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US President Donald Trump said Sunday he was ordering new tariffs on all films made outside the United States, claiming Hollywood was being “devastated” by a trend of US filmmakers and studios working abroad. The announcement comes as the White House is coming under mounting criticism over its aggressive trade policies that have seen Trump […]

Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Russia on May 7-10 and join his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at commemorations of the Allied victory against Nazi Germany, the Kremlin said on Sunday. The visit coincides with heightened tensions between Beijing and Washington over swingeing US trade tariffs and Putin’s order for a three-day truce in Ukraine, […]

For almost three decades, Hong Kong environmentalist Jenny Quinton has planted tens of thousands of trees on Lantau Island, where montane forests are surrounded by waters that are home to rich marine life, including the uniquely pink Chinese white dolphins. Lantau, Hong Kong’s largest island, is vibrant with wildlife and vegetation. It is also where […]

By Peter Stebbings with Sam Davies in Beijing In 2015 a teenage Zhao Xintong told a documentary that he wanted to be like trailblazer Ding Junhui. Now 28, Zhao is on the cusp of becoming China’s first snooker world champion — and if he does would surpass his compatriot. Zhao demolished seven-time world champion Ronnie […]

China on Saturday denied it required companies to hand over data after TikTok was hit with a massive fine in the European Union for its handling of personal data. The social media giant was told to pay 530 million euros (US$600 million) on Friday for transferring user data from Europe to China and failing to […]

In a laboratory of the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), Professor Juha Merilä put on a pair of rubber gloves, took some brown envelopes out of a refrigerator, and placed them on a tray. From each envelope, he carefully extracted a plastic bag, each containing a deceased bird.  “This […]

The United States on Friday ended a tariff exemption for goods shipped from China worth less than US$800, dealing a major blow to popular e-commerce sites such as Shein and Temu, whose cheap items consumers have come to rely on. The decision was announced last month, with the White House calling it a “critical step […]

What is it about the Hong Kong government and luxury yachts? This used to be a non-topic. An occasional superyacht (no agreed definition, but generally over 24 metres long and with a crew of at least eight) would arrive and tie up at Ocean Terminal for a while. Well-off local residents owned less super yachts […]

Radio Free Asia said Friday it will lay off almost all of its staff and close production in several languages, including a rare Uyghur service, after President Donald Trump cut off funding. Radio Free Asia — created by the United States with a mission to deliver news in countries without free media — said it […]

The father of self-exiled Hong Kong activist Anna Kwok has been detained pending trial for allegedly attempting to handle the financial assets of an “absconder.” Kwok Yin-sang, 68, was brought to the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on Friday afternoon to face one count of “attempting to deal with, directly or indirectly, any funds or other […]

Dear readers, “As the situation keeps deteriorating in Hong Kong, we cannot forget about those who, despite the pressure, continue the almost-impossible work of covering stories from within the city.” Aleksandra Bielakowska⁩ of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) paid tribute to local journalists on Friday after Hong Kong received its lowest-ever press freedom score in the […]

By Peter Murphy with Clement Zampa in London TikTok was hit with a massive EU fine of 530 million euros (US$600 million) Friday, accused of sending personal data of Europeans to China and failing to guarantee it was shielded from access by Chinese authorities. TikTok, which is also in the crosshairs of the United States, […]

Hong Kong has tumbled five places in the annual Reporters Without Borders Press (RSF) Freedom Index, entering the “red zone” – meaning a “very serious” situation – for the first time, alongside China. The city fell five places to 140th place, sandwiched between Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan. China fell six places to 178th place – […]

Former Hong Kong opposition lawmaker Claudia Mo has made her first public comment about her “prison experience,” days after she was released from jail. “My prison experience… Prison life was surreal, almost Kafka-esque to start with,” Mo wrote in a Facebook post on Friday. “But I didn’t suffer the two major incarceration traumas, loneliness and […]

Hong Kong’s League of Social Democrats (LSD) held a four-person rally outside the government headquarters on Labour Day, calling for the city’s working class to be afforded “dignity” amid economic uncertainties. “Our banners did not contain any large letters stating ‘Against Importing Labour’ or any other specific demands. That is because living with dignity sums […]

Hong Kong has raised its statutory minimum wage to HK$42.10, coinciding with the official end of a controversial arrangement that allowed firms to dip into pension funds for severance payments. The 5.3 per cent increase from HK$40 in hourly base pay took effect on Thursday, when Hong Kong marked the annual International Labour Day. Labour […]

By Matthew Walsh China said Friday it is evaluating a US offer for negotiations on tariffs but insisted Washington must be ready to scrap levies that have roiled global markets and supply chains before talks can begin. Punishing US tariffs that have reached 145 percent on many Chinese products came into force in April while […]

Twenty-one passengers were injured when a Citybus airport bus smashed into a road divider on Thursday in Cheung Sha Wan. Twelve women and nine men aged between 10 and 72 suffered minor injuries, police told HKFP on Friday. They were taken to Kwong Wah Hospital, Princess Margaret Hospital and Caritas Medical Centre – all were […]

China has lifted sanctions against five European Union parliament members that were imposed in a showdown over the treatment of Uyghur Muslims, the assembly said Wednesday. An EU parliament statement hailed the move as “a step in restoring parliamentary dialogue with China” but warned that it would remain vigilant on human rights questions. China and […]

In the 58th month since the Beijing-imposed national security law took effect in Hong Kong, the first batch of prominent democrats were released from prison after serving their jail terms following the city’s largest national security trial. Deviating from usual practice, the four democrats did not walk out of prison but left in private vehicles […]

A year ago Zhang Chundong helped the firm he manages expand into Vietnam, part of a wave of Chinese businesses to choose the booming manufacturing hub since the trade war of US President Donald Trump’s first term. Now the company — a distributor of forklifts made by China’s BYD — is struggling to achieve the […]

A Chinese national was arrested while operating a surveillance device near the offices of the Philippine election commission, authorities said Wednesday, less than two weeks before the country’s mid-term polls. The man was allegedly using an “IMSI catcher”, a device capable of mimicking a cell tower and snatching messages from the air in a one-to-three-kilometre […]

Hong Kong lawmakers have approved the 2025 Budget bill, which includes total government expenditure of HK$822.3 billion. The 2025 Appropriation Bill was passed on Wednesday after its third reading in the Legislative Council (LegCo). Financial Secretary Paul Chan told lawmakers that Hong Kong recorded a HK$80.3 billion deficit in the previous fiscal year, which was […]

Hong Kong police have arrested 99 people, aged between 13 and 74, following a citywide crackdown on drug trafficking over the past month. “The arrested persons included 74 men and 25 women,” Senior Inspector Ho Ho-ting of the police force’s narcotics bureau said in Cantonese during a press conference on Tuesday. “Among the 99 arrested, […]