Author: Media Library

The Fujian, mainland China’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, has made its first transit of the Taiwan Strait since its commissioning, with Taipei keeping a close eye on its movements. Taiwan’s defence ministry said on Wednesday that while the carrier, Beijing’s third, passed through the waterway, it appeared to be heading back to a Shanghai shipyard for repairs. The ministry also released a surveillance photograph of the Fujian, reportedly captured by F-16 fighter jets, showing no carrier-based aircraft on its flight deck during the transit. Advertisement Taiwanese Defence Minister…

China’s newest transport aircraft has conducted its maiden flight, images circulating on social media suggested, as the People’s Liberation Army moves to update its tactical transport fleet. Photographs and videos circulating online on Tuesday showed a four-engine turboprop aircraft. The most detailed images showed it had six-blade propellers, a T-tail, a blended winglet configuration and possibly an aerial refuelling probe positioned above the cockpit – a structure found on the Airbus A400M. A model of the new medium-lift transport, developed by the Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation, first went on display at…

China’s market regulator has warned that internet platforms demanding merchants offer the “lowest price across the internet” may face antitrust action, as Beijing steps up efforts to curb malpractice. The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) explained some details of its draft – Antitrust Compliance Guidelines for Internet Platforms – at a press conference on Wednesday, according to Xinhua. The “lowest-price” requirement, where platforms bar merchants from selling cheaper elsewhere, is one of eight potential violations identified in the draft, according to Liu Jian, deputy director of antitrust enforcement at…

China is accelerating efforts to secure its copper supply chain, designating the metal as critical across strategic industries such as electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and defence amid rising geopolitical tensions. Provincial governments are leading the charge. On Monday, Jiangxi – already a hub for heavy rare earth mines – pledged in its 15th five-year plan to develop a world-leading hub for advanced copper-based new materials. That follows a similar move in Shandong, where provincial authorities vowed on December 9 to build a 200 billion yuan (US$28.4 billion) copper industry by…

The mainland Chinese military’s Eastern Theatre Command, the corruption-hit division that oversees Taiwan, appears to be headed by two recent additions to the command. The appointments will enable the command to maintain continuity of operations despite the corruption cases among its leadership, according to an analyst. PLA Air Force Lieutenant General Yang Zhibin, 62, and Lieutenant General Zhang Jichun, 57, stood alongside other senior officials at mainland China’s annual commemoration of the Nanking massacre in Nanjing, in eastern Jiangsu province, on Saturday, according to footage aired by state broadcaster CCTV.…

McDonald’s China arm has raised prices on most menu items, igniting a social media backlash as consumers grapple with job uncertainty and stagnant wages. Patrons discovered this week that prices for burgers, snacks and combos rose by up to 1 yuan (US$0.14). While modest, the increase drew attention because the chain’s budget combo has long been dubbed the “poor man’s meal” by frugal young adults. Some quipped online that “McDonald’s prices are rising, but my salary isn’t”, or that the popular “1+1” value meal, introduced in 2019 at 12 yuan…

We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China desalination tech makes fresh water cheaper than tap water – plus hydrogen China has launched a revolutionary facility in the eastern province of Shandong that produces fresh water from seawater for just two yuan (US$0.28) per cubic metre, generating green hydrogen as a by-product in a breakthrough that could redefine global water and energy systems.…

China’s top economic policy coordinator has urged the country to confront unavoidable challenges, while expressing confidence that investment and consumption growth will recover next year as efforts to boost domestic demand intensify. An unnamed official from the Office of the Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission said the current challenges were “issues arising in the course of development and transition”. “[They] cannot be avoided or sidestepped, but with effort they can be resolved,” the official said in an interview focused on last week’s tone-setting central economic work conference that was…

Chinese scientists have turned allergy into a powerful weapon against cancer to deliver drugs and turbocharge the body’s own immune attack on cancer. The team loaded mast cells – which cause allergic symptoms when they encounter antigens such as seafood and pollen – with anticancer drugs to deliver them into tumours. The researchers said they were working to swiftly transition the method to clinical application, including by exploring its potential combination with existing cancer immunotherapies. 04:03 China-Singapore team’s nanovaccine suppresses cancer recurrence and spread in animal tests China-Singapore team’s nanovaccine…