Day: July 28, 2025

Advertisement The result was widely seen as a major setback for the island’s leader, William Lai Ching-te, and a turning point for the so-called Blue-White alliance between the two opposition parties. Saturday’s unprecedented recall vote, which targeted 24 KMT lawmakers accused of blocking key legislation and jeopardising the island’s security, ended with none losing their seats. A second round next month will target seven more KMT legislators, but observers say the chances of their removal are even slimmer given their stronger support in home districts. “This wasn’t just a failed…

After years of largely unchallenged control over the DR Congo’s critical minerals, China now faces growing US competition – a battle that Beijing is determined to win. Advertisement Now, a US consortium – including firms led by ex-military executives – has bid for the operator of the Etoile copper-cobalt mine. Meanwhile, KoBold Metals, backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, secured a deal with the DR Congo to explore the Manono lithium deposit, despite an ongoing legal dispute with Australia’s AVZ Minerals. The deals come shortly after a US-brokered “minerals-for-security”…

The yuan’s internationalisation remains on an upwards, if uneven, trajectory and is gradually reshaping the global monetary order, according to a new study released at a high-profile economic forum in Beijing – though some participants warned US efforts to dominate digital finance pose risks. Advertisement The yuan internationalisation index, which tracks the currency’s global use, rose by about 11 per cent in 2024 to 6.06, according to the Renmin University report released at this year’s International Monetary Forum, co-hosted with Nankai University on Sunday. By comparison, the US dollar scored…

Companies linked to Shi Yongxin, the disgraced head of China’s renowned Shaolin Temple, have been deregistered, and his Buddhist credentials revoked – with authorities citing “severe damage” caused to the image of the order. Advertisement The swift move to erase the institutional footprint of the abbot of China’s most famous Buddhist sanctuary came a day after temple authorities said Shi was under investigation for criminal charges, including embezzling funds and temple assets. The Buddhist Association of China, the national governing body overseeing Buddhist affairs, expressed its strong support for the…

After underperforming in China’s national college entrance exam in June, Lu Jie was accepted into a computer science and technology programme earlier this month at a lesser-known polytechnic university in central China’s Hunan province. Advertisement “Good schools had too many applicants for this major, so I had to choose a lower-ranked one to pursue it,” Lu said. The results for the exam, better known as the gaokao, have been released over the past two weeks – marking a life-changing moment for students like Lu. Now more than ever, students are…