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For generations, jeepneys – brightly painted minibuses that are among the Philippines’ cheapest and most used forms of public transport – have run on diesel, but recent fuel shocks are forcing thousands of small operators and drivers to weigh volatile prices against the debt needed to go electric. Diesel prices spiked anew by nearly 5 pesos th

From rare earth elements to commercial drones, Washington has become all too familiar with the strongest weapons in Beijing’s manufacturing arsenal – the materials and products where China holds a strategic advantage in production, extraction or any other link in the supply chain. After those near-monopolies provided Chinese policymakers consi

Every four years, billions of football fans spend a month arguing about offside decisions, whether Ronaldo or Messi is a grass-grazing horned mammal, and whether football is finally “coming home”. For nations, however, the Fifa World Cup is far more than football. Beyond the national pride that comes with simply qualifying, the tournament offe

In the first half of this year, leisure travel within China exploded. As the summer travel season builds towards the Mid-Autumn Festival and the “golden week” that follows National Day on October 1, domestic travel has emerged as one of China’s most important, if underappreciated, drivers of consumption and growth. During the extended Chinese

The Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC) recorded a major jump in investment income during its second year of operation, as it expanded its role as the city’s “patient capital” engine driving local economic development. The wholly state-owned investment firm generated about HK$6.46 billion (US$824 million) in investment income in 2025, a st

After vanishing from a market near her home 35 years ago, a woman in southern China has finally been reunited with her birth family. However, injuries found on her face and the failure of nearby broadcast appeals to reach her parents fuelled online speculation about how she disappeared. Zhong Fenglin, 37, once lived near a market in Nanning, G

Every year, summer rains cause flooding in China. They also bring high-stakes work for officials. Once an evacuation order goes out, local governments have long checked on families by calling them on the phone. Xie Yunshi, an official in the suburbs of the Chinese capital, told Beijing Daily that when waters rose in the past, his department wo

US lawmakers are pushing for more scrutiny of Chinese investment in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, as Washington’s strategic competition with Beijing expands beyond semiconductors and artificial intelligence into the healthcare sector. Bipartisan US senators on Wednesday unveiled legislation aimed at increasing transparency around foreign