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How One Country Became the Unlikely Crossroads of the Global A.I. Boom

Oct 31, 2026

In Malaysia, U.S. and Chinese tech giants are pouring billions into vast data centers, straining local resources and testing the limits of Washington’s restrictions on advanced chips.

Wanted: New Central Bank Chief. Expertise and Political Acumen Required.

Oct 31, 2026

Hainan's digital reporting system streamlines grassroots governance

Oct 31, 2026

Big Tech’s Data Center Blitz Is Burning Through Cash and Scaring Wall St.

Oct 31, 2026

Obamacare Policies Hit Again With Steep Premium Increases for 2027

Oct 30, 2026

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Be it updates about your business or your community, you can make sure that it’s heard by submitting your story to our network reaching hundreds of news sites across 6 verticals.

Latest News

Oct 30, 2026

Binance Lost Over $6 Billion in Crypto Hack. Here’s What to Know.

Hackers made off with around $6 billion in digital currency in what could be the biggest crypto heist in history. Binance said it will cover the losses.

Oct 30, 2026

Soaring cost of Halloween treats spooks shoppers

Oct 30, 2026

Binance’s $6.3 Billion Hack Is Just the Start of a Risky New Era

Oct 30, 2026

Crypto giant Binance attempting to recover $6.3bn stolen in hack linked to North Korea

Oct 30, 2026

Binance Was Hacked. What Protections Exist for Crypto Customers?

Interesting Read

US markets hit by big tech sell-off

The sell-off for tech stocks on Wall Street worsened on Friday on fears that the frenzy around AI has sent prices too high. The S&P 500 dropped 140.32 points, or 1.8 percent, to 7,580.07, for its worst day since June. The Nasdaq composite fell 747.72 points, or 2.9 percent, to 25,437.00, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 572.25 points, or 1.1 percent, to 51,770.31. Intel sank almost 29 percent for its worst day since 1974 after its profit forecast was below analysts’ expectations. Amazon’s latest profit report raised more worries about how much companies are spending on their AI Investments. Treasury yields sank as investors searched for safer things to own, even though oil prices rose. (AP) Edited by Robert Kemp

Oct 31, 2026

Why the Markets Don’t Care About the Midterms

Factors like inflation, interest rates, A.I. and the war with Iran are far more important, our columnist says.

Oct 30, 2026

Amid fuel tax cut, German inflation slows

German inflation slowed more than expected in October, the first month of a government fuel tax cut, adding to evidence that Europe's largest economy could prove more resilient than anticipated despite disruptions linked to the war in Iran. Gross domestic product increased slightly more than expected in the third quarter, though economists warned the expansion remained heavily reliant on government spending. Inflation eased to 2.8 percent year-on-year in October from 3.3 percent the month before, preliminary data from the statistics office showed on Friday, below forecasts for 3.1 percent. Easing energy price rises drove the slowdown, increasing by 12.2 percent in October versus 14.9 percent the month before, and indicated that the fuel tax cut that runs to year-end is having an effect. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, fell to 2.1 percent from 2.4 percent the month before. The German data comes ahead of a euro zone inflation update due on Wednesday. Inflation in the bloc is expected to come in at 3.9 percent in October, slightly above September's 3.8 percent, according to economists polled by Reuters. German GDP increased by 0.2 percent in the third quarter compared with the previous three-month period, according to preliminary data from the statistics office, slightly above a rise of 0.1 percent forecast by analysts polled by Reuters. The data pointed to a fourth straight quarter of recovery in Europe's largest economy, helped by increased public spending, even as private sector momentum remained subdued. Under Chancellor Friedrich Merz, government funding has surged since Berlin last year approved a €500 billion infrastructure fund and exempted much defence spending from its debt brake rules. The economy grew by 0.3 percent in the second quarter and 0.4 percent in the first quarter, according to the office. The fuel tax cut, which aims to cushion households from the surge in oil prices caused by the Iran war, will likely help the economy hold up in the fourth quarter as well, said Deutsche Bank analyst Marc Schattenberg. However, with no sign of a lasting de-escalation in the Middle East, energy prices are unlikely to drop noticeably and will continue to stoke inflation in coming months, say analysts. "It is clear that the inflation rate will hover around 3 percent for some time to come," said Alexander Krueger, chief economist at Bethmann HAL bank. "Given this backdrop, an interest rate hike by the ECB cannot be ruled out." The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged on Thursday but clearly hinted at another hike in December. While analysts broadly agree Germany is emerging from a prolonged slowdown, many stop short of calling the recovery self-sustaining because private investment remains weak. A lack of sweeping reforms means Germany's attractiveness as a place to do business will remain impaired, preventing a significant recovery in private investment, Commerzbank chief economist Joerg Kraemer said. Analysts pointed to the increased government spending on infrastructure and defence as the main driver of the recovery. "Without this artificially initiated impulse, economic output would probably have stagnated," said Krueger. Jens-Oliver Niklasch, economist at LBBW bank, said that next year would reveal whether the economic revival is sustainable or just a flash in the pan. "For sustained, higher growth, investment would need to pick up more substantially, which, to date, has not been the case," he said. The German government expects the economy to grow by 1.3 percent in 2026 and 1.1 percent in 2027, with the economy ministry saying earlier this month that the Iran war, and resulting high energy prices, is not hurting the economy as much as feared. In a further positive sign, the Ifo economic institute's closely watched business climate index rose for a sixth straight month in October. (Reuters) Edited by Edmond Fong

Oct 30, 2026

HK bucks trend as tech jitters rattle regional markets

Blue-chip shares on the mainland closed lower on Friday and booked their steepest monthly loss since early 2016, as a global selloff in AI stocks weighed on sentiment. In Hong Kong, however, the benchmark Hang Seng Index ended 335 points, or 1.5 percent, higher for the day at 23,294 on turnover of HK$214.32 billion and was 0.9 percent up for the week. The tech index rose 10 points, or 0.3 percent, to 3,754, although the gauge still hovered near its lowest in two years. "At valuations of 10-11 times price-to-earnings after accounting for new AI investment, we think some stocks are increasingly treating the spending peak as a permanent earnings burden, while assigning limited value to a normalisation of future cash flows or successful AI monetisation," said Kenneth Fong, head of China internet research at UBS. Financials led gains, up 1.3 percent, while mainland property developers rose 2.8 percent. The China enterprises index put on 106 points, or 1.4 percent, to end at 7,862. Across the border, the Shanghai Composite Index lost 52 points, or 1.44 percent, to close at 3,599 on turnover of 764.22 billion yuan while the blue-chip CSI300 Index fell 1.4 percent to close near a one-year low. The CSI300 Index was down 8.5 percent for the month, its biggest monthly loss in more than a decade. Over the last 12 weeks, it has lost 15 percent, the longest losing streak on record. The Shenzhen Component Index fell 304 points, or 2.73 percent, to 10,833 on turnover of 910.23 billion yuan while the ChiNext Index plunged 103 points, or 4.13 percent, to 2,413 on turnover of 452.21 billion yuan. AI-related shares led declines after a selloff in US technology stocks reignited concerns about the returns on heavy AI spending. Shares in Google parent Alphabet, Amazon.com and Intel all fell on AI cash burn. Memory chip giant SK Hynix fell more than seven percent. CSI 5G communications, a gauge that measures the industry, slumped 6.2 percent. Shares of Chinese optical module producer Eoptolink Tech tumbled 14 percent and were down 50 percent this month. Against broad declines, consumer staple shares rose two percent as investors rotated into less risky sectors. In Tokyo, the Nikkei fell 1,369 points, or 2.12 percent, to close at 63,290 for the day, led lower by chip-equipment heavyweights Advantest and Tokyo Electron. For the week, the benchmark managed to gain one percent. The broader Topix was down a milder one percent on Friday but flat for the week. In Seoul, the Kospi closed down 206 points, or 3.48 percent, at 5,730 for the day and 16.2 percent for the month, after diving up to 5.7 percent earlier and triggering a sidecar trading curb. (Reuters/Xinhua) Edited by Tony Sabine

Oct 30, 2026

What’s New at the Museum? Stargazing, Escape Rooms, Bachelorette Parties and More

Museums are pitching themselves as date-night destinations — and finding a generation of takers.

Oct 30, 2026

Crypto platform Binance confirms US$6.3bn hack

Hackers stole US$6.3 billion from Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, in what analysts say is the biggest crypto hack ever, an attack that could prompt investors to rethink the risks of owning digital assets. The hackers behind the raid had alleged ties to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), according to US blockchain analysis firms TRM Labs and Chainalysis. The attackers targeted Binance wallets on 10 blockchains and shifted most of the funds in about 20 minutes, TRM Labs said in a statement. Binance said it worked with partners to freeze the affected assets with about US$3 billion located so far. It did not mention the status of the remaining US$3.3 billion, and its co-founder Yi He said the exchange would cover "all hacking losses". Binance said its deposits were unaffected and it expects to resume withdrawal services in the next 48 hours. TRM said several features of the attack matched earlier heists linked to the DPRK, including a 2025 hack of crypto exchange Bybit that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation had attributed to Pyongyang. "We make this judgement with high confidence," it said in a statement. The DPRK’s mission in Geneva and its embassy in China did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. The incident could be the world's biggest crypto heist, according to analytics firm Chainalysis and other industry experts. "It's the biggest hack in history," said Aravind Srinivasan, head of large crypto market maker GSR's systematic OTC business. Markets reacted immediately in Asian trading on Friday. Bitcoin dropped more than three percent to a six-week low of US$76,368 and ether fell more than three percent to a two-month low of US$2,178. BNB, a token originally launched as Binance Coin that can be used to pay Binance fees, was down five percent over the past 24 hours at US$709.70, according to market aggregator CoinGecko. Shares in crypto exchange Coinbase Global slid 4.8 percent while those of bitcoin buyer Strategy fell nearly six percent in extended US trading. An initial investigation suggested the breach may have started with a hacked laptop belonging to one of its engineers, which let an attacker gain access to one of its systems and make unauthorised withdrawals, Binance said. "The incident stems from multiple factors. Our security team is tracing the full attack path through the compromised computer which may be the entry point of the incident," Binance said. Beyond the potential loss of assets, the security breach was likely to have wider ramifications for crypto, which had already been under pressure due to higher US interest rates and softer demand from exchange-traded fund buyers, analysts said. "It may further dampen risk appetite and prompt investors to reassess the safety of assets held on centralised exchanges, as well as counterparty, solvency and liquidity risks," said Tim Sun, senior researcher at HashKey Group, based in Hong Kong. Binance, which allows users to buy, sell and trade digital assets, has 335 million registered users globally and had about US$162.8 billion in assets under custody as of the exchange's 2025 annual report. "User funds remain safe," Binance said in a statement. Binance runs a secure asset fund for users, which is a reserve held entirely in bitcoin that is intended to protect user assets in cases of security breaches, according to its website. "It's becoming very hard to counter hacks as AI can find vulnerabilities faster than you can fix them," said Bernardo Brites, CEO of Trace Finance, a payments and stablecoin infrastructure company. "My view is that users will move away from smaller and medium-sized exchanges, (it is) becoming too risky to park your money somewhere that couldn't cover a hack of meaningful size." Stablecoin issuer Tether said it had frozen nearly US$1.57 billion in assets linked to the incident, while Circle froze more than US$800 million. World Liberty Financial, a crypto company linked to US President Donald Trump and his family, said on Thursday it had worked with cryptocurrency custodian BitGo to freeze funds stolen in what it described as a Binance hack. Binance's Yi said US$27 million in stablecoins and about US$2 million worth of World Liberty tokens had been frozen. Crypto firm Ripple also froze roughly US$200 million in funds, Yi said. Jack McDonald, senior vice president of stablecoins at Ripple, said the company was closely monitoring reports of a potential exploit involving Binance and was freezing affected funds and coordinating with relevant parties. The incident adds to a string of crypto thefts. Last year, attackers stole US$2.9 billion worth of cryptocurrency across nearly 150 attacks, according to researchers at TRM Labs. In September, cryptocurrency exchange Bitget said roughly US$350 million in crypto had been stolen from its platform, underscoring the industry's vulnerability to hackers. Authorities have warned that organised crime groups are increasingly using cryptocurrencies to move funds across borders outside the traditional financial system. Binance.US, a separate cryptocurrency exchange, said it was not affected by the security incident. Coinbase said it was unaffected and was monitoring the situation. (Reuters) Edited by Tony Sabine

Oct 30, 2026

Investment firm PAG buys 51pc of Evergrande unit

Asia-focused investment firm PAG will acquire a 51 percent stake in Evergrande Property Services Group, a unit of debt-laden developer China Evergrande Group, for HK$4.03 billion, the two said in a joint announcement on Friday. The acquisition marks a major step in liquidators' efforts to sell assets and recover funds for creditors of China Evergrande, which received a combined US$46 billion in creditor claims. The sale follows a competitive auction run by the liquidators, according to the filed announcement. PAG said in the filing that Evergrande Property's business generated stable, recurring revenue from a diversified portfolio of managed properties across China. PAG said taking control of the listed services unit would remove uncertainty tied to the liquidation of China Evergrande and CEG Holdings, and could strengthen market confidence. PAG will fund the acquisition and the offer, if fully accepted, with acquisition financing and equity committed by PAG Fund IV, the filing said. The offer values the 5.52 billion shares at HK$0.8359 each, a 29 percent discount to Evergrande Property's last closing price on Wednesday. The stock was suspended on Thursday pending the announcement and dropped 13.5 percent after trading resumed on Friday. The offer values Evergrande Property Services at about HK$9.04 billion, compared to a market capitalisation of roughly HK$11.08 billion after the shares dropped to HK$1.025. PAG will also pay 500 million yuan at completion for certain taxes, transaction fees and other liabilities of CEG Holdings, according to the filing. Following completion of the deal, PAG will be required to make an unconditional offer for the remaining 5.3 billion shares in the company. Goldman Sachs is advising PAG on the acquisition and potential mandatory offer, while UBS and Citic Securities are joint financial advisers to China Evergrande and CEG Holdings. The deal remains subject to Chinese antitrust approval, among other conditions. The parties can terminate the agreement if these conditions are not met or waived by February 12, 2027, according to the filing. China Evergrande, once China's premier property developer, defaulted on most of its US$300 billion in liabilities following Beijing's sweeping crackdown on the property sector six years ago. The liquidators of China Evergrande and CEG Holdings informed Evergrande Property a year ago that they were seeking to sell the 51.016 percent stake, according to the filing. PAG intends to keep Evergrande Property listed in Hong Kong and does not plan major changes to its operations or workforce, apart from nominating new directors at the earliest time permitted under takeover. Edited by Tony Sabine

Oct 30, 2026

HK stocks up amid fears over returns from AI build-out

Tech shares slumped in Asia on Friday, the yen rose and bonds surged towards their biggest monthly gain in nearly three years as investors scurried to safety against worries that huge and rising AI spending may not deliver sufficient returns. In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index opened up 52 points, or 0.23 percent, at 23,011. The China enterprises index rose 23 points, or 0.31 percent, to 7,779 while the tech index fell 23 points, or 0.63 percent, to 3,720. Up north, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index opened down 45 points, or 1.25 percent, at 3,605. The blue-chip CSI300 headed for its largest monthly fall in a decade, after nearly four months of AI stocks tanking on fears that a slowdown in demand for chips and other data centre equipment could crush revenues. The Shenzhen Component Index fell 267 points, or 2.4 percent, to 10,871 while the ChiNext Index plunged 3.29 percent to 2,434. In Tokyo, the Nikkei opened 315 points, or 0.49 percent, down at 64,344 and was 1,742 points lower at one stage before noon as the tech-heavy 225 benchmark tracked overnight losses on Wall Street and was given additional impetus by late earnings from Amazon.com and Intel that showed massive cash burns. In Seoul, the Kospi dived 177 points, or 2.99 percent, to open at 5,760 before continuing its downward spiral to be 313 points down at one stage before noon, triggering at one point a sidecar trading curb and halting algorithmic trading for five minutes. The weakness in Asian markets came as shares in Google parent Alphabet fell 12.6 percent on Wall Street and slid a little further after hours, to wipe out a withering US$500 billion in market value, as massive AI spending turned the company's cash flow negative. An aftermarket plunge of 23 percent in Intel shares and a drop of seven percent in Amazon stocks, as they too burn through cash, drove Nasdaq 100 futures down 1.4 percent and sent stocks of chipmakers around Asia into a tailspin. "The market isn't necessarily questioning whether the AI buildout can be financed," said Pepperstone analyst Chris Weston. "It's increasingly questioning whether shareholders will earn an adequate return on the enormous capital being deployed." Nerves were also frayed by a potentially record-breaking hack at Binance, the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange, which drove down bitcoin, other cryptocurrency prices and stocks including rival exchange Coinbase. Investors' rush into bonds was further spurred further by the Federal Reserve's Wednesday decision to keep US interest rates on hold, with no firm projection of when it might need to hike next. Benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields fell by more than seven basis points in Tokyo trade on Friday to 4.91 percent for a fall of some 37 bps through October – the largest one-month drop since December 2023. The risk-averse mood strengthened haven currencies such as the yen, pushing the currency up about 0.2 percent to 157.47 per US dollar. (Reuters/Xinhua) Edited by Tony Sabine

Oct 30, 2026

Assets frozen after possible Binance hack

Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, on Thursday said it had frozen US$3 billion in crypto assets as it investigated a potential security breach, with stablecoin issuers Circle and Tether freezing related assets. "Binance will cover all hacking losses," Binance co-founder Yi He said, without providing more details about the incident. The market impact of the possible hacking, which could be the largest-ever crypto heist according to analytics firm Chainalysis, was felt immediately in early Asian trading on Friday. Bitcoin dropped about two percent to a six-week low of US$77,646 and ether fell around two percent to a two-month low of US$2,238.76. BNB, a token originally launched as Binance Coin that can be used to pay Binance fees, was down more than eight percent over the past 24 hours at US$694, according to market aggregator CoinGecko. Crypto exchange Coinbase Global slid 4.8 percent while those of bitcoin buyer Strategy fell nearly six percent in extended US trading. Binance said the amount frozen could increase as it worked with law enforcement agencies, token issuers, blockchain intelligence firms and other industry partners to trace and freeze additional assets. Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao, who no longer runs the company, said in a post on X that the incident "looked like a hack." Binance, which allows users to buy, sell and trade digital assets, has more than 335 million registered users globally and had about US$160 billion in assets under custody as of the exchange's 2024 annual report. Binance runs a secure asset fund for users, according to its website, which is a reserve held entirely in bitcoin that is intended to protect user assets in cases of security breaches. "It's becoming very hard to counter hacks as AI can find vulnerabilities faster than you can fix them, said Bernardo Brites, CEO of Trace Finance, a payments and stablecoin infrastructure company. "My view is that users will move away from smaller and medium-sized exchanges, (it is) becoming too risky to park your money somewhere that couldn't cover a hack of meaningful size." Tether said it had frozen nearly US$1.57 billion in assets linked to the incident, while Circle froze more than US$800 million. Binance said it was conducting security checks and would resume withdrawals once the issue was fully resolved. It added user funds remained safe and that teams were reviewing the incident. The exchange also temporarily suspended trading on its Binance Alpha platform as a precaution. World Liberty Financial, a crypto company linked to US President Donald Trump and his family, said on Thursday it had worked with cryptocurrency custodian BitGo to freeze funds stolen in what it described as a Binance hack. Binance's Yi said US$27 million in stablecoins and about US$2 million worth of World Liberty tokens had been frozen. Crypto firm Ripple also froze roughly US$200 million in funds, Yi said. Jack McDonald, senior vice president of stablecoins at Ripple, said the company was closely monitoring reports of a potential exploit involving Binance and was freezing affected funds and coordinating with relevant parties. Miguel Morel, CEO of blockchain intelligence firm Arkham, said data indicated that billions of dollars appeared to have been hacked from Binance by an unknown actor, though the exact cause had not been confirmed. Morel said the incident began around 4.30 pm EDT and appeared to be ongoing. The incident adds to a string of crypto thefts. Last year, attackers stole US$2.9 billion worth of cryptocurrency across nearly 150 attacks, according to researchers at TRM Labs. In September, cryptocurrency exchange Bitget said roughly US$350 million in crypto had been stolen from its platform, underscoring the industry's vulnerability to hackers. (Reuters) _____________________________ Last updated: 2026-10-30 HKT 09:55 Edited by Cecil Wong

Oct 30, 2026

Tech Stocks See Worst Day Since June, Pressuring Broader Market

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 had their worst day since June as investors worried about spending on A.I. infrastructure.

Oct 30, 2026

US tech stocks see sharp falls as AI spending nears $1tn

Shares in Intel continue to fall while the tech-heavy Nasdaq opens at its lowest level in more than two months.

Oct 30, 2026

Lawsuit Accuses Education Dept. of Throttling Debt Cancellation Through PSLF Program

Public servants on the brink of student debt forgiveness are facing setbacks and extensive delays. The American Federation of Teachers sued to help them.

Oct 30, 2026

The Tech Tumult Rocks Wall Street

Investors are growing nervous about the huge spending bills that tech giants are amassing to pay for their bets on artificial intelligence.

Featured News

How One Country Became the Unlikely Crossroads of the Global A.I. Boom

Wanted: New Central Bank Chief. Expertise and Political Acumen Required.

Hainan's digital reporting system streamlines grassroots governance

Big Tech’s Data Center Blitz Is Burning Through Cash and Scaring Wall St.

Obamacare Policies Hit Again With Steep Premium Increases for 2027

Latest News

Binance Lost Over $6 Billion in Crypto Hack. Here’s What to Know.

Soaring cost of Halloween treats spooks shoppers

Binance’s $6.3 Billion Hack Is Just the Start of a Risky New Era

Crypto giant Binance attempting to recover $6.3bn stolen in hack linked to North Korea

Binance Was Hacked. What Protections Exist for Crypto Customers?

Interesting Read

Tech Stocks See Worst Day Since June, Pressuring Broader Market

US tech stocks see sharp falls as AI spending nears $1tn

Lawsuit Accuses Education Dept. of Throttling Debt Cancellation Through PSLF Program

The Tech Tumult Rocks Wall Street

Business News

Stock Market News

Economy News

Why Kalshi Wants to Repeal a 1958 Law About Onions

Binance Hack Sends Crypto Stocks Tumbling

Meta Settles Social Media Addiction Case, Avoiding Trial

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