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Lunar New Year

Lunar New Year
Lunar New Year is celebrated across China and in many parts of Asia and the world where Chinese communities can be found. It is often marked by time off work or school and includes family visits, meals together, and games like mahjong.
Liaison office director Zhou Ji (left) with Chief Executive John Lee at the Lunar New Year reception. Photo: Elson Li
Hong Kong politics

Hong Kong urged to focus on economic progress, align with national development

Liaison office chief Zhou Ji also calls on the city to strengthen executive-led governance model.

Artificial intelligence

Chinese AI firms defend safety practices, push back on Western criticism

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Art

The unicorn has been revered for 4,000 years. It still has us under its spell

Artificial intelligence

Compact AI model from China’s StepFun outshines rivals from DeepSeek, Moonshot

StepFun says its lightweight model Step 3.5 Flash aims to redefine efficiency and reasoning in China’s growing AI race.

Chinese AI developers are rushing to launch new models around the Lunar New Year to capitalise on the festive season. Photo: Shutterstock
Hong Kong tourism

Hong Kong set for Lunar New Year tourism bump with 6% rise in mainland visitors

Up to 1.4 million mainland visitors will set foot in city during holiday, according to Travel Industry Council projections.

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Chinese culture

How Rats can appease the tai sui in the Year of the Horse 2026

Rats will clash with the tai sui deity in the Year of the Fire Horse. Fortune-teller Tong Pik-ha reveals how they can improve their fortune.

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Artificial intelligence

Red packet rumble: will Tencent’s cash giveaway work again in crowded AI market?

Analysts say strong competition from ByteDance, DeepSeek, Ant Group and Alibaba may prevent Tencent’s Yuanbao from repeating WeChat glory.

Tencent’s Yuanbao has launched a campaign that gives out cash through digital red packets. Photo: Shutterstock
Food and Drinks

6 new Hong Kong coffee shops to welcome the Lunar New Year in February 2026

From a Korean-style cafe to a Japanese toast joint and new branches of cult favourites, there’s a lot to excite coffee lovers this month.

Artificial intelligence

Alibaba’s Qwen ramps up AI app race with Spring Festival giveaway blitz

Alibaba unveils US$432 million campaign to push mass-market adoption of its AI as rivalry with Tencent, Baidu and ByteDance intensifies.

Artificial intelligence

China’s AI labs race to debut latest models before Lunar New Year

More firms expected to follow Alibaba and Moonshot with model releases, as the festival becomes a key period to establish visibility.

A mobile phone’s screen shows the logo of China’s Zhipu AI in Beijing on January 21, 2026. Photo: AFP
Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Small Hong Kong firms struggling with scaffold net safety costs: contractor

‘Bigger contractors can usually handle the testing process … But for small and medium-sized firms with only one or two projects, it’s much harder,’ representative says.

Hong Kong’s construction watchdog should help small firms procure approved scaffolding nets at a lower cost, a leading contractor has said. Photo: Dickson Lee
Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong tourism minister aims for more than 50 million visitors in 2026

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law optimistic about increase in tourist arrivals over Lunar New Year holiday.

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Video | North vs South: Chinese dumplings for Lunar New Year

Dumplings are essential to most Chinese people during the Lunar New Year, but they have different meanings in the north and south.

China travel

China’s visa-free waivers spark Korean travel boom, underpin tourism revival

Shanghai bookings surge as visitors flock to cosmopolitan streets and affordable dining, with analysts predicting the trend will spread inland.

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A food seller prepares dishes at a restaurant in Shanghai on January 21. Photo: AFP
Chinese culture

How Horses can appease the tai sui in the Year of the Horse 2026

Horses will be at odds with the tai sui deity in the Year of the Fire Horse. Fortune-teller Tong Pik-ha shares how they can avoid bad luck.

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Horses will conflict with the tai sui deity in the coming Year of the Horse 2026, but there are things you can do to stave off bad luck. Photo: Shutterstock
Lessons from China's history

Reflections | How Chinese new year cards went from elites’ greetings to bribery instruments

Wishing someone a happy new year was a highly formal affair among people of status in imperial China and some cards were even collected.

Timepieces

New Year, new watches: 4 dazzling timepieces for the Year of the Horse

Vacheron Constantin, IWC, Longines and Jaeger-LeCoultre debut Chinese New Year-inspired watches associated with vitality, joy and success.

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Food and Drinks

11 new Hong Kong restaurants and bars to try in February 2026

New openings include the new branch of a Korean pizza chain, a Japanese gelato joint, a borsch specialist and two French restaurants.

Hot udon with beef and burdock tempura at Daichi no Udon. The Fukuoka-style noodle restaurant in Tai Kok Tsui is just one of the exciting new openings in Hong Kong in February 2026, which also include an Eastern European comfort-food spot and a special kind of matcha joint. Photo: Daichi no Udon
Style Edit

Style Edit: Saddle up for Lunar New Year with Furla’s Year of the Horse bags

As the lunar cycle turns, the house of Furla’s new bag collection combines auspicious motifs with nearly a century of Italian craftsmanship.

Year of the Horse 2026

15 gifts for Lunar New Year, from fashion and make-up to jewellery and watches

Celine, Bottega Veneta, Chloé, Fendi, Burberry and others are ushering in the Year of the Horse with festive capsules and limited edition pieces.

Chinese culture

Reservations now open for new banknotes for Year of the Horse red packets

HSBC, Standard Chartered and BOC are taking bookings for the new and ‘good as new’ banknote exchange at certain branches from February 3-16.

To celebrate the Year of the Horse 2026, three Hong Kong banks will offer brand-new and “good as new” banknotes for customers to put in red packets, from February 3-16. Participating bank branches will open at 8am for the first three days of the programme. Photo: Getty Images
India

Nipah cases in India raise regional anxiety but experts say escalation unlikely

The virus’s high fatality rate has prompted precautionary measures across Asia, even as analysts say the outbreak remains limited.

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Quarantine doctors monitor thermal screening of passengers from India at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport on Sunday after Thailand increased health checks due to Nipah virus cases in West Bengal. Photo: AP
Hong Kong tourism

Hong Kong Lunar New Year parade to feature Labubu, wishing tree on floats

Tourism Board says procession of 12 floats will feature dozens of performing groups, expects event to draw 100,000 people.

Social media

Video | Sad horse wins over Chinese social media

Factory error of a sad New Year’s horse plushie wins over Chinese social media.

Chinese culture

Is this ‘unlucky’ chocolate mahjong set cultural appropriation?

A Hong Kong-based chocolate company is facing criticism for its Lunar New Year set, which features a winning hand known as ‘13 Orphans’.

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A box of Conspiracy Chocolate’s latest Lunar New Year collection showcases “mahjong tiles” displayed in a winning “13 Orphans” hand. The chocolate set has sparked a cultural appropriation debate over its unlucky symbolism. Photo: Conspiracy Chocolate
Chinese culture

What does AI predict will happen in the fiery Year of the Horse 2026?

With the rise of AI mirroring the Year of the Fire Horse’s restless energy, we ask DeepSeek, Perplexity and Gemini their 2026 predictions.

Alphabet Inc.’s Google debuted an updated version of its artificial intelligence model, Gemini, that executives said represents a “massive jump” in reasoning and coding ability. (Dreamstime/TNS)
Year of the Horse 2026

Saddle up with lucky horse-motif jewellery for the Lunar New Year

Anna Hu, Cece Jewellery, Jade Trau, YSSO, Roxanne First and Lionheart are among the jewellers embracing equestrian motifs.

Hong Kong transport

Hong Kong’s southbound travel scheme is 1 month old. Are people signing up?

Policy launched in late December allows Guangdong drivers to enter Hong Kong’s urban areas under daily quota system.

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