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New Zealand

The latest news, analysis and opinion on New Zealand. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Wellington

Head of State

King Charles III

Head of Government

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon

Australia

TikTok will block under-16s in Australia to comply with ‘upsetting’ new law

Australia’s world-first legislation banning under-16s from social media platforms and websites comes into effect on December 10.

5 Dec 2025 - 5:53PMvideocam

Crime

Swallowed Faberge pendant exits suspect after 6-day wait

5 Dec 2025 - 5:24PM

Crime

Call of duty: New Zealand police wait for evidence after Faberge pendant theft

3 Dec 2025 - 3:46PM

Pacific nations

How sanctioned Russian oil flows freely via a tiny Pacific island nation

Some 20 tankers registered in the microstate allegedly smuggled Russian and Iranian fuel between 2024 and 2025 amid lax oversight.

2 Dec 2025 - 12:50PMvideocam

An oil tanker called the Eagle S (left), which flies under the flag of the Cook Islands, sails in the Gulf of Finland last year. Photo: AFP

Law

Legal Tales | A new test for consent: reforming Hong Kong’s approach to sexual crimes

Efforts to update the city’s sexual offence laws aim to reflect evolving views on consent and improve prosecution outcomes.

28 Nov 2025 - 12:49PM

Electric & new energy vehicles

Chinese EV makers step on gas abroad amid weakening mainland sales

A growing export drive by Chinese EV makers aims to soak up overcapacity and secure better profits as incentives fade.

28 Nov 2025 - 7:30AM

South Korea

Korean mother sentenced to life in prison for New Zealand’s ‘suitcase murders’

Lee Hak-yung killed her son Minu Jo and daughter Yuna Jo, aged six and eight, with an overdose of prescription medication.

26 Nov 2025 - 7:32AMvideocam

Lee Hak-yung looks down during her sentencing to life imprisonment for the murder of her two children at Auckland High Court in New Zealand on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

Australia

Snapchat makes Australian teens verify age as social media ban looms

From December 10, social media platforms in Australia must remove users aged below 16 or face fines, in one of the strictest bans globally.

24 Nov 2025 - 5:27PM

Mainland China

China’s No 3 official Zhao Leji calls for closer New Zealand trade ties

Zhao is in Australia after four-day trip to New Zealand, the first such visits by China’s top lawmaker since 2005.

23 Nov 2025 - 5:02PM

China-New Zealand relations

Top NZ diplomat visiting China for US$337 million ferries contract

Winston Peters says deal with state-owned Guangzhou Shipyard International is ‘significant’ and a boost to economic ties.

19 Nov 2025 - 6:16PM

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters is slated to visit China next week as well as Vietnam and Thailand. Photo: AFP

Australia

Asbestos in play sand forces over 70 school closures in Australia, New Zealand

While respiratory asbestos fibres are unlikely to be released unless the sand is crushed, the risk is still there, Australian watchdog says.

17 Nov 2025 - 11:45AM

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has published a recall notice over children’s play sand that may contain asbestos. Photo: ACCC

Women and gender

China’s LGBTQ community loses key lifeline as Blued, Finka apps vanish

Purge of popular same-sex dating sites from app stores fuels fears about shrinking digital spaces for the country’s LGBTQ community.

16 Nov 2025 - 7:15PMvideocam

Crime

New Zealand woman jailed for 2 years over in-flight indecency, burglary

The court said the in-flight indecency was part of a broader pattern of drug-fuelled offending by Bronte LeLievre over the past year.

14 Nov 2025 - 6:28PMvideocam

SCMP Highlights

How Mongol rule changed China; a clumsy K-drama: 7 Lifestyle highlights

From a Chinese-New Zealander artist’s heritage to a thrilling new Samurai Netflix drama, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.

13 Nov 2025 - 3:15PM

A statue of Kublai Khan, China’s first Mongol emperor, in the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar. The Yuan dynasty brought about big changes in China, but also a big increase in the country’s influence across Eurasia. Photo: AFP

Asean

Opinion | Manila’s biggest challenge as next Asean chair? Staying neutral

The Philippines’ challenge, given its assertive South China Sea policy, is to keep the bloc out of great power politics.

9 Nov 2025 - 9:37PMvideocam

Extreme weather

40 hikers rescued in New Zealand amid out-of-control wildfire

The blaze has already burned through around 4.2 square miles of national park in the country’s central North Island.

9 Nov 2025 - 8:00PM

Chinese culture

New Zealand artist Ant Sang on his Chinese heritage, ‘loyalty’ to Cantonese

New Zealand artist and illustrator Ant Sang is connecting with his Chinese heritage with a Cantonese-phrased Cantotees T-shirt collection.

8 Nov 2025 - 7:31AM

Taiwan

Beijing hits out at New Zealand MPs for attending ‘unacceptable’ Taiwan reception

Embassy complains the event breached the one-China policy, but Foreign Minister Winston Peters describes the criticism as a ‘mistake’.

6 Nov 2025 - 4:00PMvideocam

Beijing said the event had breached the one-China principle. Photo: Handout

Asean

Asean summit: world’s No 1 trade bloc holds ‘pivotal’ meeting in face of tariffs

The ‘strategic importance’ of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership is ‘clearer than ever’, Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim says.

28 Oct 2025 - 1:27PMvideocam

China-Australia relations

Call for ‘Pacific Eyes’ intelligence body to offset China’s growing presence

Think tank proposes dedicated alliance – initially with Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Fiji – to avoid being ‘blindsided’.

21 Oct 2025 - 10:08PMvideocam

Art

They filmed their own sex tape, then turned it into an art exhibit

Kiwi artists Alexandra Batten and Daniel Kamp, recently returned to Hong Kong, explain why the city ‘is like crack’ to them.

21 Oct 2025 - 5:30PM

Daniel Kamp and Alexandra Batten in their Wong Chuk Hang studio in Hong Kong. Photo: Jocelyn Tam

Nepal

‘History has vanished with him’: last link to Everest’s first summit dies at 92

Kanchha Sherpa was among the 35 members of the team that put Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay atop the peak on May 29, 1953.

17 Oct 2025 - 3:18PMvideocam

Kanchha Sherpa, a member of the expedition team that placed Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary on the summit of the world’s highest mountain, gestures during a celebration in Kathmandu in 2013. Photo: AFP

Diplomacy

New Zealand calls on US to counter China’s Pacific mineral push

New Zealand wants stronger ties with the US to shield Pacific allies from exploitation amid rare earth riches and growing geopolitical threats.

15 Oct 2025 - 7:25PMvideocam

Brics

Opinion | Why New Zealand joining Brics makes sense in Trump’s ‘America-first’ era

Brics is a maturing economic and diplomatic powerhouse. Joining could help New Zealand spread its diplomatic wings and secure its future.

12 Oct 2025 - 10:00AMvideocam

Fame and celebrity

‘Baby Gisele Bündchen’? Meet Angelina Kendall, a supermodel in the making

Kendall has already walked runways for Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Loewe, and Stella McCartney raves about her – so who is she?

13 Oct 2025 - 9:55AM

Brazilian-New Zealand model Angelina Kendall is being referred to as a “baby Gisele Bündchen”. Photo: AFP

Israel

Asian leaders hail US-led Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal amid cautious optimism

US President Donald Trump’s efforts to bring about peace in Gaza could improve Washington’s standing in Asia, analysts say.

11 Oct 2025 - 11:37AMvideocam

Palestinians celebrate in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, on Thursday following the announcement that Israel and Hamas have agreed to a Gaza ceasefire deal. Photo: Xinhua

Australia

Australia’s Jetstar prepares to fly with cargo door open, sparking outrage

A union leader calls the incident ‘horrific’, blaming it on a baggage handling firm for overworking its staff.

9 Oct 2025 - 1:46PM

Hong Kong economy

Opinion | How joining the RCEP will boost Hong Kong’s role as a superconnector

From supply chain alignment to financial services, the city’s membership would undoubtedly add value to its long-standing economic partners.

7 Oct 2025 - 9:30AM

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