Japan’s “Empress of Pop” Ayumi Hamasaki stood alone on a brightly lit stage in Shanghai, her voice echoing through a stadium filled with empty seats. Hours before showtime, she was informed that her concert could not proceed with an audience for “an inevitable reason”. The vague explanation has become familiar to organisers of Japanese cultural…
Beijing is unlikely to offer military help to Venezuela if the United States moves against President Nicolas Maduro, analysts say, but it could still benefit from a shift in Washington’s global posture that revives old notions of spheres of influence, including one that might one day favour its ambitions towards Taiwan. The United States has…
French football legend Zinedine Zidane has delighted Chinese internet users by joining local residents in Shanghai to play shuttlecock in the street. Videos of Zidane, 53, a newcomer to the sport, played the game skilfully with some middle-aged Shanghai residents, most of whom were middle-aged women who are commonly referred to as “aunties” in mainland…
Hong Kong’s booming fundraising market is set for another busy week, with four companies scheduled to debut this week and a string of billion-dollar listings – including Chinese luxury electric vehicle maker Avatr Technology – lining up behind them. Among this week’s newcomers, chip materials supplier Guangdong Tianyu Semiconductor plans to raise the highest sum,…
A middle-aged man who studied in Australia for 10 years before working as a house mover in northwestern China has been surprised to find many people contacting him online to learn English. The rush to learn came after people saw him speak fluent English on social media. The interest has prompted Jia Yuhui to create…
We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Bankruptcies, suicides: US farmers detail cost of trade tensions illustration by Brian Wang High fuel costs, rising interest rates, falling crop…
A hotel guest in central China died after the staff held on to life-saving medicine for five hours without delivering it, sparking heated online debate over the hotel’s responsibility. The 51-year-old man, surnamed Hu, was found dead in his room at a Yeste Hotel in Wuhan, Hubei province, on November 20. Hu’s death confused his…
South Africa is looking to new export markets in Asia – particularly China – and Europe to diversify away from the United States, as its relations with Washington rapidly deteriorate. America boycotted last weekend’s Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg after Washington accused Pretoria of persecuting Afrikaner farmers, labelling the situation “white genocide” – a…
Fake photos generated by artificial intelligence (AI) are being misused to claim refunds from Chinese online shops, sparking moral and legal concerns. As China’s Double 11 shopping festival took place around November 11, several e-commerce shop owners revealed that they received AI-generated photos of damaged products from consumers attempting to seek refunds. Some people took…
A child trafficking survivor from central China who turned into a multimillionaire has reunited with her birth family, only to discover that her father had died years ago after being consumed by guilt. On November 20, during the Winter Clothing Festival, mainland media revisited Zeng Youdi’s emotional journey. This festival, alongside Ching Ming Festival and…