8 h. ago WeChat Pay records fourfold rise in mainland tourist taxi payments in Hong Kong

WeChat Pay Hong Kong has recorded a fourfold increase in mainland Chinese tourist payments for taxi services in the city from last year and growing usage among locals and visitors alike, according to parent company Tencent. Vice-President of Tencent Financial Technology Daniel Hong Danyi said on Thursday that the number of transactions from mainland tourists paying for taxi fares through WeChat Pay had seen a fourfold increase year on year. “We saw that previously, many mainland tourists coming...

Economics

19 h. ago China Gets First Private Builder Dollar Bond Offering Since 2023

China Gets First Private Builder Dollar Bond Offering Since 2023  Bloomberg

Politics

20 h. ago China women pay US$14 to relax with charming men who take them on luxury car rides

Young women in southern China are spending 99 yuan (US$14) to relax with fit, handsome men who treat them to luxury car rides after work. According to the mainland media outlet Vista Hydrogen Business, a new trend called “city ride” is gaining traction in cities like Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Xiamen. This service features so-called “man bodhisattvas,” who provide companionship rides in expensive vehicles. These men are often affluent university students who use their families’ luxury cars during...

Economics

30 h. ago Stocks rise as inflation stays cool, Trump offers China trade 'framework'

Stocks rise as inflation stays cool, Trump offers China trade 'framework'  USA Today

Politics

30 h. ago Rice imports, policy inertia put ‘future of Filipino farming’ at risk: report

The Philippines’ rice industry is in danger of being “drowned out by cheap imports”, according to a new report, with experts also warning that prolonged policy inertia could affect the country’s food security. The report, produced by the Integrated Rural Development Foundation, said policy failures and under-investment had pushed the country’s farming industry into its “most vulnerable position in decades”, according to The Manila Times. The Philippines became the world’s top rice importer in...

Events

30 h. ago Stocks little changed Wednesday as inflation stays cool, rate

Stocks little changed Wednesday as inflation stays cool, rate-cut bets rise  USA Today

Politics

31 h. ago Dollar falters as US inflation cools; China deal also in focus

Dollar falters as US inflation cools; China deal also in focus  Reuters

Economics

33 h. ago Debt crunch at NWD stokes downside risk in Hong Kong home prices, S&P says

The liquidity crunch at New World Development (NWD), one of Hong Kong’s biggest developers, is a blemish on the resurgent housing market, threatening to shake confidence among homebuyers and trigger a “downside scenario” in home prices, according to S&P Global Ratings. The developer deferred coupon payments on four series of perpetual bonds after months of speculation about its finances, sending a poor signal to creditors about its default risk. It surprised investors last month by not redeeming...

Economics

34 h. ago Hong Kong Red Cross tightens blood donor rules for recent inmates

The Hong Kong Red Cross has banned anyone who has been locked up for 72 hours or more in the past 12 months from donating blood for a year, citing the risk of infections such as hepatitis C and HIV. The Hong Kong Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service said on Wednesday the guidelines had been revised based on suggestions made by the internationally recognised certification bodies that conducted a review of the centre last year. A spokeswoman for the service, which is operated by the Hospital...

Events

39 h. ago Chinese man, 35, refuses to work or get married, lives in a cave for 4 years

A 35-year-old man in China who believes work and marriage are redundant notions has been living in a cave for four years. Min Hengcai from southwestern China’s Sichuan province calls home the adapted cavern in the town where he was raised. At the end of 2021, he gave up a ride-hailing driving job, which earned him 10,000 yuan (US$1,400) a month in the city, and returned home to live a life of seclusion. Min said he found work meaningless. He had previously worked for 10 hours a day to repay a...

Politics

40 h. ago GoPro rival Insta360 eyes global expansion after strong Shanghai IPO

Insta360, the Chinese action camera maker challenging GoPro, surged 285 per cent in its trading debut on Shanghai’s Star Market after raising 1.9 billion yuan (US$264.5 million) in the city’s largest initial public offering (IPO) in 17 months. Max Richter, who co-founded the company with 34-year-old Chinese entrepreneur Liu Jingkang in 2015, said Insta360 is “committed to expanding [its] global presence and elevating brand influence to boost [its] market share worldwide”. He identified China,...

Politics

41 h. ago Dollar, yuan steady after US, China reach framework deal to ease export curbs

Dollar, yuan steady after US, China reach framework deal to ease export curbs  Reuters

Economics

44 h. ago Dollar holds steady after US, China reach framework deal to ease export curbs

Dollar holds steady after US, China reach framework deal to ease export curbs  Reuters

Economics

46 h. ago Trump's AI czar downplays risk AI chip exports could be smuggled

Trump's AI czar downplays risk AI chip exports could be smuggled  Reuters

Politics

52 h. ago Stocks Rise Amid Trade Talks Before Treasury Sale: Markets Wrap

Stocks Rise Amid Trade Talks Before Treasury Sale: Markets Wrap  Bloomberg

Economics

57 h. ago Hongkongers warned not to download mobile game ‘promoting secessionist agenda’

Hong Kong police have warned residents against downloading a mobile game application advocating Hong Kong and Taiwanese independence or risk breaking national security laws. The force also said on Tuesday that action had been taken under the Beijing-imposed national security law to allow police to require the relevant electronic platforms to remove access to the game Reversed Front: Bonfire, which was developed by ESC Taiwan and released in April. Individuals who downloaded the app could be...

Events

59 h. ago Extravagant Chinese TV host Li Xiang mingles with royalty, spends US$10,000 on food

A popular Chinese television host has sparked fresh online controversy after it was revealed that the sticky rice dumplings she ate during the Dragon Boat Festival cost 1,000 yuan (US$140) each. Li Xiang, 49, who was born in Hunan province, central China, first rose to fame in 1997 as the host of the hit variety show Happy Camp. In the 2000s, she won the Most Popular Host award three times and received the Golden Mic Award, the highest honour for television anchors and hosts in China. As her...

Economics

60 h. ago Labubu becomes bait for China’s Ping An Bank to lure young customers

Hoping the world’s trendiest monster will scare up some new customers, China’s Ping An Bank is rewarding those who open new accounts with a Pop Mart Lababu doll amid fierce competition for young customers among Chinese retail banks. New clients who open a savings account and deposit more than 50,000 yuan (US$6,954) for at least three months could receive a blind box from the first or second series of the Chinese toy retailer’s popular collectibles, according to media reports. Customers who also...

Economics

64 h. ago Megaquake scare in Japan, Philippines boosts air power: 7 Asia highlights

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. Japan on alert as Hokkaido tremors reignite megaquake fears A string of moderate earthquakes off the coast of Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido has reignited concerns among experts and residents about the risk of a catastrophic seismic event – though scientists stress...

Politics

3 d. ago US stocks rise on hopes of trade progress with China. Inflation data ahead.

US stocks rise on hopes of trade progress with China. Inflation data ahead.  USA Today

Politics