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SCMP

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.
1. Trump extends Iran ceasefire, claims interception of ‘gift from China’
US President Donald Trump announced a last-minute extension of the ceasefire with Iran following a request from Pakistan’s top leadership, even as he appeared to suggest that American forces had intercepted a potentially lethal “gift from China” to Tehran.
2. Xi Jinping says Strait of Hormuz should be open in call with Saudi crown prince
The Strait of Hormuz should remain open, Chinese President Xi Jinping said in a phone call with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
3. 20 Hong Kong couples each get HK$60,000 triple baby bonus but disbursement lags

Twenty Hong Kong couples have each received baby bonuses totalling HK$60,000 (US$7,700) for having three children in about 2½ years. Yet less than 60 per cent of the HK$2.28 billion earmarked for the three-year government scheme has been disbursed as of February, with just over six months to go before it ends in October.
4. Why leading Chinese scientists are rising to the top in the Communist Party
The number of members from China’s leading scientific and engineering institutes in the top ranks of the Communist Party has doubled over the course of a decade, according to a new report.
5. Second cancer shock for Hong Kong actress Kristal Tin. How does disease strike?

Hong Kong artiste Kristal Tin Yui-lee has revealed on social media that cancer cells were found in her lymph nodes, more than a year after being diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer, drawing renewed attention to the disease.
6. Why Indonesia is ceding its role as Asean’s natural leader to Singapore

Indonesia appears to have ceded its position as Asean’s natural leader to Singapore in a new survey of regional opinion leaders, with analysts pinning the shift on President Prabowo Subianto’s preference for pursuing Jakarta’s ambitions outside the regional bloc.
7. China woman returns home to raise 60,000 snakes, earns US$146,000 a year
A young Chinese woman who returned to her hometown to raise more than 60,000 venomous snakes and earns more than a million yuan (US$147,000) a year has caused astonishment online.


Chinese brands eye Europe; Geely joins Chery and BYD in profit slide: 7 EV reads

Philippine pageant debate, Chinese stealth jets in Pakistan: 7 Asia highlights

Xi’s leverage ahead of Trump meet, Hong Kong schools: 5 weekend reads you missed

Shanghai’s changing expats, Hong Kong trail sign fallout: SCMP’s 7 highlights

SCMP Highlights

Trump extends Iran ceasefire; Hong Kong actress’ second cancer shock: SCMP’s 7 highlights

Cargo ships near the Strait of Hormuz. Photo: Reuters

The scheme, which launched in October 2023, provides a one-off HK$20,000 bonus to eligible parents for newborns. Photo: Jelly Tse

Kristal Tin revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer after Chinese New Year. Photo: Handout

Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto (right) shakes hands with Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong after a press conference at the presidential palace in Jakarta in November 2024. Photo: AFP

Asian-American family of ‘hot’ dentists; Hainan chicken rice roots: 7 Lifestyle highlights

The Chen family (from left): Aleq, Audree, Jennifer, Leon, Nina, Nasdaq and Niq. All seven members of the family are dentists. Photo: Niq Chen

Hainanese chicken rice at a restaurant in Hong Kong. Photo: Warton Li

Joey Yung performs in the JVC Awards Presentation ceremony by Metro Broadcast at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai in 1999. Photo: David Wong

Award-winning chef Keya Wingfield overate to numb her grief after the death of her newborn son in 2021, reaching a weight of 102kg by 2023. She shed 40kg by 2025. Photos: Instagram/keyaandco, courtesy of Keya Wingfield

An early line-up of toast creations by Cantoast, a bakery in London blending traditional Cantonese flavours with modern flair. Photo: Instagram/haydoncantoast

Singapore’s US-interest balancing act, viral Songkran clash: 7 Asia highlights

Fishermen pull their boats to the shore near the Kalpakkam atomic power station in Tamil Nadu. Photo: AP

A banner at a protest in Singapore’s Hong Lim Park on Saturday shows past and present US presidents with horns on their heads. Photo: Instagram/sgacadboycott

Screenshots from a viral video showing Songkran festival revelers spraying a van driver in Patong. Photo: TikTok / littlepatong

Gavin Chow (centre) after being named the winner of the Mr Bear International competition in Bangkok on Monday. Photo: Facebook / Mr Bear International

A combination photo shows South Korea’s former president Yoon Suk-yeol (left) exiting court in January and his wife, former first lady Kim Keon-hee, arriving at the special prosecutor’s office in Seoul in August last year. Photos: EPA/AFP

A look back on Queen Elizabeth II’s life, 100 years since her birth – from the SCMP archive

Queen Elizabeth II inspects the Royal Gurkha Rifles in Central during her second visit to Hong Kong on October 21, 1986. File photo: Howard Walker

The announcement of Queen Elizabeth’s birth on the April 22, 1926 issue of the South China Morning Post. Photo: SCMP

Princess Elizabeth, who would later become Queen Elizabeth II, plays with two corgi dogs at her home at 145 Piccadilly in London in July 1936. File photo: Getty Images

Queen Elizabeth II visits the HSBC headquarters in Central, accompanied by the bank’s then chairman Sir Michael Sandberg, on October 21, 1986. File photo: SCMP

A snapshot of the SCMP’s front page on October 23, 1986, during the queen’s second visit to Hong Kong. Photo: SCMP

Queen Elizabeth II visits the Sha Tin racecourse on October 22, 1986. File photo: SCMP

Queen Elizabeth II is accompanied by lawmaker Allen Lee Peng-fei during her visit to Hong Kong Polytechnic University on October 21, 1986. File photo: SCMP

King Charles III and members of the Royal family follow behind the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II after her state funeral, in London on September 19, 2022. File photo: AP

Hongkongers offer flowers to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth II outside the British Consulate in the city on September 10, 2022. Photo: AFP

News

World

From Hong Kong’s triple baby bonus scheme to President Xi Jinping’s Strait of Hormuz call, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting


From Hong Kong’s triple baby bonus scheme to President Xi Jinping’s Strait of Hormuz call, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting.


Trump extends Iran ceasefire; Hong Kong actress’ second cancer shock: SCMP’s 7 highlights

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}From Hong Kong’s triple baby bonus scheme to President Xi Jinping’s Strait of Hormuz call, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting

1. Trump extends Iran ceasefire, claims interception of ‘gift from China’

From Hong Kong’s triple baby bonus scheme to President Xi Jinping’s Strait of Hormuz call, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting