South China Morning Post
China’s global tech push
Day: March 18, 2026
How China opened the door to creating a direct rival to US payment systems
China’s recent changes to the rules governing its global payment system could pave the way for turning it into a genuine alternative to Western networks, according to a new report. Beijing now appears to be moving towards building the Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) into a global platform compliant with multicurrency settlements and other foreign payment channels, said the study led by Ju Jiandong, a chair professor at Tsinghua University’s PBC School of Finance. Beijing recently undertook the first major update to the business rules governing the CIPS – which…
China’s PLA reveals AI-assisted aerial refuelling tech days after US military tanker crash
The People’s Liberation Army has announced a new AI-assisted task dispatch system for China’s aerial refuelling tankers, days after a US military tanker crashed in the Middle East. According to the official PLA Daily, the Chinese air force has streamlined its aerial refuelling operations with a smart artificial intelligence (AI) system to improve efficiency and safety. The report on Monday came just days after a US Air Force Boeing KC-135 “Stratotanker” aerial refuelling tanker crashed in western Iraq during America’s Operation Epic Fury against Iran. Advertisement According to the PLA…
AI is moving from answering questions to taking action
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Most of us have encountered artificial intelligence in the form of the chatbot. You ask a question and it gives you an answer. The exchange is low stakes because even if the AI is wrong the consequences are usually limited. Agentic AI breaks that model because it acts on its own. Give it a task and it will search, compare, decide and execute across digital systems on your behalf. The…
Pop Mart’s Labubu headed to big screen in collaboration with Sony Pictures
Chinese toymaker Pop Mart and Sony Pictures Entertainment announced on Thursday a feature film starring Labubu, the company’s most popular character. The film, still in early development, would be a mix of live action and computer-generated imagery, Pop Mart said in a statement. Advertisement Lung Ka-sing, the creator of Labubu, would serve as an executive producer, it said, while Paul King, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts-nominated filmmaker behind Wonka and Paddington, was attached to produce and direct. King would also co-write the script with Tony Award-winner Steven…
The Iran war is causing a global energy crisis – can China withstand it?
Wind, nuclear, solar and hydropower generated more than a third of China’s electricity in 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. But the country has since expanded its renewables grid significantly, with estimates saying more than half the installed capacity is now from clean sources. BBC
Why Beijing has struggled to rally Asia against Japan over Takaichi’s Taiwan remarks
China and Japan’s long-standing rivalry has deep historic roots, and relations between the two have taken a significant turn for the worse in recent months. This, the second in a three-part series, looks at whether Beijing overplayed its hand on the Taiwan issue in the face of what is a ‘strategic reality’ for Japan and how it may leverage its history of Japanese aggression. Find the first part here. More than four months into the bitter chill that has settled over China-Japan relations, the rift between the two major Asian…
FirstFT: Pakistan and Afghanistan pause hostilities after Kabul attack
Good morning and welcome back to FirstFT Asia. In today’s newsletter: Pakistan and Afghanistan pause hostilities The AI craze taking China by storm Li Ka-shing’s growing cash pile We start with conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan, after the neighbouring countries announced a temporary pause in hostilities yesterday for the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr. What’s happening: The pause eased fears of an immediate escalation in the conflict, following an air strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul on Monday night that Taliban officials said was carried out by Pakistan…
Fears grow over US drug supply’s rising dependence on Chinese ingredients
Beijing’s global pharmaceutical push is following a playbook seen in rare earths, semiconductors and electric vehicles, US lawmakers said on Wednesday, as concerns grow over the United States’ reliance on Chinese drug ingredients. “China is cornering the market on our medicines – from the supply of generic drugs that Americans depend on every day, to the cutting-edge biotech pipeline that will determine who leads medicine in the years and decades ahead,” said John Moolenaar, the chair of the House Select Committee on China. The hearing, titled “From the Science Lab…
US assesses mainland China not planning to attack Taiwan in 2027
China does not currently plan to attack Taiwan in 2027 and seeks to control the island without the use of force, the US intelligence community said on Wednesday, striking a measured tone on one of the world’s biggest potential flashpoints. The assessment in the intelligence agencies’ annual report on global threats comes as Beijing has stepped up pressure on Taiwan with frequent military drills, even as US President Donald Trump has played down the risk of Chinese military action while he is in office. The Pentagon late last year said…