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SCI & TECHAug 31At your service: Hong Kong welcomes first humanoid robot-run convenience storesHong Kong’s first convenience stores operated by humanoid robots will open on Tuesday, with the Beijing-based company behind it planning to establish about 10 more outlets locally as it makes the city its first stop in “going overseas”. Following an opening ceremony on Monday, the first “Galbot stores” will open in Hung Hom, Kai Tak and Wan Chai the next day, marking the company’s first outlets outside mainland China. The embodied-intelligence robotics company launched its first store on the...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 31Hong Kong, Singapore can work to expand the pie, competition not zero-sum: envoySingapore and Hong Kong do not view each other as enemies, but rather admire one another’s accomplishments, the country’s top envoy to the city has said, calling for greater cooperation between the two jurisdictions often cast as fierce rivals. Eric Teo Boon Hee, Singapore’s consul general in Hong Kong, said Asia was big enough to accommodate two financial centres and that both sides should work together to “expand the pie” as capital rushed into the region. Speaking exclusively to the South...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 30Hong Kong WhatsApp hijacking scams surge 170% to nearly 2,000 casesWhatsApp account hijacking scams in Hong Kong surged by nearly 170 per cent to almost 2,000 cases in the first seven months of this year, with one victim losing as much as HK$12.2 million (US$1.55 million). Police said the 1,993 cases logged from January to July represented a 169.7 per cent increase from the 739 cases recorded over the same period last year. The figure also surpassed the 1,669 cases recorded in all of 2025. The cases over the first seven months resulted in losses of HK$146.3...South China Morning Post
SCI & TECHAug 30Reusable rocket milestone opens a door for Hong Kong’s space ambitionsOn the morning of August 19, LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket lifted off from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Test Area. After deploying its second stage and payload into orbit, the rocket’s first stage touched down softly at a recovery site in Gansu province using deployable landing legs. It was China’s first successful land-based recovery of an orbital-class rocket booster that had just completed an orbital mission – a feat previously achieved only by SpaceX. Just over a month earlier,...South China Morning Post
HEALTHAug 30FROM PATIENTS TO CITIZENS: RETHINKING SCHIZOPHRENIA CARE IN HONG KONG[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] In Hong Kong, around 40,000 people live with schizophrenia. Many move through a system designed to stabilise symptoms—reduce hallucinations, manage medication, shorten hospital stays. But once the symptoms are controlled, a more difficult question lingers: what kind of life are people returning to? For Professor Sylvia KWOK from the Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences (SS) at City University of Hong Kong...South China Morning Post
WORLDAug 30Theme park performer Bernice Yuen crowned Miss Hong KongTheme park performer Bernice Yuen Sze-hang outshone 11 other contenders to take the Miss Hong Kong 2026 title on Sunday night. The 26-year-old, one of the heavy favourites, dazzled both judges and the audience to claim the tiara in the beauty pageant final at TVB City in Tseung Kwan O. “We went through two or three hours [during the final], rushing through many things. Until the very end, when they announced the results, I hadn’t even realised it was time,” Yuen said. The Baptist University...South China Morning Post
WORLDAug 3013-year-old among 321 arrested as Hong Kong police seize drugs worth HK$130mHong Kong police have arrested 321 people, including a 13-year-old, and seized HK$130 million (US$16.5 million) worth of suspected illegal drugs during a seven-week citywide crackdown. Code-named “Tailbacker”, the operation ran from July 12 to August 29, and uncovered 234 drug-related cases, police said on Sunday. The 321 suspects, aged between 13 and 72, comprised 228 men, 65 women and 28 minors. They were arrested for suspected offences that included the manufacturing, possession, and...South China Morning Post
WORLDAug 30Backlash grows after Hong Kong authorities seize second ‘fighting dog’ in weekHong Kong authorities are facing a growing backlash after seizing a “fighting dog” from its owner following a neighbour’s complaint and detaining it for behavioural evaluation. It was the second dog with pit bull lineage that the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department had seized in a week. The department’s actions came amid heightened public concern over canine management, following a series of recent attacks, including one in which a woman was mauled and later found dead, and...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 30Long queues mark final day as Hong Kong bookstore closes after raidAn independent Hong Kong bookstore has shut its doors six weeks after a national security police raid, drawing long queues of customers on its final day following four years in business. Readers wound down the dim staircase of a Prince Edward tenement building on Sunday afternoon, with some waiting up to 45 minutes to enter the third-floor bookstore, Have a Nice Stay. The closure followed a mid-July operation by national security officers, who raided the shop alongside nearby Greenfield...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 30Hong Kong gives 45 Wang Fuk Court holdouts final call on buyout schemeHong Kong authorities are making a final push to persuade 45 holdout homeowners at fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court to join a government buyout scheme before Monday afternoon’s deadline. As of noon on Sunday, 1,939 of the estate’s 1,984 flat owners – or 97.7 per cent – had submitted acceptance letters, while 77.7 per cent had signed formal sale and purchase agreements, according to the government. This leaves about 45 homeowners, or 2.3 per cent, who have yet to accept the government’s buy-back offer...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 30‘Stuck’: Canada ends Hong Kong migration pathway, some turn to US and UKThe closure of Canada’s “lifeboat” migration scheme for Hongkongers has left some applicants who are struggling to meet permanent residency requirements in limbo, prompting others to consider alternative destinations such as the US and Britain. Hong Kong-based immigration agents made this observation on Sunday after Ottawa announced on Friday that its dedicated pathways for Hongkongers would stop accepting new applications on Monday. Applications submitted before the deadline will continue to be...South China Morning Post
WORLDAug 30Hong Kong police investigate viral video of dog in washing machineHong Kong police are investigating social media videos that appear to show a dog trapped inside a running washing machine. Police confirmed on Sunday that they had received a report the previous night about a video circulating on a social media platform showing a suspect treating a dog inappropriately. Two Instagram stories that surfaced on Saturday night show a dog inside a front-loading washing machine, tumbling with the drum as the machine runs through its cycles and fills with water. One of...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSAug 30Will Hong Kong see fewer creditor-led commercial property sales as assets stabilise?Financial distress in Hong Kong’s commercial property market has moderated but not been completely eliminated, analysts say, with highly leveraged asset owners still expected to find refinancing their loans a challenge. The city’s office and retail property segments have been mired in a multi-year slump, with new supply outstripping demand in recent years as consumption slowed and interest rates surged, triggering loan defaults. “We do not expect defaults will increase noticeably from this time...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSAug 30Legal battle over Hong Kong tycoon Lim Por-yen’s HK$2.9b estate set to rumble onA 15-year legal battle over late tycoon Lim Por-yen’s HK$2.9 billion (US$371.8 million) estate is set to continue, with rival parties preparing for further legal action after a Hong Kong court ruled that his third wife and children were entitled to inherit part of his estate. Lim’s estate lodged an appeal after losing the legal battle last year, while Pearl Ling Meng-chu, daughter of Lim’s third wife, told the South China Morning Post that she had not ruled out taking further action. “She is...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSAug 30JD.com’s US$1.3b expansion could test Hong Kong’s footfall-driven retail property modelJD.com’s rapid expansion in Hong Kong could challenge the property model that has long made the city’s busiest streets and shopping centres its most valuable, analysts say. The Chinese e-commerce giant has invested more than HK$10 billion (US$1.3 billion) in Hong Kong property over the past two years, building a network of stores, warehouses and other assets that analysts said could reduce the importance of footfall for some retailers while increasing the value of logistics hubs and other...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 30Former UN official says Hong Kong’s low fertility offers opportunity. Here’s howHong Kong’s low fertility rate is an opportunity rather than a challenge and gives the city a chance to become a global leader in building a child-friendly environment, a former UN resident coordinator in China has said. Siddharth Chatterjee, who held the role from 2021 until March this year, said Hong Kong could create a “pioneering blueprint” for others to follow if it could earn the status of a “Child Friendly City” under a UN initiative. While most developing countries and territories are...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 29Hong Kong’s Diocesan Boys’ School to become first to offer 3 university pathwaysHong Kong’s elite Diocesan Boys’ School is set to offer the International Advanced Level curriculum from 2027, becoming the city’s first school to offer three university pathways if it secures the Education Bureau’s approval. Headmaster Ronnie Cheng Kay-yen made the announcement on Saturday at a Primary One admission talk at its Mong Kok campus, after the school obtained approval from Cambridge International Education and the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority. “We are now waiting...South China Morning Post
DISASTERAug 29Hong Kong school opens at new Tai Po campus after deadly Wang Fuk Court blazeNearly 600 pupils and their teachers at a Hong Kong primary school closed after the deadly Wang Fuk Court blaze will be reunited at a newly renovated campus in Tai Po, ending months spent across two temporary sites. Tai Po Baptist Public School, formerly located near Wang Fuk Court, opened its new premises at Fu Shin Estate on Saturday, with pupils, teachers and parents expressing relief at finally having a settled place to reunite. The campus was formerly home to CCC Kei Ching Primary School,...South China Morning Post
DISASTERAug 29Hong Kong sets aside HK$50 million in relief fund for Nepal-Tibet flood victimsHong Kong’s government has earmarked HK$50 million (US$6.3 million) from the Disaster Relief Fund for those affected by deadly flash floods near Nepal’s border with Tibet’s Gyirong county, which have left hundreds dead and thousands missing. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced the move in a Facebook post on Saturday. “I express my deep condolences for the victims and extend my heartfelt sympathies to those affected and the families of the victims,” he said. He said the Disaster Relief...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSAug 29Several ride-hailing firms express interest in Hong Kong licences: ministerSeveral ride-hailing firms have expressed an interest in offering services under the new regulatory regime in Hong Kong, one day after the government opened licence applications setting out nine requirements, the transport chief has revealed. Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan said on Saturday that two to three firms had expressed an interest in offering ride-hailing services, emphasising that operators were capable of meeting the requirements. “Just one day after our announcement,...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 29Hong Kong lawyers gain route to practise in 9 Guangdong cities under new lawHong Kong and Macau lawyers will be able to practise in nine Guangdong cities from next week after passing an examination and obtaining the required qualifications under legal amendments passed by mainland China’s top legislative body. The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress passed amendments on Friday to China’s Lawyers Law, which will take effect on September 1. To qualify, Hong Kong and Macau lawyers must pass the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA) Legal...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSAug 29Hong Kong’s long-term wealth hub status safe from mainland investment curbs: JPMorgan execBeijing’s recent curbs on cross-border investment and a tax shift targeting overseas insurance gains may create short-term uncertainty, but they will not undermine Hong Kong’s long-term competitiveness as a major wealth management hub, according to a senior executive at JPMorgan Chase. Kwang Kam-shing, Hong Kong CEO and chairwoman of North Asia at the biggest bank by assets in the United States, said she remained optimistic about the long-term outlook for Asia’s financial sector, citing...South China Morning Post
POLITICSAug 28US Treasury sanctions Hong Kong-based firm over Iran money laundering tiesThe United States announced sanctions on a Hong Kong company on Friday for allegedly helping launder funds for a sanctioned Iranian exchange house, the latest Chinese entity to be targeted as part of Washington’s expanded efforts to squeeze Iran’s financial sector. The development comes as Washington has in recent days slapped new Iran-related sanctions on various Chinese entities, prompting Beijing to vow retaliation just weeks before Chinese President Xi Jinping’s expected visit to the...South China Morning Post
WORLDAug 28Hong Kong authorities to get tough on careless dog owners during special operationsHong Kong authorities will take enforcement action against dog owners who fail to keep their pets under control during special operations taking place on Sunday and the following weekend in response to a spate of canine attacks. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) also said on Friday that it seized a fighting dog at a restaurant in Stanley two days earlier after conducting an inspection in response to a complaint. It said that it would prosecute the owner if there was...South China Morning Post