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How video game remakes tap the power of nostalgia

Oct 30, 2026

Video games are good at triggering nostalgia, a key reason why classic games keep getting remade.

Crypto giant Binance hit by $6.3bn hack suspected to be largest in history

Oct 30, 2026

Who should pay on the first date?

Oct 30, 2026

P&R urged to speed up review of relocation grants

Oct 30, 2026

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

Oct 30, 2026

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Oct 30, 2026

In China, the War on Mosquitoes Has Entered the A.I. Era

Using sensors developed for self-driving cars, a Chinese start-up claims it can track and destroy tiny flying targets while avoiding people, pets and reflective surfaces.

Oct 30, 2026

Binance Grapples With ‘Security Incident’ That May Cause $6.3 Billion in Losses

Oct 30, 2026

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

Oct 30, 2026

EU trade measures threaten UK auto recovery: SMMT

Oct 30, 2026

From workshops to the catwalk - why mended clothes are going mainstream

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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

US stocks slip as Google drags down Nasdaq

Wall Street stocks retreated on Thursday, led by the tech-focused Nasdaq after disappointing results from Google parent Alphabet exacerbated concerns over whether the global technology boom can be sustained. Shares of Alphabet finished down more than 12 percent, resulting in around a US$480 billion hit to the tech giant's market value in a bruising session. European bourses had advanced earlier in the day, with the European Central Bank leaving interest rates unchanged after the Federal Reserve maintained US borrowing costs on Wednesday. The euro dipped after Christine Lagarde announced she would step down as the ECB's president in February, but then rose after her press conference. The drop in Alphabet weighed on all three major US equity indices, led by the tech-focused Nasdaq, which lost 1.4 percent. The Alphabet slump came after it reported disappointing growth in both advertising revenue and revenue from its search business. The company also said it would continue to increase capex spending significantly in 2027 after estimating the 2026 level as between US$195 billion to US$205 billion. "I would broadly think of all of this as a long-range planning process, not a short-term allocation exercise," Google CEO Sundar Pichai told analysts of the company's investment splurge. But markets were unnerved by the plan. The Alphabet report "is renewing concerns about AI investment returns, helping push the Nasdaq sharply lower," said a note from Briefing.com. Shareholders "want clear evidence that all of this investment will eventually translate into stronger profits," Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones said. But Kourkafas noted that the weakness in equities was not broad-based, with Eli Lilly and MasterCard among the companies that gained after earnings reports. "Money is not exiting equities. It's just moving around and rotating," Kourkafas said. Government data showed US economic growth in third quarter came in at a better than expected 3.4 percent, with authorities citing solid consumer spending as a factor. The US Federal Reserve's preferred gauge for inflation – the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index – rose by 3.6 percent year-on-year in September, an increase from the previous month. The reports came a day after the Fed kept interest rates flat despite elevated inflation. As expected by economists, the ECB meanwhile left its benchmark rate unchanged at 2.5 percent, after having already lifted it twice this year. The decision came just hours after Lagarde announced she would step down early, in February 2027. Lagarde gave little away about her next moves at Thursday's press conference, saying only she wanted to be able to speak more freely on matters outside of monetary policy. This will stoke expectations that the former French finance minister, who served in centre-right governments, could campaign in the presidential elections, although she has previously ruled out running for the presidency herself. Eurozone inflation rose to a three-year high of 3.8 percent in September, driven by surging energy costs amid the Middle East conflict, but the ECB stressed core inflation – excluding food and energy costs – was under control. "While the full effects of the energy shock are still unfolding, underlying inflation has remained broadly stable so far," Lagarde said. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 1.4 percent, to 26,185, the S&P 500 fell 0.3 percent, to 7,720, and the Dow also fell 0.3 percent, to 52,343. (AFP) Edited by Robert Kemp

Oct 29, 2026

US economy posts stronger Q3 growth

The US economy grew at a healthy 3.4 percent annual pace from July through September, accelerating from the second quarter on strong consumer spending and investment in artificial intelligence. The expansion in third-quarter gross domestic product – the nation’s output of goods and services – was faster than the 2.2 percent growth registered from April through June, the US Commerce Department said on Thursday. Consumer spending rose at a brisk 3.8 percent clip in the third quarter, and business investment was up sharply, reflecting the AI boom. The American economy – by far, the world’s biggest – has proven resilient in the face of higher energy prices caused by the fighting with Iran. Economists had expected GDP to grow 3 percent in the third quarter, according to a survey of forecasters by the data firm FactSet. US growth has been lifted by an AI investment boom. Business investment, excluding housing, was up 12.7 percent in the third quarter. Investment in information processing equipment surged 37.4 percent, in software 9.6 percent and in research and development 7.5 percent. However, housing investment, hurt by high mortgage rates, dropped 3.3 percent and has now fallen six of the last seven quarters. Thursday’s report was the first of three Commerce Department estimates of third-quarter GDP growth. (AP) Edited by Edmond Fong

Oct 29, 2026

HK stocks fall as Samsung chip result weighs on region

Mainland stocks ended lower on Thursday as a deepening selloff in tech shares overshadowed the US Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates unchanged. In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 136 points, or 0.6 percent, to 22,958 on turnover of HK$189.45 billion. The tech index dived 109 points, or 2.8 percent, to 3,744 while the China Enterprises Index slipped 35 points, or 0.5 percent, to 7,755. On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index closed down 30 points, or 0.82 percent, at 3,651 on turnover of 715.62 billion yuan while the blue-chip CSI300 index fell one percent. The Shenzhen Component Index plunged 334 points, or 2.92 percent, to 11,138 on turnover of 840.89 billion yuan while tech shares were among the main drags, with the startup board ChiNext Composite index ChiNext Index diving 117 points, or 4.45 percent, to 2,517 on turnover of 419.35 billion yuan. Shanghai's tech-focused Star50 index tumbled 4.3 percent to notch the weakest close since September 2025. CSI 5G communications, which tracks 5G communications companies, plunged 7.4 percent. Robot maker Yushu Technology, also known as Unitree, slumped 4.8 percent after its third-quarter net profit fell despite revenue rising 70 percent from a year earlier in its first earnings report since listing. "Valuations for the tech AI hardware names are now close to the historical trough and imply a major deceleration in EPS growth ahead," said James Wang, head of China strategy at UBS Investment Bank Research. "We are wary that investor sentiment on AI is fragile; however, we believe the risk-reward is looking more attractive again, and interest may come back towards the end of the year as investors rebuild their portfolios for the new year." The Fed held interest rates steady, as expected, on Wednesday, opting to delay any changes to borrowing costs until after next week's US midterm elections while it awaits further data on inflation, which the central bank said "remains elevated". In Tokyo, the Nikkei ended 705 points, or 1.1 percent, higher at 64,659 in a volatile session that began with gains before briefly turning negative. The broader Topix index also reversed early losses to end the day up 11 points, or 0.29 percent, at 4,003. In Seoul, the Kospi fell 74 points, or 1.24 percent, to 5,937 as the shares of chip giant Samsung Electronics dived over a lack of fresh shareholder-return plans and an outlook that lagged rival SK hynix's despite posting a 15-fold jump in quarterly profit. (Reuters & Xinhua) Edited by Aaron Tam

Oct 29, 2026

Five-year plan 'all about finding new growth engines'

Financial Secretary Paul Chan said on Thursday Hong Kong's first five-year plan provides a clear framework for policymaking and investment, urging businesses to understand the government's strategies and priorities so they can "plan and invest with confidence". Speaking at a business forum, Chan highlighted two connected priorities – finance, and innovation and technology – in the plan, which was unveiled last month. "For Hong Kong, we are equally determined to turn opportunities into lasting outcomes," he said. The government's "Finance+" approach, Chan pointed out, aims to develop new growth engines, support new industries and finance Hong Kong's green transition. "Hong Kong brings together capital, innovators, enterprises and professional expertise. "We want to put these strengths to fuller use, thereby developing new growth engines, supporting new industries, helping businesses transform and expand, as well as financing the green transition. "The question is not simply how much capital we attract but what that capital makes possible." Chan noted that Hong Kong's close connection with the mainland is central to this role, helping take technologies from the laboratory to the market at scale while marrying mainland strengths with international capital and global markets. He cited strong IPO momentum in this regard, saying Hong Kong raised some HK$388 billion in the first nine months of this year, which was more than double that of a year earlier. International investors from the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia and the Middle East are major players, while enterprises from the last two regions as well as Central Asia are exploring listing or bond-issuance opportunities. On innovation and technology, Chan said the Northern Metropolis project is more than just about land and buildings. "We are bringing education, research, talent, enterprises and industry together to create a new engine of growth," he said. He highlighted the Hetao co-operation zone as a clear example, where Hong Kong and mainland authorities are strengthening cooperation in clinical research and drug regulation, attracting international pharmaceutical companies to conduct research and set up manufacturing facilities. Edited by Aaron Tam

Oct 29, 2026

Samsung profits up a record 780pc despite AI jitters

Massive demand for AI chips delivered record quarterly profits to South Korea's Samsung Electronics on Thursday, but shares fell as investors questioned the resilience of the global tech boom. Samsung is the world's largest maker of memory chips – components in short supply as advanced types are snapped up for use in data centres powering artificial intelligence. The company posted July-September operating profit at 107.4 trillion won (US$80.5 billion) – up more than 780 percent year-on-year. It marked the first time any technology company had reported quarterly operating profit over 100 trillion won, Samsung said. Net profit jumped more than 510 percent from last year to 75.1 trillion won, while sales reached 195.3 trillion won. The global race to build data centres to train and run chatbots, image generators and other AI tools has turbocharged the fortunes of Samsung and other chipmakers, despite concerns that the sector may be overvalued. Samsung shares fell more than five percent on Thursday morning. Investors were disappointed by a miss of market expectations for operating profit by the semiconductor division, according to Bloomberg News. The company's memory business achieved "another record-breaking quarter by managing its product mix, with a focus on AI products, amid capacity constraints," Samsung said in a statement. "Strong demand momentum for servers led to higher market prices across all applications." (AFP) Edited by Aaron Tam

Oct 29, 2026

HKMA warns of interest rate risks as Fed holds steady

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) on Thursday reminded the public to carefully manage interest rate risks when making property, investment or borrowing decisions, after the US Federal Reserve kept its benchmark rate unchanged. The Fed's Federal Open Market Committee decided to hold the target range for the federal funds rate at 3.75 to four percent, a move in line with market expectations. "Hong Kong's monetary and financial markets have continued to operate in an orderly manner," the HKMA said in a statement. It noted that with the persistent interest rate differential between the Hong Kong and US dollars, trade activities may cause the local currency to gradually ease. However, the HKMA said the outlook for the Hong Kong dollar and interbank rates could vary depending on factors such as market risk appetite for carry trades and the supply-demand conditions for the local currency, which are in turn influenced by capital market activities and other seasonal factors. It added that US interest rate adjustments remain subject to considerable uncertainty and will depend on developments in inflation, the labour market and other economic data, which may in turn affect the interest rate environment in Hong Kong. The HKMA said it will continue to closely monitor market developments to maintain monetary and financial stability. Edited by Aaron Tam

Oct 29, 2026

Polymarket Is Investigating Suspicious Bets on Israeli Election

Oct 29, 2026

Featured News

How video game remakes tap the power of nostalgia

Crypto giant Binance hit by $6.3bn hack suspected to be largest in history

Who should pay on the first date?

P&R urged to speed up review of relocation grants

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

Latest News

In China, the War on Mosquitoes Has Entered the A.I. Era

Binance Grapples With ‘Security Incident’ That May Cause $6.3 Billion in Losses

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

EU trade measures threaten UK auto recovery: SMMT

From workshops to the catwalk - why mended clothes are going mainstream

Interesting Read

Polymarket Is Investigating Suspicious Bets on Israeli Election

Google value plunges by $500bn as AI fears rattle Wall Street

U.S. GDP Increased 3.4% in Third Quarter

Burnham 'ready to support' Poundland staff as retailer faces collapse

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The South West reacts to Budget announcements

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