Taiwan proposes record US$35b defence budget for 2027 as PLA’s pressure grows
Published: 9:00pm, 20 Aug 2026Updated: 9:03pm, 20 Aug 2026 Taiwan has unveiled a record NT$1.12 trillion (US$35 billion) defence budget for 2027, with sharp...
Why North Korea is ‘keeping the door open for dialogue’ with Trump
At first glance, Kim Yo-jong’s latest message to Washington looked like a rebuff to US President Donald Trump’s insistence that he would meet her...
Bali jails Swiss tourist for insulting sacred Day of Silence
Published: 8:31pm, 20 Aug 2026Updated: 8:34pm, 20 Aug 2026 A court on the Indonesian resort island of Bali sentenced a Swiss tourist on Thursday...
Chinese AI chips fall short on coding, forcing firms to stretch scarce Nvidia supply
Chinese AI companies are optimising software to cope with surging demand for inference, as part of that workload still relies on computing power from...
China’s falling gaokao numbers offer a revealing snapshot
Every summer, China’s gaokao, the national higher education entrance examination, provides an unusually revealing snapshot of household expectations. The critical metrics are not average...
Hong Kong’s rare plot incentive will help resurrect decaying districts, analysts say
Published: 8:23pm, 20 Aug 2026Updated: 8:33pm, 20 Aug 2026 A rare Hong Kong government incentive for developers will help revive old neighbourhoods such as...
Loud Crash! China’s “Tofu” Garage Collapses: 6 Load-Bearing Columns Removed, 100 Families Homeless
On August 17, multiple residents of Shenyang’s Midea Times City residential complex said that more than a month has passed since a large-scale collapse...
Malaysia’s Anwar to visit China next month with an eye on building trade ties
Published: 8:00pm, 20 Aug 2026Updated: 8:18pm, 20 Aug 2026 Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is planning a visit to China next month – his...