be friends’ comments

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday that New Delhi and Washington still shared “very positive” ties after US President Donald Trump reaffirmed their personal friendship and downplayed his earlier remarks about “losing India” to China. The exchange comes amid strains after Washington imposed tariffs of up to 50 per cent on Indian imports, accusing New Delhi of fuelling Moscow’s deadly attacks on Ukraine by purchasing Russian oil. But Trump and Modi, both right-wing populists,...

Politics

31 h. ago Hong Kong tutor centres feel squeeze as mainland Chinese firms eye slice of pie

Two major mainland Chinese tutorial school operators are expanding their Hong Kong footprint, increasing the competition for local counterparts already facing challenges caused by a shrinking student population and a curriculum revamp, the Post has found. The moves by the firms come amid rising demand from mainland students to sit Hong Kong’s university entrance exams, with the surge in interest also prompting local tutorial chains to extend their operations across the border. The number of...

Politics

32 h. ago Hong Kong to assess need for No 3 typhoon warning signal on Sunday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong’s weather forecaster will assess the need to issue the No 3 typhoon warning signal on Sunday, expecting a tropical depression to intensify and enter within 200km (125 miles) of the city next week. The Hong Kong Observatory raised the No 1 signal at 10.20pm...

Events

32 h. ago Hong Kong to issue T3 typhoon warning signal between midnight and 3am

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong’s weather forecaster will issue the No 3 typhoon warning signal between midnight on Saturday and 3am on Sunday, with strong winds expected to affect the vicinity of the Pearl River Delta and enter within 200km (125 miles) of the city next week. A tropical...

Events

32 h. ago Hong Kong to issue T3 typhoon warning signal at 2.40am on Sunday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong’s weather forecaster will issue the No 3 typhoon warning signal at 2.40am on Sunday, with strong winds expected to affect the vicinity of the Pearl River Delta and enter within 200km (125 miles) of the city next week. A tropical cyclone over the northern...

Events

32 h. ago Hong Kong issues T3 typhoon warning signal at 2.40am on Sunday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong’s weather forecaster issued the No 3 typhoon warning signal at 2.40am on Sunday, with strong winds expected to affect the vicinity of the Pearl River Delta and enter within 200km (125 miles) of the city on Monday. A tropical cyclone over the northern part of...

Events