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More than six centuries ago, roughly 80 years ahead of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, Chinese admiral Zheng He reached the eastern coast of Africa with a massive fleet and a crew of more than 20,000 under his command. The Ming dynasty ships braved formidable waves and traversed vast distances on seven epic maritime expeditions to reach the shores of Southeast Asia, South Asia, West Asia and finally the eastern coast of Africa. Despite his achievements, Zheng He remains largely absent from...

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China is taking steps to reshape the direction of its foreign investment, unveiling a revised catalogue of encouraged industries that steers overseas capital towards the advanced and technologically complex sectors Beijing’s policymakers view as future growth drivers. The revised catalogue, which takes effect in February 2026, covers 1,679 industries – 205 more than the current version, which was released in 2022. In a statement on Wednesday, the Ministry of Commerce said the changes are aimed...

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Chinese state media have escalated criticism of what they characterise as Japan’s growing “neo-militarism”, warning that Beijing has sufficient policy tools in reserve to respond should Tokyo endanger China’s core interests. People’s Daily, a Communist Party mouthpiece, said that “neo-militarism” – the resurgence of Japanese militarism after the end of the second world war – had dealt a serious blow to bilateral relations and undermined regional peace and stability. “Post-war Japan has failed to...

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The first physical store of Chinese-owned fast-fashion giant Shein – which opened in central Paris in November amid heated protests – has become a new retail destination for many denizens of the French capital as they rush to finish their Christmas shopping. Hundreds of customers wandered among the racks of clothing, rifling through items carrying tags with rock-bottom prices, including a €66.99 (US$79) leather jacket and a €78.99 puffer coat. Those wishing to use the fitting rooms at the Shein...

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Four former defence company bosses have been sacked by China’s top political advisory body amid an ongoing anti-corruption campaign in the military and related sectors. They are among eight members removed from the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) under a decision passed by the body’s National Committee in Beijing on Wednesday, according to state news agency Xinhua. Revocation of CPPCC membership – rather than resignation – typically signals suspicions of serious...

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Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China military stories of the year. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.

1. China’s most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, enters service China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, entered into service on Wednesday at a grand ceremony in Sanya, Hainan province, according to state media reports on Friday.
2. How did China’s J-10C match up to French Rafale in India-Pakistan aerial clash? Reports that France’s advanced...

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Pottery vessels containing traces of alcohol from a Bronze Age cemetery in northwestern China indicate that people at the time consumed beverages made using a fermentation starter of rice and a red mould. Archaeologists said the drink, similar to red rice wine, played a key role in their mortuary rituals, and its presence at the Mogou cemetery suggested a tradition that probably served to strengthen the bond between the living and the dead. Researchers from Northwest University in Xian, the...

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China's offshore yuan strengthened further on Thursday, dipping below the benchmark rate of seven against the US dollar – another sign of the currency's continued appreciation after a brief breach of the same threshold on Wednesday evening. The recent fluctuations mark the currency’s first appreciation past the major psychological marker in 15 months, suggesting a change in market sentiment and providing more support for the global investors and economists who have argued the currency has been...

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Chinese researchers have proposed a simple yet powerful theory to explain one of physics’ oldest puzzles: why time only moves forward and why travelling to the past remains impossible. Physicist Cai Qingyu and his team at Hainan University in southern China have developed a fresh explanation at the quantum level for why we cannot unscramble an egg or grow younger, even though the laws of physics perfectly allow time to go backwards. Unlike earlier theories, their framework does not rely on...

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All eyes are on how Beijing’s “Chinese dream” of eventual Taiwan reunification will unfold at a time when the leader of the United States – Taipei’s top international backer – appears less likely to intervene in case of a cross-strait conflict. In the third of a three-part series, Amber Wang looks at how PLA activity may reflect the wider political picture. In the past five years, People’s Liberation Army activity near Taiwan has been seen by many observers as a key indicator of when and whether...

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Brazil is preparing to waive visa requirements for Chinese citizens travelling for tourism and business, local media reported on Wednesday citing government sources, in a move that would mark a significant shift in policy and deepen ties with its largest trading partner. The planned measure, expected to be announced in early 2026, would put Brazil on a reciprocal footing after China unilaterally granted visa-free entry to Brazilians for short stays. According to local newspaper Valor Economico,...

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Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.

1. China, Russia clash with US at UN over Venezuela oil seizures and naval pressure China accused the United States at the United Nations of violating international law and destabilising the Caribbean region, as Washington defended its seizure of Venezuelan oil tankers and vowed to intensify pressure on President Nicolas Maduro’s government.
2. Beijing is...

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China said on Wednesday it would hit back against the latest US tariffs targeting its semiconductor sector. On Tuesday, the Office of the United States Trade Representative said it would raise the tariffs on June 23, 2027 with the level to be announced at least 30 days in advance. It followed the release of the findings of a year-long probe into China’s chip sector, launched in the final month of the Joe Biden administration. The office said Beijing’s push to dominate the sector was...

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Whether in China’s urban centres or its remote rural areas, Christmas is not typically celebrated with the fanfare seen in the West. On the mainland, December 25 is not even a public holiday, with the lion’s share of enthusiasm reserved for the traditional Lunar New Year period beginning in January or February. Zhang Li, who lives in a pastoral section of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region in the country’s north, was no exception. But this year things have changed, thanks in part to a new...

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The Chinese military has simulated battles near Mexico and Cuba during a wargaming exercise – a rare insight revealed in a report on state television. Cuba, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, along with the Sea of Okhotsk and Taiwan, were among the locations of conflict scenarios visible on screens in a CCTV report on Friday showing People’s Liberation Army wargaming exercises. Despite closer economic ties with countries in the region, China has a minimal military presence in Latin...

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ByteDance-owned Doubao remained mainland China’s top consumer artificial intelligence app in December, according to a report, as the country’s Big Tech companies continued to outpace emerging start-ups in this market. Doubao, a ChatGPT-like app, had 155 million weekly active users in the second week of December, according to data released on Tuesday by business intelligence service provider QuestMobile. It said that number was nearly double the 81.56 million total recorded by DeepSeek’s...

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In an effort to further promote the internationalisation of China’s currency, Beijing has pledged to expand the use of its digital yuan, including by establishing a cross-border payment pilot with Singapore. The measures, announced by the People’s Bank of China on Wednesday, are tied to a broader financial support plan for China’s New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor – a trade and logistics network, launched in 2017, that links landlocked cities in western China with hundreds of global...

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Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an has cut short his planned visit to a joint forum in Shanghai to better focus on security concerns following a deadly stabbing incident in the city last week. Originally scheduled to attend the Shanghai-Taipei City Forum on Saturday and Sunday, Chiang will now only take part in the main forum on Sunday morning before returning to Taipei to oversee heightened security operations, according to a press release from the municipal government on Tuesday. The Shanghai-Taipei...

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Two top PLA Air Force officers have become the latest military brass to miss a key political event, as the anti-corruption campaign in the Chinese military continues unabated. Footage broadcast by state television CCTV indicated that General Chang Dingqiu and Guo Puxiao, Air Force commander and political commissar, respectively, were not present at a ceremony on Monday to fill top-level vacancies caused by the sweeping crackdown. The event in Beijing was led by President Xi Jinping, who is also...

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Following the burglary of a warehouse belonging to Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com on Monday, a judicial source has confirmed an investigation has begun on charges of theft by an organised gang. The incident came in the middle of the Christmas shopping season and took place in the town of Dugny, a northern suburb of Paris that serves as a midpoint between the French capital and its main freight hub, Charles de Gaulle Airport. Suspects neutralised the warehouse’s video surveillance system, with...

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Western sanctions have not weakened ties between Beijing and Moscow but instead fostered closer dialogue and higher levels of mutual trust, Russia’s ambassador to China Igor Morgulov said on Tuesday. Addressing a forum at Renmin University of China in Beijing, Morgulov portrayed the deepening partnership as a response to efforts aimed at constraining both countries’ technological development and distorting fair competition. China and Russia had expanded cooperation in an “extremely complex”...

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Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest stories about scientists in China this year. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.

1. After decades in the US, star Chinese mathematician couple returns home Mathematician Chen Min has left Purdue University’s maths department to join the Eastern Institute of Technology, Ningbo as a full-time faculty member, the latest Chinese academic to return home from the US.
2. Maths star Joshua Zahl leaves Canada for China after...

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Consuming a diet with a moderate amount of lard can decrease both fat accumulation and inflammation in body fat, according to a new study by Chinese scientists. “These findings challenge the conventional view of animal fats and demonstrate that consuming lard at the recommended level (with dietary fat providing 25 per cent of energy) can confer metabolic benefits by regulating adipose tissue homeostasis,” the team wrote. Scientists from Hunan Agricultural University, the University of South...

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President Xi Jinping has instructed central state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to serve as the bedrock of national development, urging them to drive industrial upgrading and secure critical technologies in the next phase of China’s growth. “Central SOEs must fully recognise the responsibilities and missions they shoulder and better serve the overall priorities of the party and the state,” he stressed in remarks conveyed to a meeting of central SOE leaders in Beijing on Monday and Tuesday, though he...

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The late Emperor Hirohito of Japan should be held accountable under international law for the crimes of Unit 731, according to Chinese scholars who say the wartime ruler authorised the infamous programme but was shielded from prosecution by US policy after World War II. The secret Japanese military unit in northeastern China, which was responsible for human experimentation, biological warfare and at least tens of thousands of civilian deaths, had been created by imperial order in 1936, said Zhou...

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