Under the new rules, residents must pass a joint assessment to apply for either a taxi licence or a ride-hailing permit. However, existing valid taxi driving licence holders can apply directly for the permit without retaking the test.

"The response was really beyond our expectations," Chan told a radio programme. "Since the opening of applications for the examination, we have received many sign-ups per day, and the number has [only] recently stabilised."

Chan said that more than 20 organisations had attended the government's briefing session on platform licensing, and obtained the application forms and relevant documents.

The minister said that more than 11,000 residents had signed up for the test since registration opened on August 3, adding that the Transport Department would arrange for them to take the exam within two months.

Four sessions had been arranged so far, she said.

Turning to maritime travel, Chan revealed more details about a scheme allowing mainland-registered yachts to enter Hong Kong waters, expected to launch next month.

Currently, mainland yachts have to secure bookings for berths at private clubs before they are permitted to enter Hong Kong waters.

Under the new arrangement, they will be permitted to anchor without prior reservations across five designated areas: Tai O, Three Fathoms Cove in Tai Po, Repulse Bay, Tai Tam Bay and Stanley Bay.

"The surrounding bays of the five anchorage areas designated by the Marine Department are remarkably beautiful, with excellent natural resources. These are also places that many yacht owners have frequently expressed a desire to visit in the past," Chan said.

She added that the department had activated a dynamic monitoring system to check the availability of anchorage spaces in each location, and would liaise closely with mainland yachts using the system.

"If we spot any vacancies, we will update mainland yacht operators, and they can anchor at designated locations - as long as there is still room - without any prior application to yacht clubs," she said.

To support the initiative, authorities established training and examination centres across six mainland locations to certify captains operating vessels bound for Hong Kong. To date, more than 60 candidates have passed, reflecting what Chan described as a solid pass rate.

Chan also expects the initiative to deliver a boost to the local economy.

"Based on our previous understanding of the industry, yachts can drive a whole chain of supply services. For instance, vessel maintenance and repairs, or the provision of water and food supplies for passengers, and all these related service industries can be stimulated," she said.

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The capture operation followed the death of a 27-year-old woman along the same road on Saturday after she was chased by dogs.

The victim suffered lacerations to her head, face, neck, arms and legs, with the wounds to her head and neck believed to have been fatal. Aside from stray dogs, officers also spotted wild boars in the area.

Tse said he was "deeply saddened by the incident" and expressed his condolences to the deceased's family.

"This incident also serves as a reminder for us to look further into the situation to see how we could do better regarding stray dog operations, thereby further reducing the risks posed by stray dogs," he said at a press conference on the city's first five-year plan and latest policy address.

Without mentioning the number of public complaints about stray dogs, Tse noted that the number of stray dogs collected by the AFCD had dropped from more than 11,000 in 2002 to 400 annually in recent years, which he said illustrated improved management.

He said the AFCD would first assess a dog's physical condition, personality and temperament after capturing or receiving the animal.

In the vast majority of cases, the general approach was to spay and release the dogs, the minister said.

Tse said aggressive canines or those in poor health could be euthanised, adding that it was the "best arrangement for the dog's welfare and public safety".

He also said the AFCD referred to guidelines from the World Organisation for Animal Health when handling stray dogs.

The Paws Guardian Rescue Shelter, which is based in Yuen Long, had said it received an average of 1.9 animal rescue calls per day in the first half of this year, compared with 1.3 calls recorded in 2025.

He pledged that his bureau would work with the Development Bureau to review various approaches to managing dogs displaced by the Northern Metropolis development.

Dr Jackie Yip Yin, the AFCD assistant director overseeing inspection and quarantine, said it was not immediately clear whether the three captured dogs were the ones that had chased the cyclist.

She said the department had mobilised more than 10 officers and captured three adult mongrels, which would be sent to the department's animal management centres for further inspection.

If any of the captured dogs were microchipped, the department would contact the registered owner for follow-up, Yip said.

"We will continue with our operation to capture unattended dogs near the area to safeguard public safety," she said.

Saturday's incident marked the second suspected fatal dog attack in less than a month.

Discussing the latest operation, Wong said police had mobilised drones to help locate stray dogs during the operation.

The force had earmarked several spots with stray dog sightings for future patrols, with officers to immediately report to the AFCD if any further canines were found, he added.

Asked whether some of the recent suspected dog attacks in the area were linked to land resumption operations for the Northern Metropolis, Yip did not address the concerns directly but stressed that investigations were ongoing.

"Every case has its unique circumstances, and no arbitrary conclusion should be drawn," she said.

Tse on Monday discussed the prospect of using genetic testing rather than physical assessment to determine whether canine pets were "fighting dogs".

But Tse said that genetic testing "may not be a particularly good method", as canines had mated freely across breeds over the years, resulting in most of them carrying some fighting dog genes.

"The crucial point is whether possessing these genes could lead the dog to develop the stature, build and temperament of a fighting dog," he said, noting physical examination was more effective for classification.

In the event of a dispute, a statutory committee could make a final determination on whether a canine was a fighting dog, he added.

Speaking on a radio show on Monday, Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung said authorities should consider more factors before deciding whether to install additional security cameras in the area, given the spot had a relatively low occurrence of crime.

"Thieves may stop committing crimes out of fear, knowing that there is a security camera. But dogs will not stop biting [regardless of] surveillance," he said.

Nonetheless, he acknowledged that the dog attack could trigger fresh safety concerns that went beyond crime.

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Xinhua also reported that following Tung's death, Xi, Premier Li Qiang and other members of the leadership "expressed their deep grief in various forms and extended sincere condolences to [Tung's] family".

They included Zhao Leji, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress; Wang Huning, the chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC); Politburo Standing Committee members Cai Qi and Li Xi; Vice-President Han Zheng; and former president Hu Jintao.

He resigned midway through his second term in 2005, citing health reasons, and served as a vice-chairman of the CPPCC, the country's top political advisory body, until 2023.

As residents stood watching and row upon row of white floral wreaths of tribute spilled onto the pavements around the Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point, figures drawn from the highest circles of power in politics and business in mainland China and Hong Kong arrived for the state funeral, only the third in the city since the handover.

Among those paying their final respects were Shi Taifeng, Politburo member and first vice-chairman of the CPPCC; Wang Dongfeng, CPPCC vice-chairman and secretary general; Leung Chun-ying, a CPPCC vice-chairman and former city leader; and Xia Baolong, director of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office.

Also attending the funeral were incumbent city leader John Lee Ka-chiu, who together with CY Leung was among the pallbearers. Predecessors Donald Tsang Yam-kuen and Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor were also present.

Delivering a eulogy, Shi praised Tung for his role in helping to build US-China relations, as well as in quelling the 2019 social unrest in Hong Kong and in safeguarding national security.

"He always placed national interests first and throughout his life upheld the belief that patriotism is a natural conviction," said Shi, who visited the city as chairman of Tung's funeral committee.

"His patriotism was in all sincerity and his love for Hong Kong was profound. He had a broad vision and a staunch stance. He was a practitioner and contributor to the great cause of 'one country, two systems'."

The principle, adopted upon the handover, governs relations between Hong Kong and mainland China.

Shi also highlighted Tung's handling of major challenges during his tenure, including the 1997 financial crisis and his defence against foreign financial predators who attempted to "snipe" the Hong Kong currency in 1998 and the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003.

He called on the public to remember Tung's legacy, carry forward his patriotism and spirit of perseverance and dedication, and resolutely implement the "one country, two systems" principle to ensure Hong Kong's long-term prosperity.

"[Tung's] passing is a major loss to Hong Kong and also a major loss to the country," Shi said.

The funeral ended at around 10am, and Tung's coffin, draped in the national flag, was accompanied by sombre pallbearers, white roses tucked into the front-breast pocket of their black suits.

Wearing white gloves, Leung and Lee led the coffin out of the hall with eight others, including liaison office head Zhou Ji, Legislative Council president Starry Lee Wai-king, Chief Justice Andrew Cheung Kui-nung and tycoon Victor Fung Kwok-king.

The coffin was placed in a hearse, which was escorted by police vehicles with lights flashing and residents watching silently as it wound through the streets east to the Cape Collinson Crematorium in Chai Wan for the cremation.

Tung's widow, Betty Tung Chiu Hung-ping, was supported by family members as she left the funeral home.

At several condolence points set up by the government, Hongkongers lined up to write messages in memorial books.

At the North Point Government Offices, Chan Kam-wai, 78, recalled that Tung visited her family at Wah Fu Estate decades ago and praised him as a "kind man who improved the city's housing policy".

"I think he just headed off to another world to keep working," said Chan, referring to Tung's famous "7-11" dedication to putting long hours into the job.

A resident surnamed Cheng recalled Tung as a good leader, despite pushback against some of his policies.

"Sometimes differing views are inevitable," Cheng said. "Given that era and circumstances he faced, it can only be said that the situation was not in his favour."

The 3½-minute report, carried as the third item, showed the rows of wreaths from Xi, Premier Li, the State Council, the CPPCC, the National People's Congress and various central government units lining the funeral hall.

Other senders included Foreign Minister Wang Yi, former president Hu and former premier Wen Jiabao.

The Jockey Club also cancelled Sunday's race meeting as a mark of respect, and all off-course betting branches were closed.

Tung shares the rare distinction of a state funeral with industrialist Ann Tse-kai in 2000 and tycoon Henry Fok Ying-tung in 2006, both of whom were also CPPCC vice-chairmen.

A resident signing the public condolence book in North Point recalled Tung as a patriot and kind leader, who displayed courage and calm despite criticism over his policies.

"I never saw him speak with anger," the 64-year-old woman surnamed Tang said. "He was so gentle, so kind, warm and welcoming to everyone he met.

"Even facing heavy criticisms, he stayed calm and good‑natured. He could always respond with a smile. This made me admire him deeply. In my heart, he was absolutely the best."

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The protocol was signed in Manila - where Asean economic ministers are meeting - ahead of dedicated trade consultations between Hong Kong and the bloc.

Undersecretary for Commerce and Economic Development Bernard Chan Pak-li signed the protocol for Hong Kong, alongside Philippine Trade Secretary Cristina Roque and Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Suphajee Suthumpun.

The protocol enables local enterprises to enjoy treatment no less favourable than that accorded to domestic or foreign enterprises in the 10 Asean states.

It mainly incorporates the schedules of reservations into the investment agreement to give effect to articles, which state that a party shall accord other parties' enterprises and their investments non-discriminatory treatment, except for reserved measures.

Hong Kong authorities said the protocol would bring legal certainty, enhance the investment environment and boost investment flows.

Asean has been the city's third-largest destination for outward direct investment for four consecutive years, with investments worth HK$671.2 billion (US$86 billion).

"Our flourishing investment relations have been boosted by the investment agreement which has strengthened Hong Kong's position as an international investment hub," a spokesman for the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau said.

"We are confident that the signing of the protocol and its subsequent implementation will drive steady growth in Hong Kong's economic, trade and investment relations with the Asean region. We will work side by side with our Asean partners to strive for further economic development and investment growth in the region."

The existing free trade agreement already guarantees equal treatment for Hong Kong service providers operating in specified sectors, including those with a commercial presence in these states.

Complementing this, the amended agreement will accord enterprises and their investments in non-services sectors equal and most-favoured-nation treatment once the new rules take effect.

Beyond equal treatment, the agreement guarantees that Hong Kong investments will be physically protected and treated fairly, with full freedom to transfer capital and profits.

It also promises standard compensation if assets are seized or lost due to war or conflict.

The 10 states from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) covered by the agreement are the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. Extension of the agreement to East Timor - Asean's 11th member - remains subject to the bloc's internal procedures.

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An investigation was ongoing, it said.

"Customs will continue to apply a risk assessment approach and focus on selecting passengers from high-risk regions for clearance to combat transnational drug trafficking activities," it said.

It also reminded the public to remain alert and refrain from involvement in drug trafficking for monetary gain.

Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, those convicted of trafficking dangerous drugs face a maximum penalty of a HK$5 million fine and life imprisonment.

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"The bureau will remain in contact with the school to provide appropriate guidance and support."

The issue came under scrutiny after a recent viral post on social media platform Threads that shared internal presentation records from Good Hope School, a semi-private girls' school in Ngau Chi Wan.

Referring to "a Band 1A girls school on Clear Water Bay Road", the user posted images resembling presentation slides titled "Language Standards", which stated that classes would have to mute the audio and redo sound effects if Cantonese was detected in the voice tracks, with only English and Mandarin permitted.

Amid the escalating controversy, Good Hope School principal Gary Harfitt clarified that Cantonese was not forbidden at the institution.

In an internal email to students and parents that circulated online on Saturday, Harfitt addressed the social media posts and comments on guidelines given to Form Six students regarding their graduation ceremony next year.

"Today a PowerPoint slide that had not been revised was regrettably issued to Secondary Six students. It contained inappropriate language and I deeply regret this," Harfitt wrote, referring to the incident on Friday.

He said the institution recognised the importance of Cantonese and Mandarin alongside English.

He added that he took full responsibility for the oversight and stressed that the slide's message did not reflect school policy.

"A high school farewell ceremony only happens once in a lifetime, and we do not want it to end with regrets," the Threads user wrote, adding that the city had no future if its students lacked the freedom to speak Cantonese.

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The Customs and Excise Department confiscated 5,704kg (12,575lbs) of illegal narcotics in the first half, a 49 per cent increase year on year, according to figures seen by the South China Morning Post.

Nearly two-thirds of the seized narcotics, or 3,408kg, were found at the airport, a 46.6 per cent year-on-year increase at that port of entry. Those on sea routes accounted for one-third, or 1,954kg, representing a 55.6 per cent rise. The remaining 342kg were confiscated at land checkpoints and other parts of the city.

Cannabis and ketamine accounted for about 60 per cent of the drugs seized in the first six months, marking a rise of 40 per cent and 78.8 per cent of those substances, respectively. The number of drug cases detected by customs and the number of arrestees also recorded a slight increase.

A senior customs officer said while there was an obvious trend of syndicates recruiting air passengers to smuggle drugs, the rise in maritime confiscations was primarily due to large quantities found in a few particular cases.

"Sea routes have always been used by smugglers to diversify risk. When they ship drugs by sea, the volume per shipment is usually larger. So whenever a confiscation happens, a single case can end up involving a larger quantity [of drugs]," he said.

According to the officer, syndicates mainly concealed drugs in different goods, such as by mixing them among buckets of sugar cubes or hiding them in hollowed-out timber and pool tables. In some cases, they recruited crew members of ocean liners to carry drugs for them.

But air travel remained the largest contributor to the overall rise in drug seizures, with 95 cases committed by air passengers in the first half of this year representing a 35.7 per cent year-on-year increase.

He said trafficking by air also led to the amount of drugs seized at land ports increasing almost fivefold because some courier companies moved their distribution centres to Shenzhen and Guangzhou, with some air cargo logged as ground interceptions when they moved through Hong Kong's land checkpoints.

The officer said customs expected that drug smugglers would change their methods of moving contraband in the second half of the year in response to authorities' enforcement efforts.

Many air passengers recruited to carry drugs who were caught at the start of the year, for instance, had flown directly from Thailand. Afterwards, they changed their routes slightly by flying via a transit airport to prevent being targeted by customs.

"We found that if they discovered we had stepped up enforcement in certain channels, they would change their modes of smuggling … We will monitor closely [to see] if the trends change," he said.

The officer said the surge in cannabis seizures was mainly due to the legalisation of the drug in certain countries and an increase in the number of users globally. Most of the cannabis seized this year came from Thailand and North America.

On ketamine, the officer said the synthetic drug was relatively easy to detect during the production stage in Hong Kong, and most of it seized by customs came from Europe, where there was more space to manufacture it. Incoming ketamine could be supplied locally or transited elsewhere.

He added that customs would help the logistics industry identify suspicious clients, such as those who placed urgent orders, made last-minute changes to delivery instructions or failed to provide direct contact information.

A customs spokesman said the department had adopted an intelligence-led strategy while working closely with local, mainland and overseas law enforcement agencies to execute joint operations, identify drugs at their source and block illicit narcotics from entering Hong Kong.

He said strict control measures were enforced across all sea, land and air control points, with risk assessment frameworks and advanced technology, such as specialised X-ray systems and ion mobility spectrometers, used to enhance detection capabilities.

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By 11.55pm, three dogs were seen chasing her along Pok Wai South Road, about 30 metres (98 feet) from where she was later found near a Drainage Services Department sewage pumping station.

Passers-by reported seeing three to four stray dogs nearby when they discovered her, Cheung said.

Officers also saw wild boars and stray dogs in the area. The victim suffered lacerations to her head, face, neck, arms and legs, with the wounds to her head and neck believed to have been fatal.

The case is being handled by the Yuen Long district crime squad.

The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said it was deeply concerned about the suspected dog attack.

It said it was fully cooperating with police in their investigation, and joined officers in conducting dog-catching operations in the area on Sunday night to safeguard public safety.

The incident followed recent dog attacks that have heightened public concern in the city.

In August, a large unleashed mastiff-type dog mauled two smaller pets to death in Yuen Long, drawing public anger.

A few days later, a woman, 33, who operated a canine training centre in Ta Kwu Ling, North district, was attacked by a dog at the facility and later found dead nearby.

The animal involved was a fighting-dog crossbreed, prompting calls for tighter control of aggressive breeds and better enforcement of stray management.

Pok Wai South Road is a well-used route for local residents who regularly cycle or jog to and from home. Overlooking the Nam Sang Wai wetlands and ponds, it is a renowned scenic spot, particularly at sunset.

A resident in his sixties from nearby Wing Kei Tsuen, who cycles past the location daily, said he was shocked by the incident and had never heard of anything similar in his 20 years of living in the neighbourhood.

He said there were very few stray dogs in the area and that they were generally not aggressive. Nor were there any active construction sites nearby where security‑conscious guard dogs were usually kept.

Asked whether he would take extra precautions, the resident said he rarely cycled out at night when he suspected stray dogs were more likely to roam.

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"A review of judgments handed down from the beginning of 2024 to the end of 2025 shows that the number of judgments where a solicitor advocate has exercised higher rights of audience in open court as lead or sole advocate is fewer than 15 cases," the association said.

"This demonstrates that the current arrangements between solicitors and the Bar work for the benefit of the litigants and [are] ... consistent with the wishes of solicitors who choose to instruct counsel."

"Conversely, as barristers only take on instructions by referral, they are never competitors in the same sense," it said.

"Based on the present situation, the debate regarding the eligibility of solicitor advocates for appointment as senior counsel remains premature and largely academic."

Hong Kong's legal system follows the English common law model, where solicitors and barristers have different responsibilities and are governed by separate rules. Each branch regulates itself.

Broadly speaking, solicitors have limited rights of audience. They cannot cross-examine in the High Court or give oral submissions in the Court of Final Appeal.

They handle litigation, documents, property, wills and advice, and often instruct barristers for higher courts.

Barristers have unlimited rights of audience in all courts and specialise in litigation and oral submissions. Similar to solicitors, barristers can also draft legal documents or give legal advice to their clients.

But lawyers practising as barristers are not allowed to serve as solicitors at the same time and vice versa.

Another distinguishing feature of barristers is that they, unlike solicitors, can be appointed as senior counsel - known as queen's counsel before the 1997 handover - by the chief justice. This elevated status is given to a small minority in recognition of their ability, standing in the profession, experience and legal knowledge.

In Britain, solicitors with higher rights of audience have been eligible to apply for queen's or king's counsel status since 1995.

Following legal changes in Hong Kong in 2012, solicitors have been allowed to gain higher rights of audience as senior advocates who can represent clients in higher courts.

In 2021, the government also amended the Legal Practitioners Ordinance to allow government solicitors to qualify for promotion to senior counsel.

Hong Kong currently has more than 1,700 practising barristers and 109 senior counsel. There are over 12,000 practising solicitors, including 119 solicitor advocates, according to the Law Society.

The society has been lobbying for amendments to the Legal Practitioners Ordinance so that solicitor advocates who have the required experience and standing in advocacy work can apply for senior counsel status. Under Section 31A of the ordinance, only barristers are eligible to be appointed as senior counsel.

The society recently renewed its calls in a submission to the Legislative Council committee studying the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill.

The professional body said the proposed reform was not intended to alter that role or to diminish the standing of senior counsel.

"Rather, it seeks to ensure that eligibility for appointment is determined by merit, excellence and professional standing, irrespective of the branch of the profession through which those qualities have been demonstrated," it said.

"It is consistent with Hong Kong's long-standing commitment to meritocracy, fairness and excellence within the legal profession."

In its statement, the association argued that big law firms might be subject to intense commercial, media, government or administrative pressure that might compel them to decline representation or drop litigants.

Barristers are generally required to accept any instruction within their field if a reasonable fee is offered, under what is known as the cab-rank rule aimed at ensuring unpopular clients or controversial causes still receive legal representation.

The association said that rule and barristers' self-employed status ensured all litigants were guaranteed access to justice.

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Cheung said universities had the money to develop campuses, adding that many had expressed an interest in doing so.

His remarks followed the government's announcement that institutions seeking sites in the three planned university towns in the new development along the border would receive favourable consideration if they did not require public loans to build their campuses.

Education minister Christine Choi Yuk-lin earlier said institutions could apply for government loans, but priority would be given to those that did not require one or could offer financially competitive repayment proposals.

Under indicative terms set by authorities, institutions proposing a 20-year repayment period could receive an interest-free loan for the first six years. The rate would then rise to about 2 per cent between the seventh and 10th years and around 5 per cent for the remaining decade.

The government previously earmarked HK$10 billion (US$1.28 billion) for a loan scheme supporting the Hung Shui Kiu University Town. Successful institutions will also pay a nominal land premium of HK$1,000.

Cheung also called on the government to establish research funds that universities could jointly apply for, encouraging institutions, students and technology companies to collaborate rather than operate separately.

Universities had room to improve cooperation both with one another and with industry, he said, adding that placing researchers, students and technology firms in proximity could generate new ideas and help turn academic research into marketable products.

"If these people are put together and allowed to exchange ideas, it will certainly create synergies," he said.

Cheung urged authorities to review the experience of Cyberport and the Hong Kong Science Park to identify what had not worked before developing the university towns.

He also called for regulations and approval procedures to be streamlined, warning that excessive red tape and year-long waits for approvals could hinder collaboration and development.

Saint Francis University itself would find it difficult to finance another campus in the Northern Metropolis, Cheung said, as the self-funding institution was already preparing to begin construction of a second campus in Tai Wai early next year.

But the university would be willing to use and help manage shared facilities in the new towns, including entrepreneurship and research centres where its students could work with technology companies, he added.

The three university towns in Hung Shui Kiu, San Tin and Ta Kwu Ling will cover 26, 100 and 180 hectares (64, 247 and 444 acres), respectively, forming a major part of the government's strategy to turn the Northern Metropolis into an education and innovation hub.

Applications for the first three sites in Hung Shui Kiu will close at the end of this year, with results expected in early 2027. Authorities have not set a limit on the number of institutions that can be granted land.

No 2 official Eric Chan Kwok-ki has said the Hung Shui Kiu town and adjoining technology and industrial areas would be developed into a centre for applied post-secondary education, smart manufacturing and global talent cultivation.

Institutions seeking sites there will be required to collaborate with industries on curriculum design, internships and applied research, form partnerships with leading mainland Chinese and overseas universities, and develop shared facilities.

Cheung said the university towns offered an opportunity to better connect Hong Kong's higher education sector with industry, describing tertiary education as one of the city's better-performing sectors amid pressure on retail, catering and commercial property.

"The higher education sector can create synergies, drive other industries and generate economic benefits," he said.

"It could become an important direction for Hong Kong's future economic development."

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"His patriotism was sincere and his love for Hong Kong was profound; he had a broad vision and a staunch stance. He was a practitioner and contributor to the great cause of 'one country, two systems'."

The principle, adopted upon the handover from British to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, governs relations between Hong Kong and mainland China.

Beginning with Tung's life story, Shi said the city's first chief executive was born in a turbulent era and developed a deep sense of patriotism under the influence of his father, shipping magnate Tung Chao-yung.

He described the younger Tung as a "staunch patriot" and a "close friend" of the Communist Party.

Shi said Tung, who chaired his family shipping business in his earlier days, firmly supported the country's reform and opening-up and its modernisation drive, including establishing shipping lines connecting the mainland to North America and Europe, backing the country's external trade and helping the city develop into a global shipping hub.

As the city's first chief executive, Tung made exceptional contributions to the smooth transition and handover in 1997, including his role in drafting the Basic Law - the city's mini-constitution - and forming the local government, Shi said.

"During his tenure as chief executive of Hong Kong, he always prioritised the fundamental interests of the country and Hong Kong, dedicating himself wholeheartedly and pouring all his energy into the role," he said.

"As the first chief executive, he resolutely implemented the initiative of 'one country, two systems', 'Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong', and a high degree of autonomy as well as the Basic Law. He carried out a great deal of pioneering work."

The late leader was also praised for advancing cooperation between the mainland and Hong Kong, including the signing of the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement - a free-trade deal with the central government after Sars.

Tung also took an active part in key national policies as vice-chairman of the CPPCC, China's top political advisory body, after he stepped down in 2005 and supported the administration in restoring social order during the 2019 social unrest, Shi said.

He noted that Tung had "condemned external forces that sought to disrupt the city", founded the Hong Kong Coalition in 2020 to help the city weather the storm and endorsed the ensuing enactment of the national security law and the electoral revamp.

"After stepping down as chief executive, whenever events in Hong Kong touched the bottom line of the 'one country, two systems' principle, he always stepped forward promptly to speak out unequivocally," Shi said.

"[He] unswervingly safeguarded the sovereignty, security and development interests of the country."

Shi also recognised Tung's efforts to promote the nation's foreign ties and cooperation, particularly the stable development of Sino-US relations, including founding the China-United States Exchange Foundation in 2008.

He said the organisation fostered exchanges among politicians, business leaders and academics on both sides, and initiated more than 1,000 people-to-people dialogues, which deepened mutual understanding.

"[Tung] made many friends at home and abroad. He used his special status and influence to promote the mainland's achievements in opening-up and modernisation, and to introduce the success of 'one country, two systems', 'Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong', and a high degree of autonomy," Shi said.

"He made contributions to the nation's friendly exchanges and the fostering of mutual trust with other countries."

Concluding his eulogy, Shi cited Tung's famous quote: "If Hong Kong is good, China will be good. If China is good, Hong Kong will be even better", adding that the late statesman had lived up to his words.

He called on the public to remember Tung's legacy, carry forward his patriotism and spirit of perseverance and dedication, and resolutely implement "one country, two systems" to ensure Hong Kong's long-term prosperity.

"[Tung's] passing is a major loss to Hong Kong and also a major loss to the country," Shi said.

"His patriotic sentiment, sense of responsibility and sincere character will forever deserve the world's respect and remembrance."

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The Pentagon's F-35 Joint Programme Office confirmed it was "aware of a shipment issue of unserviceable F-35 Lightning II components", saying it was working with US authorities and industry partners "to retrieve these components, investigate the incident and place safeguards to avoid a future occurrence".

The US State Department declined to comment when reached by Politico, while the Chinese embassy reportedly said it was not aware of the incident.

According to the report, US State Department and Pentagon officials first briefed congressional staff on key national security committees about the incident in June, with multiple additional briefings expected in the coming weeks.

Two sources told Politico that the shipment included one of the jet's canopies, which covered the cockpit and contained stealth technology that only the US and its allies had access to, sparking fears of potential reverse engineering.

F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin managed the programme's overall supply chain and used commercial shipping providers to transport parts.

The company said in a statement it would not discuss the status of shipments for security reasons but stressed it followed all US regulations for shipping aircraft components.

"Our teams handle every shipment with the utmost diligence and safeguards to ensure the integrity of the F-35 programme and the security of our allied partners," it said.

In recent years, the US Defence Department has stepped up oversight of the F-35 supply chain. However, Lockheed Martin, rather than the department, accounted for spare parts in the pool.

A 2023 Government Accountability Office report found that more than 1 million F-35 spare parts had gone missing in the past five years.

The watchdog agency concluded the department had not been able to review spare part losses worth tens of millions of US dollars because Lockheed Martin controlled the information.

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"The significance of planning lies not only in the document itself, but also in looking at today from the perspective of the future and turning a vision into indicators and action plans that can be reviewed year by year," Chan wrote in his weekly blog on Sunday.

"The more volatile the external environment becomes, the more the market needs certainty that extends beyond a single year."

Chan said that each annual policy address would translate these goals into tangible targets for that year's work, with specific departments overseeing progress evaluations.

He said at least 200 hectares of formed land would be produced in the Northern Metropolis over the current and next financial years.

All nine new development areas within the megaproject had been launched, with work under way in four of them covering about 800 hectares, he added.

Chan also outlined how different sites would support the innovation and technology (I&T) sector. He said the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park in the Lok Ma Chau Loop would focus largely on research and development (R&D), while the San Tin Technopole would provide space for pilot testing and mass production.

The Sandy Ridge Data Park would provide computing power, completing a chain extending from R&D to production and the market, he said.

More than 100 technology companies and institutions have moved into the park, while its two wet laboratory buildings are fully leased.

The San Tin Technopole will provide 210 hectares of innovation and technology (I&T) land, while the operator of the Hung Shui Kiu Industrial Park is in substantive talks with companies involved in sectors including advanced construction and testing and certification.

The government has expanded the planned area of three university towns in the Northern Metropolis to more than 1,000 hectares. Research postgraduate places will rise gradually from 7,200 to 9,600, while the number of Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme awards will increase from 400 to 550.

On financial initiatives, Chan said about 20 fund management companies had been shortlisted for the I&T Industry-Oriented Fund, which was expected to be launched this year.

The government also plans to submit an amendment bill by the end of the year offering concessionary tax rates - either 5 per cent or half the prevailing rate - to selected companies in finance, advanced manufacturing, I&T research, headquarters operations, logistics and supply-chain management.

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The state funeral was arranged by an 87-member committee chaired by Shi Taifeng, top vice-chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and a member of the Communist Party Politburo.

Members of the public can pay their respects by signing condolence books at three community halls until noon on Sunday.

Some of our previous coverage:

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The High Court will hold the first trial hearing on Monday for parties to sort out preliminary issues. Jury selection is expected to take place later in the week before the prosecution delivers its opening statement.

The 28-year-old influencer's death came to light in February 2023, when parts of her dismembered body were discovered in a flat inside a three-storey village house in Tai Po's Lung Mei Tsuen.

Choi's former husband, Alex Kwong Kong-chi, 31, his father Kwong Kau, 68, and elder brother Anthony Kwong Kong-kit, 35, will stand trial on a joint count of murder. The trio have also been charged with preventing the lawful burial of Choi's body.

The case had undergone a lengthy legal process since the defendants first appeared in Kowloon City Court on February 27, 2023, with multiple adjournments over the years before it was transferred to the Court of First Instance for trial.

Alex Kwong, Kwong Kau and Anthony Kwong are represented, respectively, by veteran barristers Andrew Raffell, Oliver Davies and Trevor Beel.

The trial will be presided over by Deputy Judge Brian Keith, who served in the Court of Appeal between 1999 and 2001.

Since his retirement from the High Court in England in 2014, the 82-year-old Keith has overseen a number of high-profile criminal cases in the city's Court of First Instance on an ad hoc basis.

The judiciary will arrange a live broadcast of the trial to accommodate the large number of attendees expected.

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Hundreds of wreaths lined the pavement at the Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point, spilling into a nearby playground, while inside the hall the mood was hushed as top officials, former politicians and business chiefs filed in to pay their respects at the invitation-only vigil.

The hall was decorated with white orchids and pine trees, with wreaths from Tung's widow, Betty Tung Chiu Hung-ping, and their three children placed in front of the altar. She did not attend the vigil, the South China Morning Post learned.

One attendee said the ceremony followed the format of a typical local vigil. A master of ceremonies invited visitors to pay their respects and bow to Tung at the altar before they turned to his family to offer their condolences and receive their thanks.

"The mood is solemn and very quiet. Many visitors stay for about half an hour before leaving," the attendee said, adding that some of Tung's close friends were allowed into a room to view his body.

At the entrance of the hall was a banner reading "Tung family funeral" framed by white chrysanthemums. Inside, a portrait of Tung was displayed, showing him smiling.

Politburo member Shi Taifeng, the top vice-chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), who heads Tung's funeral committee, also sent wreaths, as did former premier Wen Jiabao, former National People's Congress Standing Committee chairman Li Zhanshu and Jia Qinglin, the former chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC.

Among the first officials to arrive was Zhou Ji, director of Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong, at around 2.30pm. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu came after 3pm - the official start time - and spoke briefly to Tung's son, Andrew Tung Lieh-cheung.

Key figures from Tung's cabinet - former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang, former financial secretary Antony Leung Kam-chung and former justice secretary Elsie Leung Oi-sie - also visited.

Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po and deputy finance chief Michael Wong Wai-lun also attended.

"He was truly dedicated and gave his all to Hong Kong. It was particularly difficult during the handover period, combined with the Asian financial crisis in 1998," Tam said.

"He faced many challenges during his tenure, but he was able to lead us in overcoming every difficulty. He was a good-natured person with deep patriotic feelings who made immense contributions to both our country and Hong Kong."

Henry Cheng Kar-shun, chairman of property developer New World Development, attended with his daughter, Sonia Cheng Chi-man, CEO of Rosewood Hotel Group.

Gordon Wu Ying-sheung, chairman of property developer Hopewell Holdings, and Adriel Chan, chairman of Hang Lung Group and Hang Lung Properties, also paid their respects.

Also paying tribute were CLP Holdings chairman Michael Kadoorie and Solina Chau Hoi-shuen, a director of the Li Ka Shing Foundation.

Top Hong Kong Jockey Club officials also paid their respects. Chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, chairman Martin Liao Cheung-kong, and deputy chairman Lester Huang attended together.

"I feel so sad. He is like a father to me," said Tsang, who paid his respects with his wife.

"He had a great vision for Hong Kong, and he has done so much for the city."

Retired Catholic leader Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun also visited the centre.

A memorial service for Tung will be held from 9am to 11am on Sunday, followed by a funeral procession. He will be cremated at Cape Collinson Crematorium in Chai Wan, the South China Morning Post learned.

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Upon examining the container, officers found 1,342 insulated boxes, 364 of which contained about 535kg (1,179lbs) of cannabis buds.

The cannabis had been concealed inside the boxes using vacuum-packed bags.

A 44-year-old Vietnamese man was also arrested on the same day after arriving to collect the consignment, the department said.

Customs said the Vietnamese man was charged with one count of attempting to traffic in a dangerous drug, while the two local men were released on bail pending further investigation.

The case is set to be heard at Kowloon City Court on Monday.

Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, those found guilty of trafficking in a dangerous drug can face life imprisonment and a fine of HK$5 million.

Customs data shows that in the first eight months of the year the department seized 2,875kg of marijuana, up by 27 per cent from the 2,262kg seized during the same period last year. It was also more than the 2,863kg seized in all of 2024.

Over the same period, customs handled 284 marijuana-related cases and arrested 124 people, up by 3 per cent and 25 per cent respectively, compared with the first eight months of 2025.

Customs, meanwhile, said that it had arrested three people at Hong Kong airport in two separate cases for allegedly concealing about HK$1.4 million worth of cannabis in total inside their luggage.

In the first case, customs officers arrested a mainland Chinese man, 40, who arrived from Bangkok, after finding about 1kg of suspected cannabis buds concealed in snack packaging inside his carry-on backpack.

The second case involved two other mainland men, aged 35 and 37, who also arrived from Bangkok. Officers found 6kg worth of cannabis similarly concealed within snack packaging in the carry-on luggage of one of the men.

Customs said investigations into both cases were under way.

The department also announced that it had seized about 50kg of suspected smuggled silver ingots worth about HK$1 million after intercepting a private vehicle leaving the city via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Officers stopped the vehicle at a control point on the Hong Kong side of the bridge and found suspected smuggled silver ingots in a storage compartment of the boot.

Officers arrested the 30-year-old male driver and charged him with one count of attempting to export unmanifested cargo.

The case is scheduled to be brought up at the West Kowloon Court on Monday.

Under the Import and Export Ordinance, anyone convicted of importing or exporting unmanifested cargo can face up to seven years in prison and a maximum fine of HK$2 million.

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"Importantly, they will serve to motivate us to keep improving as we strive to become our customers' most loved service brand."

He said the investments would "elevate the customer experience and reinforce Hong Kong's status as a world-class international aviation hub."

The award for best first-class lounge follows the April reopening of The Wing, First, which is Cathay's flagship first-class lounge, at the Hong Kong International Airport.

Cathay has climbed steadily in the annual Skytrax rankings since the city's post-pandemic reopening, placing eighth in 2023, fifth in 2024 and third in 2025 before retaining the position this year.

Earlier this year, the airline also won awards for world's best business class and world's best airline-branded lounges in rankings by AirlineRatings, a website focused on safety and in-flight product quality.

It also placed second overall in the best full-service airlines category, behind Qatar Airways.

Cathay reported a 71 per cent rise year on year in net profit to HK$6.24 billion for the first six months of 2026, driven by stronger passenger and cargo demand.

Growth was recorded across the group's premium services, low-cost segment and cargo operations.

Total passenger numbers reached 16 million in the first half, up 17.5 per cent year on year, while passenger revenue jumped by 26.3 per cent to HK$43.2 billion over the same period.

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Senior Inspector Chan Lik-ho of the force's narcotics bureau said police then discovered a large-scale drug manufacturing factory in a Fanling unit.

Officers seized about 9kg of suspected Ice and 43 litres of suspected liquid Ice with a market value of around HK$23 million, some drug-manufacturing tools, and a large quantity of poisonous chemicals, he said.

Advanced heaters, filters, reactors and cooling equipment were also confiscated.

"We believe the drug factory was in operation for three to four days," Chan said.

Chan said officers later arrested the man's two accomplices in Sau Mau Ping.

The trio will be temporarily charged with drug manufacturing offences and will appear at Fanling Court on Monday.

Anyone who contravenes the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance is liable on conviction to life imprisonment and a fine of up to HK$5 million.

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"Once that becomes a concrete plan, we will of course need to go through the Legislative Council - there's a funding process," Law said. "We will secure the resources internally and then go to Legco for funding approval."

In his policy address on Wednesday, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the government would explore redeveloping Victoria Park Centre Court and its ancillary facilities into an all-weather, multi-purpose venue capable of hosting bigger, higher-tier sporting events, as well as performances.

The proposed redevelopment is part of a broader strategy to boost tourism by combining sports, mega-events and other attractions to make Hong Kong a top global destination, one of the goals of the five-year plan.

Law said the revamped venue was intended to host at least an ATP 500 tournament and potentially an ATP Masters 1000 event, which required seating for 7,000 and 10,000 spectators, respectively.

Hong Kong holds the rights to stage WTA and ATP 250 tournaments, with the Prudential Hong Kong Open scheduled for November and the men's event held at the start of the year.

Law said the initial proposal included a centre court for finals and matches involving seeded players, one or two side courts that could accommodate hundreds of spectators, warm-up courts, gyms and facilities where athletes could relax.

Asked why authorities had selected Victoria Park for redevelopment, Law pointed to the number of tourists drawn to tennis matches there and the experience of Kai Tak Sports Park, saying key considerations were that the location was easily accessible and in a mature urban area to create synergy.

"Taking these considerations together, it makes us feel Victoria Park is a very suitable place," the minister said.

On subdued tourist spending, Law said overall consumption remained "conservative", but footfall on major shopping streets had increased. Queues were visible outside large retailers, although sales volume had declined.

"I think the most important thing is that we need to hold some events that can be attended only in Hong Kong," she said. "We first need visitors to come for the buzz before they bring the money."

Regarding assessing the performance of Kai Tak Sports Park, the minister said authorities now placed greater weight on economic impact, citing this summer's football matches and major concerts.

Such events created thousands of jobs and generated spending beyond ticket sales, extending to retail, dining, hotels and transport, she added.

Under the current five-year plan, the city is also counting on new attractions to sustain visitor interest, including a forthcoming adventure zone at Ocean Park and a new Marvel-themed land at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort on Lantau Island.

Law said that raising visitor spending also depended on improving the overall experience of tourists.

The city needed to enhance service quality and tour-guide standards while offering incentives to encourage purchases, such as "ticket-stub offers" included in the five-year plan.

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The policy address, released on Wednesday, stated that the Marine Department would soon sign a memorandum of understanding with the Guangdong Maritime Safety Administration to implement southbound travel for Guangdong yachts, with the aim of boosting cross-border leisure spending.

Chan said that since the northbound scheme for Hong Kong yachts launched in June, authorities had introduced arrangements covering the certification, training and examination of mainland Chinese yacht masters seeking to navigate in Hong Kong waters.

"So far several dozen mainland masters have been certified for having good knowledge of Hong Kong waters," she said.

Beijing approved the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau individual yacht scheme in June, allowing Hong Kong owners to sail their vessels to designated ports as part of a broader "yacht economy" strategy for the Greater Bay Area.

The scheme aims to encourage visitors to sail their yachts to designated areas in the bay area and increase leisure spending on food and drink, hotels and other services.

From 2023 to 2025, an average of 77 yachts visited Hong Kong each year, 35 of them from the mainland, according to InvestHK, the government's investment promotion arm.

The policy address also said several new yacht-berth projects were moving ahead. They include a tender for a composite development in Aberdeen, comprising a marina, recreational facilities and residential development, which is scheduled for the first half of 2027, as well as a yacht bay project under the Airport City megadevelopment, "Skytopia".

On the low-altitude economy, Chan said the government hoped to establish a smart traffic-management system for unmanned drones by 2028. It was also actively exploring cross-border commercial logistics routes with authorities in Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Zhuhai.

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The previous arrangement of holding a public memorial service is now limited to people with invitations only due to venue constraints.

Members of the public can pay their respects by leaving messages in condolence books at three community halls between September 18 and 20.

Follow the SCMP's coverage of the vigil.

Reporting by Lo Hoi-ying, Leopold Chen, Lam Ka-sing, Denise Tsang, Emily Hung and Fiona Sun.

Some of our earlier coverage:

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"At the invitation of President of the United States of America Donald J. Trump, President Xi Jinping will pay a state visit to the United States from September 23 to 25," China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement on Monday.

According to Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun, Xi will "have an in-depth exchange of views with Trump on major issues concerning bilateral ties and world peace and developments".

He also highlighted Beijing's pledge to boost dialogue with Washington under a framework of "constructive strategic stability" to manage differences and bolster global peace and prosperity.

The state visit begins on Thursday with a State Floor arrival ceremony at the White House and a Rose Garden military review, followed by sit-down talks.

The East Room state dinner later will be attended by top US executives including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Apple chief Tim Cook and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.

Musk, Huang and Cook were among more than a dozen top American executives who accompanied Trump on his May 13-15 state visit to China.

On Friday, Trump will host Xi for a private White House tea followed by a tour of the National Archives before the Chinese leader departs.

The selection was being modelled on the US business delegation that accompanied Trump to Beijing in May, sources told the SCMP.

One source familiar with the planning said both sides were treating every aspect of the visit as a matter of reciprocity - including the composition of the business delegation.

Both sides agreed in May to launch an intergovernmental dialogue focused on AI safety and governance, though no formal talks on this track have been publicly confirmed.

Beijing has rejected the allegations as groundless, warning that any attempt to use such claims to curb China's technological development or constrain its AI sector could trigger retaliation.

The AI friction comes as both sides try to preserve a fragile trade truce struck after Trump and Xi met in Busan, South Korea, last year.

A fresh wave of economic disputes is also testing relations.

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At the heart of this lies a contentious question: should maritime boundaries shift with changing coastlines, or should they be frozen in place?

The answer carries profound implications not only for the survival of vulnerable islands but also for the rest of the world.

Some analysts have argued that China should position itself as both a legal advocate and technical partner for Pacific nations to offer tangible support - such as surveying expertise, coastal protection technology and advocacy for fixed maritime boundaries.

Projections from Nasa in 2024 showed that sea levels in the Pacific would rise by an average of 15cm (6 inches) over the next three decades.

Beyond the immediate physical threat, shrinking coastlines also pose a fundamental challenge to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos).

Maritime zones are measured from coastal baselines tied to the physical low-water line. These include territorial seas, which extend 12 nautical miles (22km) from the coast, and exclusive economic zones, which can cover 200 nautical miles.

Such zones grant coastal states exclusive sovereign rights to explore, exploit and manage natural resources ranging from fish stocks to minerals and offshore energy.

However, under Unclos, a land feature must be able to "sustain human habitation or economic life of its own" to have an exclusive economic zone.

If rising seas severely undermine an island's freshwater supplies, habitability or capacity to sustain an economic life of its own, this could raise questions about how the feature should be classified under Article 121 of Unclos, according to Chen Yitong, an associate professor of international law at the Ocean University of China.

"This could affect the maritime entitlements generated by the feature and may also have implications for baselines or for pending maritime delimitation where the feature is relevant," Chen said.

"It should not, however, be taken to mean that maritime boundaries already established by treaty or other applicable international legal means can be reopened."

The legal dimension

"The major legal obstacle [to keeping existing boundaries] is an adjustment of the long-standing legal rule that baselines are ambulatory, which means they can move and be adjusted over time," said Donald Rothwell, a professor of international law at the Australian National University.

"That rule is reflected in state practice and not in the precise rules of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea."

The fallout from discussions about how rising sea levels should be reflected in maritime law reaches far beyond the South Pacific.

Beijing claims sovereignty over almost all islands and reefs in the South China Sea, as well as rights to the adjacent waters. Its claims overlap with those of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

In a formal 2016 statement that claimed sovereignty over the Pratas, Paracel, Spratly and Zhongsha islands, Beijing said this also covered territorial seas, exclusive economic zones and the continental shelf, as well as historic rights across the waterway.

Chen from the National Chengchi University warned that rising sea levels could see countries losing territory, which raised fundamental questions over statehood as well as maritime boundaries.

She added that a report from the International Law Commission last year said these aspects and the question of climate refugees were all "inextricably linked".

As a result, "the legal response tends towards either offering contemporary interpretations of existing international instruments and rules, or formulating dedicated legal frameworks and mechanisms tailored to climate-related sea-level rise", she said.

An emerging consensus

Faced with an existential risk, Pacific island states have already demanded that their statehood, established baselines and maritime zones should remain perpetual regardless of physical changes.

"There are a variety of processes [for freezing baselines]. One is to modify the convention, but this will be diplomatically and politically challenging," Rothwell said.

"The other is through the development and evolution of state practice and its wide-ranging acceptance by states throughout the international community. There is evidence that this is occurring."

The international consensus has begun leaning in their favour, with the International Law Commission recommending that states should not be obliged to update the baselines deposited with the UN even if there are physical changes.

The UN is also planning a high-level meeting on rising sea levels on Thursday.

China's role

Chen at Ocean University said Pacific nations must continue surveying and officially depositing and publishing their baselines and maritime boundaries under Unclos requirements, while broader and more consistent state practice would also help to consolidate the emerging legal approach.

She argued that China could support these efforts through practical, demand-driven cooperation.

"Beyond financial assistance, China can help island nations conduct maritime surveying, verify coordinates for UN deposit and support domestic ocean legislation and law capacity-building, while integrating coastal protection and climate monitoring with protection for affected populations," Chen said.

She added that China needed to ensure developing countries had a full say in rule-making, while "systematically documenting and articulating its own practices" in sea-level monitoring, coastal protection and maritime surveying - so that they can be properly understood and taken into account in the international legal process.

"Active engagement in international lawmaking, supported by scientific evidence, clearly articulated state practice and concrete legal proposals, is necessary if China's interests and perspectives are to be properly reflected in emerging rules."

Beijing has already laid the groundwork for this role. Last year, it pledged to combat rising sea levels through infrastructure upgrades and disaster early-warning systems, as well as expanding cooperation in coastal restoration and sustainable fisheries.

Chen said supporting Pacific island states over the issue of maritime boundaries aligned with a wider interest shared by coastal states, including China: preventing climate-related physical change from automatically producing an additional loss in law.

"Maritime boundaries established by treaties or other international mechanisms must remain stable and final," she said.

"The underlying principle is that physical harm caused by climate change should not automatically be converted into a loss of existing lawful maritime entitlements."

Historic rights

Diplomatic hurdles nevertheless persist. China's UN representatives have suggested that legal debates on rising sea levels should incorporate the concept of "historic rights" alongside baseline stability.

"Rules in customary international law concerning historic waters, historic title, and historic rights are equally important foundations for asserting a nation's maritime entitlements," Wang Chen, a Chinese representative at the UN, told a meeting to discuss the issue last October.

"The concept also provides legal support for impacted nations seeking to preserve maritime areas and rights.

"China notes that useful discussions on the issue of historic waters were held but not reflected in the final report [by the International Law Commission], over which China expresses its concern."

Chen from National Chengchi University said: "When China raises the issue of historic rights when discussing sea-level rise, other nations quickly associate it with its historic claims in the South China Sea, which make them wary due to recent maritime frictions."

Common interests

Nations threatened by climate change know that waiting for legal recognition alone may not be enough to preserve their existence. Some are already seeking immediate guarantees of their statehood.

In the first agreement of its kind, in 2024 Tuvalu and Australia signed the Falepili Union Treaty, which guarantees Tuvalu's statehood and maritime rights even if submerged, and opened the door to permanent migration to Australia.

Meanwhile, Rothwell said major powers had shown rare convergence on interpreting maritime law to accommodate rising sea levels.

Chen from Ocean University said Beijing need not rule out issue-specific cooperation with other-interested countries, as they shared mutual interests in technical standards for baseline coordinates, navigational safety, hydrographic surveying and legal capacity-building.

"The key is adhering to transparent cooperation led by island states' needs and priorities, without attaching political conditions. In this way, China is not pitching a competing framework against other powers but offering a public good that island states can put into use and that can be woven into global rules."

"Pacific island states should be treated as co-designers of the relevant rules, not merely as aid recipients or as states expected to choose between major powers," Chen added.

Meanwhile, climate-threatened nations know that legal recognition alone cannot preserve their heritage.

In 2022, Tuvalu launched the world's first digital nation project, using 3D lidar (light detection and range) scanning to build a virtual replica of the country.

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The decision was made during Monday's meeting of the 21-member Politburo, which is chaired by President Xi Jinping.

In a departure from its typical schedule, the Politburo convened the meeting a week early - just two days before the Chinese leader's high-stakes state visit to the United States.

At the centre of Monday's Politburo meeting was the review and approval of a draft policy decision by the Central Committee regarding "strengthening full and rigorous party self-governance with perseverance", Xinhua said.

Regional officials, central party organs and non-party organisations have already been consulted about the document, which will be submitted to the Central Committee for final deliberation and approval during next month's plenum, according to the news agency.

The Politburo urged the party to focus on enhancing its "long-term governance capacity, maintaining its advanced nature and purity, and preserving its close bond with the people". It also called on the party to maintain a strict stance on self-governance, Xinhua said.

"We must fully promote the enthusiasm, initiative and creativity of the entire party, and continuously realise the party's self-purification, self-perfection, self-renewal and self-progression," it said.

It said stronger self-governance would ensure the party always remained a "vigorous Marxist governing party that stands at the forefront of the times, wins the wholehearted support of the people, withstands the tests of all kinds of storms and waves and serves as the strong core of leadership" of China's development.

More to follow...

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Rising tensions over artificial intelligence are shaping the final preparations for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the United States.

The United States is considering postponing the announcement of major arms sales to Taiwan until after November's Apec summit in Shenzhen, multiple sources told the South China Morning Post.

Washington and Beijing are still struggling to arrange a hoped-for dialogue on artificial intelligence, with the venue, participants and scope of the talks yet to be settled.

Speculation is growing that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth is at increasing risk of losing his job, raising questions about the possible implications for US-China relations, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.

Figures from some of China's most prominent firms - including electric vehicle maker BYD and smart manufacturing giant Xiaomi - are likely to accompany President Xi Jinping on his trip to the US, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter.

The US-China Board of Investment, one of the key outcomes of the May summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, is unlikely to be among the deliverables for their meeting in Washington, according to the head of a leading bilateral business group.

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The leaders are meeting at JP Morgan's headquarters in the city to discuss possible economic outcomes for the summit and begin their long-awaited dialogue on artificial intelligence safety and governance.

Major economic items on the agenda include discussions on renewing the Busan agreement on rare earths and the possible implementation of the US-China Board of Trade, which would create a tariff-reduced trade mechanism in non-sensitive sectors between the two sides.

Last week, the South China Morning Post reported that Washington and Beijing would fold AI discussions into a broader economic meeting.

"It does matter whether the good guys or the bad guys have this," Bessent said in response to Massachusetts Democrat Stephen Lynch, who argued it probably wouldn't matter whether the good or bad guys developed superintelligence if it couldn't be controlled.

"The only control or 'guardrails' ‌that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!" Trump wrote on social media.

"We already have tremendous CRIMINAL and REGULATORY power over these ⁠companies! There is a SICK conspiracy going on against AI and Data ‌Centers, and the only one that is happy about it is China."

"One of the ways we can push back against China, because the Chinese models distil from the US models, which is a polite scientific word for steal," Bessent said on Tuesday.

"As a person who manages the relationship with China on AI, it matters a great deal."

As Chinese companies have closed the gap with US firms in frontier AI models, US firms and Trump administration officials have increasingly accused Beijing of using American technology to accelerate the development of its own AI systems.

On Friday, the White House raised concerns over the flow of rare earths from China and said it would be a part of Sunday's discussion.

"China's performance in that respect has not been up to par of what we would expect," a senior White House official said.

Under the trade mechanism, both sides are selecting non-sensitive sectors and products eligible for a tariff-reduced trade capped at US$30 billion for each side.

The SCMP also reported last month that the Board of Trade was likely to be operationalised during Xi's visit, even as discussions on the investment forum remained stalled.

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Experts said the proposed AI Force - whose exact structure remains unclear - could give Beijing a clear counterpart for AI safety talks, but warned it risked becoming an instrument of further technological containment and export controls targeting China.

In a social media post on Saturday, Trump said that "the decimation, or destruction" of artificial intelligence (AI) was among the many hoaxes generated by the "Radical Left Democrats".

"I, as President of the United States, will not stand by and let this happen," he said.

"For this purpose, I am forming the AI Force, much like I did Space Force," Trump said, adding that he would be announcing "the AI 'czar'" in the near future.

Trump also rejected recent calls to slow down AI development, saying the US must protect its lead.

"AI is the next industrial revolution … We are leading China, and the rest of the World, and I intend to keep it that way!"

"We will not in any way hinder or stifle the Growth of this incredible Industry. Rather, we will cherish it, help it, and watch over it, as it grows," Trump said in his Saturday post, adding that the US criminal and civil justice system could handle the "BAD" of the industry.

Sun Chenghao, a fellow at Tsinghua University's Centre for International Security and Strategy, said the new force could have two contrasting effects on the intensifying US-China AI rivalry.

"If the AI Force becomes a relatively centralised mechanism for coordinating risk governance within the US, future China-US AI safety talks could actually benefit from having a clearly defined policy counterpart on the US side, including on issues such as cyberattacks, loss of control over AI models and communication mechanisms for major AI incidents," Sun said.

"But if the institution primarily operates around maintaining US technological leadership, strengthening export controls and pursuing national security competition, China would be more likely to worry that 'AI safety' is being used as an instrument of technological containment."

Other experts contend that the new force would only lead to more intense AI competition between the rival nations.

"The US military application of AI is no secret. As the US now seeks to build such a force, China - being among the leading nations in AI - will certainly perceive the competitive dynamics at play," said Zhou Bo, a retired senior colonel in the People's Liberation Army.

"In terms of strategic balance, when one side takes action, the other is bound to respond," said Zhou, who is also a senior fellow at the same Tsinghua University security and strategy centre.

Zhou said while he "wouldn't be surprised" if AI talks featured at this week's expected leadership summit in Washington, "reaching an agreement on actionable, joint measures remains a very distant goal".

Sun also said the latest US move could prompt China to further strengthen cross-departmental coordination at the national level, even though the announcement carried "more political symbolism than institutional significance".

As for China mirroring the move, Sun said it was more likely to build upon its existing governance system rather than copy an American "AI Force" model with such a strong political branding component.

Shi Yinhong, an international affairs professor at Renmin University of China, said the AI Force was mainly designed to compete with China and that any bilateral regulation was unlikely.

"Trump has just declared that competing against China is his first priority on AI rather than any of the [other] dangers to humanity … [His] first priority is [to compete] against China. Establishing an AI Force is not a way to deal with domestic worries at all," Shi said.

Sun noted that there was no indication whether it would be a new military branch like the Space Force, but emphasised the symbolic weight of the framing.

"By using the term 'AI Force' and deliberately drawing a comparison with the Space Force, Trump appears to be signalling that he wants to elevate AI into a long-term strategic capability comparable to space," he said.

"I am therefore more inclined to think that, at least initially, it could take the form of a White House-led inter-agency coordination mechanism rather than a military 'force'," Sun said, citing the absence of any executive order, budget or organisational blueprint for the AI Force so far.

A new US military branch would require congressional approval through legislation, rather than a presidential order alone.

Xi and Trump agreed in Beijing in May to set up an intergovernmental AI dialogue mechanism, distinct from the economic talks led by Bessent and He. However, the AI channel appears to have struggled to gain traction, with basic details of the planned talks still unresolved as Xi's visit approaches.

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The other is the Delhi that gets dressed when the world comes to dinner.

Last week, that second Delhi was out in full.

Buildings were lit up. The venue itself, glass and steel now, stood on the same earth where we once queued for the annual trade fair.

For a few days, the city looked as if it had been dry-cleaned for the occasion. It had.

That dressing had a cost, which fell unevenly. Ordinary people waited for hours while VVIP motorcades used the wide roads of the clean city. Janpath, Shanti Path, Mathura Road: names from childhood, now corridors of barricades.

Delhi Police said the city was not shut, only regulated. From a wet pavement, regulation still means standing still. Lutyens stayed Lutyens. The rest of us learned, again, which Delhi the cameras were meant to see.

Inside Bharat Mandapam, the day belonged to the summit.

The international media centre was buzzing with action. But the Wi-fi did not work at all. In a room built to file to the world, phones became hotspots. The copy still went out. What did work, without pause, was the food: free-flowing, plentiful and entirely vegetarian.

Most Indians are not vegetarian. Some 60 to 80 per cent eat meat. Still, the old instinct held: a guest must not go hungry.

What stayed with me was the floor of the media centre. Chinese and Indian crews were not only working side by side. Presenters and commentators from China's state broadcaster also appeared on India's national broadcaster DD News and wire service ANI, where they were interviewed repeatedly, saying warm things about the visit and the venue.

My Chinese friends were surprised. I was too. For a few hours, the hall felt like a ceasefire you could hear, not in the communique, but in the chatter.

Then the day ended. Media had been promised shuttles from a fixed point to the venue. In the mornings, it worked. We were collected there and taken in. At night, the return buses did not come.

Colleagues waited for hours at Bharat Mandapam then walked, then met roadblocks. About 40 of us, with kits, cameras and live units, were packed into a Delhi Police van that was never built for that many people.

Most of us stood - packed like chickens in a cage. It took more than 40 minutes in the sticky heat and dust-filled air before they dropped us at the same point from which we had been collected that morning.

From there I found a cab. Roads were blocked again. Another hour and a half to the hotel. My driver made a point of getting me there safely.

Still, I was content. India had done a good job of hosting world leaders and clinching a big diplomatic win on the global stage. And for a few hours, it had felt like a good day for China and India's ties too.

It did not last the week.

New Delhi rejected it at once: no legal basis and no Pakistan-China boundary over land that India still claims.

On Indian channels, the warmth of Saturday had cooled. That, too, is this neighbourhood. A handshake in Bharat Mandapam and a map in Islamabad can occupy the same week. I keep both pictures.

Similarly, both Delhis are real. The Delhi of barricades and motorcades. The Delhi of dust, traffic and dead Wi-fi. The Delhi that can frustrate you before breakfast and feed hundreds of foreign guests without a second thought. The Delhi that can spend weeks arguing with itself and then, when the world arrives, somehow make room.

This is the city that raised me. For one historic weekend, it stood up straighter, opened its doors and reminded me why leaving never quite means leaving.

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"Some had received a tip-off that they were being investigated, some got a call from disciplinary inspectors asking them to cooperate, but in most of the cases, the suspects had already been held by disciplinary authorities, and their families came to us," said Zhang, a partner at Beijing Han Heng Law Firm.

"We even ran into some extreme cases. Once, someone who had given bribes agreed to cooperate after being promised that they wouldn't be investigated, but the authorities went back on their word after the bribe-taker was sentenced. In the most serious case, the client died after being taken into custody and the family came to us."

Last month, Zhang began advertising consulting services for "bribery and corruption crisis response". In a social media post, he said that as the authorities intensified their efforts to root out corruption across society, individuals faced "unprecedented criminal, financial and professional risks".

His move comes as law enforcement authorities further toughen their approach to corruption. In April, the Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuratorate made it easier for corruption suspects to be charged with criminal offences.

As fears of being targeted grow, more state employees are reaching out to seasoned criminal lawyers like those in Zhang's team to find out how to best protect themselves.

According to Zhang, few people were prepared to deal with a corruption investigation. A common reaction is to run. Once, a senior manager from a state-owned company fled to another province and claimed he was on a business trip to headquarters, while others escaped overseas, he said.

Another common reaction is denial. In one case he dealt with, the briber and recipient coordinated their stories and decided to deny the charges altogether, Zhang said, adding that the consequences of denial could be serious if bribery were proven.

His team could provide clients with strategies on how to present evidence, avoid detention by the supervisory authorities, reduce their sentences and safeguard their assets, he wrote.

Suspects needed to be able to draw a distinction between conduct that constituted a crime and conduct that did not, and must understand how leniency worked in the judicial system.

Another reason he launched corruption consultation services was that suspects were usually cut off from their lawyers after being detained by the disciplinary authorities, Zhang said. Custody is generally three or six months and can be as long as 14 months under special circumstances.

"When they are in custody, and the authorities tell their families to return any bribes, families do not know what to do. Do they pay or not? In some cases, authorities take a couple and leave only the elderly and young children at home," he said.

The opacity of the system was partly why such investigations were so hard to deal with, said a Beijing-based criminal lawyer who wished to remain anonymous.

"It's a black box. Everybody knows that it's terrifying, but they do not know how exactly," she said.

The most valuable time to get advice would be before disciplinary detention, said legal expert Zhang Qingfang. After that, a defence lawyer's room for manoeuvre was narrow and it did not matter much whether families sought legal help, he said.

"But under some circumstances, if the requests raised by law enforcement authorities to families are illegal, if lawyers give legal and correct suggestions, it will avoid suspects being framed or their sentences becoming heavier," he said.

Clients often missed the critical defence opportunities that appeared at every stage of the proceedings in these cases, Zhang Dongdong said.

Lawyers can spot the key issues that can potentially affect sentencing, including whether to define the alleged bribe as a legitimate social courtesy, how to determine the amount of money involved and whether an individual or their employer should be liable.

Family members should also record the extent of searches and which items were confiscated by the authorities and refuse to cooperate with illegal requests such as making false confessions, according to Zhang Zhiyong, a lawyer from the Chongqing Zhihao Law Firm.

In an article he published on social media, he wrote that he had been in the business for more than 20 years and had multiple senior officials' sentences reduced.

In one case, he defended a vice-governor who was accused of abuse of power and taking a large amount of bribes. He successfully argued that his client deserved leniency because they had turned themselves in, returned their illicit gains and admitted their guilt.

In another case, Zhang Zhiyong found new evidence in the case of a director of a public hospital who had been charged with embezzlement. He used the evidence to persuade the authorities to downgrade the charge to the lighter "unlawful possession of property".

Lawyers, however, were not always able to turn things around, the Beijing-based lawyer said, especially if the authorities used illegal measures such as torture to extract confessions.

There was usually more space for legal defence for bribe givers than bribe takers, even though these cases were usually investigated together, she said. If bribe givers cooperated with the disciplinary authorities, they might get off the hook as the authorities focused mostly on officials receiving bribes, she said.

But the restrictions on lawyers did not mean they could not develop effective strategies based on the evidence, said Zhang Dongdong, the lawyer from Han Heng Law Firm.

His clients "need professionals familiar with the law, the disciplinary authorities' policies and their proceedings", he said.

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"I believe the most likely identity of the tomb owner is Empress Dowager Huayang," Zhao Hanqing, from the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology, said in a paper published in the Chinese journal Archaeology and Cultural Relics in July.

Huayang was central to Qin Shi Huang's rise. She was the wife of a Qin prince but, with no sons, she adopted his father, Ying Yiren, an impoverished hostage prince from a rival state.

Announcing the results to the public on Friday, Zhao said that because of the severe looting, the tomb did not yield objects that could confirm the tomb owner's identity or identifiable human remains.

However, based on historical records and the burial system of the Qin state during the Warring States Period, archaeologists narrowed down the most likely owner of the tomb to an empress from that time.

The theory was supported by radiocarbon dating of bones from the tomb, which yielded a range of 389-208 BC, or about 2,250 years ago.

Archaeologists began surveying the site in 2018 and confirmed that it contained a large tomb with an independent cemetery.

In 2022, they excavated the northern part of the cemetery and conducted additional surveys, clarifying its overall layout.

The tomb was initially thought to belong to an emperor from the Northern Zhou era (557-581AD) but the researchers concluded that it was a royal tomb from the Qin state.

Until Huayang's era, Qin tradition dictated that a king be buried with his queen but King Xiaowen had two wives and discontinued this practice.

He is buried 2.3km (1.4 miles) away from the airport tomb site in an area on the Xianyang Plain called Shouling.

When Empress Dowager Huayang died in 230BC, she was described as having been buried alongside King Xiaowen in Shouling.

But on Friday, Zhao said the historical references to a "combined burial" could suggest that the king and the queen were buried in two separate but nearby independent cemeteries.

The burial system from this time was a turning point in the development of the Qin royal burial system.

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For much of that time, piracy in the region has been in sharp decline. Now, however, with attacks at their highest reported level since 2013 and other naval forces engaged in crises elsewhere, Beijing's long-running escort mission is being tested.

"There is a palpable reduction in risk for those choosing to undertake piracy," said Timothy Walker, a senior researcher in transnational threats and organised crime at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria.

China's newly deployed escort task force and its logistics base in Djibouti leave the navy well placed to support counter-piracy operations in the region. But observers said its effectiveness would depend on how closely it coordinated with other navies and governments in the region.

Since 2008, China has rotated escort task forces through the region, reporting that it has escorted more than 7,000 Chinese and foreign vessels to date. Its Djibouti base, opened in 2017, enables resupply and extended deployments in the region. China operates independently of multinational missions such as Combined Task Force 151, established by the US in 2009.

"China is in a relatively strong position to contribute more to the continual patrols against piracy, thanks to having naval facilities in Djibouti for resupply and shorter lines of communication and logistics," Walker said.

The International Maritime Bureau recorded eight piracy-related incidents off Somalia in 2024, five in 2025 and 13 in the first seven months of 2026, according to a Danish Shipping analysis of the bureau's data. The 2026 figure was the highest reported since 2013. It remained far below the peak of 2009 to 2011, when more than 200 attacks were recorded annually.

The Chinese embassy in Mogadishu did not say whether a ransom was paid. But the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime, citing counter-piracy officials, estimated that between US$1.2 million and US$1.5 million was handed over. It said the same vessel had been seized in November 2024 and released in January last year after a reported ransom payment of about US$2 million.

After the latest release, the Chinese embassy condemned the seizure as a "blatantly vicious action" and said Beijing would take "all necessary means" to protect Chinese citizens and companies.

Christian Bueger, a professor of international relations at the University of Copenhagen who specialises in maritime security, said China and other naval forces in the region would be more effective if they coordinated through the Shared Awareness and Deconfliction mechanism (Shade).

"Crucially in all of this is that navies return to coordinate their activities through Shade," he said.

Naval patrols can deter attacks, but experts said they could not address the conditions in Somalia that allowed piracy to persist.

Walker said Beijing had released limited information about what its ships encountered during patrols and how it viewed their place in wider international maritime security operations.

"The fight against piracy will only truly be won once conditions improve onshore in Somalia," Walker said. "It remains to be seen how, if at all, China - as well as other countries - intends to support local Somali attempts at providing maritime security."

Mathieu Duchatel, resident senior fellow and director of international studies at Institut Montaigne, a Paris-based think tank, said China had the capacity to expand its deployment but showed no intention of doing so.

"China certainly has the standing infrastructure to assume a larger role, as it is one of very few actors with spare naval capacities, backstopped by the Djibouti support base," Duchatel said. "But nothing in the Chinese strategic debate points to the possibility of a quantitative surge."

He also ruled out a change in China's handling of suspected pirates. "I do not expect a qualitative shift towards an arrest-and-prosecute model," he said.

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However, they warned of a potential negative impact on the high-stakes talks, citing broader risks to major-power trust and peaceful Arctic development.

In a social media post on Friday, Trump said: "I am pleased to announce that the United States of America has entered into an Agreement with The Kingdom of Denmark, and Greenland, that gives the United States permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, completely addressing ALL of our many U.S. concerns."

It was an "Infinite Life" agreement without end, he noted.

"Additionally, from now on, no US adversary can EVER have a base in Greenland, have a military presence in Greenland, or make sensitive investments in Greenland, without our express written approval."

Trump did not identify specific adversaries in his post, but US media quoted a State Department official as saying the agreement explicitly banned any non-Nato base or troop presence in Greenland, with screening mechanisms specifically targeted at China and Russia.

Chinese analysts view the timing of Trump's post both as a tactic to boost US leverage ahead of next week's summit with Xi Jinping in Washington and a play for domestic political gain with midterm elections due in November.

"The US announced this news at this specific juncture to strengthen its bargaining chips in the upcoming US-China summit next week," said Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University of China in Beijing.

Wang noted that Washington's ambition to control this key Arctic strategic corridor mirrored the geopolitical logic behind its desire to control the Panama Canal.

Framing the move as an effort to prevent Greenland from falling into Chinese or Russian hands was merely a pretext, he argued, noting that China had virtually no footprint in Greenland and its past investment plans had repeatedly fallen through.

A decade ago, several Chinese companies showed interest in Greenland's minerals and some signed initial agreements, but none ever advanced to commercial mining.

An Arctic research report last year said severe infrastructure deficits and harsh polar ice that make large-scale mining economically unviable had caused the Chinese companies to lose interest even before the US began pushing back against China's influence in Greenland.

Beijing's infrastructure investment efforts in Greenland - an autonomous Danish territory - have met with a similar fate. In 2018, a Chinese proposal to assist with the expansion and extension of airport runways on the Arctic island was widely seen as effectively blocked by Denmark, after the US raised security concerns.

Analysts argue that the Greenland agreement will inevitably erode trust among major powers and jeopardise the peaceful development of the Arctic.

"This agreement is aimed at the future. It will not derail the summit between the Chinese and US heads of state, but it will certainly have a negative impact on their strategic trust," said Wang Yong, director of the Centre for International Political Economy at Peking University.

He emphasised that China should remain firm in preserving its legitimate rights and resist the over-securitisation of all issues in the region.

"Beijing should uphold its legitimate rights in international shipping and scientific research," Wang said, adding that it should strengthen multilateral cooperation with Arctic countries and the world at large in areas such as climate change, fisheries and polar science.

China-Russia cooperation in the Arctic region has quietly gathered pace in recent years, including the launch of the first regular liner service along the Arctic route by a Chinese shipping company in August.

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The study was jointly conducted by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Australia's Curtin University, and Zhejiang Lab, a non-profit research institution in eastern China.

"Gondwana was immense in scale, representing another true supercontinent in Earth's geological history," Wang said.

The large-scale subduction and volcanic activity along its margins likely altered the global climate and marine environments, creating favourable conditions for the Cambrian explosion of life, he added.

"This research provides a crucial basis for rethinking the layout of Earth's early continents and offers a new perspective on how deep-Earth internal activity influenced surface environments and, ultimately, the evolution of life."

The Ediacaran-Cambrian transition, roughly 550-500 million years ago, is one of the most enigmatic turning points in Earth's history. During this transition, the planet endured profound turbulence across its multiple layers, setting the stage for the Cambrian explosion.

Scientists typically attribute such global-scale perturbations to the "supercontinent cycle" - the aggregation and dispersal of Earth's continental crust, which governs mantle convection, sea levels and atmospheric chemistry.

Back then, Gondwana was the main candidate for a supercontinent. However, previous reconstructions suggested it accounted for roughly 64 per cent of Earth's total continental crust at the time. This fell short of the 75 per cent threshold classically required to earn "supercontinent" status.

As a result, geologists struggled to use the cycle theory to explain the dramatic global transformations under way.

The new research helps solve this mismatch.

Over millions of years, fragments of Gondwana's original crust were torn away, drifting and eventually becoming buried deep beneath younger geological formations.

To find these remnants, the joint team essentially performed a "CT scan" of the Earth's deep crust.

They employed a geochemical fingerprinting technique known as neodymium isotopic mapping, using a vast database of 25,346 igneous rock samples to trace ancient chemical signatures back to their origins.

By mapping the deep crust, the study revealed that Gondwana was much more expansive than previously thought, encompassing at least 80 per cent of Earth's continental land mass.

The team named this newly scaled giant "Greater Gondwana", cementing its supercontinent status.

"More importantly, the peak of this supercontinent's assembly and break-up perfectly coincides with the profound global upheavals that occurred 500 million years ago," lead author Wang Tao told mainland Chinese media.

This precise alignment in timing further confirmed Greater Gondwana's role as the main driving force behind the monumental shifts, said Wang Tao, who is from the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences.

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Chinese confidence could be further reinforced by the United States' latest push to make headway on conflicts in Ukraine and Iran - wars that observers say Washington may need Beijing's cooperation to help resolve - even if a near-term truce remains unlikely.

Through a joint declaration, the two-day summit also forged a united front against US tariffs, sanctions and "America first" policies - all without naming Washington.

"Xi's visit to Egypt - a major Middle Eastern power - underscores China's rising influence in the region," he said.

"As Washington is currently entangled in conflict with Iran, this serves as a reminder to the US that it cannot overlook China's regional clout when managing its bilateral ties with Beijing."

Amid escalating conflicts in the Middle East, Xi used his first Cairo visit in a decade to urge the countries of the region to build a self-led security model and "take charge of their own future".

Observers noted that the approach nudged the countries in the region away from Washington, without committing Beijing to a role as a replacement security guarantor.

US President Donald Trump said earlier this month that Xi would visit on September 24 and that they would have "a lot of good things to discuss". Beijing has yet to confirm the trip, in line with its practice of leaving official travel announcements to the last minute.

Wu added that Beijing's diplomatic whirlwind highlighted its focus on Asia and the Global South, showing its expanding reach as a global power and standing in sharp contrast to a US administration that has alienated traditional allies.

His view was echoed by Ali Wyne, International Crisis Group's senior research and advocacy adviser for US-China relations.

As Trump undermined US alliances, Xi was building "China's portfolio of transactional alignments", Wyne said, although he added that Beijing was "unlikely to establish a coherent counterbalancing coalition".

"Still, the Trump administration's foreign policy enables Beijing to present itself as a more stabilising force than Washington."

According to Wyne, while Xi would avoid upstaging or upbraiding his counterpart, he might enter the Washington summit far more confident than in May, buoyed by Trump prioritising their relationship over allegations of Chinese election interference and support for Iran.

Patricia Kim, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Brookings Institution, said Xi's multiple tours showed that China had other important relationships and diplomatic options. They aimed to portray Beijing as "increasingly central to a more multipolar international order", she said.

"The message Xi wants to project is that Beijing can engage Washington without making the US the centrepiece of its foreign policy."

In Bishkek, Xi praised the SCO approach of peaceful coexistence "without alliance, confrontation or targeting any third party", taking a veiled swipe at the US military alliance system.

Bloc leaders - representing Central Asian states, Iran, Russia, Pakistan, India and Belarus - condemned military strikes on Iran as international law violations and backed Tehran's right to a peaceful nuclear programme, directly countering US demands for total nuclear abandonment.

Meanwhile, pressed by November's midterm elections and the approaching summit with Beijing, Washington has also stepped up efforts to resolve the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran.

Following a phone call on Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump said, though not for the first time, that he thought his Russian counterpart wanted to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine.

The call came after US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held more than three hours of "highly useful" talks with Putin on Saturday. Both sides have signalled optimism and that plans for next steps could be expected soon.

Witkoff and Kushner travelled to Kyiv on Sunday for talks aimed at resuming Russia-Ukraine negotiations - their first visit to the Ukrainian capital after numerous trips to Moscow since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022.

While no breakthrough was announced, Witkoff said he was "confident there would be a good resolution".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian, European and US officials would meet to continue talks, while reiterating his call for a trilateral meeting involving Russia and the US.

Zelensky also said he expected the war with Russia to continue into the winter.

On Wednesday, Trump addressed the Middle Eastern front where the US has been deeply embroiled since February. The war with Iran would end immediately after the midterms, he said, and hinted that negotiations "could possibly happen".

Surging oil prices and broader inflation from the US-Israel war in Iran have plunged Trump's approval ratings to new lows, stoking Republican fears of what the midterms may bring.

Though neither conflict has a clear end in sight, analysts say that Washington might need China's cooperation to resolve them, giving Beijing a stronger hand ahead of the Xi-Trump talks.

According to Zhu Junwei, director of Chinese think tank Horizon Insights, Trump - unable to resolve the conflict in Iran - is pursuing alternative wins in North Korea and Ukraine to project a "can't stop winning" narrative in a bid to distract voters and boost his political prospects.

"None of these crises can be resolved quickly. If Trump wants quick, tangible wins to boost his midterm prospects, he is likely to need China's help," she said.

"Even if he approaches this by applying pressure, it fundamentally comes down to needing Beijing's cooperation."

Trump has repeatedly signalled a desire to revive personal diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, saying he expected to meet him later this year after scaling back last month's US-South Korea military drill, widely seen as a conciliatory gesture.

Zhu also noted that calming the Ukraine and Middle East conflicts - even if impossible overnight - "ultimately benefits Beijing, regardless of its impact on US-China rivalry, as it significantly improves China's external environment and creates new opportunities".

Sun Yun, director of the China programme at US think tank the Stimson Centre, echoed this view, saying that China could help the US resolve both conflicts and describing Beijing's role as a potential bargaining chip in broader US-China talks.

However, both Sun and Wyne of the International Crisis Group noted that Beijing was not the main driver behind Trump's pre-summit rush to resolve both conflicts.

"While the Trump administration would indeed have more diplomatic bandwidth were it to freeze the Russia-Ukraine war and reach a fresh ceasefire with Iran, it has not prioritised China policy nearly as much as many observers had anticipated when Trump retook office," Wyne said.

Even though Putin might view Trump as a more favourable interlocutor than his predecessor Joe Biden, Moscow "is unlikely to weaken its relationship" with China for a fragile US truce under Trump, knowing American leadership was likely to revert to a hostile stance towards Moscow, he added.

Even without major deliverables, the summit could still prove useful if it maintained a cordial rapport between the leaders and sustained a "tactical thaw", Wyne stressed.

According to Kim from Brookings, the leaders' meeting was "unlikely to produce a significantly expanded bilateral agenda or result in a fundamental reset" of ties. Instead, the focus remained on extending the trade detente and sustaining leader-level diplomacy as the main buffer against further deterioration, she said.

Zhu noted that while Trump aimed to stabilise ties with China, an overall hawkish US bipartisan consensus meant there was "still a long way to go" towards achieving "constructive strategic stability" - the framework introduced at the Beijing summit in May.

"A single summit cannot resolve every issue; if this meeting yields partial economic and trade agreements and temporarily manages differences, it should be viewed as a success."

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Almudena Azcarate Ortega, senior programme analyst on space law and regulation with the Washington-based think tank Secure World Foundation, said the weapons were likely to be jammers or spoofers, which are essentially non-kinetic technologies.

A kinetic weapon would conflict with US policy against debris-creating activities, Ortega told the Xiangshan Forum on Wednesday.

The Outer Space Treaty - the cornerstone of international space law adopted in 1967 - bars its more than 110 signatory nations from placing nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit. However, it does not impose limits on the deployment of conventional weaponry.

"The Outer Space Treaty does not prohibit the deployment of conventional weapons in outer space, but … it has become a taboo, just like no first use of nuclear weapons in the eight decades since 1945," noted Guo Xiaobing, director of the Centre for Arms Control Studies with the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

"That taboo was broken yesterday. We are at a breaking point in history."

Ortega said that while the US deployment did not violate the Outer Space Treaty, "if the threshold rose to the level of a use of force, that would be a violation of Article 2.4 of the UN Charter".

"So the reason why this is sort of a big deal is that no US official has ever acknowledged an actual weapons system in space before.

"It is a shift in terms of traditional US policy around counterspace capabilities. And it is also dangerous from a linguistic perspective," she cautioned.

She said the comment could potentially be escalatory, causing others to deploy similar technologies, making space more contested and competitive.

"I do think that this is a bit of a step back in terms of everything that we're trying to achieve at the multilateral level on space security [and] diplomacy."

Experts at the forum also argued that ambiguous space terminology had fuelled rising space competition between countries.

Gao Guozhu, director of Beihang University's Institute of Outer Space Law, said opinions varied on what constituted a space threat.

"For example, the United States considers the use of anti-satellite weapons or technologies to pose a serious threat to space systems - or, more precisely, a serious threat to the countries that own those systems," Gao said.

"China, by contrast, views the US policy of seeking dominance in outer space as a threat. In other words, China sees this as a strategic or policy-level threat. The two sides therefore differ in what they identify as a threat."

Gao agreed that the US deployment of space weapons was "bound to trigger a new round of the arms race in space".

"If a war in space breaks out in the future, the era of spacefaring civilisation that humanity has pursued for more than half a century could well become a thing of the past," he warned.

US defence and intelligence assessments have long highlighted China's pursuit of wide-ranging counterspace capabilities, including direct-ascent anti-satellite missiles, co-orbital systems, electronic warfare and directed-energy weapons, with some capabilities already considered operational.

Since 2024, the US has also claimed that Russia is developing space-based anti-satellite capabilities - which Moscow denies. Additionally, the US alleged in both its 2025 and 2026 annual threat assessment reports that Russia was developing a new satellite designed to carry a nuclear weapon into orbit as an anti-satellite payload.

Senior Colonel Zhao Weibin, a prominent Chinese military scholar and member of the Beijing Xiangshan Forum Secretariat, said the risks of a space arms race had probably just become a reality.

"Once [the arms race] logic is activated, it's hard to reverse. Because an on-orbit weapon will severely erode strategic mutual trust," he warned.

"Planning countermeasures on the assumption of a worst-case scenario - may trigger an escalating spiral of action and reaction."

In 2025, President Donald Trump unveiled the "Golden Dome for America", a multilayered missile-defence architecture incorporating space-based interceptors (SBI) designed to intercept threats shortly after launch.

The SBI programme aims to place missile interceptors in low-Earth orbit, rather than solely using satellites to detect and track threats.

Gao said both the SBI programme and the deployment of space-based weapons had shattered the quiet global understanding on "no weapons in space".

"What did we mean by strategic stability in the past? It meant that each side had the ability to destroy the other - a theory based on mutually assured vulnerability," Gao said, warning that the present shift left adversaries with no diplomatic recourse.

"The problem now is that you are becoming increasingly powerful, while using that power to make me vulnerable and grind me into the ground. What am I supposed to do under those circumstances? I have no options left, and there is no longer any basis for dialogue."

Experts are also calling for space cooperation to become part of the China-US constructive strategic stability dialogue initiated during the May Xi-Trump summit in Beijing.

Gao also highlighted the dangers posed by space weapons in case of a Taiwan conflict, pointing to commercial and military infrastructure in orbit.

"The US might use Starlink to provide services for Taiwan and we might disrupt it because we don't think that's OK. And the US, in order to stop China, could disrupt China's BeiDou [satellite-based navigation] system," he said.

Such an escalation would be very dangerous and could potentially lead to both sides attacking each other's satellites, Gao warned.

Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China and has never renounced the use of force to achieve reunification. Most countries, including the US - Taiwan's main international backer - do not recognise the self-ruled island as an independent state. However, Washington is opposed to any attempt to take Taiwan by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons for its defence.

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Hung will be the most senior Taiwanese official to visit the mainland for Apec events this year. The island's vice-minister of economic affairs, Lai Chien-hsin, took part in the energy ministerial meeting in Beijing last week and then chief trade negotiator Yang Jen-ni participated in a trade ministers' meeting in Suzhou in May.

While Hung's visit is being closely watched for signs of a possible thaw in a prolonged cross-strait stand-off, analysts have cautioned against interpreting it as an icebreaking trip or a resumption of official exchanges between Taipei and Beijing.

Ahead of his departure, Hung stressed that Taiwan was a full Apec member under the name "Chinese Taipei". He said he would take part under the grouping's established arrangements and the principles of "equal participation and reciprocal dignity".

Nevertheless, with official cross-strait dialogue suspended, Hung's visit carries symbolic weight because no cabinet minister - particularly a political appointee - has travelled to the mainland since Lai took office in May 2024.

"A small step by Hung Sun-han would be a big step for cross-strait relations," said Lee Yen-hsiu, a lawmaker from the main opposition Kuomintang, a Beijing-friendly party.

Lee questioned whether the trip signalled a change in the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) approach towards Beijing after more than two years of promoting its "resist China, oppose China" agenda.

She said Hung's visit could be seen as "a possible test by Lai of whether cross-strait relations could begin to thaw".

DPP lawmaker Wu Szu-yao urged Hung to remain alert to "potential personal safety concerns and the possibility of unequal treatment or politically motivated difficulties" while on the mainland.

But DPP legislative caucus whip Chuang Jui-hsiung dismissed such concerns.

"Are you kidding? If holding Apec in China meant there was a threat to someone's personal safety, it wouldn't just shock Taiwan - the whole world would be shocked by China," Chuang said.

Analysts said Taipei might hope the trip created an impression of easing tensions, particularly ahead of the Washington summit.

But Wang said the trip could not be regarded as a genuine advance because Hung was attending a multilateral meeting and not direct talks with Beijing.

"If there were really a breakthrough, there would inevitably be substantive interactions, such as Hung meeting mainland officials," he said.

Li Da-jung, a professor of international relations at Tamkang University in New Taipei City, similarly argued that the arrangement was standard.

"Taiwan is a full member of Apec, and to maintain its position in the international organisation, it has to send officials to attend the meeting," Li said, adding that participation also helped maintain the island's international visibility.

"Its impact on Taiwan remained uncertain, but Taipei would be watching closely to see whether Washington's approach to the island - including pending arms sales - is affected by Trump's talks with Xi," Li said.

Analysts also doubted Beijing would create difficulties for Hung over his entry arrangements.

"Long-established arrangements have already governed participation in Apec meetings, and this is mainland China's third time hosting the leaders' meeting after Shanghai in 2001 and Beijing in 2014," Wang said.

Hung should therefore be able to enter using his Apec invitation letter under existing arrangements instead of using a mainland-issued Taiwan compatriot permit, he added.

Beijing has skirted questions over whether Hung must hold the permit.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the Taiwan Affairs Office, reiterated on Wednesday that under the one-China principle, the "Taiwan region" took part in Apec under the name "Chinese Taipei" and as a regional economy.

Taipei rejects that interpretation, saying its 1991 Apec accession memorandum contains no reference to the "one-China principle" and provides for participation on an equal basis with other members.

Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the US, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-ruled island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.

Wang said the DPP could benefit politically if Beijing created difficulties for Hung - and thus Beijing was unlikely to take action that could inadvertently help the party electorally.

Huang Kwei-bo, a diplomacy professor at National Chengchi University in Taipei, said the DPP government was likely to stress that Hung was attending an international meeting rather than engaging in bilateral cross-strait exchanges.

He also cautioned against using the trip as a barometer of cross-strait relations because Beijing, as this year's Apec host, was expected to invite representatives from all member economies, and Hung was only visiting because the Apec meeting happened to be held on the mainland.

Huang said Taipei's choice of representative to the Apec Economic Leaders' Meeting in Shenzhen in November would be a more significant test.

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They measured the concentration of 13 rare earth elements including cerium, ytterbium, and lanthanum in urine samples collected from the mothers.

When the scientists assessed the combined impact of all 13 elements using a weighted quantile sum regression model, the overall risk more than doubled, yielding an odds ratio of 2.004.

Odds ratio indicate how a one‑unit change in an exposure shifts the odds of a health outcome.

Cerium stood out as the dominant contributor, accounting for nearly half of the mixture's harmful weight.

In several analyses, exposure to certain individual rare earth elements or their mixtures produced odds ratios that soared past 3 or even 4, signalling a three-fold or greater surge in low birthweight risk.

In the study group, the incidence of low birthweight was 0.8 per cent, while 7.9 per cent of newborns were classified as small for their gestational age.

No significant association was found between rare earth exposure and babies being small for their gestational age, the researchers noted.

For decades, China exported these strategic minerals at rock-bottom prices, fuelling global hi-tech industries and Western militaries while absorbing the environmental and health costs at home.

Recently, Beijing imposed export quotas and restrictions, triggering outcry from affected nations that viewed the move as retaliation in the ongoing trade war with the United States.

Inside China, however, many argue that the price of rare earths must rise to compensate for the damage done to rivers, soil and the bodies of Chinese citizens.

The new study provides a "chilling example" of that damage, showing that even unborn children are paying a price, according to a Beijing-based rare earth expert.

"Why should Chinese newborns suffer so that American fighter jets and missiles can be built cheaply and used in conflicts that kill children in places like Palestine and Iran," he said, requesting anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

The study's authors, led by Wang Youjie with Huazhong University of Science and Technology, caution that their findings are based on a single urine sample and need confirmation through more extensive prospective research.

The paper was published in the September 2026 issue of the Journal of Environmental Health, a peer-reviewed publication run by the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association.

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In Egyptian airspace, Chinese pilots had the rare chance to train against the Rafale, an advanced French-built fighter.

The 6,000km (3,700-mile) deployment was completed in about nine hours with aerial refuelling, and tested China's ability to move and support a combat-capable air package far from home.

"Africa is increasingly a testing ground for the development of Chinese global power projection capabilities," said Paul Nantulya, a China-Africa military specialist at the National Defence University's Africa Centre for Strategic Studies in Washington.

"One of the many goals of this modernisation effort is to rehearse and refine China's expeditionary capabilities," Nantulya said. "Deploying to the African continent requires considerably more effort and coordination because of the distance. That makes Africa particularly attractive as a testing environment."

The PLA is also testing its preparedness, according to Dr Ilaria Carrozza, a senior researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo.

"China's training strategy in Africa has increasingly focused on the PLA's warfighting capabilities, joint logistics, and sustaining troops in unfamiliar terrain," Carrozza said.

"Recent joint exercises, such as those with Egypt, seem to suggest that such drills are becoming ever more complex, providing the PLA with an occasion to test its preparedness especially in terms of its lifting, logistics, and global command capabilities."

Lina Benabdallah, an associate professor of politics and international affairs at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, said Beijing had spent decades building military ties in Africa through delegations, defence forums, joint drills, procurement, naval patrols, basing and mediation.

"China has been closely developing its defence diplomacy with African countries on multiple fronts for decades now," she said.

Benabdallah said the expansion was "part of China's quest to be taken as a serious and viable security partner in addition to being a major economic power".

China's military exchanges with African nations go back to the 1950s, when the PLA helped train officers in Algeria.

Anti-piracy missions in the Gulf of Aden began in 2008 and marked a step up in overseas operations. Keeping ships in the region meant the PLA had to rotate crews, deliver supplies, maintain equipment and coordinate missions thousands of kilometres from China.

China has also sent more advanced equipment to African waters, with deployments including Type 054A frigates and Type 039A/041 attack submarines.

"They're deployed as a package," Nantulya said. "You're going to have frigates, then a destroyer, then a replenishment ship and a tug, and combat helicopters.

"What we have seen in these packages is that China has deployed newer and newer capabilities, and variants of capabilities, since 2008," he said.

In parallel, he expected China to take part in more large-scale drills in Africa.

Recent exercises include Peace Unity 2024 with Tanzania and Mozambique, and this year's Will for Peace, which brought together China, Russia and South Africa.

Eagles of Civilisation - the latest joint exercise that wrapped up in Egypt early this month - showed how far that process has developed. The drills covered long- and short-range air combat, air-to-ground strikes, suppression of enemy air defences, combat search and rescue, and integrated command and control.

Training against Egyptian Rafales may also have provided information about the performance and tactics of a Western-designed fighter.

Egypt's air force operates American, French and Russian aircraft, and the country co-hosts the Bright Star exercises with the United States. Its relationship with Beijing allows Cairo to diversify its military ties and gives the PLA access to foreign-designed aircraft during training, including as opposing forces.

Lungani Hlongwa, a postdoctoral research fellow at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan and a former South African Navy officer, noted that the joint exercises were not just about China's military development.

"I wouldn't exactly say that Africa is a 'testing ground' because that framing gives the impression that African states are passive laboratories in their military relations with China," he said. "African countries engage with China for their own security, training and diplomatic reasons."

Hlongwa also linked the PLA's growing role in Africa to Beijing's aim of protecting Chinese interests abroad.

He described the continent as both a region where Chinese investments, nationals and maritime routes face real or perceived threats and a place where the PLA could demonstrate its ability to protect those interests from a distance.

"This aligns with China's strategic mission of safeguarding overseas interests - a mission in which the PLA plays an increasingly central role," he said. "In this strategy, Africa plays a dual role."

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The submerged array charged batteries and powered an LED panel, proving that solar energy can be harvested even in the dim, blue-green twilight of the ocean.

The achievement by a team from Yunnan University was published on September 11 in the journal Joule.

At 10 metres below the surface, only about 10 per cent of sunlight penetrates. And red light, where silicon cells perform best, is almost entirely absorbed.

To address this, the team added polyhexamethylene guanidine hydrochloride or PHMG - as a crystallisation additive to make the cells more stable in seawater.

"Previous underwater solar cells focused on very shallow water depths of only 2 metres or less, far from useful for practical applications," Zhang Wen-hua of Yunnan University said in a Cell Press report. "This work presents the first functional validation of submerged solar cells practically operating at a water depth of up to about 10 metres."

In laboratory tests that simulated sunlight at a depth of 10 metres, a small cell measuring 0.0895 sq cm (about 0.014 sq inch) reached a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 34.71 per cent. A larger module measuring 28.79 square centimetres reached 29.4 per cent, showing that even weak light could be used efficiently.

Durability was a highlight of the work. The team provided the perovskite solar cells with multilayer encapsulation - acting as waterproof, pressure-resistant, and corrosion-resistant armour - using butyl rubber and cover glass, topped with a transparent epoxy resin outer protective layer.

In simulated seawater, the encapsulated device retained 99.58 per cent of its initial PCE after 1,000 hours of continuous immersion under illumination at a depth of 10 metres.

Further calculations suggest that at 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Fahrenheit) under a simulated 10 metre underwater light, the cell had a T80 lifetime of 48,094 hours, meaning it could still keep 80 per cent of its output after about 5½ years.

Under two hours of light, the system charged 1,416 milliwatt-hours at 2 metres, 752 mWh at 6 metres, and 324 mWh at 10 metres. It successfully lit an LED panel.

"Moreover, we have achieved scaling from small-area laboratory cells to large-size modules," said Zhang, dean of the materials and energy school at Yunnan University and corresponding author of the Joule paper.

"The combination of the laboratory investigations and the in-field experiments provides strong evidence for the operation of underwater photovoltaics."

The work opens new frontiers both for perovskites, which are traditionally considered unsuitable for humid environments, and for the increasingly human-occupied underwater world.

The technology could be used in underwater sensors, detectors, cameras, communication systems, underwater robots and submersibles, where it could serve as a long-term power node.

According to the paper: "This work paves the way for the practical deployment of perovskite photovoltaics in underwater environments, offering a promising route toward self-sustained marine energy systems and autonomous underwater devices."

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China officially opened its landmark Pinglu Canal to navigation on Wednesday, creating a new maritime gateway for the country's southwestern hinterland and providing a shorter route to Southeast Asia as Beijing seeks to deepen trade with the region.

Hong Kong's leader has unveiled the city's first five-year blueprint, aligned with China's national development strategy, setting targets to nearly double innovation spending and raise the share of manufacturing and new industries to 5.5 per cent of the economy.

Hyrox China has given full refunds to competitors affected by last weekend's incontinence incident in Beijing, while the global governing body has updated its rule book to allow race directors to remove athletes if they pose a risk to the hygiene of the event.

Police in Guangzhou said on Monday they had apprehended a man in the southern Chinese city's university town district after receiving reports that he was wielding a knife and injuring pedestrians.

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She also thought it would be a financially secure choice in a country where the career has carried high prestige. "I truly believed that medicine was a skill-based career that would protect me from unemployment," she said.

"The main driver is the squeeze on young and mid-career doctors caused by 'cost-cutting and efficiency-enhancing' measures, namely the lack of job opportunities, low pay and heavy workloads," she said.

While medicine still attracts some of the nation's best and brightest, the shine is coming off the career as general work conditions and competition from other industries encourage students to look elsewhere.

That trend is reflected in the admissions for medical schools, which draw applicants from all over the country.

For example, the lowest-scoring Zhejiang candidate admitted to study medicine at Sun Yat-sen University, a top school in Guangdong province, was 1,300 places lower in the exam rankings than the lowest performer last year. It was a similar situation at Southern Medical University, also in Guangdong, where the lowest scorer allowed in was 2,000 places further down on the list than in 2025.

The decline was even sharper among candidates from within Guangdong. The minimum entry threshold for a Guangdong resident to get into Southern Medical University fell by more than 10,000 places compared with 2025.

The decline was concentrated among the five-year undergraduate clinical medicine programmes, like the one Huang has almost finished.

Graduates with these degrees must go on to complete three years of residency at a hospital, but the competition for places to do this training is fierce, so much so that a master's degree or higher is now the baseline requirement. Going down this path would take at least 11 years.

Meanwhile, long-term tracks offering a faster route to advanced degrees - such as "5+3" integrated bachelor's and master's programmes - remain sought after, and admission rankings for other medical disciplines, including dentistry, stayed relatively stable.

Even if a graduate makes it into a residency programme, the pressure is not over.

Trainees must complete clinical rotations across key departments, gaining well-rounded hands-on experience that mirrors the clinical workload of a full-time hospital staff member - all for little pay.

"I'm almost 30, but I've yet to achieve a stable professional status. I still have to rely on my parents for financial support," one commenter said.

China is not the only country that requires a long-term commitment to complete a medical education, but overseas trainee doctors often benefit from a more established residency system with stronger financial safeguards.

In the United States, for instance, many resident physicians are salaried hospital staff who are entitled to benefits such as health insurance, paid time off and relocation help.

Their pay typically starts around US$60,000 to US$70,000 in their first year with annual increases, providing a basic financial safety net during training that is on a par with the national average salary.

In contrast, the income for Chinese medical students during their residencies remains precarious. On top of base pay and hospital performance subsidies, they should receive a central government allowance.

But while central authorities allocate 30,000 yuan (US$4,500) annually per trainee, a 2020 survey by medical platform DXY revealed that nearly 28 per cent of residents were paid less than 1,000 yuan each month, with 8 per cent receiving no income at all.

Only 32 per cent of those surveyed earned more than 3,000 yuan a month, a level many described as barely enough to get by.

Emerging degree subjects such as artificial intelligence are also growing in appeal, contributing to the shift away from the traditional discipline, observers say.

However, among commenters online, the tough conditions for would-be doctors were the main cause.

"Even if we get hired by a hospital, we still face heavy workloads and endless night shifts, all while having to do academic research and take constant exams," one commenter wrote.

"And amid the economic downturn, many hospitals have slashed salaries, upending the long-held balance between effort and compensation."

According to Chen Zhiwen, an academic committee member at the Chinese Society of Educational Development Strategy, universities nationwide have generally seen an increased intake for other, more popular majors.

Chen told China Comment, a social science journal supervised by the Communist Party, that this meant the lower entry rankings were affecting other majors and were not unique to medicine.

Speaking to the same publication, Jin Hui, head of the clinical nutrition department at Southeast University's Zhongda Hospital, also said she considered the trend to be normal.

"In any major, some people will drop out halfway while others remain genuinely passionate," she said, adding that improving the support system for young doctors could rebuild the industry's appeal.

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He was previously the international trade negotiator of the Ministry of Commerce, and the revised official title vests him with a national-level mandate, strengthening the country's economic relations with its key trading partners.

China's Vice-Premier He Lifeng is leading a Chinese delegation to the US for consultations on economic and trade issues of mutual concern from Saturday to Wednesday.

A seasoned expert in multilateral trade rules and bilateral economic consultations, 59-year-old Li holds a bachelor's degree in law from Peking University and a master's degree in law and economics from the University of Hamburg.

He was appointed as the commerce ministry's international trade negotiator and vice-minister in April last year. Following the appointment, Li played an important role in US-China trade talks amid heightened tariff disputes in 2025.

In addition to Li's promotion, the State Council rolled out a series of appointments across key economic, industrial and public service sectors.

Multiple senior officials have taken up new posts, including new deputy leaders for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the National Financial Regulatory Administration and the Cyberspace Administration of China.

Meanwhile Ling Ji, vice minister of commerce, was appointed as deputy international trade representative of China.

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The extended decline comes amid deteriorating ties between Beijing and Tokyo since late last year, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made controversial remarks on Taiwan.

Beijing has since taken a series of steps to curb economic ties with Japan, from warning Chinese citizens against travelling to the neighbouring country to tightening export curbs on "dual-use" items, referring to goods that have both civilian and military applications.

Zhou Mi, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, a think tank under China's Ministry of Commerce, described August's decline as "a normal reaction under the current system of rare-earth export controls on Japan".

"The controls have raised concerns among market participants, and they are adjusting their expectations accordingly," he said, adding that the shift in expectations "presents a very tangible shock for Japanese firms".

China's exports of rare earths and related products to Japan were unlikely to see meaningful improvement if Takaichi's stance towards China continued, he added.

Rare earth magnets are critical components in electric-vehicle motors, wind turbines, certain consumer-electronics products and advanced defence applications. China is the world's largest supplier of the magnets, as well as rare earth materials more broadly.

As trade tensions with the West have escalated, Beijing has increasingly used its dominance in rare earths and other critical minerals as a source of leverage in economic and trade relations.

China's shipments of rare earth magnets to the US declined 13.2 per cent year on year to 512 tonnes in August, despite Beijing resuming approvals for some rare earth shipments and easing some restrictions on critical-material exports following trade negotiations in November.

Shipments to Germany fell 22.4 per cent by volume, while total shipments to EU member states declined about 21 per cent, based on calculations by the South China Morning Post based on customs data.

Overall, China's rare earth exports by volume fell by 18.25 per cent year on year in August.

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"Delivery riders … have become an important profession in China. Chefs wear uniforms, flight attendants wear uniforms - so why wasn't there a professional uniform designed specifically for riders?" Yang said while accepting the award.

His design team for the uniform included no professional designers, featuring instead a restaurant owner and a former dancer.

In the design process, they sought to combine style with practical concerns - selecting colours to ensure visibility of the riders in traffic and choosing fabric that could withstand both sweat and rain.

"What we are proudest of is this: the uniform sells for just over 20 euros, and it outperforms outdoor clothing costing many times more," he said, thanking Jack Ma, who he said was very involved in the design process, trying on the garments and testing the fabrics.

Stronger labour protections in extreme weather, prompt and fair payment of wages and a more robust social security system were among the measures the State Council of China called for in a 12-point plan issued in April.

The Taobao Shangou suits have been distributed free of charge to more than one million riders since August 2025.

Alibaba is the owner of the South China Morning Post.

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The recovery has continued this month, with China's crude imports running at 7.84 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, up from 7.25 million bpd the previous month, according to trade intelligence firm Kpler. A year ago, the figure was 9.76 million bpd.

"A recent partial rebound in Chinese import demand coincided with increased uncertainty regarding crude oil supply availability from the Middle East - following attacks on Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline - and Russia due to Ukrainian attacks on the Novorossiysk export terminal," said Ivan Ryabov, head of oil trading analytics at Kpler.

"As two major exporters with remaining spare crude production capacity, these disruptions created upwards pressure on prices and raised supply security concerns for importing countries."

Chinese firms "have held back on buying for several months, but have come back to the market to reduce their drawdown rate and support increased crude runs to replenish domestic product inventory", said June Goh, a senior oil market analyst at Sparta.

The return of Chinese buyers comes after months of weaker imports, which helped partly offset a global supply shortfall and limit upwards pressure on prices after the outbreak of the Iran war.

But that China buffer is now weakening as inventories fall.

"China's oil inventories have fallen significantly from the levels built up before the Strait of Hormuz closure, making it harder to sustain the 'China buffer' that had helped keep oil prices in check," the Huatai Securities report said.

Goh agreed that China's muted crude buying in recent months had helped contain upwards pressure on oil prices, while its return had partly contributed to the recent gains in global oil benchmarks.

"Now, the crude market cannot rely heavily on China to rebalance again," said Sun Jianan, a senior oil analyst at Energy Aspects.

Even so, analysts do not expect Chinese buyers to return to the market aggressively.

"We see no imminent risk to China's crude supply," Sun said, adding that China still had ample crude stocks that could meet more than 80 days of demand and cushion potential supply losses.

Goh estimated that China still had around four to six months of inventory at current consumption rates, when factoring in both commercial and strategic reserves.

Global oil benchmarks such as WTI and Brent rose more than 20 per cent from late August to nearly US$110 a barrel on Tuesday, before falling back to about US$100 a barrel on Friday.

Higher prices are one reason Chinese refiners are unlikely to rush to rebuild inventories.

"Higher crude prices are now eroding Chinese refining margins, as domestic product prices are regulated above US$80 per barrel," Sun said, adding that he did not expect China to "significantly increase crude purchases with flat prices above US$100 per barrel".

Similarly, Terine Ooi, associate director of energy markets at Dow Jones Energy, said she did not expect China to quickly return to pre-war import levels.

A prolonged disruption to Saudi exports could push up crude prices and further pressure refiners' margins, while Beijing could also tighten refined-product exports to prioritise domestic supply, she added.

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She explained to the tax officer that the account had been set up by her former employer in 2022 when she worked in Hong Kong, and she had no trust holdings. "The officer said he would record my statement, and nothing further," Zhao said.

In his case, the inquiry also led back to an MPF account. Beijing tax officials emailed @Will a form requiring him to explain the account, sign the form and affix his fingerprint.

So why are MPF accounts, a type of pension fund, being flagged by mainland tax authorities as offshore trusts?

That structure may be at the root of the confusion: the word "trust" appears in the official name of the retirement schemes.

"Under the Common Reporting Standard, information on MPF accounts is [shared with] mainland tax authorities, where the accounts are categorised as trust-related holdings," said Ge Yuyu, an associate professor at the Shanghai National Accounting Institute.

"It is difficult for local officials to determine whether they constitute offshore trusts or simply MPF retirement savings, so taxpayers are expected to clarify on their own," he added.

Ye Yongqing, a tax lawyer at Beijing-based Anli Partners, said trusts and MPF schemes had similar legal structures, which could explain why MPF accounts were being categorised as trusts under the tax system.

Ge said tax authorities could readily verify whether an MPF pension account was involved by requiring supporting documents from the scheme provider.

According to Hong Kong's Inland Revenue Department, since 2020, MPF schemes have fallen within the definition of a reporting financial institution and no longer qualify for exemption.

Both Ye, the lawyer, and Ge, the professor, said MPF accounts enjoyed tax-exempt status and were not subject to the tax framework for offshore trusts.

The MPFA also notes on its website that "upon withdrawal of MPF by scheme members, the sum derived from mandatory contributions is not taxable".

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Here is a breakdown of the outlook from the perspectives of global financial institutions and policy analysts.

What is the market consensus for the Xi-Trump summit results?

The bar for next week's meeting, slated for Thursday, is relatively low, according to some research houses and research organisations.

The results of a recent Goldman Sachs investor survey showed that most respondents expected the meeting to be symbolic, though onshore Chinese investors were relatively constructive: 38 per cent expected incremental progress, compared with 26 per cent among offshore respondents.

Financial institutions Barclays and BNP Paribas defined the baseline outcome as a managed stabilisation of China-US economic ties and an ongoing commitment to stability.

Dividends might include extending the 2025 tariff truce and finalising earlier trade commitments - upbeat but short of a grand bargain.

Chinese leaders are treating strategic US-China competition as an enduring one and seeking to buy time while calculating the lowest cost to sustain an uneasy calm, the Brookings public policy think tank said in a September 9 analysis.

What's a realistic best-case scenario?

China might buy key US goods, and both sides could formally lower tariffs that soared past 100 per cent on both sides last year.

Progress could include reciprocal tariff cuts on roughly US$30 billion in trade on each side, which the two sides agreed to after Trump's trip in May.

China's Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday that the economic and trade teams of both sides were maintaining close communication on relevant issues, and that further updates would be released in due course.

The US side has also hinted at carrying forward earlier Chinese agreements to buy US agricultural products, energy and aircraft. Chinese soybean purchases have been a particular sticking point this year.

Steadying the supply chain for critical minerals - where China has reserves that the US needs - has a shot at seeing progress next week as well.

What constitutes the worst-case summit scenario?

Tech ties could fray further. BNP Paribas warned that a China-US technology schism was broadening into AI, and that the world was moving towards two distinct tech ecosystems as the US tried to limit China's access to advanced AI chips and models.

Beijing's latest rare earth export restrictions continue to deepen supply-chain tensions, and institutions previewing the summit were not forecasting any positive outcome on this topic.

What are the likely market impacts?

According to Goldman Sachs, 46 per cent of offshore respondents and 38 per cent of Chinese respondents expected moderate gains in Chinese equities one month after the visit, if things go well.

Respondents anticipated limited upside for the yuan in foreign-exchange markets. Goldman Sachs said most investors expected the pace of yuan appreciation against the US dollar to remain unchanged or to slow into late October.

If the summit ends poorly, BNP Paribas and Barclays indicated that investors would veer towards safe capital flows, even at the risk of lower returns. They also pointed to possible losses of scale for companies operating in the tech ecosystems of both China and the US.

About two-thirds of investors surveyed by Goldman Sachs expected US-China tensions to be broadly unchanged after the US midterm congressional elections in November, while roughly 15 per cent expected moderate improvement and another 15 per cent expected moderate deterioration.

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Chinese professional service companies that served Chinese vendors and manufacturers in the Middle East were looking to Oman for safe proximity to their clients, Qalhati said.

"Most of the Chinese companies come because they want to diversify," Qalhati said on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong this month. "Oman has a big advantage with stability and neutrality."

The International Financial Centre Oman had received "very strong interest" from Chinese investors, whose inquiries had outnumbered those from many other countries, he said.

A survey by professional services firm PwC last year found that 86 per cent of Chinese enterprises were planning to expand operations in the Middle East.

Chinese direct investment in Oman rose from 887.3 million Omani rials (US$2.3 billion) at the end of last year to 901.5 million rials at the end of the first quarter this year, according to investor advisory firm Oman Verified.

Chinese professional services firms formerly focused on expanding in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, said Annelle Sheline, a programme research fellow with the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, a think tank based in Washington.

"It makes sense for more firms to establish a presence in Oman," she said, adding that Oman was "likely to retain a working relationship with Tehran".

Chinese investors would require support from legal and accounting firms, especially those with a local presence and familiarity with Middle Eastern laws and regulations, said Sheline, formerly of the US State Department. Chinese companies with those needs had often invested in Middle Eastern energy, hi-tech and infrastructure projects, she said.

Analysts said Oman's 20-year-old free-trade agreement with the US and international financial centre tax exemptions lasting up to 50 years would give Chinese investors further incentives.

They also said Oman's economic zones were to the east of the Strait of Hormuz, meaning they could provide access to global markets by sea without the threat of strikes by Iran.

"It is far safer to transport goods to and from Omani ports than to attempt to travel through the strait at present," said Azad Zangana, head of macroeconomic analysis for Gulf countries at Oxford Economics.

But some experts cautioned that Oman lacked the development level of countries such as the UAE.

"The degree of development is not as great as the UAE [and] Oman is smaller," said Warren Bailey, a Cornell University professor of finance. "It's a bit more distant from the Gulf than, say, Dubai, plus there is political distance."

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As my guide drove me through the capital, he pointed out buildings developed by Chinese companies, Middle Eastern investors and, in earlier years, Russian firms.

The mix of futuristic towers, monumental government buildings and older Soviet influences was a reflection of Kazakhstan's "multi-vector" foreign policy: maintaining close ties with Russia while attracting investment from China, the Middle East, Europe and the US`.

Like me, my guide came from the Ili region of western China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, although he was an ethnic Kazakh who had moved to Kazakhstan about a decade ago.

After gaining independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Kazakhstan - whose population now stands at 20.6 million - has encouraged ethnic Kazakhs from China, Mongolia and Uzbekistan to settle in their ancestral homeland, helping to expand both its population and the share of its titular ethnic group.

Fluent in both languages and familiar with both business cultures, Chinese-born Kazakhs often work as assistants or intermediaries - serving as human bridges in a commercial relationship growing faster than the transport links between the two countries.

As we drove through Astana, my guide spoke proudly about the city's development. But when we passed a restaurant occupying a former McDonald's site, he recalled how the American chain left Kazakhstan in 2023 - its local franchisee stopped sourcing supplies from Russia following the Ukraine war and struggled to find suitable alternatives.

"The experience also made local people understand the importance of learning other languages and engaging with people beyond Russia, such as the Chinese," he said.

Astana's young population was another noticeable feature - couples and new families seemed to be everywhere.

"We have always been encouraged to increase the Kazakh population, and the government provides families with a lot of support," my guide said. "In our way of thinking, population is everything."

Many of the young Kazakhs I met were also multilingual. Some spoke Kazakh, Russian and English, while others were learning Mandarin as Chinese investment creates new employment and business opportunities.

I was also surprised by how widely Kazakh was spoken. I had expected Russian to dominate because of the country's history as a Soviet republic, but many drivers, restaurant workers and young residents were eager to speak Kazakh.

My guide said Astana had attracted residents from predominantly Kazakh-speaking regions when the country moved its capital to the north, helping make it an important centre for the language's revival.

For Hong Kong businesses looking towards Central Asia, that linguistic and cultural flexibility may be one of Kazakhstan's greatest assets.

The Russian language ties it to the post-Soviet economy, while its border with China and growing Chinese investment link it to East Asia. Its English-speaking young people look increasingly towards the West, while its predominantly Muslim population provides cultural ties to the Middle East.

Few countries share that combination of geography, languages and cultural links.

Yet Kazakhstan's ambitions are constrained by some familiar pressures for developing economies.

Astana did not feel cheap. My guide said many residents earned the equivalent of about 4,500 yuan to 5,000 yuan (US$630 to US$700) a month, while some restaurant, grocery and consumer prices appeared comparable with those in Shenzhen or Shanghai.

He said high prices were a common complaint, one that was fuelling Kazakhstan's push to develop food processing, packaging and light manufacturing instead of having to rely on imports.

Energy was an exception. A litre of 92-octane petrol cost 247 tenge - about HK$4.30 (54 US cents) - in the middle of this month compared with HK$34.62 for standard unleaded petrol in Hong Kong, although the two markets sell different fuel grades. Almost every petrol station I noticed belonged to Qazaq Oil, Kazakhstan's largest fuel-retailing chain.

Cheap fuel and Astana's severe winters - which can reduce battery performance - may help explain why conventional cars and hybrids remain more common than electric vehicles.

Direct flights from Hong Kong to Almaty - Kazakhstan's largest city - are due to begin in January, cutting the journey to about seven hours. The new route alone will not create a commercial corridor, but it could remove one of the most visible barriers between the two regions.

Additional reporting by Ralph Jennings

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With key details still needing to be agreed - especially the time frame for any purchases - the final deal was likely to be shaped by the broader economic and political bargaining between the two presidents, they said.

"It's all about the three Ws: whether, when and what," said a retired aviation executive, who previously oversaw fleet management and engineering at one of China's largest state-owned airlines.

"With Trump's Beijing trip in May and the 200-jet deal announcement, the 'whether' part is now agreed upon … But a call on when to place actual orders needs to be determined by Chinese trade officials, a vice-premier or even needs a nod from the top leader."

In May, China agreed to purchase at least 200 Boeing planes as a key deliverable from Trump's state visit - the country's first deal with the US aviation giant for nearly a decade.

At the time, China's Ministry of Commerce said aviation was an area where both nations could deepen "mutually beneficial, win-win" cooperation, adding that the two presidents had reached an "important consensus", without elaborating.

The White House, meanwhile, called the 200-jet deal an "initial purchase", with Trump claiming that China could commit to buy up to 750 aircraft if certain conditions were met.

The deal has appeared to stall in the months since. No details have been released regarding the number or models of Boeing aircraft involved, nor which Chinese airlines will be placing orders.

No Chinese government agencies have provided updates on the deal's status. There have not been any related announcements from Chinese airlines, either.

But the silence does not mean the deal is off. Xin Qiang, a professor with Fudan University's Institute of International Studies, said Beijing had been facing growing domestic calls to buy from Boeing in recent months - and that Xi's US trip could present an opportunity to advance the deal.

"Many US-focused analysts and government departments have since this year made stronger recommendations to the top leadership [to place orders with Boeing]," Xin said.

"With Xi's coming visit to Washington - which in itself is a sign of continued easing of tensions - the decision to advance the purchase makes perfect sense," he added. "The reality is that there are very few high-end industrial products - Boeing aircraft being a prime example - that China has the need to buy and the US is able to sell."

In May, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg cautioned that "official orders" from China "will come later in the year", as the company was still working to iron out specifics with Chinese clients.

"My primary objective was to reopen that [Chinese] market … and we accomplished that," said Ortberg, who was part of the US business delegation that accompanied Trump on his trip to Beijing.

"I think people focused a bit too much on the initial quantity," he continued. "The order is a good start."

In July, Ortberg told CNBC that Boeing was in the process of finalising the contracts. "China will allocate the total quantity to individual airlines, then we negotiate the contracts with individual airlines," he said. "We are in the process right now. We will have contracts here shortly."

A source with flag carrier Air China confirmed the airline was involved in discussions over a potential Boeing order.

"We are involved in this, but it is not something on which individual airlines can make a final decision - it requires coordination and advancement by the National Development and Reform Commission," the source said, referring to China's top economic planning body.

Beijing was currently maintaining a "silent period" regarding the deal status, the person added. "Our approach is to proceed and be ready, without making public comments."

The last time China bought from Boeing was in 2017, when a US$37 billion, 300-plane contract was announced during Trump's first state visit to Beijing.

But the US firm was later frozen out of the world's second-largest economy, as US-China tensions rose and Boeing experienced a string of safety issues. In the meantime, China has directed huge orders to the company's European rival, Airbus.

Switching wholesale to Airbus, however, would not be easy for China. Several Chinese airlines - including China Eastern-owned carrier Shanghai Airlines and Air China subsidiary Shandong Airlines - have all-Boeing fleets. These carriers have needed new aircraft for years to renew their ageing stock, according to independent aviation analyst Li Hanming.

"China does need Boeing," said the retired airline executive, who declined to be named as he was not authorised to speak with the media. "The art of the deal [for Beijing] is to balance commercial need with geopolitical bargaining."

For some market observers, one of the concessions Beijing will want to extract before proceeding with any Boeing deal will be securing supplies for China's domestically made C919 passenger jet.

In May, China's commerce ministry said the US would "provide China with adequate supplies of engines and spare parts" for its aviation firms. The Boeing deal could be tied to firming up that guarantee.

For the executive, the coming Xi-Trump meeting could provide an opportunity for "breakthroughs" in such negotiations. "What's better than the two presidents meeting face-to-face again?"

Additional reporting by Zhu Wenqian

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"Importantly for the market, the joint venture will not be restricted to Tibet," the company said. "The model, once proven, could be replicated for high-quality non-ferrous mining projects elsewhere in mainland China, further expanding the scope of investment."

The agreement is the latest example of state-owned and private-sector miners taking part in Beijing's most recent nationwide drive to expand mineral exploration, which began in 2021.

The campaign has gained urgency as competition intensifies over rare and critical minerals used in military equipment, advanced manufacturing and emerging technologies, particularly amid growing geopolitical uncertainty and concerns about global supply-chain security.

"Tibet is not only an important national ecological-security barrier, but also a strategic reserve base for the country's natural resources," Zhihui Mining said.

These minerals are used extensively in power grids, electric vehicle batteries, renewable energy equipment, aerospace, semiconductors, defence systems and high-performance alloys.

"Tibet has a significant and diverse mineral resource base," said Liu Wenjing, a member of the AIFC Executive Council for the Mining Sector and founder and principal adviser of Elistra Advisory Limited. "Copper, chromium, lithium, lead, zinc and gold are among its notable mineral resources, and there remains considerable exploration potential.

"What the market is increasingly looking at is not simply one or two metals, but a broader group of minerals that are becoming increasingly important to the energy transition, advanced manufacturing and supply-chain security," she said. "Tibet has significant exposure to several of these strategic and critical minerals."

The China Geological Survey said last year that more than 20 million tonnes of copper resources had been newly identified across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau since the start of the country's 14th five-year plan in 2021.

The public institution under China's Ministry of Natural Resources estimated the plateau's total copper potential at 150 million tonnes and said the area could become a world-class copper resource base.

"Having substantial resources underground does not necessarily mean they are straightforward to develop," Liu said. "High-altitude operating conditions, infrastructure and logistics constraints in some areas, environmental and permitting requirements, and development costs all need to be taken into account.

"The next thing to watch is whether this framework can translate into specific, investable mineral projects," she added. "Then the key questions will be the scale and grade of the resources, the stage of exploration, permitting status and ultimately the development economics."

Listed in Hong Kong in 2025, Tibet-focused Zhihui Mining operates the Mengya'a zinc-lead-copper mine in Nagqu. Its open-pit operation began production in 2007, while its underground section entered commercial production in 2025, giving the mine a combined ore-supply capacity of about 400,000 tonnes a year.

Zhaojin Nonferrous, meanwhile, develops gold and base-metal resources, operating mines across several of China's mineral-rich provinces, including Yunnan, Guizhou and Shandong.

Tibet is already home to some of China's largest state-owned mining operations. Among them is the Yulong mine, which contains copper, molybdenum, iron and gold and produced about 152,000 tonnes of copper in 2025.

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No, free trade is not dead. And by the way, I never ever use the expression "free trade". I've been in this business for decades now, and I've never used this expression, which is for one simple reason: it is misleading. Trade is never free. It is either more or less open. Free trade is not dead, it was never born.

The question is whether the previous decades we've seen, which have consistently moved in the direction of more open trade - this being evidenced by the growth of the volume of international trade - whether this volume is still growing or not.

If you look at the numbers, which we have to do, especially if we discuss trade, trade is still growing in volume. This means that trade is more open than it used to be. But there is a catch: the growth of international trade, at least benchmarked against the growth of the economy, has slowed.

The slowdown can be attributed to many reasons. Starting with the main factor, which is the fragmentation of production systems that has led to the global supply chains that now span the world. The expansion of the supply chain, the fragmentation of production, has limits. It is efficient and productive at some stage, for some products in some conditions.

But we've probably reached a stage where the efficiency gains stemming from the multi-localisation of production systems are slowing, with decreasing yields, like any productivity curve. At some stage you reach a level where economies of scale are less important than at the beginning of the process.

Reason No 2 is that trade openness trends are now counterbalanced by trade-restricting attitudes among a number of international trade players, given the United States' position and the huge growth of China's exports and surplus. There are also growing reactions in some places to the expansion of international trade for social or environmental reasons. Its growth is slowing because of various reasons, but overall, international trade is still expanding.

So what, in your view, are the main problems facing the global trade system?

As Europeans, we have three problems in global trade today. A small one, a medium-sized one and a big one.

The small one is the US. The US has embarked on a protectionist crusade, which stems from the deep belief by US President Donald Trump that tariffs are the Swiss army knife of the 21st century economy, which is not so. The ones who pay the price for that at the end of the day are US consumers. But even if he makes a lot of noise about his attempt to de-globalise the planet, this will not happen.

Then we have the medium-sized problem, which is that the World Trade Organization, the international institutional engine for opening trade, is not working in the way it used to work.

This is mainly a problem of organisation. The fact that the US de facto left the WTO. The fact that although a new dispute-settlement system has replaced the previous one, it does not work with the US. The fact that all decisions, including on minor issues, are still taken by consensus, and that the secretariat is not allowed to exercise its potential authority based on its first-class expertise. And that third one, in my view, is the main reason.

The WTO has not been able to develop new trade-opening agreements in areas where international trade has moved a lot - digital trade for instance, which matters a lot for services - and we should always remember that international trade is goods plus services, plus the invisible part of international exchange trade today, which is about trillions of pieces of data.

Then we have a big problem, which is China, which is a problem for every country. It's a huge problem for us Europeans because we have a mega trade deficit, growing in an unsustainable way. And for the European Union, addressing this problem is a very tough task.

The main reason behind it is the macroeconomic imbalance of China, which is structural, which Chinese authorities have not addressed, do not want to address, although they've been saying for many years that Chinese growth should be rebalanced - with more domestic consumption.

It is not happening, and we are in a situation where industry in China produces twice as much as it consumes in industrial goods, hence the debate about overcapacity.

China now has comparative advantages in most of the supply chains in manufacturing. Not yet in agriculture, and not yet in services. But I believe China wants to get there, following a policy developed by the Chinese government, mostly since 2010.

China already has plans to make itself self-sufficient in food - why not in services too later? Because of the strategic concept that China has to become more self-reliant. In energy, in manufacturing, in technology, China has, so far, been formidably efficient in constructing self-sufficiency; other sectors will come.

This is a major systemic problem, because trade opening has always been based on the theory of comparative advantage. I do something better than you do. You do something better than I do. We have a rational interest to trade, which is, by the way, the philosophical basement of the WTO.

The WTO is built with the mission of promoting open trade because opening trade is a good way to create growth and welfare, because it is based on the efficiencies stemming from the exchange of comparative advantage, the international division of labour.

This game seems to be over with China today. China has gained comparative advantages all along the industrial production chain for various reasons. Some of which are legitimate. They have a huge market. They have a formidable education capacity, and this is something where they have built their own comparative advantage, and they have a political regime that allows a level of strategisation, coordination, multilayered intervention, which is incredibly efficient.

This has a lot to do with the political regime, and this is something, of course, that we Europeans would hesitate to emulate for a variety of reasons. China also uses its state-owned sector, its state-owned banks, its budget to heavily subsidise sectors - which is not in the spirit of a fair international division of labour - benefiting from the fact that WTO disciplines on subsidies, state support and state ownership, have remained very weak.

This is the situation we Europeans now have to face. It's not just a bit different from what it was before, where maybe we could adjust the recipes here and there with a bit more or a bit less of anti-dumping or countervailing duties. The size of the deficit is now out of reach of the normal instruments which the WTO provides to regulate trade and absorb import shocks. With China trade dynamics, we are entering a new world, a new paradigm, which opens a lot of questions about WTO disciplines.

You are absolutely right, we Europeans are reaching a moment of truth with trade and China. Either we can convince China to rebalance the system and decrease its exports or we will have to go protectionist. Let's test the willingness of China to seriously address the problem. This is the first option and in my view, the good option, provided China shows signals that it is ready to address the problem. This is Plan A. We need a Plan A, but we also need a Plan B.

Some in the US argue it was a mistake to let China into the WTO. You were the one who closed the EU's bilateral accession deal in Beijing in May 2000. With hindsight, was the mistake letting China in, or was it what the West failed to write into the terms? Would you sign the same text today?

Yes and no. I think letting China into the WTO was the right thing to do precisely because it brought about an exchange of comparative advantage, and China wanted to join the WTO to benefit from an insurance policy against export restrictions. China paid a high price for subscribing to this insurance in opening its economy.

China opened its economy as a developing country, roughly three times more than its developing country equivalents at the time and more than Russia 10 years later. The maximum tariff China accepted on goods was 10 per cent.

China made a big effort, which led to a big divide within the Chinese leadership: between those who said [former paramount leader] Deng Xiaoping was right, we have to open to better combine Chinese characteristics and Western characteristics, and this is the way to go to grow China more rapidly, represented by [former premier] Zhu Rongji.

And then there was another camp, more conservative within the leadership, that thought that opening trade with Western countries might make China more vulnerable. The first camp won and China opened its economy, which became very profitable for the rest of the world during the next 10 years.

There was an end to that, which roughly coincided with the aftermath of the 2008 crisis, where the Chinese government switched back to a more ideological approach. Self-sufficiency became the new strategic priority to reach total strategic autonomy in the future.

The Chinese economy was, from then on, run on a geopolitical basis, not on a geoeconomic basis. China then pushed, very successfully, to go from low-wage value addition, which was a comparative advantage 25 years ago, to where China is now, competing with the US on the frontiers of technology.

To answer your question, we were right to let China in, and we were wrong not to reinforce the WTO's rules on subsidisation and state support before China entered. The reason we did not do that - "we" being the big shots at the time: the US, EU and Japan - was we thought that we might end up restricting our ability to support our champions such as Airbus or Boeing, or Japan's programmes to foster innovation.

We were subsidising a small part of our economy, and we mistakenly remained defensive. We did not forecast how large a part of the Chinese economy would remain de facto under state control and support. Or the importance of the state-owned sector, which had actually shrunk in the first 10 years after China joined the WTO and then grew again from 2010 on.

We did one thing right, which was letting China in, which benefited everybody for quite a bit of time, but we did not properly identify the risk that China's state-owned system would drive the economy in such an efficient way, including in subsidising a strategic industry heavily at the beginning, then creating a lot of competition. The best example is what we see in electric vehicles, which were heavily subsidised at the start, and now there's cutthroat competition within China until the system stabilises with maybe a handful of surviving producers.

First of all, I don't think we should use the word "war" about trade. I'm talking to you from Ukraine, I was a naval officer in my youth. I know the meaning of the word "war", and we shouldn't use it lightly.

We have trade frictions, we have trade disputes, we have trade tensions. There are trade tensions between China and the US. There are trade tensions between the US and Canada that were triggered by Trump because he thinks Canada should become a new US state. We have trade tensions between the EU and China, which stem from the fact that we have such a huge and growing deficit with China.

The European Union today still has a trade surplus as a whole. What does this mean? This means that, overall, the EU, in what is traded today, can compete with the rest of the world. We have a trade surplus vis-a-vis the US. We have a trade surplus with many of our trade partners, except with China. If you remove €350 billion (US$407 billion) of trade deficit between the EU and China, we have a big trade surplus, which means that we are competitive with anybody on this planet except China.

Now there are reasons for that, which I can totally understand. It stems from what I describe as Chinese organisation: they've been extremely good at gaining a comparative advantage all along the supply chain, including, for instance, in critical materials, which is extremely important for electrification and the economy.

Of course, China did not do it for the pleasure of doing it. China built a comparative advantage in critical materials because China wanted to electrify, and the reason China wanted to electrify was that it wanted to be less dependent on oil or coal or gas imports.

It's not because China suddenly became a believer in the necessity to reduce emissions - although I'm happy that China is doing this. China built the comparative advantage in rare earths to become less dependent on fossil fuel imports. They built this control, which now gives them a monopoly that they can weaponise.

We Europeans have to try to convince China that it is in their interest, as it is in our interest, to reduce our trade deficit massively, not just by €10 billion or €20 billion. We have a €350 billion trade deficit, and this cannot be addressed by a little bit of this or a little bit of that. The problem is the magnitude of the problem.

As usual, the EU gave priority to negotiation, consultation, discussion. We are not the US, and nobody wants to play Trump on the EU side, we are not brutal. We try to understand problems. We try to address this peacefully, respectfully and through negotiation. But if that does not work, we have to look at other options.

Europe says it wants to be neither dependent on the US nor overwhelmed by China. Is a third position actually available, or does reducing exposure to one side mean aligning with the other?

Solving this issue will not, by itself, solve Europe's No 1 problem, which is growth. The EU's growth potential is half of that of the US, one-third that of China and one-quarter that of India. This is a worrying situation, and one we will have to work hard on to improve our competitiveness. But becoming more competitive will not solve our China trade problem, given its magnitude and the threat it represents to the survival of some of our production systems.

How did we get here, to this level of trade imbalance? Is that a story about Chinese competitiveness or industrial policy?

It is overall competitiveness, all along the supply chain, which leads to this. If you have a competitive advantage all along the supply chain, there is no more fair trade. You are absolutely right, this is the result of Chinese competitiveness.

Chinese competitiveness has various sources, which I mentioned: the size of the market, the organisation of the state and its capacity to subsidise efficiently. It's not just subsidising, because you can subsidise inefficiently too. The Chinese system has learned to use subsidising efficiently, giving the industrial policy a coherent logic: what strategic priorities, what the state does, in which sector, what the regions do and what the municipalities do. There is a lot of competition within. It's a formidable mix of non-competition, which is the state, and competition, which is a part of the economy.

What would China have to do to prove that it is a defender of multilateralism and free trade?

Beef up domestic consumption. Stop pushing, pushing and pushing for increasing manufacturing, which is way beyond the consumption capacity of Chinese consumers. Chinese households have a saving rate that is way too high, coming from the fact that they want to hedge against old age, children's education spending, pensions and so on, so China also needs to create somewhat of a welfare state.

Secondly, import more, export and subsidise less. Or in the case of subsidies, renegotiating the WTO rules on subsidies - what we in the EU call "state aids" - to level the playing field, which is now heavily unbalanced in the subsidisation capacity between China and Europe. And convince China to invest more in Europe in areas where tech transfers and ownership arrangements are doable, which was China's position 30 years ago. Boosting Chinese investment in Europe is, in my view, part of the solution.

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The European Commission said that during a call lasting more than an hour, the two sides reviewed "extensive work" carried out at senior-official level covering issues including the management of Chinese exports to Europe, European firms' access to the Chinese market and China's export controls on rare earths.

"That outcome needs to be credible," the European Commission said in a statement, adding that a European team would travel to Beijing for preparatory work later this month.

The Commerce Ministry in Beijing released a one-line statement that said Wang held a video meeting with Sefcovic at the latter's request.

The Financial Times reported on Thursday that Brussels was seeking a commitment from Beijing to restrict sales of made-in-China hybrid vehicles to about 15 per cent of the EU market. The bloc also wanted China to apply similar policies in several other sectors, such as chemicals, and buy more EU exports, it said.

The European Commission did not reply to a request for confirmation of the report.

A Chinese source said Beijing was frustrated by Brussels' unwillingness to make any compromises over the summer - before an EU team travelled to China at the end of last month.

Ministry of Commerce officials were annoyed by the EU's approach, the source said, viewing it as no way to run a negotiation.

At a news conference on Thursday, Ministry of Commerce spokesman He Yadong said China would not engage in "megaphone diplomacy", nor would it participate in a "war of words" with the EU.

"China urges the EU to abide by WTO rules, keep its market open, amend the discriminatory provisions … and create a fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment for enterprises investing and operating in Europe," He said. "China will closely monitor the EU's legislative process and evaluate the relevant impact in a timely manner."

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The project was prioritised to ease severe congestion at traditional logistics hubs and additional projects were already under way to maximise the waterway's economic potential, the operator said.

"China was forced to build a new canal by the aggravating 'chokepoints' along the Yangtze and Pearl rivers," executives from Guangxi Pinglu Canal Group said during an event at the annual China-Asean Expo on Thursday in Nanning, Guangxi's capital.

"Goods from Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan and other western regions bound for Southeast Asia are usually stuck in major hubs like Shanghai and Guangzhou as well as the Three Gorges Dam, where ships may have to wait for days to pass."

Construction on the canal, which involved levelling mountains and carving out artificial waterways through Guangxi's rugged terrain, took 48 months following regulatory approval. To widen and deepen river beds, engineers deployed heavy-duty dredgers designed for island-building operations in the South China Sea, local media reported, citing the canal's chief engineer, Wei Dejian.

The vessels blasted through rock and sucked up sand at a rate of up to 6,000 cubic metres (211,888 cubic feet) per hour, excavating as deep as 35 metres (114.8 feet) below the riverbed. More than 315 million cubic metres (11.12 billion cubic feet) of soil and granules were removed to make way for the canal.

The operator noted that Pinglu was one of only three waterways in China, alongside the Yangtze and Pearl rivers, capable of accommodating 5,000-tonne capacity vessels travelling in both directions.

"Its significance cannot be overstated … If the Yangtze's shipping capacity was behind the rise of Shanghai and other cities like Nanjing and Wuhan, Pinglu may also bring the same change to southwestern China, which is still an economic backwater," Wei told local media.

But to accommodate that much shipping, engineers had their work cut out. The operational demands required the canal to be at least 80 metres (262.5 feet) wide and 6.7 metres (22 feet) deep, with a minimum turning radius of 360 metres (1,181 feet) at bends. Numerous bridges were demolished or raised to ensure sufficient navigational clearance.

Overcoming a 65-metre (213.3 feet) height difference between the canal and its coastal outlet in Qinzhou, where the canal empties into the Gulf of Tonkin, posed a significant obstacle. Engineers addressed it by building three massive two-way ship locks, some as deep as 40 metres (131.2 feet).

Despite the authorities' promise of economic benefits, the project faced scrutiny and even resistance from some Guangxi residents.

There were widespread concerns over inadequate water during the region's dry season, which runs from October to March and can bring long spells of low rainfall, according to a Pinglu Canal Group expert who declined to be named.

Residents in Qinzhou and other areas also raised objections over potential saltwater intrusion during low-discharge months, which could threaten local freshwater supplies.

To mitigate these risks, engineers incorporated water-saving designs, including storage pools stacked on top of each other at major ship locks. The coming dry season could provide the first real-world test in a region known for its fragile ecosystem.

On Wednesday, the governments of Guangxi and Yunnan launched a partnership framework to streamline shipping along the Pinglu Canal. The new route is expected to shorten journeys by 560km (348 miles), reducing transport costs and travel time. Previously, export goods from Yunnan had to follow a tortuous route to Guangzhou before being shipped overseas.

Guangxi is also promoting supporting projects intended to unlock more of the canal's economic potential, including another proposed waterway linking the central province of Hunan with Guangxi and connecting to the Pinglu Canal.

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Though the speech was light on specifics, the fact that China was the third topic addressed and explicitly mentioned as a threat to Europe was significant, according to Peter Chase, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund and a former US diplomat in Brussels.

"Where it was placed and how explicitly she spoke were the more important messages than the actual words that she used," he said.

For Chase, von der Leyen's statement that Europe would always defend the rules-based order, but could no longer rely on it to protect European interests, was clearly a message to Washington and Beijing.

"[The message is] when there are countries that are not adhering to the rule of law, we can no longer use the rule of law to address the problems we have," he said.

Others nevertheless saw the speech as a sign that von der Leyen still wanted Europe to deal with China within the framework of the World Trade Organization.

"For me, the important signal is that there was no reference to new instruments," said Ignacio Garcia Bercero, a senior fellow at Bruegel and former director at the European Commission's trade department.

Von der Leyen's vow to use all the tools at Brussels' disposal was a signal that any potential autonomous actions coming from the EU would be framed within the context of legitimate actions under the rules of the WTO, according to Garcia Bercero.

The fact that she refrained from mentioning any specific measures also indicated that the priority was still for both sides to see what could be achieved during a coming round of trade talks in October, he said.

Analysts agreed that the ongoing trade talks could be a reason von der Leyen did not announce any new measures.

"It would be inappropriate to say, 'we already committed to this deadline for these negotiations, but we're going to go ahead and start doing all this stuff anyway', that would be very unusual by European diplomatic standards," said Jacob Gunter, head of programme for economy and industry at the Mercator Institute for China Studies.

It would also be politically risky for von der Leyen to go too far in her speech, given the delicate power balance between Brussels and member states, which could hurt the EU's ability to build a political consensus next month and take concrete actions, according to Gunter.

Von der Leyen's announcement that the bloc would work with Canada to make it an associate member of the EU also reflected her will to work together with like-minded countries, he added.

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Upgrades to the industrial sector, the president said, were essential to securing China's global competitiveness, Xinhua reported.

With China and the United States racing to develop advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence models and semiconductors, geopolitical tensions have become a major obstacle to cooperation between the countries.

Premier Li Qiang reinforced Xi's message at the conference, calling the roll-out of advanced manufacturing a long-term strategic priority in China's drive to become an industrial superpower.

Li added that next-generation smart manufacturing would be the sector's primary direction. Smart manufacturing refers to the use of data, connected equipment and automation to improve factory production.

The premier called for a broader push into digitisation, technological self-reliance, low-carbon production and cross-sector integration to ensure that Chinese manufacturing becomes "smarter, greener and more interconnected", Xinhua reported.

"China is so large that we must dedicate ourselves to the real economy," Xi previously said, according to an earlier Xinhua report on Tuesday. The real economy refers to production and trade in actual goods and services, rather than financial transactions or monetary instruments.

"To boost manufacturing, innovation-driven development is at the core," Xinhua quoted Xi as saying, citing the goal of turning China into a greater manufacturing powerhouse.

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"For hidden-debt penalty announcements, it is unprecedented to have the CCDI alongside the MoF," said Qiao Yide, vice-chairman of the Shanghai Development Research Foundation think tank.

"Previously, the MoF alone would issue these case notifications. Bringing in the party's highest internal disciplinary body sends a sobering reminder to fiscal officials," Qiao added.

The first case concerned Bijie in southwestern China's Guizhou province. The circular departed from past practice by naming Wu Shenghua, the city's former Communist Party secretary, in full. Earlier documents typically disclosed only officials' surnames.

According to the circular, Wu had "failed to take effective actions on debt-resolution efforts" between 2022 and 2025. It also said he had made contentious remarks at multiple public gatherings, including the comment: "These debts were run up by previous administrations. Why should I have to pay them back?"

The other five cases in the circular concerned local officials who were faulted for sluggish progress in repaying debt or for irregularly taking on new off-book borrowings.

"The revelation of specific cases of breach with official names suggests the government is very determined to resolve the hidden debt issue. This comes at a time when we see a risk that the government may need to deal with new hidden debt," said Ding Shuang, chief economist for Greater China and North Asia at Standard Chartered.

Official data showed that hidden debt identified by Beijing had reached 14.3 trillion yuan (US$2.13 trillion) at the end of 2023, when the central government pledged to eliminate such liabilities by 2028. Following successive rounds of debt swaps funded through special bonds, this had fallen to 6.5 trillion yuan by the end of 2025.

But the decline in officially identified hidden debt did not mean broader financial risks had disappeared, according to analysts.

LGFVs are companies established by local governments to raise funds and finance projects such as infrastructure, and their borrowing has long been an important source of local government financing. Under China's official definition, meanwhile, hidden debt refers specifically to certain liabilities that rely on government budget allocations for repayment or carry a formal government guarantee.

However, some LGFV debt that Beijing does not classify as hidden government debt is included in broader measures used by some global institutions, including the International Monetary Fund.

Luo Zhiheng, chief economist at Guangdong-based Yuekai Securities, estimated that total LGFV liabilities nationwide stood at more than 71 trillion yuan - almost 11 times the stock of officially identified hidden debt at the end of last year. Ding at Standard Chartered gave a similar estimate of 73 trillion yuan.

In a research note released in early September, Luo said short-term debt accounted for 27.6 per cent of total LGFV liabilities at the end of 2025, one percentage point higher than a year earlier. He added that their underlying ability to generate cash had "continued to weaken" amid a sluggish property market.

"Excluding government subsidies, more than 2,100 LGFVs we tracked all posted losses and their earnings capacity is eroding," Luo said. "Their median return on equity stood at 0.8 per cent last year, meaning every 100 yuan (US$14.90) of equity generated less than one yuan in net profit."

Against this backdrop, Sun of Fitch Ratings suggested that China's 2028 "no hidden debt" target was unlikely to mark the end of government support for LGFVs.

"China's current debt-substitution programme has eased near-term refinancing pressure, but does not resolve the sector's underlying debt-service weakness," he said in the Sunday report.

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"For certain tasks, AI doesn't just write code faster than you, but it writes it better, too," Zhang said.

She said she had sent out over a hundred applications and messages to recruiters, but the vast majority had gone unanswered. Even when she did secure a response, intense competition often cut the process short.

In one instance, she began a work trial with an e-commerce company only to be told on her second day that a candidate who had tested earlier in the week had just been hired for the position.

"The job market is really not great," Zhang said. "There are too many people competing for a single role."

Around 7.5 per cent of the jobs held by workers aged 15 to 29 in East Asia are in occupations highly exposed to AI, according to a report published by the International Labour Organization last month.

If just 10 per cent of those positions disappeared, the region would see 1.5 million young people face unemployment, shift into another job, or leave the workforce entirely, the UN agency said.

Chinese authorities have expanded vocational education and technical training to address workforce mismatches, but some jobseekers - like Zhang - remain sceptical that additional qualifications will improve their prospects.

"I just have to keep applying," Zhang said. "The priority is to land a job, earn a living and regain my momentum."

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate for those aged 25 to 29, also excluding students, stood at 7.5 per cent in August, up from 7.2 per cent in July.

China's overall urban jobless rate edged up to 5.3 per cent in August, from 5.2 per cent in July.

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"China is currently one of the few economies globally whose economic cycle is moving in the opposite direction to that of the US dollar, which allows us to be more proactive in our monetary policy," said Shao, who expected Beijing to cut the reserve requirement ratio and interest rates this year to support the economy.

The Fed's rate increase comes amid persistent inflation in the United States, with another increase possible later this year. By comparison, China continues to grapple with weak domestic demand.

China's economy has been slowing since the second quarter, when it grew just 4.3 per cent. With sluggish consumption and a deepening investment slump, markets are largely expecting additional policy support to help hit Beijing's full-year growth target of around 4.5 to 5 per cent.

Lynn Song, chief economist for Greater China at ING, similarly noted that there was still a "solid case" for the People's Bank of China (PBOC) to cut rates in the coming months.

"Given the strength of the yuan this year, the Fed rate increase is unlikely to be a major factor in the PBOC's rate decision," Song said, adding that he expects the yuan to continue appreciating, though at a slower pace compared with so far this year.

"The wider yield spread has not stopped yuan appreciation so far, but it may be a factor that is increasingly worth monitoring moving forward," Song said.

While a Fed rate increase typically triggered capital outflows from emerging markets towards higher-yielding US assets, Shao expected any downward pressure on the yuan to remain limited, supported by China's strong export performance.

Additionally, growing concern over Washington's ability to service its ballooning US$40 trillion debt amid higher interest rates could prompt a reallocation into non-dollar assets, including the yuan, further insulating the currency against depreciation, Shao said.

Foreign holdings of US Treasury debt fell for a second consecutive month in July, with Japan and China - two of the three largest creditors - trimming their positions, according to the latest data released on Wednesday.

However, not all observers agree that rate cuts from China's central bank are on the horizon.

Alicia Garcia-Herrero, chief Asia-Pacific economist at French investment bank Natixis, did not expect any monetary easing from Beijing this year, citing the wide interest rate differential with the US.

Instead, she expected authorities to focus on local-level fiscal support, such as expanding local government special bond issuance for infrastructure projects in sectors including data centres and grid upgrading to arrest the decline in fixed-asset investment.

China's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, has held a series of meetings in the past month calling for the acceleration of major construction projects and disbursement of fiscal funds to boost investment.

Nevertheless, Garcia-Herrero expected the yuan to remain stable, noting that significant dollar reserves parked in Hong Kong would remove some of the pressure from Chinese banks continuing to move funds into short-term US money market paper for higher yields.

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Automated equipment manufacturer RoboTechnik has the biggest target, planning to raise as much as HK$5.18 billion.

RoboTechnik said on Monday that it was selling shares at up to HK$436, representing a 40 per cent discount on the closing price of its Shenzhen-listed shares on Friday.

Based in Suzhou in eastern China's Jiangsu province, the company attracted 16 cornerstone investors, including Singapore investment company Temasek and Chinese asset-management company E Fund Management. Together the cornerstone investors committed to 35 per cent of the offer.

The company's products include manufacturing equipment as well as complete production lines and smart manufacturing systems for the photovoltaic and silicon photonics industries.

Shenzhen Kinwong Electronic aims to raise HK$5.10 billion in its IPO, offering more than 72.9 million shares globally at a maximum of HK$69.88 apiece, representing a 42 per cent discount from Friday's closing price for the company's Shanghai-listed stock.

The maker of printed circuit boards attracted 14 cornerstone investors, including optical transceiver manufacturer Zhongji Innolight and Kingboard Holdings subsidiary KHL, which together committed US$310 million, or 47 per cent of the total fundraising.

The other two companies that launched IPOs on Monday are Shanghai-listed materials manufacturer Red Avenue New Materials, which plans to raise up to HK$3 billion, and electric motor supplier Direct Drive Tech, which targets HK$1.08 billion.

First-day margin orders for the retail tranches got off to a slow start. According to data from several brokerages, as of 4pm on Monday only Direct Drive Tech - the smallest of the four offerings - was fully subscribed, while the remaining three issuers fell short of full coverage.

Shares of all four companies are expected to begin trading on September 29.

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The refurbishment transformed the hotel's lobby and guestrooms and launched both balcony suites and family rooms.

It is the second major refurbishment project of the hospitality arm of private developer Chinachem Group, following the renovation of guest rooms at its flagship Nina Hotel Tsuen Wan West, completed in 2024.

The renovation of Tsuen Wan's lobbies are still under way, with the group earmarking HK$225 million for the project, part of Nina Hospitality's rebranding announced in 2021.

The two investment strategies illustrate contrasting outlooks for Hong Kong's hotel industry.

With 29.26 million overnight visitor arrivals in 2018, Hong Kong's hotels saw their average occupancy rate increase by 2 percentage points to 91 per cent that year, according to the Tourism Commission.

In 2025, Hong Kong saw 23.19 million overnight visitor arrivals, according to official data, still 20 per cent below their 2018 peak. The average hotel room occupancy rate, meanwhile, was at 87 per cent.

Many of these hotels sold were acquired by new owners for conversion into student accommodation.

So far this year, Hong Kong has recorded HK$8.2 billion worth of hotel property deals involving about 2,550 rooms, according to Colliers. Most of these transactions were for student accommodation conversions, and some were a hybrid of co-living - targeted towards students or young professionals - and hotel offerings, the property consultancy added.

"For investors, the sector presents a compelling opportunity underpinned by resilient demand and income visibility that is largely insulated from broader real estate market cycles," said Cathie Chung, senior director of research at JLL Hong Kong.

For Nina Hospitality, refurbishing its hotels was a way to prepare for higher accommodation demand from tourists, managing director Simon Manning said.

"While recovery is slower than pre-pandemic levels, we are encouraged by the government's initiatives such as mega-events, sports-related programmes and efforts to attract new markets, which are driving positive momentum," Manning said.

"By upgrading our hotels and services, we ensure Nina Hospitality is optimally positioned to capture demand and exceed guest expectations as tourism continues to strengthen."

In the first half of the year, about 1.75 million visitors were drawn to more than 130 events in Hong Kong, generating around HK$5.8 billion in spending and contributing HK$3.3 billion to the economy, according to Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po.

As the city also books global performers amid a growing demand for student accommodation, the hotel property industry was likely to see more hotel conversions and also investment in existing and new hotels, analysts said.

In particular, hotels in the higher market segment could see more capital deployment to refresh and improve their amenities, while well-priced midscale assets could be primed for student accommodation conversions, said Shaman Chellaram, senior director for hotel advisory and valuation and advisory services at Colliers.

"Each segment caters to different demand drivers and end users with very distinct operating and business models," Chellaram said.

Location might determine whether a hotel was suitable for a student dormitory asset or a tourist accommodation, said Cleavon Tan, senior vice-president of hotels and hospitality group at JLL Hong Kong.

"Hotels in established tourism and business districts, with strong demand drivers, can offer a compelling case for continued hotel use and further investment," Tan said.

"For properties outside these core locations, particularly where hotel performance is weaker but access to universities and public transport is good, student accommodation may offer a more attractive use. A location that is less competitive for tourists can still work well for students."

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United States and United Kingdom equities were the only two asset classes where more investors planned to cut exposure than add, with net allocation intentions falling to negative 10.3 per cent and negative 16.5 per cent, respectively.

"These shifts suggest asset owners are adopting a deliberate barbell position - strengthening downside protection and diversification while retaining flexibility to respond to market opportunities," Niall O'Sullivan, Marsh's global chief investment officer, wrote in a report published on Monday.

The survey, conducted in June and July, found that geopolitical risks and inflation were the two most-cited concerns shaping near-term decisions - being considered significant by more than 70 per cent of respondents.

"In the medium term … you can see there being some volatility there," Sebastian said, attributing the pressure to geopolitically driven yield moves, rising energy costs and tight credit spreads. He also urged investors to diversify and reassess their exposures.

The survey found that asset owners were positioning themselves for that kind of pressure, with over half the respondents planning to raise infrastructure holdings and nearly half targeting increased exposure to emerging market equities.

This shift away from single-market concentration extended across the Asia-Pacific region, where 53 per cent of investors had adjusted their geographic exposure over the past year, compared with nearly half of respondents globally.

Private markets continued to draw broad engagement, though investors were showing greater restraint. About 44 per cent of respondents reported maintaining their existing commitments while applying stricter selection criteria.

"Private markets have become easier to access but harder to manage well," said Garvan McCarthy, the firm's global chief investment officer of alternatives, in the Marsh report.

He added the next phase of investing would favour asset owners who could "pace commitments, maintain underwriting discipline", and properly assess the impact of individual exposures on overall liquidity and risk.

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While the benchmark CSI 300 Index has remained flat this year, much of the trading has focused on technology stocks, driving the chip-heavy Star Market 50 Index up by 23 per cent in the first eight months of the year. Stocks worth a daily average of 2.67 trillion yuan changed hands on the mainland's exchanges this year, according to industry data.

The stamp duty is seen as a barometer of China's stock market, as Beijing often adjusts the tax rate to influence investor sentiment. It was halved in 2023 to stem a decline in stock values and now stands at 0.05 per cent - payable by investors selling stocks.

Beijing began cutting the stamp duty in 2007 to encourage stock trading. It slashed the rate from a high of 0.3 per cent that year and scrapped its application to those buying stocks in 2008.

Growth in stamp-duty revenue moderated in August, recording an 18 per cent year-on-year increase for the slowest growth this year, as the unravelling of the global AI trade hurt sentiment and discouraged trading. The Star Market 50 Index rebounded by 3 per cent last month after a record 26 per cent plunge in July.

The outlook for technology stocks has been clouded by monetary tightening by central banks around the world and elevated sovereign bond yields. The US Federal Reserve raised America's benchmark interest rate for the first time in three years on Thursday, and the Bank of Japan followed suit a day later. Long-end yields in the two nations have touched multi-year highs this month on unease over inflationary pressure and a glut of debt issuance.

"There will be a divergence of the AI trade going forward," said Li Lifeng, an analyst at Huaxi Securities. "The next leg of the trade will feature selective buying of quality bets, deviating from the previous rally characterised by general gains in AI stocks and speculative trading in small-capitalisation stocks."

In a move seen by some industry players as an effort to boost market sentiment, the China Securities Regulatory Commission said last week that it would reward whistle-blowers in 17 cases of disciplinary breaches ranging from non-compliant corporate disclosures by listed companies to insider trading and fraudulent accounting.

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Another source, an intermediary who helps companies with Hong Kong initial public offerings (IPOs), said such lobbying efforts, while routine, had intensified as exchanges operated as businesses "competing for market rankings".

"Competition between exchanges for quality technology firms will be much more intense going forward," the person added.

Following the outreach and persuasion from mainland exchanges, some clients are now rethinking plans to offer Hong Kong shares, also known as H shares, and choosing A-share offerings in Beijing, Shanghai or Shenzhen instead, a source said.

The heated competition comes as Hong Kong's IPO fundraising - a majority involving mainland companies - topped HK$340 billion (US$43 billion) in the first eight months of this year. The figure has already surpassed last year's total, with hundreds of firms still waiting in the queue.

"The market previously relied heavily on a single offshore platform," said Edward Au Chun-hing, a managing partner at Deloitte China. "The policy encouraging quality domestic firms to leverage Hong Kong's platform has never changed. National policy has always stressed that the mainland A-share and Hong Kong markets are 'dual platforms, dual tracks'."

China's market regulator introduced a package of measures to encourage Hong Kong listings in April 2024, including simplified filing steps, clear support for qualified industry leaders and shorter review times.

Battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL) and optical module supplier Zhongji Innolight successfully listed in Hong Kong over the past two years, helping the city's bourse operator, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, reclaim the global IPO crown last year.

The mainland A-share market recorded 102 IPOs, raising 177 billion yuan (US$26 billion) in the first eight months of 2026, also beating last year's total, though growing at a significantly slower pace than Hong Kong.

The Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges recorded 26 and 23 new listings during the period, respectively, raising 100.56 billion yuan and 58.61 billion yuan, according to Deloitte figures.

The Beijing Stock Exchange, which focuses on supporting "specialised, refined, distinctive and innovative" firms and "little giant" enterprises, was the best performer among the three mainland exchanges in terms of growth in the number of deals. It recorded 53 new listings, raising 18 billion yuan.

Mainland bourses have received some backing from officials. Li Chao, vice-chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said last week that the regulator would implement more inclusive policies for IPOs and mergers, making the A-share market "the top priority listing destination".

Speaking at a news briefing, Li said the average review cycle for A-share IPOs in Shanghai and Shenzhen had been shortened to about six months, with refinancing approvals for top-tier companies taking less than a month.

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As consumers in the Middle East and India favoured inlaid jewellery, Wang expected Chinese jewellers could capitalise on their expertise to find local buyers.

"In the past, overseas buyers from these markets have traditionally sought out Chinese manufacturers primarily to find cheaper suppliers for existing designs. But now, [Chinese firms] need to add value to the products with designs and technologies," Wang said.

China's consumption of gold jewellery slumped 34 per cent year on year to 132 tonnes in the first half of the year, while the sales of gold coins and bars for investment increased further by 28 per cent year on year to 339 tonnes, data from the China Gold Association showed.

In the second quarter, India surpassed China to become the world's largest gold jewellery market, accounting for 27 per cent of global demand in the April-June quarter, according to a WGC report.

To connect overseas buyers with Chinese producers, the WGC organised major Middle Eastern wholesalers to visit Shenzhen to inspect factories and showrooms and also facilitated visits by the largest retailers in India to global exhibitions to explore collaborations.

Yuehao Jewellery, a Shenzhen-based producer whose origins trace back to 1926, also noted an increase in clients from the Middle East and India, adding that they saw strong interest from Japan and South Korea, said Sharon Weng, vice president of branding and products.

To cater to the Japanese market, Yuehao launched two series featuring "black gold" last year, in which electroplating or oxidation were used to give gold a black appearance, Weng added.

Gold prices remained resilient despite the higher probability of further interest rate increases by the US Federal Reserve, as bullion was expected to be backed by the continuous buying from global central banks amid sticky geopolitical tensions.

Wang of WGC said jewellery producers should double down on improving crafting techniques and design capabilities, areas in which Chinese companies were working hard, rather than focusing on the high cost of materials.

"The manufacturing and processing capabilities of our domestic manufacturers are completely different from what they were five years ago," Wang emphasised. "It is truly changing with each passing day."

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A supplier audit is a process in which a vendor's production and compliance standards are evaluated to ensure product quality.

According to the sources, this round of audits comes as Tesla plans to place additional orders for components, as mass production of the firm's Optimus robots will soon begin at its plant in Fremont, California.

Tesla China declined to comment on the issue.

Tesla is locked in a race with several competitors in the United States and China to mass produce humanoid robots - artificial intelligence-powered robots that can be deployed in scenarios ranging from factory production lines to elderly care centres.

The Chinese vendors had signed non-disclosure agreements with Tesla, which would subject them to penalties worth millions of dollars if they failed to comply, the sources said.

"The audits show that those Chinese suppliers are an important part of Optimus' supply chain," said Chen Jinzhu, CEO of the Shanghai Mingliang Auto Service consultancy. "They enjoy cost and technological advantages over their domestic and overseas rivals."

In December, Musk endorsed Xpeng's Iron humanoid robot on social media while predicting Chinese companies would ­dominate the global robotics market alongside Tesla.

In April, Tesla's China president, Allan Wang Hao, said the company's Shanghai Gigafactory had the potential to produce humanoid robots, as it benefited from China's complete supply chain and advanced manufacturing techniques.

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But Kassell acknowledged that clinical evidence for focused ultrasound remained limited for many diseases, despite its promise.

Kassell likened the basic principle to using a magnifying glass to concentrate beams of sunlight on a single point.

"Instead of a magnifying glass focusing beams of light, an acoustic lens is used to focus beams of ultrasound energy on a point deep in the body, with a high degree of precision and accuracy," he said.

Nearly 200 potential applications are being researched globally, according to the Focused Ultrasound Foundation's 2026 State of the Field report. Researchers identified 18 additional potential uses last year, bringing the total number of indications being researched to 196, with 12 progressing to first-in-human clinical trials.

The foundation organises and funds preclinical research and clinical trials, with the stated goal of accelerating the development and adoption of focused ultrasound. Its work includes high-risk, early-stage projects that other funders may be reluctant to support, according to the organisation.

In one case, doctors targeted both the primary pancreatic tumour and cancer that had spread to the liver during the same procedure, according to a report on the trial.

Kassell said the technology could potentially complement existing treatments and medicines rather than replace them.

But translating that potential into wider clinical use will also depend on cost and access - constraints apparent in Hong Kong's current histotripsy services. Under a Li Ka Shing Foundation-backed subsidy programme, eligible liver cancer patients pay HK$50,000 (US$6,374) for treatment at Gleneagles, plus an estimated HK$4,300 to HK$5,400 for specialist consultation and liver ultrasound assessment, according to the hospital's website.

Kassell said private insurance coverage and public reimbursement would be critical if focused ultrasound were to move beyond specialised centres and become more widely available.

Kassell predicted that the number of focused ultrasound systems in use could rise from about 2,000 worldwide to 10,000 within five years, as more applications secure regulatory approval and reimbursement. But he said many existing machines remained underused due to limited awareness and a shortage of doctors trained in or willing to adopt the technology.

The more consequential question is whether doing so can safely delay cancer progression or recurrence, improve patients' quality of life, and help them live longer.

"Clinical trials haven't been completed," Kassell said. "It just takes a long time."

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The competition has intensified as Beijing has moved to facilitate, rather than restrict, a wave of Hong Kong listings by mainland firms, streamlining cross-border approval procedures since 2024, even as domestic exchanges remain a deeper pool for capital.

In total, Beijing-based firms had accounted for 484 A-share listings, or 8.72 per cent of all A-share companies nationwide, as of August 31, according to a report by the Listed Companies Association of Beijing. Their combined market value had reached 23.74 trillion yuan (US$3.54 trillion), representing 20.39 per cent of the entire A-share market - the largest share of any region in China.

Even so, Lu argued that the distinction between the two markets faded over time. Once a technology company lists, its long-term ambition is almost always to become "a great global company", meaning many will eventually pursue listings in both venues, regardless of where they start.

Lu spoke ahead of his plan to lead a Beijing delegation of five artificial intelligence companies to Hong Kong FinTech Week x StartmeupHK - the city's flagship financial and technology festival - in November.

The delegation is likely to include Yuequan Bionics, a humanoid-robotics developer that Lu described as the group's likely front-runner for a Hong Kong IPO, with its immediate priority being to raise capital.

The other attendees are expected to be Zhongguancun Kejin, a large-language-model firm; PanaPay, a cross-border payments platform targeting emerging markets; and two other fintech-focused companies.

Hong Kong's appeal to these companies, Lu said, comes down to three roles: "a gateway, a connector, and a hub". The city provides direct access to international capital and distribution channels, and it has a compliant environment to validate products before entering Western markets, he explained.

King Leung, the global head of financial services, fintech and sustainability at InvestHK - the Hong Kong government's investment-promotion arm, as well as one of the upcoming festival's organisers - said the city's fintech evolution was "directly benefiting real economy operations".

November's festival is expanding beyond traditional finance to support the government's "AI+" and "Finance+" push, Leung said, noting that the pivot was tailored to growing overseas demand for real-world industrial applications, where mainland firms hold a strong advantage. Industrial AI, new energy, and advanced materials for energy storage are among the new areas of focus.

InvestHK said it helped 413 overseas and mainland companies set up or expand in Hong Kong during the first half of 2026, and mainland firms comprised nearly 60 per cent of the total. The investments were expected to bring in more than HK$53 billion (US$6.76 billion), with innovation and technology forming the single largest sector.

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Some say they are being swamped by inquiries and are trying to seal as many deals as possible amid a recovery in confidence, while others are keeping their fingers crossed for more government stimulus to sustain the growing momentum.

"Government support always holds the key to the performance of the home market," said Yang Keju, a broker at a Lianjia property agency branch in Pudong, Shanghai. "We are worried that the current high transaction volume could become short-lived."

A longer mortgage repayment cycle - from 30 years to 40 years - can save a homebuyer thousands of yuan in monthly payments, and buying completed flats helps them dodge risks from developer defaults.

China Real Estate Business, a newspaper run by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, said sales of new residential units in major cities like Shanghai, Shenzhen and Nanjing jumped in the first week of this month.

But while brokers said the policy shifts had sparked a short-term buying spree, they were not enough to trigger a broad market turnaround.

Analysts say China's real estate sector and related industries, such as home appliances and construction materials, still account for about a quarter of economic output.

Early this year, Qiushi, a Communist Party journal, said in a commentary that the property sector was an important part of Chinese households' wealth, which was taken by the market as an indication that the central and local governments would map out more stimulus measures to stabilise home prices and encourage home buying.

"The grim reality is that policy support can only effectively release pent-up demand, while few of our clients hoping to upgrade their living conditions have been willing to take action because they expect a further price drop," said You Liangzhou, the owner of the Baonuo property agency in Shanghai.

"In Shanghai, homebuying restrictions are still preventing some buyers from owning more units and further market deregulation is needed to fully restore consumer confidence."

Fitch Ratings said in a report published this month that the new policies would not boost housing demand materially or alter the weak sales and investment outlook for the real estate sector.

"Housing demand is likely to remain weak as the mortgage easing is unlikely to offset high inventory levels and low buyer confidence," it said. "New-home sales are likely to continue declining, while near-term home prices remain broadly stable at the national level."

Shanghai's property market was once overheated and the municipal government began tightening limits on home purchases in 2011 to cool it down. The measures included a ban on local households owning a third flat that was designed to rein in speculation.

But the municipal government has been gradually easing ownership rules since October 2024 in an effort to spur the local housing market, and now allows people who are not registered residents to buy homes in the city.

Since mid-2025, Beijing has been cutting insurance or income tax payment requirements for non-local families wanting to buy homes within the Fifth Ring Road that circles the city centre.

Non-Beijing residents are now eligible to buy homes within the Fifth Ring Road after completing at least one year of local income tax or social security payments, down from a three-year rule previously.

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But Huang did not rule out further acquisitions of businesses with strong brand equity and products.

Colour cosmetics accounted for more than 80 per cent of the company's sales that year, with skincare contributing just over 12 per cent, according to the company's 2020 annual report.

Despite the strong growth in skincare, Yatsen's net loss widened from 19.5 million yuan a year earlier to 90.8 million yuan in the second quarter as the firm's sales and marketing costs jumped 11.8 per cent to 807.6 million yuan, according to the company.

Yatsen ranked seventh among listed Chinese beauty companies by revenue in the first half of 2026, according to Qingyan, a research and intelligence provider specialising in the beauty industry. It was the only company among the top 10 to post a net loss.

One idea the company is pursuing to rejuvenate its business is "skinification" - applying its skincare research to its colour cosmetics business to develop new make-up products that incorporate skincare functions.

Huang said technology developed across the two categories could create synergies in R&D, distribution and consumer insights, with Yatsen seeking to build a multi-brand beauty group rather than simply replace cosmetics with skincare.

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Located in Shenzhen's Futian district, just across from the Lok Ma Chau control point in Hong Kong, the border crossing will create a "half-hour living circle" encompassing the two cities, leading to a surge in cross-border commuting, according to Henry Chung, senior managing director at Midland Realty.

Demand for housing near the border was rising among a range of different groups, including students and professionals looking to live in Shenzhen but travel into Hong Kong during the week, Chung said. The area was also expected to attract a growing number of retirees and scientific research personnel from Hong Kong, he added.

"Year-to-date, residential transaction volume in the Huanggang area has risen by 50 per cent compared with the same period last year, with a noticeable increase in property viewing inquiries," Chung said.

The Shenzhen Beike Research Institute has also recorded a strong uptick in sales of second-hand residential properties in the Huanggang area during the first half of the year.

The average transaction price for those properties had risen by 5.6 per cent over the period, faster than the 3.7 per cent increase recorded for the Shenzhen market as a whole, data showed.

Rents in the area have also been creeping up in recent months, especially since the opening of the Hong Kong-side port area in late July, according to Chung.

"Taking Huangyuyuan as an example, rents in the estate rose by nearly 20 per cent in the first half of the year," he said, referring to a housing complex near the border crossing. "August and September mark the peak season for rentals, which drove rents up by nearly another 10 per cent."

The average monthly rent for a two-bedroom flat in the complex had increased from about 5,000 yuan (US$745) last year to reach 6,500 yuan, he added.

Hong Kong buyers currently drive about 28 per cent of the residential property market in Futian district and about 20 per cent of the market in the Huanggang Port area, according to data from Midland Realty.

Hong Kong residents also account for as much as 30 per cent of residential tenants in the area, the data indicates, with much of the rental demand coming from cross-border commuters, students and families accompanying students.

"Compared to apartments of the same layout two or three months ago, the price has risen by over 200,000 yuan - an increase of 8 per cent," he said. "I believe the opening of the new port will drive foot traffic in the area and boost housing demand."

Another Hong Kong resident surnamed Chan bought a 42-square-metre flat at Huangyuyuan last month.

"I bought the property for personal use, believing that the opening of the new Huanggang Port will facilitate commuting between Shenzhen and Hong Kong," Chan said.

Joyce Lai, executive director at Shun On Home Realty Company, said two young women from Hong Kong had rented a two-bedroom flat at Langqiao International - a residential complex next to Huanggang Port - for 8,500 yuan per month in late June.

"Some Hong Kong residents choose to relocate to Huanggang to enjoy a dual-city lifestyle - working in Hong Kong while living in Shenzhen," Lai said.

"The daily commuting cost via cross-border bus and metro through the Huanggang Port is about HK$70 (US$9). If switching to the high-speed rail, the daily round-trip fare is equivalent to about HK$150. Both options fall within an acceptable range for dual-city commuting in the Greater Bay Area."

The commercial property market in the Huanggang area was also heating up, agents said, with shop rents and valuations increasing as the market anticipates that massive cross-border flows of people will drive a surge in business for merchants.

"During the reconstruction of Huanggang Port, the occupancy rate for street-front shops in the surrounding area was less than 30 per cent," said King Lau, regional investment director for the Greater Bay Area at Yui Yin Property.

"However, the occupancy rate for street-front shops in core malls near the port - such as Langqiao International and Huangyuyuan - surged to near-full occupancy between August and September this year."

According to market sources, a Hong Kong investor last year bought four street-front shops and the entire second floor in the Jinling Holiday Apartment complex's shopping arcade for tens of millions of yuan.

Lau, however, pointed out that whether they were investors who had already entered the market or tenants rushing to secure space, they were essentially acting based on expectations because the area had yet to truly benefit from the passenger flow generated by the border crossing.

Chung also noted that if the flow of people fell short of expectations after the border fully reopened, merchants would face significant operational pressure and retail rents might undergo a downward correction.

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10-year US Treasury yield drops below 5 per cent

Following the Fed's announcement, the US 10-year Treasury yield fell to about 4.94 per cent on Friday, retreating below the crucial psychological threshold of 5 per cent reached earlier in the week for the first time since 2023.

Hong Kong ranks as No. 3 global financial centre

Hong Kong scored 756 this year, just one point behind London on 757, while New York topped the index with 761. Singapore ranked one spot below Hong Kong with 755.

China's global export share projected to reach 31 per cent by 2035

The biggest growth potential lies with what the investment bank called "latecomers" - including companies in sectors such as robotaxis, e-commerce and surgical robots - while "early achievers" such as carmakers would face more contested paths.

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HSBC, the biggest lender in Hong Kong, will scrap an education subsidy programme for all newly hired or newly promoted senior executives from Friday, according to an internal memo seen by the South China Morning Post.

Employees who were already in the bank's top three grades as of Thursday, including managing directors and department heads, will continue to enjoy the benefit, which provides subsidies of up to HK$300,000 (US$38,240) for secondary school fees and HK$220,000 for primary school fees per year.

HSBC, which completed a US$14 ­billion buyout of shares it had not yet owned from subsidiary Hang Seng Bank in January, has recently begun integrating seven back-office functions across the two lenders. The functions are corporate communications, company secretaries, compliance, information technology, internal audit, finance and operations.

"After the integration, six of the seven combined units are headed by Hang Seng Bank executives and only one by HSBC," the source said. "It is really scary because I do not know if I will still have a job tomorrow."

Another HSBC source said the moves were aimed at reducing costs while ensuring fair treatment for global staff.

"It should be noted that neither Hang Seng Bank nor HSBC's operations in other markets offer education benefits, with Hong Kong being the exception. The bank has discussed cutting these benefits for several years," the source said.

"The arrangement allowing Hang Seng Bank executives to lead most of the combined back-office functions also shows a fair approach that gives opportunities to both HSBC and Hang Seng Bank."

While some bankers may be concerned about the changes, shareholders appear to have taken a different view.

"It is definitely a good move for HSBC to integrate with Hang Seng Bank to reduce excess staffing, unnecessary spending and costly benefits because that could help profitability. There is no point maintaining two separate large teams to do the same job," said Charles Cheng Kai-min, who has been an HSBC shareholder for more than 20 years.

"I am very happy with HSBC's share-price performance because the value of my holdings has risen more than 50 per cent over the past year - thanks to the bank's cost-cutting measures."

HSBC shares rose 1.1 per cent to close at HK$161.60 on Friday. The stock has risen around 52 per cent over the past year, outperforming the Hang Seng Index, which dropped 8 per cent during the same period.

HSBC co-CEOs for Asia and the Middle East, David Liao Yi-chien and Surendra Rosha said in Thursday's internal memo that the lender would continue to invest in talent.

"We're investing in our people, providing competitive, fair and inclusive benefits that reward high performance while supporting our long-term growth ambitions," the co-CEOs said.

"We want to be intentional about how we allocate resources and will invest in benefits and support that are accessible to a wide range of colleagues."

An HSBC spokesman said on Friday that the bank remained focused on "rewarding our employees fairly and competitively".

He added: "HSBC employees in Hong Kong have access to a broad and market-competitive total rewards package."

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The plan sets 10 measurable targets, including requiring large pharmaceutical enterprises to generate combined revenue of no less than 3.5 trillion yuan (US$522 billion), and for the country to produce at least 50 drug makers with an annual revenue exceeding 10 billion yuan each. Sinopharm, China's largest drug distributor, generated 575 billion yuan last year.

Chinese first-in-class innovative drugs would account for at least 25 per cent of the global total, authorities said.

First-in-class drugs broadly refer to therapies using a completely new and unique mechanism to treat a condition, even though this is not a formal regulatory category.

The targets are significantly more ambitious than the sector's 14th five-year plan, released in December 2021, which did not have quantifiable indicators for innovative drugs and focused on increasing R&D investment.

The total value of out-licensing deals involving Chinese innovative drugs has reached US$120 billion so far this year, up 36 per cent from a year earlier, news agency Xinhua said earlier this week, citing NMPA data.

The latest plan also calls for "systematic breakthroughs" in core technologies across "critical fields".

In a report published earlier this month, Xinhua Think Tank Research, a journal under the state-run news agency, identified cell and gene therapy, green manufacturing of chemical drugs, biomedical big data and synthetic biotechnology as among key areas.

China should also expand the use of artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and supercomputing in pharmaceutical R&D, while deepening the application of frontier technologies like gene editing and brain-computer interfaces, according to the government agencies.

The plan outlines several critical areas requiring breakthroughs, including artificial life system synthesis, organoids and organ-on-a-chip, as well as universal cell therapies.

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More than half - 56 per cent - held a neutral view, believing either that AI had no impact on office space demand or that it was too early to determine its effect, according to the property consultancy's poll of corporate real estate executives in the region.

The remaining 25 per cent said AI adoption would require them to expand their office footprint.

The survey was conducted between May 26 and July 10 across nine markets, including Hong Kong, mainland China, Singapore, Japan, Australia and India. It received 651 responses, with those from the mainland and India weighted more heavily to "reflect those markets' share of Asia-Pacific grade A office stock".

The results pointed to AI currently having a more significant impact on office operations than on real estate requirements, CBRE said.

"Although there is speculation that AI could reduce office demand, our findings suggest most organisations remain in the early stages of assessing its impact, with minimal short-term effect on real estate requirements," said Ada Choi, head of research for Asia-Pacific at CBRE.

AI has been blamed for lay-offs across various sectors, with lower headcounts often linked to reduced office space needs.

Last year, a study by the Switzerland-based World Economic Forum found that 41 per cent of employers across 22 industries in 55 economies planned to reduce their workforce as AI automated certain tasks.

Meanwhile, nearly nine in 10 respondents reported that employees worked in the office at least three days per week, the highest level since the Covid-19 pandemic. Another 85 per cent said office attendance had reached a steady state.

"With attendance and utilisation largely stabilised at higher levels, companies are no longer focused only on bringing employees back to the office," said Tom Gaffney, head of leasing for Asia-Pacific at CBRE.

"They can now concentrate on transforming the workplace to improve experience and efficiency. What we are seeing now is the emergence of a new equilibrium for the office market, with companies selectively growing their portfolio and prioritising premium workplaces."

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Anew Labs, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment, operates a range of AI models for biomolecular structure prediction and design. They include AnewFold, its in-house foundation model, and Protenix, an open-source reproduction of AlphaFold 3, the most advanced biomolecular prediction AI model from Google DeepMind and its Isomorphic Labs spin-off.

The Chinese company said on its website that it has four drugs in its development pipeline, including an oral small-molecule drug for immunological diseases. On Thursday it launched its AnewDDE agentic platform, which it said was designed to address "fragmented" AI workflows in drug discovery.

AI's role in drug design is advancing rapidly. Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo, formerly Novo Nordisk, announced a partnership with Anthropic on Wednesday, saying it would use the US AI firm's models and its Claude Science platform to accelerate the discovery and development of new medicines.

Anthropic said in June that its Mythos 5 model, only available to selected partners, made aspects of the drug design process around 10 times faster. The company said last month that its Claude Mythos Preview and Opus 4.8 models had designed protein binders from scratch that succeeded against 14 of 15 targets.

Start-ups in China have ramped up their fundraising efforts.

Nutshell Therapeutics, a Shanghai-based biotech firm focused on developing small molecule drugs with AI, said on Tuesday that it had raised tens of millions of US dollars in a C+ round, with backers including Citic Capital, Decheng Capital and state-backed Fortune Venture Capital.

With nearly 20 planned drugs in its pipeline, the company's lead programme targeting tumours was advancing through phase one and two clinical trials in the United States and China, it said on its website.

Beijing-based AI drug discovery firm AIPher, started in July and incubated by Tsinghua University's Institute for AI Industry Research, said this week that it had completed an angel round of financing worth about 100 million yuan (US$14.9 million).

The start-up's fastest-progressing pipeline, targeting attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is in the pre-preclinical candidate stage, according to an article published on its official WeChat account on Monday.

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Chui's remarks were made ahead of the inauguration of Hilton's new Xi Zhe Wuxi hotel in Hang Lung's Center 66 commercial complex in Wuxi, eastern China's Jiangsu province.

In July, Hilton introduced a new brand Tempo to China, as Alan Watts, the group's Asia-Pacific president, described the move as an effort to help hotel owners capture growing demand for lifestyle-oriented hospitality via a scalable model.

The pace of growth lagged the 4.7 per cent overall rise in China's gross domestic product during the same period.

Despite the lacklustre overall market, Chui said that pet-friendly hotels that also offered curated experiences such as yoga training could be well received by young travellers on the mainland, who increasingly preferred to spend on immersive story-led hospitality rather than displays of luxury.

The new hotel in Wuxi - part of the Curio Collection by Hilton portfolio - would bring local culture to life through distinctive hospitality experiences, said Weber Lo Wai-pak, CEO of Hang Lung, in a statement.

The developer and Hilton would create lifestyle synergies and further enhance the overall appeal of the Center 66 project, he added.

Hang Lung has developed 11 premium mixed-use complexes under its signature "66" brand on the mainland, which are located in cities including Shanghai, Wuxi, Hangzhou and Tianjin.

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An increase in risk-free interest rates typically dents investors' appetite for assets such as stocks by demanding a higher risk premium, draining funds that spawned the frenetic artificial intelligence trade that has buttressed the bull market over the past few years.

Rising bond yields "change the investment calculus," said Gary Dugan, CEO of The Global CIO Office, which advises family offices and ultra-high-net-worth investors. "Bonds are real capital competitors instead of being portfolio insurance, and equity arithmetic follows suit."

"There's a price to pay for owning equities," he added.

China's financial markets remain vulnerable to an external shock, with the yield on the 10-year government bond trading close to a one-year low of 1.7 per cent and the outlook for tech stocks dependent on global sentiment.

Japan's elevated yields underscored rising fiscal spending as their persistent driver. Its government ministries requested a total budget of 143.1 trillion yen (US$918.5 billion) for the 2027 financial year, an increase of 16 per cent from the previous year, according to its Ministry of Finance.

There was an upside risk for the final figures because of the large number of unspecified requests, particularly for military spending, Bank of America said in a report this month.

While Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pledged to limit bond issuance to around 40 trillion yen in the coming financial year, it hardly dispelled concerns among bond investors about Tokyo's unbridled spending.

Global risk assets from stocks to commodities are under pressure after the US Federal Reserve raised the benchmark interest rate for the first time in three years on Thursday, with chair Kevin Warsh signalling more increases ahead.

The yield on 10-year US Treasuries surpassed 5 per cent for the first time since 2023 this week, and the 30-year Treasury yield rose to a nearly two-decade high of 5.4 per cent as investors priced in a prolonged oil shock and Washington competed for capital with AI hyperscalers for debt issuance.

With the Bank of Japan following the Fed with monetary tightening, the move - alongside expectations for further tightening - would entrench the elevated sovereign yields, according to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking.

US money manager T. Rowe Price projected Japan would deliver between three and four rate increases in the coming 12 months to cool inflation and prop up the yen, while Swiss private bank Julius Baer foresaw three increases in December, March and July.

"The resulting increase in expectations of further rate increases in Japan is another factor pushing Japanese longer-term yields higher," said Hirofumi Suzuki, a strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking.

"For the time being, upwards pressure on longer-term yields is likely to remain strong, particularly in the US. As a result, Japanese longer-term yields are also likely to remain under upwards pressure for some time."

For investors to regain their appetite for risk assets, the yield rise in developed markets such as Japan needed to pause, according to Stephen Innes, a managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

"Japanese government bonds trading at generational yield highs are not merely a market curiosity," he said. "They represent a higher global discount rate, intensified competition for capital and a reminder that resilient growth and perfection pricing can coexist only until they cannot."

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The decision should have no immediate impact on the local property market, said Joseph Tsang, chairman of JLL Hong Kong. "However, the market outlook depends on whether US rate hikes will continue."

If rates rose further, higher mortgage costs would weigh on homebuyers and raise developers' financing costs, potentially prompting them to accelerate sales to reduce financial pressure and dampening their appetite for land, Tsang said.

Developers have been testing higher prices. On Thursday, Chow Tai Fook-owned State Residence priced its first batch of flats more than 10 per cent higher than the prices at neighbouring State Pavilia's 2025 launch.

Meanwhile in the second-hand market, some sellers are already narrowing discounts.

In North Point, negotiating margins narrowed to 1 to 2 per cent from 3 to 4 per cent immediately after HSBC announced it would not raise its rate, while viewing appointments rose 20 per cent, said Chris Wong, executive director at Century 21 Sunrise.

A homeowner surnamed Tsang, who is selling her 807-square-foot flat in the district, raised her minimum price to HK$10.8 million from HK$10.67 million, citing stable rates and promotional mortgages.

The firmer tone was also evident at City One Shatin, where owners were generally unwilling to cut asking prices despite remaining open to negotiations, said Now Wong, district associate director at Midland Realty.

At the same time, a property investor surnamed Lam contacted an agent looking for "bargains to be snapped up", saying he was ready to buy if further rate hikes triggered distressed sales.

The one-month Hibor (Hong Kong interbank offered rate), the basis for most mortgages, had recently approached 2.8 per cent to 2.9 per cent and could move above 3 per cent in the near term, said Raymond Chong, CEO of mortgage brokerage StarPro Agency.

If the Fed increased rates again by the end of the year, Hong Kong banks could raise prime rates by up to a quarter point, Chong said. Rising funding costs would also prompt banks to withdraw popular fixed-rate mortgage plans by the end of the year, he added.

At the top end of the market, sellers remain cautious.

Most owners with properties for sale in The Peak and Southern district were taking a wait-and-see approach and inviting offers rather than setting asking prices, said Joseph Yan, senior principal district sales director at Centaline Property.

For now, much of the rate pressure had already been absorbed, said Elliott Hau, head of financing valuation at Colliers. Residential transactions fell to 4,019 in August from 7,650 in June, suggesting buyers had priced in expectations of higher rates.

Colliers said it would maintain its forecast for residential prices to rise between 8 and 10 per cent this year. However, if borrowing costs remained elevated for a prolonged period, "some capital could be diverted to alternative investment products offering competitive returns", Hau said.

The commercial property market could face greater pressure if rate increases continued, said Tsang at JLL. "Buyers will ask for higher rental yields, and property owners may need to lower asking prices in order to sell," he said.

Additional reporting by Cheryl Arcibal

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While power could constrain US growth, China still needed "breakthroughs" in high-end chips, Zhao said. "Various countries have various limitations," she added.

"This race cannot be done by one country," Zhao told SCMP on the sidelines of the BofA 2026 Asia-Pacific Conference in Hong Kong.

"There will be competition and cooperation for sure," Zhao added.

Zhao's comments come ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Thursday, where AI was expected to feature alongside trade and other geopolitical issues.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who also attended, said the initiatives were aimed at "helping President Trump and President Xi continue their relationship" and laying the groundwork for a successful summit on Thursday.

The Chinese delegation did not speak to the media.

The diplomatic push comes amid deepening technological distrust between the world's two leading AI powers. Washington has repeatedly accused Chinese developers of distilling capabilities from leading US models, while Beijing has criticised recent US calls to pace frontier AI development as potentially entrenching American dominance.

Amid talk of greater cooperation, the two countries have also sought to reduce reliance on each other for critical technologies. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has urged the US government to strengthen chip export controls on China, while China has pushed domestic tech firms to adopt home-grown semiconductors.

Yet the infrastructure required to develop and deploy powerful AI systems remained deeply globalised, complicating efforts by either country to become technologically self-sufficient, BofA's Zhao said.

China has become a major global supplier of AI infrastructure, particularly power equipment and energy storage systems. Its exports of electrical transformers - equipment used to regulate voltage across power grids - rose about 30 per cent last year and had grown at a similar pace so far this year, Zhao said.

The country shipped a record 64.6 billion yuan (US$9.6 billion) worth of transformers in 2025, according to data published earlier this year.

But China remains dependent on foreign suppliers for parts of the AI supply chain, including specialised Japanese machinery and materials, as well as advanced chips and some optical technologies from the US and elsewhere.

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The new chip, an iteration of the company's CPU1000 series, is designed to meet "low-power, embedded and edge computing requirements", targeting a range of physical AI applications in sectors including robotics, machine vision and intelligent manufacturing, according to reports by state-owned business news outlets Jiemian News and China Securities Journal on Sunday.

The company's slogan for the launch event, set to be held in the southern tech hub of Shenzhen, was "Let computing power reach the physical world", according to a post on the company's official WeChat account on Sunday. The post did not disclose more information.

Hygon's expansion comes amid a broader industry trend where computing demand is increasingly migrating out of centralised data centres and towards the so-called edges of networks at active physical industry sites.

Unlike data centre chips which prioritise raw computational output, chips deployed in robotics and edge applications must meet stringent demands for real-time processing, power limits and robust security in unpredictable settings.

Hygon, which designs central processing units (CPUs) and deep computing units - a type of accelerator card designed specifically for AI - is playing an increasingly critical role in Beijing's broader drive for semiconductor self-sufficiency, a campaign that has taken on greater urgency as US trade restrictions limit the country's access to advanced chips.

Its current CPU product lines include the 7000 series for high-performance data centres, the 5000 series for "middle-level" industry clients in cloud computing and edge computing and the 3000 series, which boasts cost efficiency.

The company's first-half revenue rose 66.5 per cent from a year earlier to 9.1 billion yuan (US$1.4 billion) amid strong demand for high-end domestic chips.

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Even though the company, also known as Zhipu AI, apologised and patched the vulnerability, developers said the incident was likely to weaken its reputation, especially at a time when cybersecurity is becoming a central issue in the AI industry.

The issue came to light on Friday when an independent Chinese technical blogger known as Ferstar inspected a local directory in ZCode and found that a compressed file of 313 megabytes was pending upload to Alibaba Group Holding's cloud storage service after failing 564 times, while a smaller 15-kilobyte file had been successfully sent.

Both files were encrypted, he said. The larger file, according to visible filenames, contained a snapshot of a commercial project he was working on, including the project's Git history. He said the archive could not be opened by him or the ZCode client and could be decrypted only with a private key held on Z.ai's back end.

The upload mechanism was enabled by default, and there was no button to turn it off, he said.

Other users spotted similar issues. Tech blogger Feng Ruohang said in a post on Friday that he had seen at least three files uploaded.

In a statement posted in its official Feishu community on Friday, Z.ai said it had fixed the issue and apologised to affected users. It added that it planned to open-source ZCode's codebase and invite third-party assessors to review it while publishing updates on the review. It would also give all ZCode users an additional weekly quota reset as compensation, it said.

Z.ai sought to assure users that the data had been immediately destroyed once uploaded. But Ferstar, the blogger who first discovered the vulnerability, questioned how to verify the "immediate destruction" claim in a Saturday update.

Alibaba, which owns the South China Morning Post, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday.

A Shanghai-based AI developer, who goes by Tuxi, said the ZCode incident was likely to have a bigger impact on community trust than on Z.ai's underlying models.

"It's basically like stealing something from users, and the malicious intent is what concerns me," Tuxi said. The developer said the episode could damage Z.ai's reputation, particularly among overseas users of its GLM models, although the impact on the models themselves could be limited because developers can use GLM with other coding tools such as OpenAI's Codex.

A software engineer at a leading Chinese robotics company, who asked not to be named because they were not authorised to speak publicly, said the company had internally banned the use of Z.ai's tools over security concerns.

The incident follows similar incidents involving Anthropic's Claude Code and Grok Build from Elon Musk's xAI, now part of SpaceX, earlier this year.

The global AI community is increasingly attaching importance to user privacy and cybersecurity. The topic may be a key point of dialogue during an expected meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump next week.

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CXMT also displayed two mass-produced LPDDR5X products based on the G5 platform. The high-speed, low-power dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips for mobile devices each featured a capacity of 24 gigabits, a 50 per cent increase over the previous generation of similar products.

The company said the products fit the needs of "mid-to-high-end smartphones and portable consumer electronics", and it vowed to "continue to advance technological iterations to meet global market demands" in the future.

The announcement - at the World Manufacturing Convention in CXMT's hometown of Hefei, capital of central China's Anhui province - comes as the firm is gaining ground with domestic smartphone vendors. Some of its high-end chips have found their way into flagship Chinese handsets as vendors push into the premium market.

ZTE-backed Nubia's NaviX Ultra, which went on sale on Wednesday integrating ByteDance's Doubao artificial intelligence assistant, uses LPDDR5X DRAM chips from CXMT. Xiaomi and Transsion, the latter known for its budget phones in emerging markets, are also among the customers using CXMT's LPDDR5X line.

Shanghai-listed CXMT, which became China's most valuable listed tech firm after a blockbuster initial public offering in July, began producing its LPDDR5X chips based on its previous platform in May 2025.

Its share of global DRAM revenue rose to 9.5 per cent in the second quarter from 7.6 per cent in the first quarter, according to data from TrendForce in early September. Samsung led the global market with a share of 39.4 per cent, followed by SK Hynix at 24.9 per cent and US company Micron Technology at 23.3 per cent.

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The company was also eyeing another bricks-and-mortar flagship in Europe later this year, likely in Munich or Amsterdam, following the New York launch and its August opening in Tokyo, bringing its self-operated overseas retail presence to three stores by the end of 2026, according to Richter.

Based on feedback from its initial three stores, Insta360 may accelerate its global offline roll-out in 2027 and explore "store-in-store" collaborations with local retail partners, Richter added.

Founded in 2015, Insta360 gained early overseas traction as a GoPro disrupter with its 360-degree cameras, propelled by viral videos made with its cameras. Richter attributed the rise of Insta360 to a new wave of content creators who prioritised ease of creating shareable videos over the use of traditional technology.

The company had shipped a total of 10 million cameras globally, according to Richter.

DJI dominated the global handheld smart camera market, according to data released by IDC in June, which covered action cameras, gimbals and panoramic cameras. DJI held a 65 per cent share in the first quarter of 2026, followed by Insta360's 22 per cent share.

However, Insta360's camera shipments jumped 66 per cent year on year, outstripping DJI's 38 per cent growth. Insta360 remained the top player in the global 360-degree camera category with a 68 per cent share.

Insta360's overseas retail expansion also came amid an intensifying price war with its crosstown rival DJI in the China market, a full-fledged competition spanning cameras to drones.

"We don't want to be in a competition where we only compete on price," Richter said. "Escaping [price] competition with innovation is even more important for us."

Insta360, officially trading as Arashi Vision on Shanghai's Nasdaq-like Star Market, reported a 94 per cent drop in first-half net profit, despite revenue climbing 50 per cent.

The company cited rising component costs as the primary culprit, as it spent nearly 2 billion yuan (US$298.4 million) on "strategic procurement" of memory chips.

A similar scale of expenditure was expected to be "unavoidable" in the coming quarters, and it remained unclear when the memory crisis would ease, Richter said.

"At the same time, we don't want to compromise our product research and development, [which] remains our number one priority," Richter said, adding that the firm would focus on becoming more efficient in other areas.

Research and development expenditure soared nearly 80 per cent in the first six months of 2026, as Insta360 invested in the development of new products including its Luna Ultra dual-lens vlogging camera, launched in June to take on DJI's Osmo Pocket 4P.

Insta360's high-stakes US push must also navigate an increasingly complicated geopolitical climate. Tightened scrutiny from the US Federal Communications Commission barred DJI from selling any new products in America, locking the major drone and camera maker out of the market and leaving a potential void for players like Insta360.

While Richter confirmed that Insta360 currently faced no restrictions on selling products in the US, he pushed back against viewing its rival's regulatory setback as a commercial windfall.

"We didn't want it to happen like this," Richter said. "For us, it's not the main motivation."

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The research team said the training method could eventually be extended to other types of medical imaging, calling the model "the world's first expert-level generalist medical imaging model".

In a comparative study involving 26 human radiologists from multiple hospitals, the model's average accuracy exceeded that of 23 participants, according to the study. With the model's help, the radiologists also managed to improve their ability to prevent missed diagnoses by 10 per cent while reducing the time required by more than 30 per cent, Damo said.

The research was published on Thursday in the journal Science. Several institutions took part in the study alongside Alibaba, including a hospital affiliated with Zhejiang University.

The model's release builds on a string of recent medical AI advances by Alibaba as Chinese technology giants increasingly explore the use of cutting-edge technology in healthcare settings. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

In recent years, Damo Academy has focused on developing AI screening tools to help doctors identify conditions including pancreatic, stomach and colorectal cancers, as well as aortic dissections.

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Ye said the institute had finished early integration for stacked nanosheet-channel GAA CMOS transistors using DUV tools. He described the result as a "new early-stage MOS transistor process path for China's sub-3-nm advanced manufacturing", according to the Digitimes article.

Samsung Electronics is already mass-producing 3-nm chips using GAA, while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company transitioned to GAA for its 2-nm node in late 2025.

Still, the breakthrough by CAS seems far from ready for mass production. Ye noted that the development remained at an early stage. Whether the institute's latest GAA technology can transition into mass production will depend on future wafer validation performance on actual manufacturing lines.

Ye, a veteran semiconductor technologist who previously headed IMECAS, also served as chief technologist for China's high-profile "02" project, a major state initiative to advance domestic chipmaking equipment and fabrication capabilities.

CAS did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday.

The latest breakthrough builds on years of research by CAS to seek innovations that can potentially bypass the need for advanced lithography tools in chipmaking. In 2025, the institute developed an all-solid-state DUV laser capable of emitting 193-nm coherent light - the crucial wavelength used in current semiconductor lithography.

The company expects its self-developed high-end chips, based on the new scaling law, to feature transistor densities equivalent to 1.4-nm processes by 2031.

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Under contracts signed by non-Chinese entities, models have been trained on cutting-edge Nvidia processors housed thousands of miles, away outside the reach of US authorities, he said.

That critical lifeline could be on the verge of collapsing.

Washington is reportedly moving to expand its tech blockade from physical hardware to cloud networks. As the US Congress weighs legislation to restrict foreign remote access and executive agencies review cloud-leasing loopholes, China's AI sector faces its most severe choke point since the chip bans began.

"For a long time, Chinese AI companies have circumvented chip export bans by leasing overseas data centres," said Arisa Liu, chief director and research fellow at Taiwan Industry Economics Services, a unit of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research. "[This] has indeed contributed a significant amount of overseas market demand to Nvidia."

To make good use of these remote servers, some Chinese teams have taken extraordinary measures to overcome technical bottlenecks. Chinese engineers personally carried hard drives storing 80 terabytes of data from Beijing to Malaysia to train an AI model at a local data centre, saving months of digital transfer time, The Wall Street Journal reported last year.

Driven by the global AI boom, demand for high-performance computing power has sent global cloud rental rates soaring.

Leading AI infrastructure provider Nebius Group raised rental prices on certain Nvidia chips by roughly 30 per cent in June, with a further 21 per cent increase to come into effect on October 1. Hyperscaler rates for Nvidia's A100 processors rose to US$3.75 per hour in late August, up from US$3.71 a month earlier, according to tracking firm Silicon Data.

To maintain secrecy and navigate cross-border payments, some Chinese teams have even executed cloud-leasing transactions via blockchain-based smart contracts and paid in cryptocurrency to keep both parties hidden behind anonymous digital wallets, the Journal reported in 2024.

However, the regulatory net in Washington is rapidly closing.

The administration of US President Donald Trump was reviewing remote access arrangements and was working on policies to curb it, according to reports by Bloomberg and The Information. In January, the US House passed the Remote Access Security Act, which, if signed into law, would expand American export controls to remote cloud computing access.

"If the US passes and implements relevant legislation that extends restrictions from physical chips to cloud leasing, Nvidia's overall sales growth momentum will inevitably be curtailed to some extent," Liu said.

Legal experts noted that current compliance remained a grey area. Currently, there are "no regulations or similar provisions in place to restrict or prohibit" such remote access, said Hong Jiayang, managing partner of US law firm Joint-Win Partners.

The Remote Access Security Act "was introduced for a similar purpose", Hong said. However, once it goes into effect, "the businesses of cloud service giants such as Oracle and Amazon.com will be significantly impacted, which is bound to provoke a strong backlash".

Even if the US did not enact legislation to regulate cloud services, the BIS could "theoretically impose penalties on data centres and even model developers that use illegally smuggled chips" on the grounds of "General Prohibition 10", which penalises transactions conducted with knowledge that a violation has occurred, Hong explained.

"Hi-tech companies should avoid becoming entangled in such legal liabilities at all times," he added.

Southeast Asia's data centre boom

If Washington closes the cloud computing loophole, the immediate shock waves will hit Southeast Asia, one of the world's fastest-growing data centre hubs.

Local data centre capacity in the region was projected to expand at 35 per cent each year from 2023 through 2028, outpacing the global average of 15 per cent, according to market intelligence platform Speeda.

Chinese tech giants, including Alibaba Group Holding - owner of the South China Morning Post - Tencent Holdings and TikTok owner ByteDance, have spent years building out regional infrastructure to serve the Chinese market.

Asian hyperscalers preferred the region for several reasons, including "competitive development costs across construction, equipment and human capital; and lower operating costs", according to Vivian Wong, lead analyst for APAC at DC Byte, a market consultancy in the data centre industry.

"If you want to win customers in a market, you need availability zones in that market … Southeast Asia is the natural first step for that expansion, given proximity, existing business ties, land and power availability," said Alex Cordovil, research director at Dell'Oro Group, a market research firm in the telecommunications, security and data centre industries.

Beyond local demands, the region has attracted international workloads, "including from Chinese internet and cloud companies", Cordovil said. "Export controls are part of that picture: certain accelerator architectures are only available outside mainland China, so workloads that depend on them naturally gravitate to locations where that supply is accessible."

The region also offers competitive energy economics.

In Southeast Asia, electricity prices average US$118 per megawatt hour (MWh), with the lowest in Indonesia at US$60 per MWh, according to Wood Mackenzie, a consultancy focusing on the energy, chemicals, renewables, metals and mining.

While higher than China's average industrial rates - between 600 yuan (US$89) and 700 yuan per MWh, and half that in energy-rich regions like Inner Mongolia and Guizhou - Southeast Asia remains cheaper than US hubs like northern Virginia and Silicon Valley, where prices range between US$70 and US$120 per MWh. In comparison, European centres like Germany and Ireland see prices ranging between €150 (US$174) and €250 per MWh, according to state-backed media China Energy News.

Should remote access become a constraint for certain customers in Southeast Asia, it would "likely create a transient imbalance between supply and demand in the region", he said, adding that the imbalance was expected to be "short lived" as demand was deep.

Wong held a similar view, saying that "any released capacity is likely to be taken up relatively quickly by other customers".

The AI development life cycle involves training and inference - the use of a trained model to generate new content. Systems such as DeepSeek-V4 and Moonshot's Kimi K3 have been successfully adapted to Chinese hardware for inference work only.

For now, the most advanced Nvidia chips remain unavailable in China, including the B200, B300, H100 and H800. Chinese firms either use Nvidia chips they have in inventory or gain access through cloud computing.

The H200, the latest of Nvidia's Hopper-series chips but a generation behind the Blackwell family, was approved for import by both Washington and Beijing but is only available in small quantities.

ByteDance and Tencent Holdings each received about 10,000 H200s and a few other Chinese customers obtained shipments of a similar size, the Financial Times reported in August.

"There is a massive gap between this quantity and the actual demand of such top-tier tech giants, which often consume tens of thousands or even over 100,000 advanced [graphics processing units]," said Liu of the Taiwan institution.

Nvidia in late August reported that shipments of H200s to China accounted for less than 1 per cent of its US$89 billion data-centre revenue in the quarter that ended July 26. However, it said it did not expect any data-centre computing revenue from China in the following quarter.

Liu added that even though Nvidia's income might be temporarily curtailed if the US imposed the ban on remote access, "this shortfall may be partially offset by massive orders from other international tech giants" given strong AI demand globally.

Accelerating self-reliance

If the US bans Chinese companies from renting Nvidia-powered data centres overseas, it may lead to higher domestic rental rates, the Shenzhen-based data centre broker noted. For now, rates for B300 chips outside China are two to three times higher than local prices, not including differences in electricity costs.

Even if there were no restriction on renting overseas data centres, replacing Nvidia with domestic chips was "the main trend", said a semiconductor designer at one of China's biggest chipmakers, who requested anonymity.

Migrating existing workflows to Huawei's Ascend chips could add at least 50 per cent to training time and cost, according to researcher James Wang.

That would narrow the gap between domestic supply and demand to 34 per cent by 2035 from 92 per cent in 2025, according to the investment bank.

As Washington moves to extend its tech blockade from hardware shipments to virtual server networks, Chinese AI developers may soon lose their refuge in the cloud. What remains to be seen is whether the squeeze will stall China's frontier AI ambitions or simply accelerate its push towards technological self-sufficiency.

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Peng Yang, CEO of Ant International, said the shift would prepare global commerce for a "fully agentised future", adding that fintech providers needed "a future-ready trust infrastructure" paired with financial AI models and connected AI-native solutions.

The move follows a roughly US$1.2 billion series A funding round in July, backed by Ant Group, Alibaba Group Holding and other institutional investors.

Carved out as an independent operating entity in 2024, Ant International said it connects over 150 million merchants to more than 2 billion consumer accounts, processing over 25 million daily transactions across 210 markets.

The upgrade spans nearly 100 products, including AI assistants for payments and account management, tools for cash-flow forecasting, currency hedging and global payouts, and services supporting billing, tax filing, marketing and access to credit. Ant said it also introduced a business account designed for AI agents.

"We're a problem solver for merchants," Gary Liu, CEO of Antom, said in an interview with the South China Morning Post, noting that 89.5 per cent of Antom's merchants already used AI agents, with 81.4 per cent of payment tasks receiving AI assistance.

According to Ant International, the overhaul relies on two proprietary systems: a payment foundation model - called Antom 3-in-1 Transformer - that processes structured records, sequences of behaviour and relationships between users, merchants and devices to assess transactions, and FalconTST, a forecasting model for cash flows and currency exposures.

Ant International said FalconTST had achieved over 93 per cent forecasting accuracy and reduced corporate currency hedging and capital allocation costs by 30 to 60 per cent in real-world applications.

On top of the Antom 3-in-1 Transformer, the company built a second security layer, with a "know-your-agent" (KYA) framework linked to its Agentic Mobile Protocol, which connects mobile wallet networks to agentic transactions. The security layer includes AgentSafePay, which offers a fund-back guarantee against losses from agent-specific risks.

To combat security risks tied to autonomous transactions, the firm relies on its Antom Shield framework to guard against AI-driven fraud, as well as AgentSafePay, an indemnity scheme covering merchant losses from agent errors.

Ant International is also partnering with Visa and Mastercard to establish global agent verification standards through its Agentic Mobile Protocol.

Alibaba is the owner of SCMP.

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ARR, a widely used measure for fast-growing companies, projects current monthly subscription income over a 12-month period.

ByteDance led the Chinese group in ARR at US$4 billion as of July, followed by Alibaba at US$2.4 billion in August. By comparison, OpenAI reached US$40 billion in August and Anthropic was at US$65 billion in July.

Despite the gap, investors have continued to pile into Chinese AI companies. Rhodium said their valuations remained "substantially lower" than those of OpenAI and Anthropic, and some looked far more expensive relative to revenue.

Meanwhile, Anthropic was expected to go public later this year with a targeted valuation of around US$2 trillion, according to media reports. OpenAI had discussed a new funding round that would value it at about US$1.2 trillion, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

"Valuations relative to revenue appear exorbitant for Moonshot and DeepSeek at present," the Rhodium report said. Their estimated valuation-to-ARR multiples stood at 50 times and 163 times, respectively, compared with 34 times for OpenAI and 21 times for Anthropic.

The numbers underscore a central challenge for China's AI industry: how to turn AI models into sustainable businesses while spending heavily to keep pace at the technological frontier.

Revenues for these Chinese AI companies have grown rapidly. Z.ai recorded a 400 per cent increase year on year in first-half revenue to 953.9 million yuan, while MiniMax's revenue surged 283 per cent to US$116.6 million during the same period.

However, the open-weight strategy has made Chinese models harder to monetise, Rhodium said. Third-party cloud providers can deploy open-weight models and sell access without paying the original developer.

"This could be changing, as Moonshot and Alibaba are pushing for revenue-sharing agreements with major users of their open-weight models," Rhodium said. For example, Moonshot was in discussions with Microsoft, Amazon and Google, with its potential share of revenue reaching as much as 30 per cent, Reuters reported last month.

Alibaba owns the SCMP.

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The findings underscore how top regional foundries were uniquely positioned to shrug off temporary spending lulls.

Behind TSMC and second-ranked Samsung Electronics, mainland Chinese players hold significant market share. Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) and Hua Hong Group ranked third and sixth globally by revenue in the second quarter this year, according to research firm TrendForce.

By contrast, memory chipmakers such as Samsung and SK Hynix could face more pronounced earnings declines if investment appetite peaked early, the report noted.

"Rated Asia-Pacific tech-hardware issuers maintain sufficient buffers against delays in AI spending plans," said S&P analyst Clifford Kurz, though he cautioned that a fundamental shift in long-term AI demand could still pose credit risks.

While some analysts believe clearer rules would be beneficial for the industry in the long run, the proposed pause has unnerved some investors accustomed to aggressive buildouts.

Capital expenditure by China's major tech companies was set to more than double to around US$140 billion this year - up from US$65 billion in 2025 - and reach US$165 billion by 2027, according to a Moody's report earlier this month.

S&P maintained its base-case forecast that demand across the AI value chain would remain strong over the next two years.

In a separate report released on Thursday, S&P noted that mainland China's AI buildout would disproportionately enrich a handful of top-tier cities.

Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen and Hangzhou were set to reap the biggest gains due to their dense pools of research talent, established engineering bases and deep capital reserves, according to the report.

"Benefits will reach the places best equipped to host firms building out related infrastructure and services. The rest of the country will have to hope and wait for second-order effects," the agency wrote.

Shanghai's dominant position is already evident. Official data showed that the city's three frontier industries - integrated circuits, biopharmaceuticals and AI - had surpassed 2 trillion yuan (US$298.5 billion), with its chip sector alone accounting for roughly a third of China's national total.

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Huawei has been pushing its own alternative computing infrastructure amid US export controls that were designed to restrict China's access to advanced semiconductors, such as those from Nvidia.

"Even though there might be some gaps between Ascend and some of its competitors, it offers the strongest support for mainland Chinese customers," Xu said, adding that many clients chose Ascend due to geopolitical risks and a preference for multi-vendor strategies.

"Pushing full chip self-sufficiency is the certain path forward for China," Xu said. "I believe it will become a reality sooner or later."

"Since we don't have enough capacity to even satisfy the demand in China, we don't have the plan to expand [SuperPoD systems] to the international market in a fully fledged way," Xu said, though he noted the firm has been shipping small quantities overseas for testing in high-demand regions.

Huawei's previous-generation Atlas 950 SuperPoD, powered by the Ascend 950DT chip, had increasingly been deployed for AI model training with encouraging initial testing results, according to Xu. Huawei had deployed over 1,000 Atlas SuperPoD units across more than 370 enterprise customers, the company said.

On Thursday, Huawei also introduced its Peerium Computing Architecture, a technology designed to interconnect 1 million processors to function as a single computer. Already deployed on Atlas 950 systems, Peerium was undergoing testing on the new Atlas 960 hardware, the company said.

Despite its technological leaps, Xu cautioned that computing supply still lagged behind China's surging AI demand. He projected that global AI computing supply and demand would reach equilibrium around 2029, with China reaching a balance slightly later in 2030.

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Known in Chinese as Lingqu, UnifiedBus has become central to Huawei's efforts to extract more computing power at the system level, a strategy that has taken on greater importance as US restrictions constrain the company's access to advanced semiconductor manufacturing technologies.

Here is what you need to know about UnifiedBus, how it works and why it matters for China's artificial intelligence ambitions.

What is UnifiedBus?

UnifiedBus is Huawei's high-speed interconnect protocol designed for what the company terms as "SuperPoDs" - systems that tightly link hundreds or thousands of processors into a single logical computing unit.

Huawei now positions the technology as the key interconnect underpinning Peerium, its newly named computing architecture. UnifiedBus uses a single open protocol to link CPUs, NPUs, memory, solid-state drives, network interface cards and switches, with the longer-term goal of extending the concept of a single computer to systems containing as many as 1 million processors.

In a traditional AI cluster, servers communicate with one another over conventional network connections like Ethernet. While easy to expand by adding more machines, larger clusters also face bandwidth bottlenecks and latency spikes when moving data between processors, leaving expensive AI chips waiting idle for data.

Scale-up interconnects like UnifiedBus aim to address this structural limit directly. By providing higher bandwidth and lower latency between processors, memory and storage modules, UnifiedBus allows different hardware components to share data through unified memory addressing and communicate on a more peer-to-peer basis, according to Huawei.

The protocol's first commercial implementation, UnifiedBus 1.0, was deployed in Huawei's Atlas 900 A3 SuperPoD, linking up to 384 Ascend AI processors. It began shipping in March 2025.

Huawei subsequently expanded the scale to 8,192 processors with its Atlas 950 SuperPoD. The 256,000-card system disclosed on Thursday goes further still, although it is a SuperCluster made up of multiple SuperPoDs rather than a single 256,000-card SuperPoD.

Why did Huawei develop it?

US restrictions have made system-level innovation more important to Huawei, but rotating chairman Eric Xu Zhijun rejected the idea that UnifiedBus was merely a workaround for China's limited access to advanced chipmaking technology.

Asked whether the technology represented a China-specific path or one the wider industry would eventually follow, Xu called UnifiedBus "a path for the future" in the AI era.

"In the years to come, other players would certainly follow suit," he told the South China Morning Post on Thursday, adding that Huawei made the UnifiedBus protocol open to all because it believed "the whole industry will move toward the same direction".

He also stressed that the work predated US sanctions. "Those activities started not after the US sanction, but before," Xu said. Huawei unveiled its first AI chip and AI strategy in 2018 and began investing more heavily in new computing architectures and interconnect technologies after launching SuperPoD and SuperCluster products in 2019.

Xu said Huawei had invested more than 1.8 trillion yuan (US$268.2 billion) in research and development since 2007, with about 10 per cent going towards basic research.

How about Nvidia's NVLink and other Western alternatives?

Western tech giants are also pouring resources into high-speed interconnects, which have become a key battleground for next generation AI infrastructure.

Nvidia's dominance in AI hardware relies heavily on its proprietary NVLink and NVSwitch technologies, which bind multiple graphics processing units (GPUs) inside systems, such as its rack-scale platforms, into a unified domain.

Meanwhile, an industry coalition - including Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, Google, Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Amazon Web Services and Alibaba Group Holding - is backing Ultra Accelerator Link, or UALink, as an open standard to counter Nvidia's ecosystem lock-in. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

By publishing the technical specifications for UnifiedBus 2.0 late last year, Huawei is seeking to build a domestic ecosystem that encourages Chinese chipmakers, server vendors and software developers to standardise on its architecture.

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Despite a succession of breakthroughs in booster-recovery efforts in recent months, both on land and at sea, China has yet to reuse one - a stark contrast laying bare the gap between Beijing's space ambitions and the challenges that remain.

The significance of landing a launched rocket goes beyond the spectacle of bringing a booster back intact, according to industry experts.

Rocket reuse was "essential for achieving low-cost, frequent and sustainable [launches] … and providing new opportunities for large-scale commercial space exploration", a team from three major Chinese aerospace research institutions said in a paper published in March.

LandSpace said the first stage represented "about 70 per cent" of a rocket's cost, with reuse able to spread that expense over multiple missions, underscoring the cost advantages of reusing first-stage boosters.

Some Chinese launch services can cost around US$20,000 per kilogram (about US$9,070 a pound) of payload, compared with roughly US$2,700 to US$3,000 for SpaceX's reusable Falcon 9, according to a report published by the Mercator Institute for China Studies in February.

The large gap helps explain why rocket makers are racing to develop vehicles that can be recovered and reused.

The Chinese paper from March said there were several different approaches to bringing a rocket back, including recovery using parachutes or wings to slow the vehicle for a safer arrival.

Other approaches include landing leg recovery, with the booster using its engines to control its descent before touching down vertically on deployable landing legs.

While China still lags behind the US in landing leg recovery, it is also betting on a different approach to booster recovery: an offshore net-capture system that uses a recovery vessel to catch the descending booster.

Compared with the landing leg recovery approach, net-capture had relatively less demanding requirements for the booster's final landing-point accuracy, avoided the need to install heavy landing-support structures on the rocket and allowed the offshore recovery platform to be deployed flexibly, Wang Long, the founder of space technology consultancy Nihao Taikong, was quoted as saying in a report by Shenzhen-based Securities Times in July.

Hao Jinjie, an engineer at China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, told state broadcaster CGTN the net-capture method was "like dropping a pen from the 100th floor into a pencil holder, while keeping its speed and orientation under control".

China's pursuit of reusable rockets draws on both its state aerospace groups and its ability to mobilise the private sector behind national priorities through the deployment of industrial policy.

To make reusability economically viable, a booster needs to be able to re-enter space and survive repeated launches. Dai Zheng, chief commander of the Zhuque-3 missions at LandSpace, said those were areas in which China had little experience.

China had no established technical framework covering rocket reuse standards, inspection procedures or rules governing component replacement, Dai told state broadcaster CCTV in an interview last month.

"China has just solved the question of whether a rocket can come back," he said, adding that there was "no system yet for determining whether a recovered rocket can fly again".

In a research report published last month, analysts at Jinyuan Securities emphasised that a reusable rocket required a complete post-recovery processing cycle, including safely draining and disposing of residual propellant, isolating potential hazards and conducting non-destructive inspections of the vehicle's structure, welds and propellant tanks.

Other necessary steps involved assessing the remaining life of engines after repeated thermal and pressure cycles, replacing worn components such as seals and valves, and carrying out system-wide functional tests before another flight.

LandSpace has said it plans to reuse the Zhuque-3 booster recovered last month in a space mission in the next six months, while the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology has said it aims to conduct a reuse flight of the first-stage Long March-10B by the end of this year.

Success in those endeavours would mark a crucial shift for China from demonstrating that it can recover a booster to proving that it can fly one again - essential to realising its commercial space ambitions.

A decade ago, a central government white paper called for research into low-cost launch vehicles and reusable transport systems capable of travelling between Earth and space.

What began as a research objective has moved through engineering trials and become a national industrial push. China's latest five-year plan made building the country into a "space power" a priority, and specifically mentioned the development of reusable launch technology, including a reusable heavy-lift launcher for deep-space programmes.

Every serious ambition China has in space - from constellations of broadband satellites to orbiting computing networks and missions to the moon - will depend on reusable launch systems.

"Recovery and reuse are the central technologies for lowering the cost of putting each kilogram into orbit and increasing launch frequency," said Xu Ying, general manager of public affairs at satellite manufacturer GalaxySpace. Only then, she added, could "space infrastructure" be deployed at scale and become commercially viable.

LandSpace launched 10 Qianfan satellites into orbit on Tuesday, marking the first deployment for a large-scale satellite internet constellation by a private Chinese rocket company. Another eight were launched on Wednesday.

SpaceSail aims to expand the Qianfan constellation to 324 satellites by the end of the year - up from 256 at present - leaving a narrow window of just over three months to launch 68 more.

A space industry researcher based in Xian, capital of northwestern China's Shaanxi province, said some experts were optimistic that China would be able to make steady progress in the reusable rocket race.

He said that while SpaceX - founded in 2002 - had a head start in many aspects of the commercial space sector, Chinese companies were making progress. However, he added, China's industry might encounter difficulties due to a comparative lack of experience in advanced rocket engines, as "no one from outside China would teach you how to design them".

Engines accounted for more than 50 per cent of the total cost of a rocket, Wang Zijing, an analyst at Soochow Securities, wrote in a research note issued this month.

Jinyuan Securities said engine life and repeated ignition were among the biggest technical challenges in the reuse of boosters.

A reusable booster must restart its engines during ascent, re-entry and landing and operate reliably across a wide range of thrust levels, meaning that key components including its turbopumps, combustion chamber, nozzle and valves must be able to withstand repeated thermal and pressure cycles as well as vibration loads.

No Chinese rocket engine has yet made a second orbital flight. Meanwhile, a SpaceX Falcon 9 booster was sent into space for the 37th time last month.

"Reusable technology remains a new field that requires continued learning," Lou Luliang, the chief designer of the Long March-10B, told Beijing-based China Aerospace News in a report published in July. "The thermal and mechanical conditions during an actual return, component damage and the patterns of reuse cannot all be fully understood through ground testing alone".

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CXMT said the tie-up with Nubia marked the first large-scale use at that level of domestically made LPDDR5X chips, which have a data transfer speed of up to 10,667 megabits per second (Mbps).

The flagship handset, priced from 5,999 yuan (US$885), according to ZTE's website, was also the first mass-market smartphone equipped with an AI agent, the company claimed. The consumer version of ByteDance's Doubao smartphone assistant provides the phone with capabilities to respond to spoken instructions and carry out tasks on a user's behalf.

CXMT's LPDDR5X chips support speeds of 8,533 Mbps, 9,600 Mbps and 10,677 Mbps, with the two slower versions already in mass production since last year.

The adoption of LPDDR5X by the Nubia Doubao underscores how CXMT is breaking into the premium mobile memory chip segment at a time when on-device AI is boosting demand for faster and more capable memory.

Chinese smartphone-to-vehicle giant Xiaomi and Transsion, known for its budget phones in emerging markets, were also among customers using the LPDDR5X line, CXMT said in its 2026 interim report published last month.

The memory chip offers a capacity of 16 gigabytes and supports a maximum data rate of 12,800 Mbps, which was "sufficient data bandwidth to meet the high-performance computing needs of flagship smartphones and edge devices", CXMT said.

The Chinese memory chip giant has been rapidly gaining traction in the global DRAM market. CXMT's share of global DRAM revenue rose to 9.5 per cent in the second quarter from 7.6 per cent in the first quarter, according to market consultancy TrendForce in early September.

However, it still trails the three global memory giants by a wide margin. Samsung accounted for 39.4 per cent of global DRAM revenue in the second quarter, followed by SK Hynix at 24.9 per cent and Micron Technology's 23.3 per cent, according to TrendForce.

Neither Apple or CXMT have publicly announced any tie-up so far.

Apple's exploration of Chinese chips comes as the global industry is grappling with a memory chip supply crunch, with surging demand from AI data centre buildouts squeezing supplies of conventional memory chips for smartphones and other consumer electronics, pushing up prices.

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After failing to stay the 2,000m of the city's biggest race, the Hong Kong Derby, the son of Toronado took on the city's best milers but was unlucky again when 10th behind My Wish in the Group One Champions Mile.

He finished his four-year-old season with a stylish success in the Premier Cup over Group One performer Galaxy Patch in June.

Ting said his stable star matured in the off-season and is ready to make the leap to Group One level.

"The horse is good after the break. I just kept him happy and he went up to Conghua and to the paddock and he liked it," Ting said.

"After two trials, his form is coming up - he's not at the best, but I think it's good enough for the early part of the season. I think he's improving, he's a bit more calm and he's healthy.

Zac Purton will ride Little Paradise on Sunday and Ting said the gelding's first-up run will help the champion jockey decide whether he also rides him in upcoming races.

The Group Two Sha Tin Trophy (1,600m) on October 19 and Group Two BOCHK Private Wealth Jockey Club Mile on November 22 are Little Paradise's other targets in the lead-up to the Hong Kong Mile.

Purton was aboard Little Paradise in his most recent of two trials, in which he finished a short-head second on the Sha Tin dirt last week.

Little Paradise's rivals on Sunday are Derby hero Invincible Ibis, multiple Group One placegetter Helios Express, Galaxy Patch, Patch Of Theta, Copartner Prance, Stormy Grove, Lucky With You and Soleil Fighter.

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Pursuing the podium spot that would preserve triathlon's Tier A Hong Kong Sports Institute status for at least four more years, Wright sent out the 2025 National Games silver medal quartet of Cade Wright, Coggins, Brown and Robin Elg.

Unused squad member Wong Tsz-to took aim at his exclusion on social media, intimating that he believed the selection process lacked transparency.

"From the three selection rounds for the Asian Games, all the way to the final squad announcement, it remained unknown whether I'd get to compete," Wong wrote.

"This isn't the first time this has happened; there are others who don't even have to meet the requirements."

China won gold in one hour, 25 minutes and 54 seconds, while silver went to hosts Japan in 1:26:45. Hong Kong stopped the clock on 1:27:25.

An individual National Games bronze medallist last year, Coggins said: "I have very mixed feelings because yesterday was very disappointing, and I'm struggling. It was just a job that I had to do today. I haven't had a chance to really process [the individual race] yet.

"I really wanted to take some pressure off the team today, for yesterday. I was able to make up for that in some sense, and just get us back into a medal position. I don't want to be a downer, because we did [secure a] medal."

Ahead of competing in the under-23 World Triathlon Championship Finals in Spain on Friday, Cade Wright came into the relay comparatively fresh, after she sat out the individual women's race, where twin sister Tallulah competed instead and finished 10th.

After a year in which a number of the Hong Kong contingent have been managing injuries, Cade Wright, who is no relation to her coach, said the "main goal today was to have four healthy athletes and to be as fit as possible".

"We felt the pressure this year to push in every training, and to see how much our bodies could handle.

"A lot of us got hit with overtraining, and we had to work on our nutrition."

Coggins advanced Hong Kong from fifth to third during his turn over the 0.3km swim, 6.6km bike and 2km run course.

Eighth in the individual women's race, third-leg athlete Brown handed over to Elg well adrift of the Chinese and Japanese athletes, but neck-and-neck with South Korea.

Also part of Hong Kong's bronze medal teams in 2018 and 2023, Brown, who only recently recovered from a stress fracture of a shin, said: "It's been a really tough year … we're always trying to push it to our limits, and it showed. I think we all want to lift, but it's about finding that balance."

Elg's has been a remarkable tale of grit since the National Games 10 months ago. While his teammates staged overseas camps to prepare for Gamagori, Elg was condemned to staying alone in Hong Kong to use an AlterG Anti-Gravity treadmill because of a persistent stress problem in his fibula that would not allow him to run on hard surfaces.

He emerged from his competitive hibernation to finish sixth in the individual competition, then on Monday shook off South Korea to ensure his sport did not return home empty handed.

"I think I handled the pressure pretty well," Elg said.

Other than Cade Wright's pursuit of global honours later this week, Andrew Wright's squad will next compete in their home Triathlon World Cup on November 7 and 8. Their primary remaining 2026 target is the Asia Triathlon Sprint Championships in Jordan, in late November, where a worthwhile helping of Olympic qualifying points will be up for grabs.

"I know how hard all these guys work," Brown said. "Oscar is the most dedicated on the team, and Robin is so dedicated, even when he had so much adversity this year.

"The bronze [means] more than just third place. When we hurt, or when someone on the team hurts, we all hurt. When somebody has a victory, we all celebrate, and I'm just really glad that we got to do that today.

"I know how talented they all are. All I have to do is put my faith in them, and our coach, who has trained us for so long."

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Moments before, Ho had held on in a fast final won by South Korea's Kim Young-beon in a Games record time of 21.66. Ho came in just behind in 21.76, with Kim's fellow South Korean Ji Yu-chan third in 21.94.

Expectations for Haughey are always high and never more than from herself. While she finished well ahead of Li, her time was some way off the 1:54.12, a Games record she posted to win the same event in 2023.

"I'm really happy to win a gold medal," Haughey said. "Maybe the time wasn't as fast as I expected, but my goal today was just to achieve my best for today. I gave it my all, and even though the time wasn't quite what I imagined, I'm still satisfied with it."

"Training this year has been more challenging, as recovery starts to get a bit harder," the 29-year-old said. "The time is great. Every time I go under 22 [seconds], I'm happy. I think it's a good result and I congratulate the Koreans. They've been great."

Haughey's gold was not Hong Kong's first of the games however, that honour was claimed earlier in the day by Lydia Sham Hui-yu, who won the women's wushu changquan at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall.

One of the city's two flag bearers at the opening ceremony in Nagoya, Sham scored 9.713 points to see off the challenge of Macau's Sou Cho-man, who took silver with 9.710, and Eugenia Diva Widodo of Indonesia, whose 9.706 was good enough for bronze.

Sham's performance set the tone for a relatively successful morning for the city's delegation, and shortly after at the Gamagori City Triathlon Venue, triathletes Bailee Brown, Cade Wright, Oscar Coggins and Robin Elg grabbed the bronze medal they need to secure their sport's elite status in Hong Kong.

Elg battled back from fourth at the start of his leg to overhaul South Korea and get Hong Kong across the line in 1:27:25.

China won gold in a time of one hour, 25 minutes and 54 seconds, while Japan took silver in 1:26:45.

And a day after Grace Lau Mo-sheung took home silver in the women's kata, there was bronze in the men's individual event for Howard Hung Ho-wai at Toyohashi Gymnasium.

In what could be the 34-year-old's last Games, Hung beat Malaysia's Mohamad Haznil 5-0 to win the first Asian Games medal of his career.

"Who knows what will happen in the future?" Hung said. "Maybe this will not be my last Asian Games medal. Maybe there will be many more, or maybe this is where it stops. But right now, I'm enjoying it."

Sham's gold earned her HK$1 million under the Jockey Club's athlete award incentive scheme, while Hung picks up HK$250,000. The triathletes will share HK$500,000 and officials will be hoping to hand out more prizes later with several of the city's swimmers reaching their respective finals.

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It was the first of three individual events Yu is scheduled to compete in.

"It was only so-so," a smiling Yu said after receiving her medal.

"I hope I can swim even faster. I improved my time by 0.9 seconds here, and I believe I will perform better next time."

It has been a swift rise for Yu, who was born in Baoding on October 16, 2012. What was meant to be a fun father-and-daughter trip to the water park one day in 2018, to escape the summer heat, turned out to be the opening of a new door.

"It was really hot that summer, so I went to the water park with my dad," recalled Yu, who was only six years old when she visited the park.

"The summer vacation was very long, and I often went to the swimming pools, and that was when a coach noticed me."

It was Yu's "exceptional feel" for water that caught the eye of a swimming coach, and it was suggested that she join a swimming team. While other children her age were still afraid of water, Yu could already float on the surface of the water on her own, and her movements were also particularly smooth.

Under the guidance of enlightenment coach Li Chao, Yu showed remarkable improvement after receiving formal training.

She was among the national top 10 in the women's 400m individual medley (IM) when she was 10 years and five months old. She also reached the level of a national first-class athlete - after only four years of systematic training - when she was 12, and was then selected for the second-tier training squad of the Hebei provincial swimming team.

On the team, Yu is often guided by teammate and Olympic medallist Li Bingjie, who also clinched gold with ease on Sunday, defending her 1,500m freestyle title in a time of 15:53.52. The Hebei pair are close, with Yu idolising the 24-year-old and often calling her "sister".

"I had heard about her for long, [and] since joining the same elite camp, I always trained with 200 per cent effort. I feel especially honoured to be able to train with her; it's also a rare learning opportunity.

"Sometimes when I didn't quite understand the training content, she would patiently explain it to me and share her own experience with me. This helped me a lot and encouraged me greatly."

A host of national results, at both junior and senior levels, in 2024 showed a glimpse of her talent, but those successes did not come without hitting a hump or two along the road.

Yu recalled almost giving up swimming before April's national championship in 2024.

"The dual pressure of training and studying left me exhausted," she said. "Fortunately, with the support of my coach, teammates, friends, and parents, I realised that swimming had become an indispensable part of my life, and I simply couldn't live without it.

"I often encourage myself, telling myself that as long as I train hard, I'll get good results."

She was right, and the next 12 months were a transformative year.

At the national championships in May last year, Yu, then 12, set the fastest time in the age group - by male or female - in the 200m IM. In the subsequent World Championships in Singapore, she helped China reach the 4x200m women's freestyle relay final.

Despite not swimming in the final, in which China finished third, Yu still won a historic bronze and became the youngest-ever medallist at the Worlds.

After also finishing just outside the podium in three other events - 200m butterfly, and the 200m and 400m IM - in Singapore, Yu added three National Games gold medals in November on her debut, including clocking a time of 2:07.41 to smash a 13-year-old Asian record in women's 200m IM along the way.

The previous record belonged to Chinese swimmer Ye Shiwen, who achieved it on July 31 at the 2012 London Olympic Games - Yu was not born until 78 days later.

Yu's regional record, however, has since been chalked off by compatriot Yu Yiting in June, the Zhejiang native further chopping 0.59 seconds off the time.

The current women's 200m butterfly Asian record of 2:01.81 belongs to retired Chinese swimmer Liu Zige, who achieved that feat in Jinan back in 2009.

While Yu had chopped 0.63 seconds off her personal best record in the event, the few seconds difference with the regional-best time might prove a gap too far at this moment.

Do not forget: when swimming events kick off at the SoFi Stadium in California on July 16, 2028, Yu will still be three months away from her 16th birthday.

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Haughey, who was part of the team that won bronze in Hangzhou, was proud of the collective efforts of the swimmers.

"I felt really happy for sure; we have two Asian Games debutants on the team, and we scored a medal on the first day," Haughey said. "It shows that we actually have quite a lot of young swimmers who have great potential. I believe our swimmers will perform great in the following days."

Ma, who was making her Asian Games debut, enjoyed soaking up the atmosphere of the event.

Haughey added: "Swimming relays is more fun and anxious compared to competing in individual events, as you need the four of us to work together. You can't control the outcome just by yourself, so it's the collective effort of all four of us in winning this medal."

China, meanwhile, took gold in a Games record time of 3:33.10, while Japan claimed bronze in 3:39.09.

Earlier, teenage swim sensation Yu Zidi had put an exclamation point on her Games debut with a record-setting victory in the women's 200 metres butterfly in Japan.

Pan Zhanle followed shortly after and proved he was still the best 100m freestyle swimmer after storming back from behind to defend the title he won in Hangzhou.

The 13-year-old Yu led from start to finish at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, as China's dominant swimmers added more gold to a day that had quickly become full of it.

Yu's time of two minutes and 5.08 seconds sliced almost half a second off the previous record, set by compatriot Zhang Yufei at the Hangzhou Games three years ago.

It was also 0.63 seconds faster than her personal best, achieved in March in Shenzhen at the China Open Swimming Championships.

Compatriot Chang Mohan took silver more than three seconds behind in 2:08.44, with Japan's Misa Okuzono claiming bronze in 2:09.67.

In the 100m freestyle, Pan was third at the midway point but the Paris Olympic champion exploded in the second half to take out halfway leader Kim Young-beom of South Korea to win the gold medal.

And just some six hours after smashing her own Asian Games record in the women's 50m breaststroke, China's Tang Qianting did it again in the final, chalking off another 0.05 seconds to finish in 29.45 seconds to win a second regional multi-sports games gold.

Japan's Satomi Suzuki, who finished in 29.91 seconds, was sandwiched between a pair of Chinese swimmers as Yang Chang claimed bronze in 30.24 seconds.

In the men's 100m backstroke final, China's Xu Jiayu dominated all the way to clinch gold in an Asian Games record time of 51.98 seconds. Second and third place were only 0.01 seconds apart, with Hidekazu Takehara of Japan claiming silver in 53.93 seconds, just ahead of South Korea's Lee Ju-ho.

Li Bingjie comfortably defended her 1,500m freestyle title.

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Even Greg Koenig recently allowed himself to go a little overboard: the erudite foil coach, who has done so much to revolutionise fencing in the city, awarded Harris Ho Hing-shim "11 out of 10" for his flawless display in Hong Kong's gut-wrenching Kerry Fencing World Championships team final defeat by Italy.

In this instance, Koenig could be forgiven for his excitement after his 17-year-old charge had beaten the Italian trio of Guillaume Bianchi, Filippo Macchi and Tommaso Marini, the world Nos 3, 4 and 13, respectively.

"He showed up very well, which we didn't expect," Macchi told the South China Morning Post.

Ahead of Ho's Asian Games debut this week, Koenig continued the narrative on the teenager's lightning emergence.

"Before the world championships, nobody knew him," the Frenchman said. "Now the whole world knows him. In every competition, when people see they have to compete with Harris Ho, they'll think, 'I really have to take care because this kid is not a joke'."

With elder siblings who fenced, Ho "followed in their footsteps and tried to learn from very young".

Aged four when he first picked up a sword, it was around a decade later it dawned on Ho that he had the capacity to mix in elite circles.

"My results made me happy and gave me the motivation to continue improving," he said.

Ho's contrasting approaches to watching Cheung Ka-long claim his two Olympic golds were illustrative of a sharpening focus.

Only 12 when Cheung won in Tokyo to ignite a fencing craze in his home city, Ho watched quietly with his parents, then retired to bed.

"Then he thought, 'I want to perform like this guy, I can do it because I'm from Hong Kong, too, and there's no reason we won't succeed'," Koenig said. "When you have this mindset, wow, of course you work harder."

Sitting in front of his television with friends when Cheung retained his title in Paris two years ago, Ho treated the day "more like a learning session". "It wasn't just cheering for him, we were discussing how Ka-long and his opponents were fencing," Ho said.

As fencing grew more serious, Ho increasingly struggled to combine sport with lessons at Diocesan Boys' School.

"I'm not a clever guy when it comes to studying, so it took me a lot of time and it was hard to balance both," Ho said, although he was equally self-critical of his English, which is very good.

"Now I have given up most of my academics and I just focus on fencing," Ho added.

He received senior Hong Kong recognition at 16, comfortably meeting his "expectation to get into the team before I was 20".

"It was like a dream to train with a two-time Olympic gold medallist, and a world champion [Ryan Choi Chun-yin]," Ho said.

"If I told the 12-year-old me this would happen, he wouldn't believe me."

Confirmation that Ho was setting himself apart from his contemporaries came with the cadet gold he won from April's Junior & Cadet Fencing World Championships in Rio de Janeiro.

Also part of Hong Kong's silver medal team at the Asian Championships in June, Ho nonetheless acknowledged that he "didn't think I would do as well as I did in the world championships".

"It was unbelievable for me, but I don't feel extra pressure because of it," said Ho, who also won all six of his individual qualifying bouts at the global competition, before a narrow first-round defeat by Great Britain's Jaimie Cook.

"I haven't thought about [rivals knowing me better], because it's a future thing. If they just know 20 per cent of me [currently], it's not enough for me to change my fencing."

Told about 2024 Olympic silver medallist Macchi's admiration for his world final efforts, Ho could not suppress a faint smile.

Still, there was a distinct undertone of Macchi throwing down the gauntlet when he was informed that Ho had stated his ambition to win gold in Los Angeles in 2028.

"Anybody can say anything [regarding their targets], and I think he's very strong [but] we have to see what he's going to do," Macchi said. "He has two examples to learn from in Ka-long and Ryan, and I hope for him that he achieves his goals."

Choi in particular has taken Ho under his wing. At the beginning of this year, he told the SCMP that his fellow left-hander was among a new Hong Kong generation who "haven't unlocked their potential yet, but you can see they have the ability to be strong; maybe stronger than us [Choi and Cheung]".

In the fortnight's holiday that Koenig allowed his foilists after their world championships exploits, Ho accompanied Choi to coach at the six-day Fencer's Paradise elite training clinic in Hawaii.

"I'm getting to visit countries I never would have if it wasn't for fencing, and I like travelling, so I feel very lucky," Ho said.

Next destination Japan. Ho tempered expectations for Tuesday's individual foil competition, but said a Hong Kong team that also features Cheung, Choi and the 21-year-old Leung Chin-yu "can get gold" on Friday,

"Japan and Korea are our biggest opponents, they're strong but we're also strong, so they're afraid of us," Ho said.

"I just hope I can fence how I always do, and that it will be OK for me."

Koenig added: "Although people now know they have to fight hard against him, he's so strong and so smart that it will be complicated for every opponent he faces. I'm quite confident about the next 10 or 15 years for Hong Kong fencing."

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The 13-year-old won the women's 200m butterfly by a gap of more than three seconds, capping a golden debut for an athlete who surely has eyes on a greater prize, given she rated her performance as "so-so" and was already evaluating areas for improvement so she could "perform better next time".

Yu's gold, which came in a Games-record time of two minutes, 5.08 seconds, was one of six China won in the pool, with others coming in modern pentathlon, shooting, triathlon and wushu, taking the total to 11 overall.

"As it's our first gold medal, it's given the Japanese team a real boost, and we've managed to pass the baton on to the women and our teammates for the relay," Hojo said.

While revelling in his achievement at finishing second, China's Zhang Xiuri said he was "disappointed to be behind Japan".

It didn't take long for roles to be reversed, with Lin Xinyu beating teammate Huang Anqi across the line in the women's race and finishing almost a full second faster than Japan's bronze medallist, Hayashi Manami, who came home in 58 minutes and 36 seconds.

Hong Kong's quartet will be hoping they can again prove to be greater than the sum of their parts in Monday's team relay. Robin Elg and Oscar Coggins finished sixth and seventh respectively in the men's outing, while Bailee Brown and Tallulah Wright were eighth and 20th in the women's event.

Not that the city's delegation was limited to just one silver. After back-to-back bronzes in Jakarta in 2018 and Hangzhou three years ago, Grace Lau Mo-sheung finally upgraded her karate medal, although she was denied gold by a familiar foe, Japan's Maho Ono.

Not that Lau was entirely happy, saying this had been the year she was "really ready to get the gold medal".

"In 2018 and 2023, I was very close in the semi-finals, but I always missed it," she added.

Siobhan Haughey, meanwhile, was delighted at a performance involving two debutants, Gilaine Ma and Li Sum-yiu, that "scored a medal on the first day".

Ma led out the city quartet, Haughey and Li did their jobs in the middle, and Natalie Kan Cheuk-tung held on to bring them home in 3:36.59, in a race China won in a Games record time of 3:33.10. Bronze went to Japan.

"It shows that we actually have quite a lot of young swimmers who have great potential," Haughey added. "I believe our swimmers will perform great in the following days."

The expectation will be that she is among them. Haughey opted out of the women's 50m breaststroke on Sunday to focus on defending her women's 200m freestyle title on Monday and her 100m freestyle 24 hours later.

There will be more gold to be won in Tokyo tomorrow, and Haughey is aware of the pressure that rests on her shoulders. Not only as one of the most experienced swimmers in the squad, but as a double Asian Games gold medallist in Hangzhou and with four Olympic medals to her name.

"I am one of the older swimmers here, but that comes with a lot of experience as well and I think that is a big advantage," she said. "I've been to many big meets so I kind of know what to expect and how to deal with the nerves when it happens.

"Pressure is a privilege, but I'm here to do my job and to swim well, and I can't wait to see what I can do this week."

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Ioane, the lead coach, praised his team's "relentlessness and hard work", but acknowledged that to bridge the gap to "dynamic" Fiji "we need more games, and access to our sevens player at these big tournaments".

Also the head coach of Women's Premiership team Gai Wu, Ioane said: "[Player absences were] something we knew was going to be a factor, but the way this group has come together and are performing, the door is open for us to keep growing once we have all our players available.

Introduced this year to provide emerging unions with more competitive international fixtures, the WXV Challenger has allowed Hong Kong's players a rare concerted period of training and matches. Currently 16th in the global standings, the city team have targeted qualification for the 16-team 2029 World Cup.

"We've come so far, we're not a full-time programme, and to perform like that in the first half [before Fiji's try spree] was outstanding," Grace Hood, the Hong Kong No 8, said.

A full-time 7s player who, as a non-passport holder, is ineligible for the Asian Games, Hood said the 15s team need to "keep driving and pushing".

"We have a lot of evening training, camps and some competitions abroad, but if we can perform like today, who knows what will happen for us in the future," she added.

The position of Hong Kong head coach has been something of a hot potato of late. This year, Bella Milo led the team in the Asia Rugby Women's Championship, where the city team lost heavily to Japan and drew with hosts Kazakhstan. Milo is now bossing Samoa, who went down 61-21 to Spain on Saturday.

New Zealander Ioane was at the helm for victories over Belgium and hosts Germany in November last year, on an uncapped tour that he said "gave players experience of how different international rugby is from the club game".

Royce Chan Leong-sze, Andrew Douglas and Lewis Wilson have all had spells in charge over the past 2½ years.

Ioane recently signed up for three more years in Hong Kong.

"We'll talk about what that looks like moving forward after this tournament," he said. "I love these girls and this programme, and I'll be open to filling whatever role is in front of me."

On the back foot against Fiji after early scores for Salote Nailolo and Qoro, Hong Kong responded with a try from Tanya Dhar, adding to the pair she managed against Brazil six days earlier.

So reliant on the rolling maul to hurt the Brazilians, Hong Kong summoned a measure of flair when Roshini Turner and captain Lara Schats combined to send the impressive Lynam over in the corner. Lauren Knowler, a former England under-20 inside centre, brilliantly converted.

"When we scored the first try, a belief switch flicked in our heads," Hood, sporting a fresh and vivid shiner, said. "We thought, 'we can do this'.

"We knew this was a game where we needed to get the ball wide and it worked for the second try."

Their tails tweaked, Fiji summoned a passage of irresistible, unforgiving rugby to put Hong Kong to bed.

Zipporah Sorocacika and Vasemaca Duva added second-half tries for Fiji, while Knowler, who finished with 14 points, and Lucia Bolton, at the death, replied for Hong Kong.

"We speak about being relentless and working hard for each other," Ioane said. "The girls have worked on their condition for two months, and we're seeing the fruits of that late in these games."

Ioane reminded his shell-shocked players at half-time that they were not on the field to merely participate, while Schats issued an impassioned rallying cry.

"When you're in dark places, the only thing that can pick you up outside of your own mentality is everyone around you," Ioane said. "They know what it's taken to build that trust between them. Credit to them, they're like a family."

After Georgia Cutt became Hong Kong's latest debutant off the bench, Ioane, a former Dunedin player who switched to refereeing at 26, said the city's talent pool was "getting deeper to a point".

"The last year's been brilliant in terms of giving opportunities to more people," he added.

"There's a bit of work we have to do, but I can't fault the players' effort."

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The governing body's director general Husain Al-Musallam, meanwhile, defended the hosts for trying to do something different when it came to an athletes' village, which in reality is a 4,000-berth cruise ship and containers converted into rooms.

"Everyone talks about the cost of the Games and how the Games should be managed, and then Japan comes up with a new idea and tries something where there is no athletes' village," he said, adding the OCA did not want the host nation to "lose their money for nothing".

India had gone so far as to build container homes for its 500 athletes to live in as they trained at home ahead of the Games, but even their officials had had enough by Saturday, and were reportedly preparing to send some members of the delegation to stay with Indian citizens living nearby.

And hanging over every criticism, real or implied, are the memories of three years ago, when China built a small town to house everyone who had descended on Hangzhou, and then racked up 149 more gold medals than their Japanese rivals.

Politics will not stay out of the Games, no matter how much the OCA's president believes neither it nor politicians "should be involved in sports".

But it did at least take a back seat for a couple of hours on Saturday, when attention turned to the athletes who will be competing over the next fortnight, although they will be hoping for a larger and livelier crowd than the one that turned up to welcome them to the Games.

Famed Japanese filmmaker Yukihiko Tsutsumi had been handed the task of pulling together an event with the theme Harmonic Heart Beat, and said he was "incredibly proud" that the city where his own "creative journey began" was involved.

Even the main stage was heart-shaped, and the parade of athletes followed a welcoming performance that "awakened the space" if not the audience.

China's vast delegation was led into the stadium by basketball player Hu Mingxuan and boxer Wu Yu, with the latter incredibly excited by the "weighty honour" before she was hit by "some nerves and some anticipation".

After the hosts, they received the largest round of applause when they entered the 30,000-seat venue, which will also stage the athletics and the closing ceremony on October 4.

Perhaps cognisant of the many hurdles still to come, Sheikh Joaan's message in his speech was one of unity.

"Tonight, the eyes of Asia - and indeed much of the world - turn to Japan," he said. "What we will see over the next days will inspire us. It will move us. And it will remind us of what we are capable of when we come together for Asia."

There was polite applause soon after, when Emperor Naruhito declared the Games open, and the heart-shaped cauldron was lit soon after by hammer-throwing father and son Shigenobu Murofushi, who won five consecutive Asian Games golds from 1970, and Koji Murofushi, who became Japan's first Olympic medallist in a throwing event when he claimed gold in Athens in 2004.

The first title of this year's Games will be decided early on Sunday, most likely in the men's triathlon, where local hero Kenji Nener will be defending his title, and Hong Kong's Oscar Coggins will be hoping for a little redemption after his mid-race meltdown in 2023.

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As usual, the media has descended in their thousands to cover the regional sporting bonanza, although with some events based in Tokyo, the need to go to pick up accreditation in Nagoya caused a certain amount of irritation.

Previously, at the Olympics in Paris and before that Tokyo, and at the Games three years ago in mainland China, most credentials were sent to a journalist's point of origin long before their departure on their overseas mission.

"No one was working, and it wasn't even 7pm yet," one journalist said. "There were some other staff, but they knew nothing about those bibs, and they had no idea when the service tents would resume.

"All of them keep speaking in Japanese and don't care whether you understand or not."

Just like other years, free shuttle buses connect official hotels, venues and the main press centre, but are certainly not up to the host nation's famously fastidious approach to punctuality.

On the bright side, everyone is being treated equally. Standing alongside the media's massed ranks waiting for a connecting bus to the Aichi International Arena was the Japan women's basketball team. Saving the best for last, of course.

And then there is the technology. This time around a different login is required at each of the venues for the Wi-fi essential for the media to tell the stories of the day in a timely fashion.

Quite what happened to the universal passwords that solved that particular problem at the previous edition in 2023, and then in France two years ago, is anyone's guess.

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The players and coach Liu Guodong of the men's team were sent to the newly arrived Costa Serena cruise ship, which will house some 4,000 competitors over the next two weeks, as was women's coach Zhang Rui.

The rest of the players and coaching staff, plus a host of support staff, were sent to locations across Nagoya.

"We are not going to complain too much. It's important to keep a positive state of mind because these situations cannot affect our players."

Three years after China built a small city to house athletes, officials and media at the Hangzhou Games, the less impressive Japanese version has caused angst for a variety of reasons.

Three of the four players representing Hong Kong in men's 3x3 basketball have complained of seasickness associated with the rolling of the cruise ship.

"We were all very hungry after finally getting out of the airport following lots of procedures," Ivan Yang Bo-wen said.

"There were a lot of people waiting in the lobby when we arrived at the cruise ship, and everyone was facing the same problem; I was expecting better arrangements."

Multi-sport events such as these, however, have a habit of coming good when it counts, and five years after Covid deprived the nation's capital of the Olympic party it had hoped for, Japan will stage its third regional Games, although not with the enthusiasm it might have hoped for from its residents.

Public interest has been low, with officials struggling to sell tickets and Nagoya's desire for a "simple, streamlined and functional event" slamming headfirst into the OCA's far grander vision.

While the Paris Olympics had 329 medal events in 32 sports, Nagoya will feature 469 medal events in 43 sports, up from 40 sports in 2023.

While cramming in more, the hosts have also dropped a number of non-traditional competitions that were held in Hangzhou. Chess, Go, xiangqi and bridge have all been ditched, as have dragon boat racing, roller skating and open water swimming.

Instead, spectators will get MMA, ⁠padel and surfing, as well as virtual taekwondo and teqball, a ball sport that combines elements of table tennis and football.

Esports will again be a medal event, while ‌breaking has been retained, despite its less than impressive display in France in 2024.

Competition will be fierce in Asia's traditional strengths of table tennis, badminton and weightlifting, while athletes will be competing for ⁠Olympic quota spots for the 2028 Los Angeles Games in archery, hockey, sailing, squash, surfing, tennis and triathlon.

The Tokyo Aquatics Centre will be laden with global quality ⁠when the swimming launches on Sunday, when Siobhan Haughey could yet compete in the women's 50m breaststroke, as she looks to defend the two gold medals she won three years ago.

The Olympic men's 100m freestyle champion and world record holder Pan Zhanle leads a strong Chinese squad, though it might be his 13-year-old teammate Yu Zidi who steals the show.

Enthusiasm levels for the Games are likely to improve among home fans with a few gold medals. Japan finished third with 20 golds at the Paris Olympics, upstaging Great Britain, Australia and hosts France.

Javelin thrower Haruka Kitaguchi, the first Japanese woman to win Olympic gold in a field event, will lead the hosts' athletics hopes, while triple Olympic gymnastics champion Shinnosuke Oka will also be bidding for gold.

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"This is genuinely the first time in my life living on a ship," Wang told CCTV after his first training session in Japan. "It's docked at the pier and the ship is large, so it feels fine with little swaying; it's quite unique. Because the rooms are close together and there are many people, it feels different from staying in a hotel."

As a lead figure on the men's squad, Wang added that his goals remained firm, and he aimed to fight for every point while preparing for a marathon-like competition. "We will certainly face many difficulties, but the Chinese table tennis team is never afraid of hardship," he said.

The Costa Serena is docked at Kinjo Pier in the Port of Nagoya, roughly 30 kilometres from the table tennis venue, Sky Hall Toyota. The one-way commute takes more than an hour, amounting to an almost three-hour round trip. In contrast, the host Japanese team are reportedly staying near the venue, with a 30-minute one-way commute.

Wang Manyu admitted feeling slightly disoriented navigating the vessel's layout at first.

"It's a bit winding and disorienting, but I think it will get better after walking around more," Wang said, noting that she spent time rearranging her room to maximise the space and familiarising herself with routes and schedules.

Facing both team and individual events, she emphasised maintaining physical condition and executing techniques honed during training.

Sun noted that managing time would be crucial, taking into account transit times and movement on the ship.

"For me personally, the most important thing is not to take the wrong shuttle bus or be late," she said, adding that her injury recovery was progressing and she aimed to enjoy every match without setting rigid goals.

The Asian Games table tennis competition begins on September 20. All three Chinese athletes are Olympic champions embarking on their third Asian Games appearance.

However, Japanese media outlet Yahoo Japan reported that accommodation arrangements on the cruise ship have descended into chaos, with reports of male and female athletes initially assigned to the same rooms.

Hisashi Mizutori, deputy head of the Japanese delegation, cited an example at a press conference where a squad of five male and five female athletes was assigned five double rooms based strictly on head count.

"On paper, the numbers matched," Mizutori said. "In practice, it caused many problems, men and women were placed together, coaches shared rooms with athletes, and physiotherapists needing space for heavy medical equipment were forced to share rooms."

The Japanese Olympic Committee had pre-booked backup hotels in Nagoya because of prior concerns. Mizutori confirmed that for difficult cases, "we are considering using the backup accommodation prepared in advance by the Japanese delegation".

Upon arriving in Nagoya earlier, the Chinese national table tennis team were stranded at the airport transit centre for almost six hours because of glitches in both the organising committee's registration and transport dispatch systems, and were unable to board shuttle buses to their cruise ship accommodation.

However, China were not the only delegation to face logistical nightmares. According to Thai media outlet Main Stand, the Thai sepak takraw team spent almost 24 hours trying to check in after organisers failed to enter their accommodation details into the system, forcing exhausted athletes to sleep on the floor.

The squad departed Thailand late on September 15 for the Costa Serena, but began entering their rooms only around 10.30pm the day after. Chalirat Chantarubeksa, deputy head of the Thai delegation, said the contractor hired by the Japanese host made an error by failing to input the team's paperwork, resulting in lost records.

As an interim measure, Thai athletes were temporarily placed in unassigned rooms of delegations that had not yet arrived, with organisers pledging to reassign them to permanent accommodation the following day.

Meanwhile, the Thai teqball team shared a video online showing sparse Asian Games meal portions, consisting of a single mouthful of vermicelli, a small cup of rice and a few pieces of broccoli.

Addressing fan outrage over athlete nutrition, the Thai teqball team stated they had already arranged additional meals for their athletes outside the venue.

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Busy trying to curry favour with member associations ahead of March's election, Infantino's grip on power weakened after his cloak-and-dagger plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors was exposed in July.

Exactly two months before the deadline for candidates to put their hands up to challenge Infantino, the Swiss lawyer appeared on video at the Fifa Asean Cup press briefing, congratulating the HKFA for their involvement in "this spectacular event".

"You will see the best of football in Southeast Asia: emotions, passion and goals," Infantino said. "You will see the best of Fifa at your doorstep, and broadcast to the entire universe."

Last week, the HKFA posted an image on its Instagram account that captured Infantino sandwiched by Pui Kwan-kay and Charles Cheung Yim-yau, the HKFA president and general secretary, respectively.

"[HKFA] is a member of the Fifa family, and we strive to bring in more tournaments," Fok said. "Working with Fifa and having this tournament being developed in Hong Kong shows [Fifa's] trust in Hong Kong's professionalism and [ability to] bring more international football."

Pressed on whether the HKFA's self-stated tight relationship with the global governing body could be interpreted as support for its figurehead, Fok said that was "a decision for the board", and that this was "not the time to talk about it, because it's not on the agenda, right now".

"The [election] will be next year, and we'll be closely looking at the whole process," Fok added. "But we see big support from Fifa for the development of Hong Kong football and we're working closely [together]. They've delivered this tournament and we're excited to have all the matches."

While India reneged on their initial interest in joining the inaugural Asean Cup's "Premier Division" in Indonesia, in favour of hosting friendlies against Brazil, Uruguay and Panama, and traditional rivals Singapore recently secured home friendly dates with Paraguay and Brazil, Hong Kong are poised for games against Laos and Brunei, Nos 185 and 194 in the world, respectively.

Assuming they do not come unstuck, the city team will probably face either world No 158 Myanmar or 175th-ranked Cambodia in the final. Those sides are grouped with Timor-Leste, who are 201st in the global standings.

The South China Morning Post has been told that Uruguay, now managed by former Kitchee striker Diego Forlan, expressed interest in coming to play Hong Kong in the forthcoming Fifa window. They will instead have matches in Japan and South Korea before going to India.

Fok said the HKFA had received "many enquiries" but that "for us it's about bringing quality tournaments during the Fifa windows".

"It's important to progress our ranking, and to play at Kai Tak Stadium where we can have more supporters," Fok said.

"I believe this is a prestigious tournament with prestigious teams. We should be positive and look forward to it."

After the HKFA announced on June 5 that it planned to stage the Asean Cup "Challenge Division" there was a 97-day information vacuum before they confirmed arrangements on September 10.

He was appointed CEO of English Premier League club Nottingham Forest this month.

Fok said that HKFA had been dictated to by "Fifa's protocols and timetable" but that conversations over staging the Asean Cup began late last year.

"We appreciate the trust [invested in us] because it shows Hong Kong has the environment, infrastructure and professionalism to host such a tournament," Fok said.

For Roberto Losada, the Hong Kong head coach, the competition will provide an opportunity to kick-start his tenure. Appointed in June, he began with a flat 2-0 victory over Mongolia, before feeling the full fury of supporters following a tame 2-0 surrender in Cambodia.

"That's the life of a coach," Fok said. "The HKFA is giving the best support to the fans, to the players and to the coaches. That's our role, and we believe we've done our part."

Fok had no news over who the city team would face in Fifa's November window, but did not reject the prospect of the two-leg Guangdong-Hong Kong Cup being played then instead of in its traditional December and January slot.

"We're reviewing everything, but our priority is the Asean Cup," he said. "We have different enquiries for different periods, so we're looking for the best combination and we hope to set a clear calendar going forward."

Tickets to watch Laos play Brunei, and Myanmar tackle Timor-Leste, at Mong Kok Stadium on September 24 will cost HK$150. Hong Kong's Kai Tak game against Laos on September 27 will be followed by Cambodia against Myanmar. The city team meet Brunei at the same venue on September 30, directly after Timor-Leste clash with Cambodia.

Tickets for both dates, as well as for the final, are priced between HK$80 and HK$200. A three-day Kai Tak package is available for HK$520.

"It's kicking off very soon, I will be there and enjoying it," Infantino said. "Congratulations to president Pui from the Hong Kong FA."

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On Thursday, after the event and following official apologies and rule updates from organisers, Wietrzyk published a statement on social media expressing regret over the impact on fellow competitors, spectators and staff.

"I want to offer my sincere apology to the people of China, my fellow competitors, the spectators and the Hyrox organizers for what happened during the race in Beijing," she wrote in the statement.

Wietrzyk stated she felt physically fine at the start of the race and did not anticipate any discomfort, but acknowledged upon reflection that she should have left the track, taking responsibility for her decision to continue.

"I regret the decision to not have stepped off the track. I recognize that I should have made a different choice," she said. "I take responsibility for my decision to continue and am deeply sorry for the discomfort and disruption it caused."

Adding that she would learn from the experience, including remembering that "there is more to life than racing" and recognising "when it is right to step away", Wietrzyk announced she had retroactively withdrawn from the race and relinquished her earned points.

She also thanked supporters who showed kindness, noting she would temporarily step back from public attention.

"I will be taking some time to recover, reflect and look after myself and my family away from the noise," she wrote.

Many social media users remained sceptical of the delayed apology, viewing it as a public relations effort to protect commercial sponsorships.

"The main issue is that this athlete is sponsored by Puma," one user noted. "Hyrox is inherently a highly commercialised event, and a lot of people are paid by sports brands to promote it."

Another asked: "Will people look down on me if I wear the Puma and Hyrox co-branded gear I bought?"

Wietrzyk had recently noted that Puma maintained a long-term partnership with Hyrox and that she would receive multi-year support from the brand.

She also recently featured in campaigns for Puma's PWRMODE collection and promoted its footwear line ahead of the Beijing race.

Following the incident, dedicated "Joanna Wietrzyk x PUMA" landing pages and certain promotional materials on official Puma websites in mainland China and Hong Kong became inaccessible, with related search results redirecting to error pages.

However, identical pages on Puma's Polish and Czech websites remain active and list multiple items, indicating localised adjustments to regional access rather than a total global removal of the partnership.

As of Friday, Puma has not issued any public statement or comment regarding the controversy. Promotional videos featuring Wietrzyk remain live on the Puma Training account, while her personal social media profile continues to list her sponsorship with the brand.

"If she truly wanted to apologise, she wouldn't have said 'a win is a win' at the start," one user commented. "Apologising now is just because she got scared of the backlash."

Another Chinese user wrote: "It seems Hyrox still wants to do business in China, and we should also have our own race brands."

However, others urged leniency, arguing that taking responsibility was still a step forward.

"The apology doesn't fix what happened, and yes, she handled it wrong. She acknowledged that," one user wrote in defence of Wietrzyk. "You can say the apology didn't come fast enough or that it feels fake, and sure, that can be true. But what can ALSO be true is that she took time to actually sit with what happened … We all have moments we don't handle correctly. Growth is something we should WANT from people."

Wietrzyk's statement follows an earlier apology from Hyrox co-founder Moritz Fürste, who confirmed coming rule book revisions after initial official explanations failed to appease the public.

The governing body has since officially updated its global rule book to introduce a mandatory Did Not Finish (DNF) protocol across all race divisions, allowing race directors to pull athletes off the track if blood, vomit, urine or faeces pose health or contamination risks.

On Wednesday, Hyrox China also emailed affected afternoon heat participants from the September 12 Beijing event, offering full ticket refunds.

Originating in Germany, the event is an indoor fitness competition featuring eight 1km runs interspersed with eight functional strength exercises and is often described as the "marathon of fitness".

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"I haven't done much track training because of this," Leung said.

Instead, she has buried herself in getting ready for the road; twice paying exploratory visits to the tight Japanese roads that will stage this weekend's time trial, and spending time practising on the narrow, winding streets of Girona in Spain.

"In Girona, we were working on my skills," she said. "The biggest thing about going to Japan was to prepare for the weather. We expect it to rain on race day, so I'm ready for the worst, rather than expecting great weather, then suddenly it's raining."

"I like [rainy conditions] because I'm more confident than ever before: going into corners, doing the downhills and the turns, everything," Leung said.

"Vincent was a bit hesitant in the rain. I went faster in it."

An elevation gain of 326m over the rolling 24.4km route will also play into Leung's hands.

"She's one of the best climbers in Asia," Herve Dagorne, the Hong Kong head coach, said.

"We are thinking about gold."

Experience has taught Leung to wear that expectation lightly. It still rankles that she finished one place outside the medals in Hangzhou three years ago.

"I think at that time I was really feeling pressure, but now I just want to enjoy this," Leung said, perhaps leaning into memories of the ITT 2018 Games bronze she won as a 21-year-old.

"I didn't expect anything then and the medal was 100 per cent a surprise," she added.

"I think there will be a little bit of pressure [on Sunday] but confidence, too. I'm hoping that on the start line I feel only happiness, and don't think about anything else."

Unlike Hong Kong's gun cyclist, Ceci Lee Sze-wing, who is skipping the road in Japan, Leung is about to enter one month of intense competition.

She will compete in the Games road race on Tuesday, alongside Kwan Tsz-kwan and Guardiola Cheung Li-tong, before teaming up with Lee in the Madison. The pair are set to race in the same event at next month's UCI Track World Championships in Shanghai.

"I trust the coaches and we'll do everything we can to maintain our fitness, then try to improve on our last world championships," Leung said.

Fifteenth in 2024, Leung and Lee have come on leaps and bounds - technically, physically and psychologically - in the intervening period.

Rather than bemoan her workload, Leung wishes she could add to it by competing in the 2026 UCI Road World Championships, which clash with the Asian Games. Leung went so far as to investigate the possibility of flying to Montreal for the women's road race on September 26, before returning for the Games track programme from September 29.

"I really want to go, but the time difference is too difficult," Leung said. "I want to know where I am now compared to last year [when she was 22nd and 39th in the time trial and road race, respectively]."

Mention to Dagorne that Games organisers this year are staging road races before their track counterparts, a reversal from 2023, and watch the steam rise from the Frenchman's ears.

Leung is more relaxed over the switch, "I prefer having the road first, because it helps me prepare for the track," she said.

The 29-year-old has two bigger-picture targets: to qualify for her first Olympics in 2028, and to secure a contract with a team on the UCI Women's World Tour. She attracted interest following her 2025 World Championships exploits. "It's always my dream, and I'll keep going for it," she said.

Leung acknowledged it would be complicated for her and Lee to replicate their golden Madison effort from last year's National Games. She has noted with interest, however, that the Japanese favourites "mention the China team every time they do an interview".

"I watch it and read it," Leung said. "If they only focus on them and leave us alone, we can do what we want. That's the best scenario."

In Japan, Leung will have to do without elder sister Boey Leung Bo-yee, who retired soon after joining Chloe in the team pursuit quartet that established a city record to claim bronze from March's Asian Track Championships.

"I haven't thought about Boey not being there, I'm just focusing on myself," Leung said. "We message a lot, and she's always sending videos and pictures of her cats.

"We can't change that we're not in the team pursuit, we have to concentrate on what we do have."

Lau, the ITT Games bronze medallist from 2023, acknowledged there would be "an element of danger" in Sunday's race against the clock, but said "you have to manage the risk".

"You need to be brave, but also know your limits," he said.

"My medal last time shows I have the level to be competitive, and I've gained more experience and grown physically in the past three years."

Dagorne reckons Lau is among around six riders in a stacked field capable of claiming a podium finish. The competition has been heightened after talented 23-year-old Athit Poulard last year changed his allegiance from France to his mother's native country of Thailand.

"I know my limits and how to pace a time trial course better than I did in 2023," Lau said. "Your opponents grow, too, but you have to see where you're at. It's not really my type of course, but I've prepared for it and I'm very eager to get the race going."

Lau, who will turn 30 on the day of the men's road race next Wednesday, when he will compete alongside teammates Wu Chun-yin, 20, and 19-year-old Daniel Yip Hon-man, raised the possibility of stepping aside after next year to leave the coast clear for the coming generation.

"I haven't lost the passion but I'll see if I still have the energy," he said. "I'll ride next year, for sure, then think about it at the end."

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Nike's Chinese campaign read: "You believed in yourself back when you had no world ranking. How could current ups and downs shake you now?"

SAIC Audi wrote: "Is a 12 per cent win probability enough? For the brave, it is enough."

In Forbes' 2025 list of the world's highest-paid female athletes, Zheng ranked fifth with about US$21 million, trailing Eileen Gu, who placed fourth with around US$23 million in off-court earnings, bringing both Chinese athletes to a similar commercial tier.

A separate ranking of the highest-paid tennis players released by the publication in late August showed Zheng's total earnings over the preceding 12 months had risen to US$22.6 million, ranking seventh globally.

The magazine estimated her 2026 prize money at around US$600,000, while endorsements and off-court income had reached US$22 million, accounting for more than 97 per cent of her total income.

This meant that for every US$100 earned, more than US$97 came from brand sponsorships and less than US$3 came from tournament play.

In October 2025, Chagee upgraded her from global health ambassador to its first global brand ambassador. In January, Alibaba's AI platform Qwen named her a global brand ambassador, with Turkish Airlines doing the same in February. In May, Lancôme promoted her from skincare ambassador to global skincare spokesperson.

Currently holding one of the most diversified endorsement portfolios in women's tennis, Zheng represents more than 10 brands across cosmetics, sportswear, luxury accessories, consumer electronics, automotive, FMCG, technology and finance.

Besides Audi, Chagee, Nike, Qwen and Turkish Airlines, her sponsorship roster also includes Alipay, Beats by Dre, Dior, Gatorade, L'Oréal, Rolex, Wilson and Yili Group, positioning her as a key figure in the WTA's expansion into Asian markets.

"Zheng Qinwen has signed away virtually everything from head to toe," a user on Chinese social media observed, highlighting a level of commercial scale that explains why her off-court earnings have remained consistently high.

Rather than focusing solely on her reaching the last eight, her sponsor brands aligned around her recovery from injury, ranking drop and gritty comeback trajectory.

According to a report by National Business Daily, an industry insider noted that an athlete's persona often outlasts match outcomes.

Zheng's commercial footprint erupted in 2024. In January that year, she finished as runner-up in the Australian Open women's singles, marking her best grand slam result and the finest performance by a Chinese player since Li Na.

Seven months later, she captured the women's singles gold medal at the Paris Olympics, becoming China's first Olympic singles champion in tennis and transforming her from a promising athlete into a national icon.

Zheng is represented by sports agency IMG, which also manages Chinese stars including Eileen Gu, Su Yiming and Li Na, under parent company Endeavor, the world's largest talent agency.

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"It has everything to do with it being the end of term, everyone is tired and sometimes they get injured," Cheng added.

Aiming to lure more marquee names to the city, Cheng said he hoped that 2023 champion Leylah Fernandez would return for this year's event, whose main draw begins on November 2.

Beaten in the second round last year by eventual champion Victoria Mboko, Eala, 21, said: "I loved playing in Hong Kong last year, and I'm super excited to come back. The crowds were amazing, and I love the city."

Despite being injured, Osaka visited the 2024 edition. The four-time grand slam champion played in 2017 as a 20-year-old, beating Venus Williams in round two but falling to eventual champion Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the last eight.

Cheng said the Japanese world No 17 had cited her fondness for the food and the humidity as reasons for wanting to come back, along with remembering that "before she became famous, we really looked after her".

"I can't control their physical conditions, but I don't want to invest in players who just come for [their own ends]," Cheng said. "I want them to enjoy being and competing in Hong Kong. That's the requirement, and it's how we have an authentic line-up.

"We're not like some other countries that invest big time in player appearances. That's not the philosophy or business model of HKCTA."

Having climbed to world No 18 this year, the wildly popular Eala is sticking to her guns over playing in the Asian Games, despite having to miss the China Open, which is a WTA 1000 event and therefore mandatory for players.

Eala has asked for a release, but if it is not granted she can expect ranking and financial penalties. On the men's side, Carlos Alcaraz, the world No 2, recently said he planned to start ignoring appearance demands to preserve his body.

Cheng acknowledged that "we want to get a piece of the top players everywhere they go", but added that the WTA Tour "wants protection, and comfort that the players are fit and playing the events they want them to play".

It has been a landmark week for Hong Kong tennis, after Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced in his annual Policy Address on Wednesday that Victoria Park Tennis Stadium would be redeveloped.

Opened 44 years ago, the site is fit to host only the lowest-tier tournaments on the men's and women's tours.

Revealing that work on the upgrade would begin "as soon as is practicable", Cheng said that "Hong Kong should be targeting 500-level events, minimum, for men and women".

Should the women's Hong Kong Open be bumped up from 250 status, it could conceivably move from its end-of-year graveyard slot.

Cheng said the HKCTA would "see what works for the tour", but observed that the women's players decamp en masse to Asia from late September until November.

"You're looking at those slots to see what makes sense for Hong Kong and for the tour," he added.

Despite the positive news, Hong Kong tennis is also facing one of its most important months in recent years. Having failed to meet the requirements for Tier A status at the city's Sports Institute, it needs an Asian Games medal to be spared the axe.

Cheng pointed to the sport's "consistent performance" and pair of National Games medals last year, but said, with his lawyer's hat on, that "we have to follow the rules".

Not winning a medal, the responsibility for which is likely to fall to Coleman Wong Chak-lam in the men's singles, would mean not having "the same infrastructure or funding support, and we'd have to figure it out ourselves".

"My heart says, Everything is moving on the right trajectory, do we really want to put a brake on it?"

The task of obtaining the medal that would earn a reprieve will fall squarely at the feet of the world No 112 Wong, who is ranked higher than any player in the city's history and was briefly inside the top 100.

"It's such a brutal sport," Cheng said. "This is where I challenge the [HKSI] rules, because you're looking at one result over consistency, which isn't fair. In tennis, you need consistency to break into the world's top 100."

Hong Kong will discover its fate before Badosa, the former world No 2, who decided she wanted to play during a training visit to the city last year, 2024 champion Shnaider and crowd darling Eala arrive in November.

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Pong Cheuk-hei, the Kitchee goalkeeper, produced a pair of athletic stops to deny the Koreans' 18-year-old midfielder, Lee Yong-jae, either side of the break.

Already in the book following a loose challenge, Mingazov received a second yellow card after using his hand to meet an Everton Camargo delivery at the back post. The winger and his teammates were incensed, circling referee Ahmad Yacoub Ibrahim to vehemently plead that Mingazov had been impeded as he stretched to reach the ball.

Hong Kong's other entrants, FA Cup holders Tai Po, were beaten 3-0 by Adelaide United in Australia.

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With only water available, officials, coaches and athletes from numerous countries and places had to find a space to sit down.

An Indian rowing coach said his team had landed at around 10am but were stuck at the transit hub for more than four hours.

"Staff members could not find our athletes' information in their system, so they couldn't arrange vehicles," the coach said. "There are teams that arrived even earlier, two or three hours before us, who still haven't boarded buses."

China's gymnasts told a similar story. Of the 21-strong squad, only the information for two athletes was available, preventing the whole team from being able to leave.

During the wait, several Chinese athletes unrolled yoga mats and pulled out foam rollers and resistance bands to stay limber. Among them was table tennis star Sun Yingsha, who was seen stretching in a video.

"Nobody could tell us when the buses would arrive; everything was just waiting," one delegation member said, adding that staff appeared equally bewildered when asked. "Everyone was just asking each other."

China's badminton team took matters into their own hands, and tried to take public transport. But with insufficient tickets available, only a few of the team were able to get away.

Staff from the Chinese Consulate-General in Nagoya relied on the services of Chinese citizens living nearby to drive the rest to where they were staying soon after.

Members of the table tennis, wushu and rowing teams finally got buses around 5pm, while the gymnastics team did not leave for another hour, nearly six hours after landing at Nagoya airport.

The last members of the delegation did not leave the airport until around 7pm.

"We barely ate anything all day. It's been over five hours since we got off the plane and we're exhausted, sleepy and hungry, with training scheduled for tomorrow," one athlete said.

Another athlete, who was only partly joking, said the ordeal had been "harder than the actual competition".

Discussing the incident on his social media, Chinese gymnast Zhang Boheng called his arrival at the Games an "awkward trip," and said it was "outrageous" that he had not eaten for 12 hours.

In his video, he outlined his day, which involved waking at 3.30am, having breakfast just after 7am, boarding his flight at 8am and landing in Nagoya at noon, only to then be trapped at the airport until 6pm.

"By the end, I really couldn't hold on any more," he said.

Zhang and his teammates had been assigned accommodation on the Costa Serena cruise ship, which is being used to house around 4,000 of the 17,000 athletes and officials in Japan for the Games.

However, the heavy rain that has battered Nagoya for the past week left Zhang and his team stuck in the athletes' village, where containers are being used as rooms for competitors.

They ultimately decided to check into a local hotel to rest, which left Zhang "extremely, extremely tired", and ruing a "wasted day".

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Wong, who is also honorary deputy secretary general of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, said he and his colleagues would do everything they could to support the 580 athletes who will represent the city across 38 sports.

"I hope they [the athletes] will enjoy competing and engaging with Asia's top athletes, give their best performance and achieve new heights," he added. "At the same time, I call on everyone to support and stand behind every athlete."

With the first day of competition on Sunday involving Hong Kong's cyclists, triathletes and swimmers, who are in Tokyo for their events, several teams are likely to miss the opening festivities.

Hopefully that will not be the case for 16-year-old Shum Chun-hei and Liu Hei-yu, who have already made history this week. Hong Kong has entered the modern pentathlon for the first time, with Shum in the men's event and his teammate in the women's. The city's wrestlers and padel players are also making their debuts at the regional Games.

The Asian Games take place from September 19 to October 4.

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In an email sent to participants on Wednesday, organisers offered to refund entry costs to those who started before 2.40pm on Saturday but had not finished by that time, as well as all athletes who departed in heat batches between 2.40pm and 8.40pm.

Wietrzyk's solo women's race began at 2.40pm and she needed little more than an hour to triumph across the 8km and eight-obstacle course.

"First, when the unexpected incident occurred during the afternoon session on September 12, we failed to timely arrange for the involved athlete to leave the track," Hyrox China said. "Due to this operational oversight, you did not receive the good event experience you deserved, and for this we are deeply sorry."

Officials added that on-site staff immediately disinfected the venue and completed a full track carpet replacement later that evening. Hyrox China noted that after a complete internal evaluation, the decision was made to issue full refunds, instructing runners to contact them if funds are not processed within 10 working days.

The financial remediation followed Hyrox officially updating its global rule book for the 2026-27 season, introducing emergency protocols for biological contamination.

Under the updated penalty section for all divisions, the rule book now explicitly addresses medical and hygiene risks on track in 12.3 Did Not Finish (DNF).

"If a racer's blood, vomit, urine, or faeces poses a welfare or contamination risk to the racer or to other racers, a Race Director may withdraw the racer from the race on medical grounds, in line with Hyrox's medical and hygiene SOPs. Any such withdrawal is recorded on the leaderboard as DNF."

The refunds and policy overhaul follow days of escalating criticism, which was initially fuelled by the initial response from officials in China.

In a statement released 48 hours after the incident, in which Wietrzyk soiled herself midway through her race, Hyrox World acknowledged organisational lapses but defended the 24-year-old, praising her "courage, resilience and refusal to give in …[as] precisely what makes elite athletes so extraordinary".

The statement failed to appease competitors and the public, with Chinese social media users condemning local organisers as "arrogant" for prioritising competitive perseverance over public health and equal rule enforcement. Before the change in the law book, athletes could be handed a two-minute penalty for spilling water or spitting on the course, but not an incident where faecal matter was left on the course.

Co-founder Moritz Furste ultimately had to step in with explicit apologies. He admitted the organisation made a mistake by "not reacting immediately during the race," while Hyrox China conceded the global rule book lacked mechanisms to penalise competitors in such situations, pledging that the structural changes that have now been made.

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Dementia news is almost relentlessly grim - a steady drumbeat of rising cases and elusive cures.

Beyond the headlines, however, a quieter, more encouraging shift is under way. Significant strides in brain health research are helping us tailor treatment, refine diagnosis and manage risk far more effectively.

A large real-world study in Sweden found that an Alzheimer's blood test helped family doctors diagnose the disease with nearly the same accuracy as specialists.

Covering 1,300 patients and 165 doctors, the study showed diagnostic accuracy jumped from 65 per cent to 93 per cent when doctors had access to the test results.

The findings are significant because early diagnosis can slow the condition's progression, helping patients remain independent for longer and giving families more time to plan.

Another study pushed the blood test even earlier, to before any symptoms appeared. Researchers at Harvard Medical School followed nearly 2,700 cognitively healthy older adults for up to a decade, measuring the same class of protein biomarker (p-tau217). Those with very high levels had an estimated 78 per cent chance of developing cognitive impairment within 10 years, and roughly a two in five chance within five years.

But would you actually want to have a test like this, and what would the results mean for you?

The general consensus, Kan says, is no. You can have a biomarker result that indicates high risk and remain clinically free of symptoms - but the result can create enormous, often needless, worry.

The drug pipeline is diversifying

The GLP-1 trials may have been abandoned, but about 158 drugs are being tested across 192 active clinical trials - up from 138 drugs in 182 trials in 2025, and 127 drugs in 164 trials in 2024. This is an increasingly active space.

Scientists are looking far beyond just one cause for Alzheimer's.

The focus of Alzheimer's drug trials has shifted over the past decade. Amyloid treatments, which once made up a third of all research, have dropped to about 20 per cent.

Meanwhile, treatments targeting tau - a protein that forms tangles inside damaged brain cells - and treatments for immune dysfunction and brain swelling have grown, with each now accounting for a further fifth of trials.

Amyloid is not seen as the sole culprit, but as part of a bigger gang. The more culprits scientists identify, the more targets they have to develop new ways to fight back.

Lifestyle interventions still deliver real benefits

Findings from the LatAm-Fingers study, which looked at ways to prevent cognitive impairment in Latin America, suggest lifestyle changes can bring benefits. It built on the original Finger trial - the landmark Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability.

LatAm-Fingers adapted this model for more than 1,000 older adults across sites in 11 countries, tailoring it to local cultures. For example, researchers incorporated salsa and tango dancing into the physical activity component, and used locally available foods such as avocado and quinoa in the diet component.

Over two years, participants showed a 55 per cent greater improvement in overall memory, thinking and reasoning than those following a self-guided programme that was not necessarily Finger adherent. It is a strong reminder of how much power we have to improve our own brain health - and how easily interventions can be adapted.

As Mok explains, the retina is a neurosensory tissue that, anatomically and physiologically, is essentially an extension of the brain, which mirrors changes in it. With an accuracy of more than 81 per cent, ICBH helps identify people at risk of future dementia and motivates them to adopt brain-healthy habits.

It has found practical applications.

CUHK worked with Hong Kong-based Charles K. Kao Foundation for Alzheimer's Disease to launch a free community-based Alzheimer's disease screening using ICBH for at-risk Hong Kong residents.

Hong Kong healthcare provider Humansa has also incorporated ICBH into an early dementia detection programme for its clients. ICBH is also in use at Hong Kong's Asia Pacific Institute of Healthy Ageing and the CUHK Medical Centre.

Beyond flagging individual risk, ICBH's real value may be as an educational tool. Mok suggests it may motivate at-risk people to adopt brain-healthy behaviours and help the public understand that dementia is, to a certain degree, preventable.

His advice was straightforward: check your blood pressure - or that of a loved one - three times a week, aiming for a reading of around 120/80. If either number is consistently higher, consult a doctor. After all, your brain health depends directly on your heart and blood vessels.

"[I was] surrounded by the most advanced Alzheimer's science in the world, and the best advice I left with was a click away," Kan says.

Kan ordered a cuff online, and it was waiting for her at home by the time she got back.

The science around dementia is big and important - but sometimes, it really is the simple things that matter most. After all, as the saying goes: healthy heart, healthy brain.

Copyright (c) 2026. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

"This is MasterChef Asia, not MasterChef Thailand, the Philippines or India," says Cheung, who runs modern Chinese restaurants Jun's and Jooksing in Dubai. "A champion must be able to move beyond a single comfort zone and represent modern global cuisine and modern techniques."

Lee, a breakout star from the first season of Netflix's Culinary Class Wars, says curiosity about Asian food is at "an all-time high". That curiosity, he hopes, can move past the familiar shorthand of noodles, fried rice and a few celebrated classics.

"Asian food is so diverse," he says. "There's so many layers, so many histories. Every region has its own specific story."

Pichaya, chef of Michelin-starred Restaurant Potong in Bangkok, points to the diversity within countries themselves. India, she notes, cannot be reduced to one familiar dish when its northern and southern traditions hold so much more to discover.

The new season, she says, is an opportunity to shine a light on "lesser-known flavours and food from Asia." At the same time, contemporary cooking does not mean leaving history behind.

"In Thailand, chefs are experimenting with fermentation again, which we did a lot because [our ancestors] didn't have fridges," she says. "It's very interesting to see that, moving forward, we're moving back in a way."

Cheung's perspective is similarly personal. Lauded as the pioneer of "third-culture cuisine", the chef was often referred to as "the Canadian" in his father's Chinese kitchen and later as "the weird Asian kid" in Western fine-dining kitchens. The experiences made him acutely aware of the limitations imposed on Asian chefs. A chef of Chinese heritage, for example, should not automatically be expected to cook only Chinese food, he says - the point of MasterChef Asia is to embrace the diversity and complexity of the whole region.

This reboot is deliberately not built around nostalgia. Lee says the team is trying to define the season "as a stand-alone and something exceptional", representing Asian food as it is today and bringing a fresh, innovative face of Asia to the screen.

The returning franchise invites 10 alumni contestants from previous MasterChef seasons, including the popular Vietnamese-Australian chef Khanh Ong - a fan favourite and finalist from MasterChef Australia - and Malaysian pastry chef Marcus Low, who appeared in the original MasterChef Asia.

The reboot is especially relevant in the social-media era. Lee says the gap between professional chefs and home cooks has narrowed because recipes, images and techniques are now readily available online.

"There's no excuse any more," he says. "You have access to everything."

Pichaya agrees, adding that social media has opened up possibilities, but cautions that access does not guarantee originality. The real challenge, she says, is creating something that is genuinely one's own rather than a copy of what is already online.

Cheung puts the issue more bluntly: "Social media flavour is not always going to be real flavour."

The new season will not be a competition in which visual spectacle alone triumphs. The judges will be looking for dishes that are personal, but also delicious; innovative but rooted in a coherent idea; visually striking but technically sound.

Asked what separates a good dish from a winning one, Pichaya says flavour comes first. "It has to be something that makes me want to eat it again and again," she says.

Cheung emphasises execution, from texture and planning to every component on the plate. Lee concludes that the best dishes transport the judges into a contestant's story and thought process, while still getting the details right.

The qualities to survive

The judging will not treat traditional food as untouchable, or innovation as an automatic virtue. Lee says there are objective parameters across cuisines such as balance, texture, seasoning and proper technique.

Pichaya offers a more emotional test: a radically reworked dish can still be right if, when tasted, it feels familiar and "like home".

Cheung's formulation is characteristically practical. "There are no bonus points for a plate with 800 garnishes if a three-ingredient fried rice is executed better," he says.

The contestants, meanwhile, will be assessed as individuals as well as cooks. Lee wants them to infuse food with story, heritage and personality rather than merely replicate a recipe.

Cheung adds that grit, confidence, passion, and the capacity to adapt when something goes wrong are the high-pressure qualities required to survive.

The judges see their role as more than critics; they want to mentor contestants towards the chefs they may become.

And what of the trio's on-screen chemistry? There is always the funny judge, the mean judge and the nice judge. The chefs' playful response offers a glimpse: Pichaya is the nice one, Cheung is the funny one, and Lee - while clearly happy to be called many things - prefers to be known as "the honest one" or "the professor" rather than the mean one.

MasterChef Asia streams on HBO Max and TLC from September 22, and Discovery Channel from September 23.

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The opening party at the Landmark venue will feature Matteo Cadeddu, bar manager of Opium Bangkok - which placed No 25 on this year's Asia's 50 Best Bars list - alongside Michele Montauti, director of beverage and bars at Aman Nai Lert Bangkok.

Between them, they will serve six drinks made with Campari - including a truffle negroni and cafe latte negroni - while Zuma's own bar team will feature two cocktails available only during the week: a roasted negroni with hojicha gin and a banana negroni fizz with coffee Campari.

Zuma, Level 5&6 Landmark Atrium, 15 Queen's Road Central

L'Oliveto takes a savoury route, combining Los Siete Misterios Doba Yej Mezcal, Mancino Rosso Amaranto and Campari with olive and cacao. The result is smoky, briny and bittersweet.

Il Frutteto shifts towards fruit, blending Cascahuin Blanco Tequila, Campari, Vecchia Romagna 18 Brandy, toasted almond, peach and soda water. Think a stone-fruit highball with a bitter Italian spine.

Last but not least, La Drogheria completes the trio with No 3 London Dry Gin, Cocchi Vermouth di Torino Rosso and Campari, plus coconut and Abracadabra licorice liqueur.

Qura Bar, Lobby Floor, Regent Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui

The three-hour free-flow line-up covers the negroni, the rosita and the Campari spritz, with live music from the bar's resident DJ throughout the night. Tickets are HK$198 plus service charge, making it one of the more accessible ways to dive into the week's bitter-and-bubbly programme.

For anyone who wants a social, high-energy Negroni Week experience rather than a seated tasting, this is likely to be the stand-out party. It is also a rare chance to try a rosita alongside the classics without committing to a full cocktail menu.

Cassio Social Club, 2/F, 33 Wyndham Street, Hong Kong

Led by Campari's Oscar Choi and Dio's bar manager Wing Chan, the workshop covers the history of the Campari brand before guests craft three cocktails of their own: a classic negroni, a Canton negroni and a Garibaldi.

Dio Cafe Bar, New Central Mansion, 8 Aberdeen Street, Central

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"I've always been a really musical person looking for that outlet of music and creativity, but I didn't really find it," says the 36-year-old vocalist and conductor.

Born in Hamilton, New Zealand, to a Singaporean-Chinese mother and a father of European descent, Jorgensen emigrated to Australia as a child, settling in Brisbane.

Later, while studying for her arts degree at the University of Queensland, she specialised in aural musicianship and choral conducting in an attempt to make sense of why making music still "didn't feel good".

The project, for which entry to early sessions cost A$5, was born of a desire to flip the script on traditional live music events by inviting audience members - no matter how untrained, off-pitch or unmusical they may be - to perform.

Pub Choir steadily gained traction throughout the late 2010s and early 2020s in Australia, where Jorgensen says she now teaches "around 3,000 to 4,000 people" at every rehearsal.

But make no mistake, Pub Choir is not about formal music education - which has long been synonymous with harsh discipline and perfectionism - in fact, it is in many ways the antithesis of it.

"I teach everything from zero for everyone," Jorgensen says. "Every single person in the room, no matter your experience, has to learn something new.

"You will have to sing and learn something, but it is the easiest music lesson in the world. At the end of it, we all get to enjoy what we made together."

Jorgensen also recommends Pub Choir to those with a musical background.

"If you're a good singer, you get to feel really clever at the show and help people around you," she says with a laugh. "You become a leader. It's good if you want to feel smug."

Taking Pub Choir global

In June 2025, Jorgensen accepted an invitation to appear on the reality TV show America's Got Talent.

Rather than performing herself, she helped the thousands of audience members in the auditorium find sonic harmony with each other, splitting the crowd into three sections to sing Toto's "Africa". "It's me saying 'America's got talent,'" Jorgensen says.

Although Jorgensen did not win the contest - not that she intended to - the audition clip blew up online and brought Pub Choir global recognition and opportunities to tour internationally.

In the year or so since that television appearance, Jorgensen has toured Australia and the United States extensively. In Asia, she has taken the act to Singapore and Tokyo, and will debut her show in Hong Kong, the birthplace of her maternal grandmother, on September 21.

"I'm really curious because I've never been to Hong Kong," Jorgensen says. "I don't know how people feel there. The entire show is improvised; I don't have a script at all and can't ever predict what is going to happen. But I have great aspirations to explore more of my own roots, to meet more friends and to see if singing feels the same everywhere."

Jorgensen already knows that the audience's willingness to participate in Pub Choir varies depending on gender and culture.

"I can say with confidence that it's always more women," she says. "Women feel really comfortable going out with their girlfriends and being kind of vulnerable. But I did notice that at the Singapore and Tokyo shows last year, there was a bigger proportion of men than I would expect in, say, Australia.

"I really love that maybe it's not shameful to sing in Asian cultures. In Australia, the men would stand with their arms folded, and I have to really break down that stigma."

"It's a better perspective," Jorgensen says. "You don't have to worry about taking a s*** phone video. We will do that for you so you can feel it. My favourite thing is probably that you have to look up and participate.

"The instructions are on the screen; you have to think, and there's no time for being on your phone and taking a video."

"I think it's time we take away the other stuff that makes us feel so judged. Who cares? It's not illegal to sing out of tune.

"Music is a beautiful way to connect with other people. It's not like I don't want people to be excellent, but it doesn't have to be everybody's goal."

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It is not the first time a Korean filmmaker has tackled this celebrated text in a historical setting.

Son stars as Lady Cho, a brilliant noblewoman who presents herself with perfect poise and decorum but secretly bristles at the stifling conventions of the time. In a society that denies women a voice, she has tried to circumvent the patriarchal order through her close friendship with her cousin, Cho Won (Ji).

When they were younger, Lady Cho gave Cho Won her writing to use in his exams, which earned him great respect among the nobility. As an adult, Cho Won leans towards a decadent, libertine path, but the unusual connection between them remains as charged as ever.

The plan takes on a new dimension when Ahn Hui-yeon (Nana), a young widow celebrated for her devotion, arrives. Hui-yeon intrigues the bored Cho Won, who sees her as a worthy challenge compared to the easy prey he is used to.

Cho Won suggests switching his target of sexual conquest to Hui-yeon. Should he succeed and bring back written proof of the deed, Lady Cho will grant him his most cherished wish: allowing him to share her bed.

So begins a complex game of duplicitous courtship that will push its conniving instigators to confront unexpected feelings.

The social complexities Lady Cho must navigate are presented in greater detail, but while the added layers of decorum and hierarchy deepen the proceedings, they also become more disorienting.

Unable to show her desires in public in a society with few private spaces, Lady Cho has only ever been herself around Cho Won, whom she recognised as a kindred spirit. Yet Cho Won, as a man, is free to pursue a dilettante's life, partly insulated by the reputation of his intellect - a status Lady Cho's words granted him.

Inevitably, when Cho Won ultimately falls for Hui-yeon, he acts on his desires despite his feelings for Lady Cho and the danger that romance could present to Hui-yeon, stripping her of her status as a "virtuous woman" and ruining her.

With his sharp command of tone, Jung orchestrates a tale that rewards viewers - though occasionally demanding their patience - through powerful performances, lyrical dialogue and keen social observations. Meanwhile, Nana delivers a transformative turn and has never been better.

Challenging and complex, The Scandal is another worthy adaptation of Les Liaisons Dangereuses, adding new dimensions to the novel's timeless exploration of social double standards.

The Scandal is streaming on Netflix.

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The evidence suggests that these doses are not meaningless. But they are not a reason to abandon longer exercise either.

A recent meta-analysis of 27 trials found that short, intensive bouts of exercise improved cardiorespiratory fitness and decreased fasting blood glucose and cholesterol levels, body fat percentage, waist circumference and blood pressure, compared with doing no exercise.

The studies varied in their protocols, however, and the wider evidence base remains relatively young.

The science of microbouts

The latter, he explains, "involves alternating periods of vigorous exercise with lower-intensity active recovery exercise or simply rest. The exercising heart rate during vigorous exercise always exceeds 85 per cent of the estimated maximum heart rate".

Quality over duration

James Campion, founder, CEO and trainer at HIT Personal Training in Central, Hong Kong, says his clients are likewise people with demanding careers, family responsibilities and limited time. And while many overestimate how long they need to spend in a gym, they also underestimate the importance of structuring it properly.

Campion suggests that, in many cases, 90 to 120 minutes of purposeful weekly training can be enough to produce significant changes. "It's more of the quality of the time that you spend," he says.

"You will get more results if you hit a muscle very hard for a short period of time, more frequently throughout the week," he says.

Campion is circumspect about micro-workouts. "To do one of those, you have to be pretty knowledgeable about how to get a really effective 10 minutes done … to make it challenging, safe and effective," he says.

Consistency is key

Heather O'Brien, founder of Hong Kong-based HKM Fitness, says the most effective programme is one a person can sustain. "For a workout to be generally effective, it has to be something that you can remain consistent with," she says. "That is the underlying foundation of everything."

For someone who can only train three times a week for 20 minutes, O'Brien would prescribe full-body strength sessions using supersets. This approach makes better use of limited time, while allowing each worked muscle group a brief recovery period.

She says 10-minute workouts - short cardio, mobility or flexibility sessions, for example - can be worthwhile, but building substantial muscle usually requires more effort.

"You do need to be looking at the 20-minute mark," she says, pointing out that progression and good form take priority. "People can build a significant amount of muscle with 20-minute workouts at least two to four times a week."

The point is not that every movement must leave someone breathless but that regular low-intensity activity is a useful foundation on which more structured exercise can be built.

Micro-workouts can help people hit those targets, especially if they are otherwise inactive, but they should be understood as a tool - not a loophole. A brisk stair climb, a properly planned 20-minute strength session and a walk to the supermarket can all be part of the same solution: doing more of what can realistically be repeated.

EMS fitness: can 20 minutes replace a gym session?

Research supports its utility, with caveats. A study published in October 2025 in the Journal of Exercise Science & Fitness found that while 25-minute EMS sessions and 90-minute traditional workouts both improved strength and body composition over 20 weeks, traditional weightlifting still yielded significantly greater strength gains and fat loss.

Researchers concluded that EMS is a viable, time-efficient option for those unable to lift heavy weights but it does not fully match standard gym training.

Yet for clients at EMS Fitness, which has studios in Hong Kong's Central and Discovery Bay neighbourhoods, the convenience is what counts. They wear a fitted suit that delivers electrical impulses to muscles during weekly supervised 20-minute sessions. Founder Beatrice Chan says her clients are mostly professionals aged between 30 and 70, who are balancing tight schedules with injuries, joint pain or an aversion to crowded gyms.

"Hong Kong moves incredibly fast," Chan says. "Everything is about speed, and the saying 'time is money' is deeply true in this city. Time is the ultimate luxury here."

While clients often report visible toning after 10 sessions, experts say individuals with medical conditions, implanted electronic devices or pregnancy-related concerns should seek medical advice before starting EMS.

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"Many people are overwhelmed by shopping options and want to find boundaries or guidelines for what they buy," says Sera Murphy, a Singapore-based personal fashion stylist and founder of The Reoutfitter, a wardrobe consulting and e-commerce platform, in an email. "With so much choice out there, it was only a matter of time before consumers wanted to shop for things that work for them on a personal level."

"I don't practise it because I don't believe in it," says Samuel Gilzean, a Hong Kong-based personal stylist for men. "People can wear almost any colour they want, within reason and situation. Limiting people to certain colours - I think it's very restrictive."

Gilzean acknowledges that the trend's popularity is not without reason. With endless shopping options and algorithmic recommendations, seasonal colour analysis offers clear, digestible boundaries.

"A lot of people don't understand colour and how colours work together, so they're looking for advice," Gilzean says. "It sounds very scientific as well - an 'analysis' by an 'analyst' - so they must know what they're talking about."

"By wearing the same colour tones for years, their wardrobes can feel stale and lack options of 'newness'," Murphy says.

"They end up feeling like they can't shop or can never find anything that 'flatters' them, when in reality they just need to change what colours and cuts they are restricting themselves to."

She also pointed out the practical disconnect: fashion brands do not design collections around your season.

"Fashion designers aren't thinking about whether the colour of a garment is flattering to a certain skin tone," she says. "They are designing based on the story they want to tell."

For Gilzean, a wardrobe stocked entirely with bright colours is just as impractical as one filled with nothing but dark shades.

"It's unreasonable," he says, because neither extreme offers the flexibility required for everyday dressing.

A wardrobe of only bold hues makes it difficult to build cohesive outfits without clashing, while one of only dark tones leaves no room for personality or visual interest. The solution, Gilzean says, lies in balance: grounding bright pieces with neutrals and injecting occasional accents into darker palettes, so that every item has a role to play.

The colour pyramid

So what replaces the seasons? Gilzean advocates a different approach: the colour pyramid.

The colour pyramid is a proportional system with three tiers that work with anyone at any time.

"If you want a professional vibe, go for dark navy," Gilzean says. "If you want to be relaxed and summery, go for beige or off-white."

The middle tier - about 35 per cent - is for tonal and seasonal colours: light blues, pastel pinks, heather greys and mustard yellows. These add flavour while still pairing well with the core base.

At the top - around 15 to 20 per cent - are pop colours, prints and patterns: tropical prints, stripes, bold reds and oranges. These are the statement pieces.

"They're harder to mix and match," Gilzean says. "If you have too many in one outfit, it can look messy."

For him, the question is never "does this colour suit my skin?" but rather "what vibe do I want to give off?"

He points to Pierce Brosnan and Hyun Bin: different complexions, similar colour choices.

"They're not choosing based on being white or Asian," he says. "They're choosing based on the vibe - white and blue for summer, brown for warm and approachable, black for impact."

Murphy similarly encourages clients to treat colour as one tool among many.

"If a person's outfit fits them well - the cut, the drape, the construction - and is comfortable and represents who they are, all of those can 'flatter' someone in ways that are deeper than the surface," she says.

She also challenges the notion that "allowed colours" build confidence: "Changing clients' mindsets out of their 'allowed colours' can free up so many more options."

"I knew he could pull it off," he says. "He had the personality and confidence."

What about someone who lacks that confidence? The pyramid offers a gradual on-ramp.

"You build the outfit through core colours," Gilzean says. "Then you do the swap trick: swap a white shirt for a patterned one, or navy trousers for pastel pink. It teaches people how colours work together, rather than just saying, 'Here are your colours'."

Getting started

For anyone ready to abandon the seasons system, Gilzean's first step is counterintuitive: don't buy anything.

"You can't fix style issues just by buying more clothes," he says. "That complicates the problem."

Instead, lay out your entire wardrobe. Identify the pieces in core colours. If you lack them, plug the gaps. And crucially, let go of items you do not actually like.

"If a client doesn't like black, I say: fine. There are plenty of other core colours," Gilzean says.

For Hong Kong's humid climate, he recommends prioritising core colours that stay cool - khaki, beige, white and warm browns - and avoiding dark "heatsinks" like heavy navy and black in the summer. Fabrics matter too: linen over cotton for moisture-wicking.

The rise of colour analysis reflects a genuine desire for guidance. But both Gilzean and Murphy argue that the answer is not a rigid palette. It is understanding proportion, texture and - above all - your own preferences.

"I tell my customers: if you like a colour, you like a colour," Gilzean says. "We'll incorporate it. If they don't like a colour, even if it's a core colour, we won't wear it."

Murphy adds: "Dressing one's body goes way beyond what the colour of the garments is. It's much deeper - dressing in a way that answers the question: 'Is this me? Do I like the garment and how it represents me in the world?'"

Gilzean thinks people worry too much about what colours work best for them.

"All this colour analysing, colour wheels and skin tone stuff is needlessly complicated," he says. "It's more about what colours you like, and the vibes you want to give off."

Copyright (c) 2026. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

What followed was a spiral: she saw countless doctors and was prescribed a flurry of sedatives and antidepressants alongside medication for her physical symptoms, all of which she refused to take for fear of becoming dependent on them. Eventually, she grew so unwell that she could not wear clothes, leave her bed or eat without throwing up.

She stayed at Apple for another three years, working in Singapore and California, before finally walking away in 2018. What followed was an unexpected pivot: she moved to Paris and enrolled in the Paris Marais Dance School, training 20 hours a week at 48.

"In Europe, people say you don't have to have technical skills to dance if you have something to say with your body. You can lie there and still call it dance."

"Two years ago, I finally felt I could dance," she says. Not long after, she founded her own performance arts company, SML Dance.

Filming Anamnesis II

Her first trip to Patagonia came four years ago, and everything changed for Lo again.

She was struck by the honesty of the landscape - the unrelenting wind, the ancient mountains, the impossibility of control.

"There was a moment when I was pinned against the wall of a cliff and couldn't move," Lo says. "There was nothing I could do except wait. But those moments were so peaceful. My brain wasn't spinning. I wasn't worrying about the future or regretting the past. I was just there."

That peace became the foundation for her art. "Nature is honest," she says. "It doesn't lie. And I wanted to capture that."

It follows her first Anamnesis film, shot on Japan's Sado Island in 2025, which blended traditional Japanese Noh theatre with contemporary dance. More instalments are planned, including one in Kyushu and another focused on femininity.

"Art is very personal," Lo says. "I did it for me."

Anamnesis II will be released on YouTube and Instagram later in 2026, alongside a small number of curated in-person screenings in Hong Kong and beyond.

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The limited-edition yellow monogram leather piece, which was a collaboration between the luxury fashion house and the Japanese artist who recently died at 97, eventually went under the hammer for an eye-watering S$87,000. A flurry of 42 last-minute bids pushed the closing price to more than five times the auction house's initial estimate of S$12,000 to S$16,000.

Conducted by auctioneer Hotlotz, the sale of the first tranche of 337 handbags and accessories from the high-profile money laundering case concluded on Sunday night. All of the items were sold and the total came in at more than S$1.1 million (US$862,000).

Like the pumpkin bag, several other lots saw strong interest from bidders.

Another Hotlotz auction for 286 pieces of fine jewellery seized in the case will stay open until September 27. Together, the two auctions were estimated to bring in between S$2.9 million and S$3.9 million in total.

The frenzied bidding stood in sharp contrast to the lacklustre reception for luxury real estate tied to the same illicit network, where not a single seized property found a buyer when put up for auction on September 17.

Bestselling bags

Loveholic founder Elaine Fung, whose firm sources for luxury items, said she expected iconic styles like the Chanel classic flap bags and Lady Dior bags to attract strong interest. These styles were widely recognisable even among those who did not usually follow luxury fashion, she added.

"We also expected prices to be slightly above normal resale levels because of the publicity surrounding the auction. However, some bids have gone much higher than anticipated," Fung said.

For example, a Chanel classic flap in caviar leather that was on auction sold for S$13,000. Comparable pre-owned pieces generally sell for below S$10,000, according to Fung.

"The strong interest did not surprise us. The bid amounts did. The publicity and competitive atmosphere may be encouraging people to bid more aggressively," Fung said, adding that some bidders may also be unfamiliar with the current retail and resale prices.

Towards the end of each auction, if a bid is placed in the final five minutes before a lot closes, the bidding period for that lot is extended by a further five minutes. This continues until a full five minutes have elapsed without another bid having been placed, Hotlotz explained on its website. This is why all of the lots in an auction usually close only a few hours after the scheduled closing time.

The auction that closed on Sunday is part of a series of 15 online auctions for items from the S$3 billion money laundering case, scheduled to run from September this year to May 2027.

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According to the ministry, the requested amount, which is an increase of 11 times the initial budget of 600 million yen for the 2026 financial year, will be used to eradicate the red-necked longhorn beetle and strengthen measures to protect trees, including plum and peach trees, from infestation.

The ministry has said that further growth in the beetle population could cause agricultural damage, make it difficult to enjoy cherry blossom viewing in the spring, increase the risk of falling trees and affect ecosystems.

In response to the nationwide damage, the environment and farm ministries set up a task force in July and adopted a strategy earlier this month, which pledged to provide local governments with technical and financial support.

According to the ministry, the longhorn beetle is native to China, the Korean peninsula, Taiwan and Vietnam, among other places. The beetle measures about 2.5cm (one inch) to 4cm in length. It was first confirmed in Japan in 2012 and has since been spotted in various parts of the country.

In 2018, the beetle was designated an "invasive alien species". It is prohibited to breed, keep, import, sell or release it into the wild.

To prevent the beetle from spreading further, some local governments have begun offering bounties to those who capture and kill it. The town of Kawajima in Saitama prefecture has paid 100 yen for each beetle, while the city of Oyama in Tochigi prefecture pays 500 yen for 10 beetle carcasses.

The ministry said that for the 2026 financial year, an additional 600 million yen was allocated from the international tourist tax revenue to protect cherry trees as an "important tourism resource". The ministry added that the sum for the next financial year has yet to be determined.

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Copyright (c) 2026. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Presley's parents, Crawford and Rande Gerber, as well as his younger sister Kaia Gerber, have asked for "privacy during this very difficult and painful time", TMZ reported.

Presley's official cause of death has yet to be announced. The late model was known to have struggled with his mental health and an opiate addiction. Just last month, Kaia opened up to Vogue about her brother's decade-long drug addiction and how it had impacted her family.

Last December, Presley had also spoken at length about his mental health struggles and dependency on multiple medications he had been prescribed by 15 different psychiatrists.

"The doctors say a lot of different things, so it's kind of scary, but hopefully between my research and their research … and God, we can figure this out," he said in a video he had shared on Instagram on December 1, 2025, which is no longer available as of Monday afternoon. "The things that scare me are the things you need to take … if you don't take them, something not good happens. And there's a spectrum there on how intense the withdrawal from certain medications is."

He added he hoped his video "reaches people in many ways".

"So you feel like you're not alone, because that is how I feel most of the time and I have a feeling that if I say all of this, a lot of people will at least know that there's someone else going through it. And the second thing is, hopefully I find some people out here [who] are willing to help or know someone that can help," he said.

In 2024, Presley revealed that he had fallen into a coma for several days after a near-fatal fentanyl overdose, according to media reports.

"Happy Bday Prez! The love and bond we have means everything. I'm so proud of the man you have become and the work you have done this past year personally and professionally. Ready to launch! I love you," Gerber captioned the post.

Here's everything you need to know about Presley Gerber's grieving father, Rande Gerber.

He is also a former model who was scouted by Ford Models when he was just 16, according to The New York Times.

The stylish couple share two children, who both entered the fashion industry. Presley had worked for Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Dolce & Gabbana, and did a Super Bowl ad with his mother in 2018.

If you have suicidal thoughts or know someone who is experiencing them, help is available. In Hong Kong, you can dial 18111 for the government-run Mental Health Support Hotline.

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Attention has turned to the earl himself, with his complicated family life now news fodder. Spencer's turbulent relationships have themselves made headlines over the years, most recently when he wed his fourth wife - 18 years his junior - earlier this year.

Here's what we know about Earl Spencer's new wife.

They officially tied the knot in a private ceremony in Arizona in May this year. The 62-year-old earl took to Instagram to announce the news and shared a carousel of wedding photos. "15 May 2026 - the happiest day ever", he wrote. "A very close friend said to me, months ago: 'The thing about Cat is, she'd want to be with you if you lived in a hut. Little did I know she'd also be happy to marry me in a desert,"' he continued.

"Countess Spencer confirms that the legal proceedings brought against her by Cat Jarman have been resolved in an agreed settlement," the statement read. "There was no admission of liability or wrongdoing, and Earl Spencer has been ordered to pay the legal costs, which are expected to be in excess of £2m [US$2.6 million] together with £4,500 [US$6,000] in damages to be paid to his girlfriend Cat Jarman."

With additional reporting by AP

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So, what do we know about Gisele Schmidt? Read on to find out.

Oldman was married four times before his wedding to Schmidt. He wed Lesley Manville in 1987, welcoming their son, Alfie, the following year before the couple split in 1990. That same year, he married Uma Thurman, divorcing in 1992. He later married Donya Fiorentino in 1997, with whom he has sons Gulliver and Charlie, before they parted ways in 2001. Oldman then married Alexandra Edenborough in 2008, divorcing in 2015.

Schmidt has a son named William from a previous relationship, per the LA Times. In a recent interview with the outlet, Oldman shared that he felt "happier than [he's] ever been", thanks to his wife. "I'm with someone who gets me and understands what I do," he said, while Schmidt added, "I might be the fifth one, but I am the one."

Years later, Schmidt suggested showing the scarred foot of Oldman's character, Jackson Lamb, in the Season 5 finale of Slow Horses, entertainment news site TheWrap reported.

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The show begins with works from the 90s, when she assumed multiple striking guises, ranging from a sultry cyborg riding the subway to a futuristic goddess floating above a lotus flower. Drawing from Japanese animé culture, her performances explored timely issues of gender stereotypes, consumerism and post-humanism. Gradually, however, her focus shifted from the concerns of the physical world towards metaphysical questions and Buddhist ideas.

At first, Mori continued to use her body in works such as the video installation Link, 2000. In it, she appears in a bodysuit lying horizontally inside her "body capsule", a translucent, coffin-sized Plexiglas pod. In the work, her body appears to have transcended time and space as she lies motionless in the heart of frenetic city streets, including Hong Kong, as well as at ancient sites such as the Giza pyramids. Over time, Mori disappeared from her works altogether, as she embraced more intangible themes and invited viewers into immersive experiences.

It is a futuristic teardrop-shaped structure designed for three people. Once inside, the three participants wear special headsets that project images of their brainwaves overhead using biofeedback technology. If all three enter an alpha-wave state, a circle of light appears.

At the time, the work was groundbreaking as few artists were harnessing technology to explore human consciousness in this way. "It was like a new vocabulary for art," she says. "I thought that the possibility of using a new medium by collaborating with engineers and scientists could lead to new kinds of ideas - a new world and new vision."

In the 90s, she started travelling to remote natural sites including the Dead Sea in Israel and the Silk Road outpost Turpan in China. "I was confronted with the vastness of nature, especially when I arrived in Arizona's Painted Desert," she says. "Humans think we are the centre of the world but we are so small compared to nature. I realised that we are so vulnerable."

Mori sees art as a means to rekindle our primal relationship with the natural world. "In prehistoric times, our remote ancestors took the position of being caretakers who honoured nature," she says. "It's something that the modern human lost, but it's still within us because we are an extension of nature." The Japanese exhibition title, "Sansan", which means "shining", echoes these ideas. "It's not just referring to the visible shine of the sun, planets or moon. It's a reminder that we ourselves are shining," explains Mori. "Every living being shines."

"Mariko Mori: All That Shines" shows at Mori Art Museum, Tokyo from October 31 to March 28, 2027

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Spencer says he told the then-Prince Charles that Diana would not have wanted her boys to undergo the ordeal. He claims the prince told him: "Rest assured, we'll forget her soon enough." Spencer also accuses Charles of having "contempt" for his ex-wife and of sounding "elated" after her death.

The Daily Mail tabloid newspaper is publishing extracts from Spencer's book, titled Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, which is due to be published next week.

Buckingham Palace responded late Wednesday with an extremely strong statement by the measured standards of the royal household.

While Spencer's book has once again thrust Princess Diana's death and troubled married life in the palace back into the spotlight, the earl who tied the knot with his fourth wife earlier this year has had a complicated marital life of his own.

In 2025, Spencer was accused of ending his 13-year marriage to Karen Spencer by text and then resorting to "bullying" her with the help of his then-mistress, Dr Cat Jarman, now fourth wife, according to People magazine.

It all started with the alleged affair - Karen suspects their trysts began in 2021. In the course of investigating her husband's relationship with Jarman, Karen found out about the other woman's multiple sclerosis diagnosis - information she shared with her inner circle. Jarman, who had been keeping her condition under wraps to avoid prejudice, sued Karen for disclosing private information without consent. The countess hit back in her filing, claiming her actions were "entirely justified and legitimate", given she had just found out about Spencer's infidelity.

So just who is Karen Spencer, the ex-wife of Charles Spencer? Here's what to know.

With additional reporting by AP

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More recently, however, Cunningham has been stirring the internet's interest for an entirely different reason - it seems that the 30-year-old baller has a new man in her life.

On September 12, Fever Updates, an X page that gives Fever fans the latest news on the WNBA team, uploaded two pictures of Cunningham cosying up to Frank Adams with the caption "Sophie Cunningham revealed her new boyfriend".

While Cunningham has yet to confirm her relationship status, here's everything you need to know about her rumoured new man, Frank Adams.

He went on to earn his bachelor's degree in athletic training in 2015 from Florida Southern College and graduated from Hardin-Simmons University with a master's degree in kinesiology, sports and recreation in 2017.

Since then, Adams has gone on to work as an athletic trainer at various universities, including a six-year stint as the assistant athletic trainer for the Phoenix Suns from 2019 to 2025.

Currently, he is employed as the head athletic trainer for Grand Canyon University in Arizona.

Cunningham has shared little about her private and romantic life in the past, but she was confirmed to be dating Jakob Neidig, a University of Missouri athlete, from 2019 to 2020.

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Additional contributions by Alexa Vernice Pacis

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"I think they grew up around it and had some interest in it and a sort of innate understanding of what it was," Casey said. "Like I did, my dad worked in the theatre for many years. And so it's passed down, I suppose, which is a really nice thing. And they were willing to be a part of this."

Here's everything you need to know about Ben Affleck's nephew Indiana Affleck, who is stepping into the world of showbiz.

Casey and Summer met in 1995 and married in June 2006. They became parents for the second time with their son, Atticus, in January 2008.

Indiana's parents split in 2015 and later finalised their divorce in 2017. The former couple have co-parented their two sons since the divorce.

"Despite all the travelling I've done between the coasts, NYC has never felt as far away as it does now. My son leaving is the only thing on my mind," the actor said.

Indiana made his acting debut in 2016 in the short film Drama. He has since appeared in the 2022 film What Comes Around, starring his mother, and is in his father's forthcoming film Company.

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"[At] first sight, I thought it was Cillian Murphy! He's super cute!" one user commented under an Instagram post that showed Aran speaking to the media at the premiere. "Looks so much like his dad!" another fan wrote.

So who is the Irish actor's lookalike son Aran? Read on to find out.

Malachy and Aran were raised in London for much of their childhood, but the family moved to Ireland, where both Murphy and McGuinness hail from, in 2015.

During a 2022 appearance on the Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard podcast, Murphy revealed that he and McGuinness moved the family to Dublin because they "wanted their children to be Irish".

Aran was only 11 years old when he landed the titular role of Hamnet in Irish theatre company Dead Centre's play about William Shakespeare's only son. The play toured in the US, Europe, Australia and Hong Kong.

He made his on-screen debut with the 2022 sci-fi film Lola and will soon appear in Youth, a show starring Sharon Horgan as a 50-year-old divorcee who juggles her single life while looking after her parents and son.

"They seem better adjusted than I was. More sure of themselves," Murphy told The Guardian in 2016. "I'm happy about that. For me, it was something that took a long time to figure out: that it's all right to be you, that it's all right to be an individual."

He also said on the Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard podcast that his sons were "good boys". "This is such a cliché, but I just want them to be happy and confident kids, that's all. And to know themselves, I think that's the most important thing. And they're heading that way; they're good boys. But I try not to project stuff onto them; it's impossible not to do it entirely, but let them find their own way."

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What do we know about Kevin Costner's new date, who is more than 30 years his junior? Read on to find out.

Milburn, who is identified as a "lifestyle coach" by various media outlets, worked as a Delta Air Lines flight attendant and is also a model. She also worked for Western gear retailer Kemo Sabe, frequented by Costner, for several years, per the Daily Mail.

The British news outlet also reported that she currently works as director of partnerships for author and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek's The Optimism Company.

"We are here to inspire people to do the things that inspire them so that, together, each of us can change our world for the better," the company bio reads.

There is little information available on Milburn's personal life.

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