World News by Wild Rose

Hongkongers flocked across the border on National Day for grocery shopping, massages and the chance to buy giant 60cm-long egg tarts, citing lower prices and a wider variety of leisure activities. Immigration figures showed that about 69,000 residents had left Hong Kong by 10am on Thursday, while the city had already welcomed about 74,000 mainland Chinese visitors. At the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point, crowds of Hongkongers gathered in the morning to head north, while mainland visitors...

A growing number of young Chinese women are paying for romantic photo shoots with male models, seeking a brief taste of love through a novel form of emotional companionship. This trend has gained significant traction on mainland social media, with customers spending up to 8,000 yuan (US$1,200) for an hour-long session featuring couple-style poses, including hand-holding, embraces, staged kisses, and even touching the models’ abdominal muscles. In July, lifestyle blogger Xue Dinge spent 4,520...

Chinese divers were unstoppable as the country's sizeable overall tally of gold medals swelled to 150.

Local Chinese authorities have issued warnings and demerits to 11 officials and dismissed the entire kitchen staff at a kindergarten following a teacher’s revelation about unsanitary practices, including washing dirty mops in cooking pots. On June 30, several children at the Affiliated Kindergarten of Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology in Jiangsu province exhibited symptoms such as nausea and vomiting during and after lunch. Parents had been inquiring about the...

Renowned Chinese singer and songwriter Liu Huan passed away in Shanghai on September 25 at the age of 63 due to illness, prompting widespread mourning among the mainland public. The University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, where Liu taught the History of Western Music for three decades, issued an obituary but did not disclose details about the illness. His death saddened many, as Liu was a beloved figure across China. As one of the country’s most famous and respected male...

The 39-year-old will step back onto the court for a competitive match on Wednesday for the first time since the US Open.

A young Chinese wife selflessly donated her kidney to her husband suffering from uraemia because she “did not want to lose him,” despite the success rate being less than 10 per cent. In September, Liang, 25, donated her left kidney to her husband, Chung, at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University. Chung, 33, has congenital megaureter, a condition present from birth that involves an abnormally enlarged ureter. He underwent regular treatment for his condition, which...

A viral interview with Chinese professor-influencer Liang Yongan has reignited the debate over China’s evolving marriage norms after he argued that at least one-third of people in the country are ill-suited for marriage. Liang, 72, a professor of Chinese language and literature at Fudan University in Shanghai, has emerged as a significant voice on mainland social media, attracting nearly one million followers with his candid observations on youth culture, relationships, and social change. The...

Hong Kong will celebrate the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China on October 1 with a string of offerings for locals and visitors. The National Day “golden week” holiday in mainland China, which runs from October 1 to 7, is expected to bring in about 1.29 million visitors from across the border. But Hongkongers will only have one public holiday during the period, on Thursday. The South China Morning Post lists the discounts and perks available during the...

China has unveiled an overhaul of its university system, urging institutions to develop distinct roles as demographic change, a tighter job market and industrial upgrading alter the country’s skills needs. The general offices of the ruling Communist Party’s Central Committee as well as the State Council, China’s cabinet, jointly issued guidelines for higher education reform, state news agency Xinhua reported on September 20. The document said universities must adapt to “changing trends in the...

An elderly resident in southern China sparked online outrage after cutting a high-altitude worker’s safety rope to use it as a washing line. The incident occurred when Liu, a worker from Foshan, Guangdong province, was repairing the exterior wall of a high-rise building on September 17. After descending from the 30th floor to a platform on the second floor, he discovered that one of his safety ropes had been cut, with part of the rope left on the platform. Fortunately, no workers were using the...

Rice may be the most universal ingredient in the world, serving as a cornerstone of the diet for billions in Asia. However, for much of Chinese history, rice faced a serious competitor, and entire cultures developed around a different cereal grain, one that has since diminished in significance: millet. Millet is a cereal grain that behaves and tastes similarly to rice but has a rounder form. It is often used in porridge, stir-fries, or even fritters. In certain regions of China, millet is...

While foreign leaders and their families walk the iconic restored sections of the Great Wall around Beijing, the ancient stones of a remote Ming-era stretch of the structure in northern central China have been sacrificed for cheaper dumping of coal-mining waste. For nearly 20 years, a section of the wall in Ningwu county, Shanxi province, was used as a short cut to dump slag, despite whistle-blowers repeatedly raising the alarm to officials, according to a report by Chinese state broadcaster...

China’s giant pandas Pingping and Fushuang departed Chengdu for Zoo Atlanta early Sunday on a chartered flight, beginning a 10-year stay in the US, China Central Television reported on Sunday.

A 20-year-old woman who collects and sorts rubbish in eastern China gained online fame after her modelling talents were discovered by the renowned self-made “village supermodel” Lu Xianren, who shares a similar childhood background. Identified by her alias Chaoren Leng (translated as “Superman Leng” in English), the woman assists her boyfriend’s father in managing his rubbish collection business in Taizhou, Zhejiang province, as reported by Shenzhen TV. Born Leng Minghui in a village in Fuyang,...

China's economy and tech have developed at breakneck speed, but there is plenty worrying its Gen Z.

A Chinese doctoral graduate in medicine left her promising hospital job to embrace a “less meritocratic” lifestyle as a part-time freelancer. Liu Zihan, 31, delivers food, performs at a pub, sells breakfast, and explores a variety of part-time jobs that captivate her interests while providing for her living expenses. Before leaving her full-time employment in February, Liu served as a psychiatrist and postdoctoral researcher at a Grade 3A hospital in Zhuhai, in southern China’s Guangdong...

A middle-aged couple in rural China has recently trended on social media for having 13 children. The family, living in a village in Qinzhou in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, stands out in mainland China, particularly in light of the country’s declining birth rate. This situation has prompted authorities to implement various policies encouraging marriage and larger families. According to Jiupai News, the 49-year-old man, surnamed Huang, and his 42-year-old wife have welcomed 13 children –...

Frustrated by low-quality materials, careless craftsmanship, and escalating prices, some young women in China are taking matters into their own hands by learning to sew their own underwear, accessories, and handbags. This summer, a surge of sewing enthusiasts flocked to RedNote to showcase their handmade creations. Many beginners embarked on their journey with underwear, assuming it would be a straightforward first project due to its minimal fabric requirements. However, they quickly encountered...

Mooncakes, a sweet staple for China’s annual Mid-Autumn Festival, are not just for people any more. Humans are pulling back, but dogs are digging in. So are cats. Pet mooncakes are popping up across China, from major retailers such as Sam’s Club to online stores and small bakeries. And many are quickly selling out. In the southwestern metropolis of Chengdu, a pack of pet mooncakes selling online for about 50 yuan (US$8) has racked up thousands of sales, news outlet thecover.cn reported. In the...

"Bloomberg: The Asia Trade" brings you everything you need to know to get ahead as the trading day begins in Asia. Bloomberg TV is live from Tokyo and Sydney with Shery Ahn and Haidi Stroud-Watts, getting insight and analysis from newsmakers and industry leaders on the biggest stories shaping global markets. (Source: Bloomberg)

Retail tycoon Yu Donglai, widely known as China’s “most conscientious” boss, recently triggered public controversy with a proposal to sign only a four-year “training initiative” contract with future new hires, without renewing it. Yu has been nationally acclaimed for the many unconventionally humanistic rules he set up for Pangdonglai, a supermarket chain he founded in central China’s Henan province in 1995. Yu, for example, once said his 8,000 employees’ after-tax monthly salaries average 9,000...

In Southeast Asia, hundreds of thousands of people working in fraud centres are scamming people across the world. US authorities suggest the fraudsters are responsible for scams worth almost $10 billion a year against US nationals alone. Victims in Europe, the UK and China have also been targeted. Human rights groups further warn that those working in the centres are often themselves victims of human trafficking – forced to work as slaves.

The 13-year-old beat the previous 400m Asian Games record, set by China’s Ye Shiwen in 2014, by about 4.5 seconds.

A man in northern China created a poignant record of his mother’s final 14 days, documenting her rapid decline from a vibrant woman to her last moments. Gao, hailing from the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, shared that his mother travelled to his city for medical treatment after developing a fever and a persistent cough. On August 29, he captured her arrival at the railway station. Dressed in her favourite red coat, she appeared energetic and in good spirits, walking with confidence and a...

A woman in China, who dedicated over two decades to her career as a doctor, made a surprising choice three years ago to leave her profession and open a steamed stuffed bun store. As time passed, her store not only survived but flourished in the competitive food industry, prompting her to launch a second outlet in July. “When I was a doctor, the thought of quitting often crossed my mind. Now, running a bun shop keeps me busy and tired, but I am so happy that I can’t stop,” said Dong Min, 48, in...

The teen phenomenon won her second gold medal in the 200m medley in 2:06.10 to set a new Games and Asian record.

Foreign visitors to China who choose to stay somewhere other than a hotel can now register their accommodation with the authorities online, which analysts say will make travelling to the country more convenient. China’s Exit and Entry Administration Law mandates that foreigners register their accommodation with the police within 24 hours of arrival. Those who fail to do so could be issued a warning or fined up to 2,000 yuan (US$298). This applies both to foreign visitors arriving in the country...

A 65-year-old Chinese woman used artificial intelligence (AI) to impersonate both a young doctor and her mother, successfully scamming 170,000 yuan (US$25,000) from a man. Liu Hui, a resident of Shanghai, connected with a woman named Yu Xiuzhen on a social media platform in 2021. Yu asserted that she was a 29-year-old doctor at a prestigious Grade 3A hospital in Shanghai, claiming influence over her hospital’s property engineering projects. Over the past five years, Yu frequently shared details...

A woman in her 70s in northern China briefly exhibited signs of life after being placed in a coffin, but ultimately died two days later. The woman, from Hebei province, had been suffering from cerebral thrombosis for decades and was also battling cancer, according to reports from mainland sources. After doctors concluded that her cancer was no longer treatable, her family brought her home for end-of-life care. On September 8, relatives found no apparent signs of life and placed her in a...