Daily Asia briefing

A senior US lawmaker called on Peru’s next government to reclaim the Chinese-controlled port of Chancay, describing the deepwater facility as a direct military threat to the western hemisphere. Congresswoman Maria Elvira...

The Los Angeles Dodgers shattered MLB spending records in 2025 with a $514.6 million total payroll and luxury tax bill, powering their second straight World Series title. Their outlay dwarfed rivals, including a budget m...

Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire starting on Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced, in a move that could ease some of the tension straining Washington’s temporary truce with Tehran. Trump said...

On Saturday morning, an EasyJet flight to Malaga took an unexpected detour as it faced a notable delay due to the aircraft's weight exceeding safety limits for the conditions. In a show of cooperation, five passengers ch...

US President Donald Trump has brokered a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, inviting both leaders to the White House for crucial talks. This move aims to de-escalate regional tensions after months of heightened...

China has assured the United States that it will not supply weapons to Iran during the current ceasefire in the Middle East conflict, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday, as Washington stepped up pressure...

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr said on Thursday night that a key suspect in a corruption scandal that has sparked public outrage in the Philippines has been arrested in the Czech Republic and that efforts were...

Beijing’s point man on Hong Kong affairs has met the city’s No 2 official and finance chief in the capital to discuss alignment with the national 15th five-year plan, as the government prepares to draw up its own inaugur...

The revamp to Hong Kong’s HK$2 (26 US cents) transport fare concession scheme for the elderly and disabled carried a HK$90 million price tag, with the government paying two-thirds, a Legislative Council finance committee...

Hong Kong’s ombudsman has urged the government to empower conservation officers to enter people’s homes to investigate suspected animal cruelty cases, describing existing procedures as “ineffective” with less than 1 per...

The owner of a luxury home at a seaside estate in Hong Kong has been fined HK$110,000 (US$14,039) for building illegal structures and a swimming pool following a government crackdown triggered by a record-breaking rainst...

Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva delivered a blunt critique of US President Donald Trump in an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais published on Thursday, saying world leaders should seek respect rather t...

Times of India World is tracking Economy & Trade developments tied to Trump rails against court decision that once again stalls his White House ballroom project.

Times of India World is tracking Economy & Trade developments tied to Eight killed as gas pipeline explodes in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu has met European Union representatives to discuss opportunities for cooperation, with the chief executive saying both sides highlighted a shared belief in multilateralism amid increasing...

Times of India World is tracking Economy & Trade developments tied to Trump increased H-2B visa quota for his own businesses after 'secret meeting with lobbyists'.

We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump-Xi summ...

Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority has suspended all contractors’ access to patient data after a major leak affecting more than 56,000 patients, and is considering barring the company involved from bidding for future project...

Europe has “maybe 6 weeks or so [of] jet fuel left”, the head of the International Energy Agency said on Thursday in a wide-ranging interview, warning of possible flight cancellations “soon” if oil supplies remain blocke...

Malaysia and Australia pledged on Thursday to keep oil and gas flowing between them as the Iran war’s continuous squeeze on global fuel supplies compels regional countries to deepen energy trade cooperation. Across Asia,...

Beijing residents are once again bracing for a seasonal nuisance that has become something of a tradition: the city’s annual “snowstorm” of willow and poplar catkins. The catkins are essentially seeds from female willow...

A fire at one of Australia’s two operating oil refineries could hit petrol production more than diesel and aviation fuel, authorities said on Thursday, as emergency crews worked overnight to extinguish the blaze. Firefig...

I heard an audible gasp in the audience, just as a gynaecologist on the movie screen tries to shove a speculum – a hollow cylinder used to open up a woman’s cervix – into the lower body of the protagonist. The film’s mai...

Floating hospital Silk Road Ark’s 220-day goodwill humanitarian mission ends with Port Moresby port call

At a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill on Thursday, lawmakers and experts accused China of buying “what they can” and stealing “what they cannot” in the global artificial intelligence (AI) race, while warning the Uni...

Chinese researchers have developed a new diamond-copper material that they say can improve the cooling efficiency of artificial intelligence (AI) data centres by up to 80 per cent. The functional carbon materials team –...

A wave of companies, from the start-up launched by artificial intelligence “godmother” Li Fei-Fei to the largest Chinese tech firms, are racing to introduce their latest approaches to world models – an emerging field aim...

Hong Kong police have arrested five people accused of stealing more than 445 items of clothing worth HK$113,000 (US$14,400) from multiple outlets of Japanese retail chain Muji. Officers from Yau Tsim police district said...

Erika Kirk withdrew from a scheduled event with JD Vance citing threats, but her decision quickly sparked online debate. Candace Owens questioned the reasoning publicly, drawing attention to inconsistencies and fueling w...

The Chinese embassy in Japan has received a series of “terrorist threats”, including an intrusion and a bomb threat, in the past month, a diplomat said on Thursday, describing the incidents as “extremely egregious”. Shi...

Italy's cities feature "umarells," retired men who observe construction sites with hands clasped behind their backs. These "little men," originating from Bolognese dialect, offer unsolicited advice and engage with worker...

A single mother in China who has worked for 16 years carrying heavy bags of cement on construction sites to care for and fund her daughter’s education has moved countless people online. Wei Guiyun, 40, from Qidong County...

Hong Kong’s education minister has said the surge in students diagnosed with mental illness partly reflects parents’ growing acceptance and openness about the issue, while academic pressures, social lives and physical he...

Two renovation subcontractors involved in a HK$336 million (US$42.9 million) project at a subsidised estate ravaged by Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades have conceded they did not regulate workers’ smoking behaviour...

The partial closure of a major landfill site on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali is forcing thousands of residents to instead burn trash in their gardens, sparking widespread environmental and health concerns. Suwun...