Alibaba founder Jack Ma has returned to China, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on Monday (March 27), ending a more than year-long sojourn overseas that was viewed by industry as reflecting the sober mood of China's private businesses. Ma, one of China's best known entrepreneurs, left mainland China in late 2021 and has been...
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong arrived in Guangzhou on Monday (March 27) on his first trip to China in four years. The Singapore leader, accompanied by his wife and a delegation of about 50 Singapore officials, was greeted on the tarmac at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport at around noon by Chinese officials bearing umbrellas under a...
While scam calls are often associated with overseas numbers or numbers with a +65 prefix, one netizen recently took to Reddit to share about a scam call they received from a local phone number. In the post, the Reddit user said they answered the call since the number was a local one. The caller claimed there was a "dispute" with...
To save Hong Kong's battered tourism industry, Cathay Pacific recently announced that it would be giving away 12,500 round-trip tickets to travellers from Singapore, as part of its World of Winners campaign. Hoping to be one of the lucky ones, Bernice Tan joined the contest and eventually won. Unfortunately, this moment of victory was short-lived and she went through a rollercoaster of emotions. In a TikTok...
Those in Malaysia excited for some raunchy action served up by TikTok-famous waiter-performers Thai Hot Guys can sit themselves back down. It's not happening. Just days after it was announced that the buff waiters from popular Bangkok restaurant Staneemeehoi would be performing in Kuala Lumpur, the event got shut down following criticisms from netizens and political figures. The eatery...
The number of kindergartens in China has dropped for the first time in 15 years, falling by more than 5,000 on the previous year, financial news outlet Yicai reported, citing data from the country's Education Ministry. Concerns about China's shrinking population have prompted more than 20 recommendation by members of the country's top political advisory body to...
North Korea on Friday (March 24) tested a new nuclear underwater attack drone that can generate a radioactive tsunami, state media said, as a US amphibious assault ship arrived in South Korea for joint drills. During the drill, the new North Korean drone cruised underwater at a depth of 80 to 150m for over 59 hours...
American lawmakers see TikTok as a problem. Yet the bipartisan attack on the short-form video app, owned by China-based ByteDance, really points to two different complications – and each, in turn, opens up a much bigger can of worms. A panel of officials from the House of Representatives grilled TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew on...
Data from the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, briefly uploaded to a database by Chinese scientists, gives information on its origins, including suggesting a role for raccoon dogs in the coronavirus reaching humans, international researchers said. The virus was first identified in the Chinese city of Wuhan in Dec 2019, with many suspecting a live animal market...
Afghanistan's school year started on Tuesday (March 21), the education ministry said, as the UN children's agency renewed calls for teenage girls to be able to rejoin the classroom. A year ago, after signalling that they would open schools for all students, Taliban authorities made a U-turn, leaving many girls who had turned up to their high school...
