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Opportunities for China-Namibia cooperation unveiled in Chengdu

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. Representatives of China and Namibia met on July 8th in Chengdu, capital of southwestern China’s Sichuan Province, to discuss how to further advance bilateral economic and trade relations. The gathering, which brought together government officials, business leaders, and investors, explored new areas of partnership.

July 8, 2026

Business

Beijing slams Manila over South China Sea claims ahead of 2016 Hague anniversary

Philippines’ claims lack historical and legal basis, state-affiliated think tank says in another critique of maritime dispute Wednesday’s report by a Ministry of Natural Resources think tank – its third within days – marks the latest move in China’s campaign to reinforce its position in the disputed waters. Manila’s “attempt … to extend its territory” to those maritime features was “devoid of historical and legal foundation”, the 62-page English-language version of the report argued. It said “a comprehensive analysis of credible historical sources and generally recognised rules of international law” showed that Manila had no sovereignty over Scarborough or any of the islands and reefs in the Spratlys.

July 8, 2026

Business

China eyes Russian submarine rescue expertise in Yellow Sea naval drills

Joint exercise reveals deepening military cooperation between Beijing and Moscow while sending signal to Washington and its regional allies Chinese and Russian military personnel will be put through their submarine rescue paces in naval exercises this week, with Beijing hoping to gain operational experience from its strategic partner as competition heats up beneath the seas. The joint exercise includes anti-submarine warfare, search-and-rescue operations and other maritime missions such as air defence, according to Russia’s Tass news agency. One stage of the drills would involve rescuing the crew of a simulated distressed submarine using a deep-submergence rescue vehicle, Tass reported on Monday. Such missions involve the location of a disabled submarine and the safe recovery of its crew, and are an important element of submarine combat support.

July 8, 2026

Business

Hong Kong survivors push to close ‘consent loophole’ in reforms to sex crime laws

Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women and survivor group We Are X say ‘genuine but mistaken belief’ defence must be restricted Hong Kong women’s rights advocates and sexual assault survivors have urged authorities to close a loophole that allows defendants to claim an honest but mistaken belief in consent before a sexual act, warning that it could undermine proposed reforms. The Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women and survivor group We Are X said on Wednesday that the government’s updated stricter definitions of consent should also be extended to this long-standing defence. “If we agree that the defendant has to take steps to ascertain consent, there should be guidelines in the law on what these steps mean. Otherwise, the [proposed safeguard] would be a dead letter,” Chelsea Ma Pik-kwan, vice-chairwoman of the association, said. The Security Bureau this week launched a month-long public consultation on sweeping reforms to Hong Kong’s sexual offences laws, many of which centre on consent. Proposals include a statutory definition, provisions on how consent may be given or withdrawn and a non-exhaustive list of 11 circumstances that would not constitute consent.

July 8, 2026

Business

Chinese profit-taking triggers record gold ETF outflows amid shift to equities

Global gold market trading volumes averaged a record US$488 billion per day during the first half of the year Chinese investors pulled a record US$2.91 billion out of domestic gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in June, taking profits as a stock-market surge and a strong yuan dimmed the appeal of the safe-haven metal, according to the World Gold Council (WGC). Mainland Chinese funds were the biggest drag on Asia’s gold ETFs in June, “as local investor risk appetite continued to improve”, prompting them to turn to higher risk, higher return assets, according to the findings of the council’s report unveiled on Wednesday. This subsequently compounded the weakness in gold price in renminbi terms. This came after the country led global gold ETF inflows in the first four months of the year. Huaan Yifu Gold ETF lost about US$1.14 billion in the month, while Guotai Gold ETF lost US$352.1 million and the E Fund Gold Tradable Open-end Securities Investment Fund saw US$334.2 million in outflows, its data showed. The selling pushed Asia’s outflows to US$2.3 billion in June, the worst single month on record for the region.

July 8, 2026

Business

Changes underway in Singapore’s smaller opposition parties as leaders quit

Progress Singapore Party and People’s Power Party have been hit by leadership resignations after poor showings at last year’s poll The once-promising Progress Singapore Party (PSP), led by ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) defector Tan Cheng Bock, was dealt an “existential blow” on Monday, analysts say, following the resignations of two central executive committee members. Stephanie Tan, 38, was a newcomer who ran in the election, while Samuel Lim, 31, was the youngest-ever member to be elected into the committee. Also on Monday, People’s Power Party (PPP) announced its secretary general, Goh Meng Seng, had been replaced by William Lim Lian Chin. Goh had said he would step down after his team’s dismal showing in the four-way contest in the Tampines constituency. “Leadership changes might be afoot given that it has been just over a year after the general election, and the various parties might be looking at how they want to position themselves for the next GE,” said Teo Kay Key, senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies.

July 8, 2026

Business

Norway police says 28 arrested in international child porn operation

The men, aged 22 to 54, had been arrested in Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany Norwegian police said on Wednesday that 28 men across seven countries had been arrested in an operation targeting buyers of material depicting sexual abuse of children. Norway’s National Criminal Investigation Service (Kripos), said the men had used the cryptocurrency Monero to pay for access to several forums on the dark web. “We have worked closely with six countries to coordinate the arrests of the identified users who paid with cryptocurrency to gain access to the forums,” police prosecutor Terje Nedrebo Michelsen said in a statement. The operation had been carried out in early June and the men, aged between 22 and 54, had been arrested in Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany, Kripos said. More arrests were expected, potentially in additional countries, the agency said, noting that there were “many suspects”.

July 8, 2026

Business

Clips of flooded Hong Kong rivers, streets go viral online after heavy rain

Intensity of floods prompts some users online to claim picture of the extreme was outdated or even AI-generated, only to be proved wrong Videos of flash-flooded rivers and overflowing pavements went viral on social media on Wednesday as residents in parts of Hong Kong grappled with more than 70mm of rainfall in 24 hours. The intensity of the floods prompted some users online to claim a picture of the extreme was outdated or even AI-generated, only to be proved wrong when a clip was shared by another person. “I actually live in the village houses right above that spot, so I wanted to post the video I took this morning to prove it’s not fake!” the user wrote. The earlier image, which was shared in a Facebook group, shows nearly identical scenes of flooding near Tsuen Wan’s Allway Gardens the day before. In the comments, another Hong Kong resident shared videos of overflowing pavements from outside her car window in Fanling, as a flash of lightning appears in the sky above. The local forecaster said areas such as Pok Fu Lam on Hong Kong Island and parts of Sha Tin, Tai Po, Sai Kung and Tseung Kwan O in the New Territories had experienced at least 70mm of rain by Wednesday afternoon.

July 8, 2026

Business

China’s next tech wave? Robots

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. China has led the global industrial robot market for 13 straight years. From January to May, industry revenue surpassed 90 billion yuan ($13 billion). Robots are rapidly becoming the new face of "Made in China."

July 8, 2026

Business

South Korea’s market chaos puts region on AI meltdown alert

Support us South Korea's Kospi is vacillating wildly on AI-related news events. Image: X Screengrab TOKYO — South Korea has long been one of the world’s best early-warning systems. Its US$1.9 trillion economy is open, large, and sits at the intersection of every major shift in trade, finance and technology. Right now, Seoul, true to form, is flashing red about the risks of betting it all on artificial intelligence. No major economy has pivoted its core growth engine faster or more abruptly than the one President Lee Jae Myung has led since June 2025. Ask the average Korean on New Year’s Day what defined their economy, and they’d likely have said cars, ships, smartphones, or K-pop. Six months later, the answer is unanimous: AI. Investors are less sure the bet is paying off. The nearly $5 trillion Kospi index has been swinging like a meme stock — erratic behavior for a top-10 global bourse by market cap. It’s a case of the tail wagging the dog: a rally powered by two or three companies and an unproven technology now dwarfs the country’s GDP by more than 2.5 times. That concentration has become the Lee administration’s problem to manage. Monday’s 5% Kospi drop barely raised eyebrows by recent standards.

July 8, 2026

Business

How Japan’s yen rout could spark a US financial crisis

Support us Japan's falling yen could soon reverberate in US debt markets. Image: X Screengrab For decades, the global financial system has been founded on a convenient assumption. The US would keep taking on more debt, and countries like Japan would cover the bill. America got to borrow money at low interest rates, while Japan got to amass massive cash reserves invested in US Treasury bonds. And in the meantime, Japan became an export-driven nation as low interest rates fueled growth among its many multinational companies. After decades of mutual gains, that bargain is beginning to crack. The recent dramatic depreciation of the Japanese yen is often portrayed as a Japanese domestic problem. But behind the weakening yen lies a structural imbalance that could shake global financial markets, exposing vulnerabilities not only in Tokyo but also in Washington. Ironically, what begins as a currency crisis in Asia could become a debt crisis in the United States. The greater danger is not merely a falling yen; it is the possibility that one of America’s largest creditors may no longer be willing — or able — to finance America’s expanding fiscal excess.

July 8, 2026

Business

Xinjiang badam harvest heats up with e-commerce boost

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. As badam fruits enter peak harvest in Shache County, China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, local authorities are boosting sales through technical guidance, cooperative sorting and grading, and live-streaming e-commerce. Fresh green-husked badam fruits have attracted strong demand from outside Xinjiang through online sales. These coordinated efforts are delivering real income gains for local farmers and driving rural revitalization.

July 8, 2026