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China’s hypersonic weapons can be guided by the stars if GPS fails: report

Guangdong researchers build prototype star sensor after developing a way to accurately predict how starlight bends at extreme speeds.

Before the age of electronic instruments, sailors steered by the North Star. Photo: Shutterstock

Diplomacy

China pitches AI models to Europe. Is it enough to avoid 2-horse race with US?

Policy

New US tariffs face legal challenges as Chinese firms see impact fading: reports

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Health & Environment

Hong Kong rolls out online consent forms for children’s school flu jabs

Digital consent system will be introduced on the eHealth mobile application for the coming school year.

People are urged to get flu shots. Photo: Karma Lo

Science

China says US tried to buy its super magnet that has ‘40% higher’ performance

America’s Brookhaven lab once ‘monopolised’ the specialist technology, but China says it is now ’winning’ in that field.

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The magnets were used to upgrade the Beijing Electron-Positron Collider. Photo: IHEP

Military

China’s latest rocket failure prompts questions about ambitious launch schedule

Long March-7A explodes less than 90 seconds into flight, delaying ChinaSat-4B satellite installation and possibly affecting other programmes.

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A Long March-7A rocket explodes shortly after lifting off from Wenchang, Hainan province, on Monday night. Photo: Social media screenshot

Military

Chinese paratrooper killed in Qinghai exercise as PLA acknowledges casualties

Death of 23-year-old was one of two parachute-related incidents in consecutive months recently made public by the PLA.

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Chinese media say paratrooper Xia Shiyuan, from Huaiyuan county in eastern Anhui province, encountered an emergency shortly after leaving his mid-air aircraft during a scheduled exercise in Golmud, Qinghai province, on May 27. Photo: Weibo/合新闻

Lifestyle

What drives 4 Shaw Prize laureates in pursuit of scientific discovery

In partnership with:The Shaw Prize
Four of this year’s Shaw Prize laureates: (from left) Ken’ichi Nomoto, Stanford Woosley, Camillo De Lellis and Emmanuel Candes.

Politics

Over 8,200 detained as China launches year-long crackdown on organised crime

The campaign targets ‘covert’ crimes that have spread online, from ‘soft violence’ to sexual extortion.

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Chinese police have dismantled more than 1,000 gangs and detained thousands of suspects as part of the country’s latest crime-busting campaign. Photo: Handout

Society

Court rules Evergrande can recover HK$6b debt after ‘fabricated’ claims rejected

Debt stemmed from March 2021, when Evergrande subsidiary State Hero reached agreement to lend HK$5 billion to Yingjia International.

The court dismissed an injunction application filed by Yingjia International Properties to restrain offshore entity State Hero Holdings from presenting a winding-up petition against it. Photo: Warton Li

Southeast Asia

Philippine VP Sara Duterte faces criminal charge over Marcos death threat

She was hit with a ‘grave threats’ charge in an ongoing Senate impeachment trial over an alleged assassination plot against the president.

Sara Duterte-Carpio, Philippine vice-president and daughter of former leader Rodrigo Duterte, speaks during a protest outside the International Criminal Court in The Hague in July. Photo: AP

Policy

China’s central bank eyes global yuan in first solo 5-year plan in over a decade

The strategy signals Beijing’s push to build a ‘strong central bank’ capable of driving its financial powerhouse ambitions, analyst says.

Beijing’s push for yuan internationalisation is seen as crucial to reducing dependence on US dollar-denominated channels. Photo: Getty Images

Big Tech

Meta strikes at China’s open AI lead, betting on potential US curbs

Meta’s renewed push into open-source models aims to attract US businesses wary of the regulatory risks associated with adopting Chinese AI.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg attends the annual Allen and Company Sun Valley Media and Technology Conference at the Sun Valley Resort in Sun Valley, Idaho on July 9, 2026. Photo: Reuters

Wealth

Rich Hongkongers rank travel over real estate in shifting life goals: survey

Immersive travel and early retirement rank above real estate on the priority list of wealthy individuals, according to a new report.

Passengers pose for pictures at Hong Kong International Airport in Chek Lap Kok on May 27. Photo: SCMP/Sam Tsang

Big Tech

Alibaba tests paid AI appetite with US$30 annual assistant subscription

The e-commerce giant launches paid tiers for its office assistant in the Qwen app as costs for artificial intelligence mount.

The e-commerce giant’s Qwen app now offers three membership tiers for the office assistant. Photo: Shutterstock

Europe

Jellyfish force shutdown of 3 reactors at French nuclear power plant

Energy giant EDF halted reactors at the Gravelines plant near Dunkirk after cooling pumps were clogged by a massive influx of marine life.

Jellyfish on the shore near the Gravelines nuclear power plant in northern France. A massive influx of jellyfish into the seawater pumping stations at Gravelines forced EDF to shut down three of its reactors on Monday. Photo: AFP

Politics

‘Islamic Nato’? Why Pakistan’s new defence pact has India on edge

Analysts say the pact could evolve into a broader ideological military bloc that could extend its influence to the Indian Ocean region.

Pakistani people and students hold flags to celebrate the Pakistan-Saudi Arab-Turkish joint defence pact on Monday. Photo: EPA
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chat after signing a joint defence agreement in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Friday. Photo: Turkish Presidential Press Office/Handout via Reuters

United States & Canada

Russia frees ailing ex-US marine after Putin’s ‘goodwill’ pardon

Robert Gilman was released on humanitarian grounds with no prisoner exchange after intervention by the White House.

Former US marine Robert Gilman attending a court hearing in Voronezh, Russia in April. Gilman was released by Russia on humanitarian grounds on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters
Former US marine Robert Gilman attends a court hearing in Voronezh, Russia, in April. He was detained for allegedly kicking a police ‌officer while drunk, according to Russian state media. Photo: Reuters

Europe

Hungary parliament approves Orban-critic judge as president

Former supreme court chief Andras Baka had been fired during ex-leader Orban’s time in power.

Hungary’s newly elected President Andras Baka delivers a speech after taking his oath of office at the parliament in Budapest, Hungary on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters
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US-China relations

US House panel slammed for asking if scholars lost jobs to Chinese hires

Congressional panel seeks complaints from US academics, but critics call its focus on Chinese applicants a ‘disgrace’.

The committee’s appeal comes amid a broader debate in Washington over how Chinese influence can be scrutinised without spilling into discrimination. Photo: AFP
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Law and Crime

Baptist University reviews IT security after ransomware group claims breach

United States & Canada

Russia frees ailing ex-US marine after Putin’s ‘goodwill’ pardon

Society

Court rules Evergrande can recover HK$6b debt after ‘fabricated’ claims rejected

Science

China’s hypersonic weapons can be guided by the stars if GPS fails: report

Africa

South Africa mine dump collapse kills 14 illegal miners

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SCMP SeriesUS at 250

How America’s 250-year China dream became its greatest strategic challenge

Historians trace how US hopes of trade, reform and friendship gave way to rivalry with the power it once sought to transform.

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Did Trump’s tariffs paint the US into an economic corner?

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Politics over progress: how US-China tensions slow scientific advancements

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Open Questions series-
Global experts discuss US-China ties, the Chinese economy and more.

Open Questions | ‘Surprising’ how fast China’s military is closing US gap: analyst Lyle Goldstein

Beijing’s challenge is to resist temptation to build the PLA into a ‘hammer looking for a nail’, former US Naval War College professor says.

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Illustration: Brian Wang

Open Questions | China’s military goal is to stand neck and neck with US: ex-PLA colonel Zhou Bo

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Open Questions | Nobel laureate Simon Johnson on the AI race and China’s ‘over-automation’ risks

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Open Questions | Citic Capital’s Zhang Yichen on the ABCs of China’s markets: IPOs, M&As and AI

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Big Tech

What is delaying Chinese AI giants switching from Nvidia to local chips?

High transition costs are keeping AI developers in China reliant on Nvidia chips, industry sources say.

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Huawei Technologies’ Compute Architecture for Neural Networks requires developers to rewrite and optimise large amounts of code. Photo: Shutterstock

Big Tech

Alibaba tests paid AI appetite with US$30 annual assistant subscription

China EVs

Tesla faces uphill battle against Beijing’s new standards for self-driving cars

China Economy

China’s aviation regulator steps up safety communication with foreign carriers

SCMP Shorts
Philippines floods and landslides kill at least 12 people, with 8 missing
Philippines floods and landslides kill at least 12 people, with 8 missing
Typhoon Dolphin continues to wreak havoc in China’s Zhejiang province
Typhoon Dolphin continues to wreak havoc in China’s Zhejiang province
Former Thai MP arrested after shooting leaves an official dead, another person injured
Former Thai MP arrested after shooting leaves an official dead, another person injured
More than 100 people dead in Colombia after magnitude 7.4 earthquake
More than 100 people dead in Colombia after magnitude 7.4 earthquake
Hong Kong labour group calls for warning system review after record-breaking heat
Hong Kong labour group calls for warning system review after record-breaking heat
SCMP Spotlight

China Economy

In Focus | Why foreign workers are still climbing mountains of paperwork for a job in China

Beijing’s rigid visa points system and strict sponsorship rules frustrate young expats, but most are still undeterred in their job search.

Illustration: Kaliz Lee

China Economy

In Focus | ‘Quiet luxury’: why premium Chinese consumers are embracing home-grown brands

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Military

In Focus | Why China’s military is laser-focused on ‘disruptive’ technologies

20

Military

Why is China’s Communist Party intent on control over the military?

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