Hong Kong trade unions face tougher scrutiny under proposed law change

香港工会将面临更严格的审查,原因是拟议扩大劳工官员的权力,并使其运营要求与国家安全法对齐。拟议的修订将包括监管工会接收和使用“外部”力量提供的资金,以及他们与位于“外部”地点的组织的联系。

“外部”指的是香港、中国大陆和澳门以外的地区,与《维护国家安全条例》保持一致。修订要求工会必须获得工会登记官的批准才能接受外部资金,并申报资金来源和用途。如果资金获得批准,则不得用于指定的本地选举。未经行政长官批准,工会官员也将不得在外部地点的非附属组织中担任职务。

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Trump’s proposed 25% tariffs would ‘spare China’ but hurt its neighbours: analysts

特朗普政府拟对汽车等进口商品加征25%或更高关税,但分析师认为,此举对中国本土汽车产业的直接影响有限。 预计受冲击最大的将是韩国、日本和欧洲等国家和地区,因为中国直接出口到美国的汽车数量很少。

尽管如此,与全球供应链紧密相连的中国企业仍可能面临难以预测的间接影响。特朗普表示,加征关税旨在鼓励企业将生产线迁回美国,具体措施将于4月2日公布。中国乘用车协会秘书长崔东树表示,新关税对中国汽车产业的直接冲击较小。

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Wang Yi urges China and US to ‘get along’ as American businesses share concerns

中国外交部长王毅周二呼吁中美两国找到“相处之道”,以稳定两国关系,此时两国之间的贸易战仍在升级。王毅在纽约对美国商界和智库领导人表示,中美应该为两国和世界探索更多重要、务实和有益的事项。他此次访问纽约正值中国担任联合国安理会轮值主席国。

王毅与中国驻美国大使谢锋一同会见了美中贸易全国委员会、美国商会、美中关系全国委员会、亚洲协会和外交关系委员会的代表。王毅表示,中美两国拥有广泛的共同利益和巨大的合作空间,双方应真正尊重彼此的核心利益,加强沟通,建立互信,消除干扰,克服障碍,共同努力改善和稳定中美关系。中美两国因科技和军事竞争加剧,正陷入多起外交和经济争端。

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Hong Kong eyes foreign investors in Cepa update to allow city’s laws on mainland

香港官员和业界领袖表示,对最近放宽的跨境贸易协议持乐观态度,该协议允许香港企业在其中国大陆业务中采用当地法律和仲裁服务,这将吸引外国投资者。商务及经济发展局常任秘书长表示,对《更紧密经贸关系安排》(CEPA)的修订带来了“制度创新和加强联系”。

修订后的CEPA将于3月1日生效,将进一步放宽香港专业人士在大陆工作的资格要求,并取消跨境持股和业务范围的某些限制。修订涵盖银行和证券、保险、电信、旅游、电影、电视以及建筑和相关工程服务等七个行业,这将有助于香港作为“超级联系人和超级增值者”的角色,并吸引全球企业和人才在香港落户并扩展到大陆市场。

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Chinese court tries Myanmar gang accused of scams, drugs, extortion and murder

A Chinese court has begun hearing the case against 23 members of the Ming family, a notorious Myanmar-based telecoms fraud gang, accused of a string of serious crimes. The charges include telecoms fraud, murder, intentional injury, illegal detention, extortion, running a gambling den, organising prostitution, and drug trafficking, highlighting the extensive criminal activities of the group.

Prosecutors allege that since 2015, the Ming family leveraged their influence and armed forces to establish "industrial parks" in Kokang, Myanmar, colluding with financial backers to carry out their crimes. These operations resulted in the deaths of 14 Chinese citizens, injuries to six others, and billions of yuan lost to fraud. The gang is accused of using tactics like fake investment schemes, phishing scams, and extortion, and even killing captives who tried to escape in October 2023.

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Haier seeks control of Shenzhen-listed robotics firm in US$343 million deal

Haier, a leading Chinese home appliance manufacturer, is set to acquire a controlling stake in Step Electric, a struggling industrial robotics firm, for approximately 2.5 billion yuan (US$343 million). This move signifies Haier's deeper foray into the robotics sector, aligning with China's broader strategy to enhance its manufacturing capabilities through automation and intelligent technologies.

Step Electric, despite its efforts to innovate in robotics for various industries including semiconductors and humanoid robots, has faced financial difficulties, reporting significant losses in recent years. Haier's acquisition is expected to provide Step Electric with much-needed resources and expertise. This acquisition also supports China's ambitious plan, initiated in 2021, to become a global leader in robotics, aiming for substantial growth in annual robotics sales and increased robot density in its manufacturing sector.

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China-Saudi ties, Beijing and Seoul chase defence deals: SCMP daily highlights

China leads the world in the scale of its humanoid robot industry, accounting for over half of the top listed companies in the sector. This is according to a report by Morgan Stanley, which notes that China's dominance exists despite the country still lagging behind Western nations in key technological components for these robots.

In other news, China's central bank governor has pledged to enhance collaboration with emerging economies on various fronts. The governor also expressed a commitment to supporting these nations in gaining a stronger voice and influence within the existing global financial governance structures. Meanwhile, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has seen its soft power efforts diminished following a Trump administration order to potentially shut down the agency and freeze foreign aid.

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Lawmakers slam HK$3.9 billion cost overrun, 2-year delay for Hong Kong tunnel

香港立法会议员指责政府对屯门至赤鱲角连接路的建设管理不善,该项目超预算12%,耗资39亿港元(5.01亿美元),且完工时间比原计划晚了两年。这条连接机场、新界西北和港珠澳大桥的公路于2020年开通,总耗资366亿港元。

立法会公共账目委员会成员陆颂雄周三透露,此外还有55亿港元的其他支出。虽然最终数字低于批准的467亿港元资金,但委员会对政府的成本管理表示深切关注,并指出2013年授予的北部连接海底隧道段合同中,填海工程的材料估算存在重大差异。

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Hong Kong customs seizes HK$118 million of cannabis in fishing boat bust

香港海关查获一艘渔船走私大麻,价值超过1亿港元(1280万美元),这是十年来涉及此类船只的最大宗毒品案。海关人员周二上午在南丫岛以南水域巡逻时发现了这艘船只。

这艘破旧的渔船上没有任何捕鱼设备,引起了海关的怀疑,并对其进行了拦截。船上的船员拒绝合作,并开始将货物扔进海里。海关人员登上船只,制服了三名男子,并从水中找回了大麻。此次查获的毒品包括459公斤疑似大麻,估计市值超过1.18亿港元。

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Rise of ‘autonomous’ agentic AI raises the geopolitical stakes

Agentic AI, unlike generative AI, can make decisions and autonomously carry out complex actions, potentially revolutionizing technopolitical rivalries between nations. These AI agents can act as personal political advisors, negotiate for governments, or manage military operations, showcasing their ability to optimize objectives and significantly boost productivity and efficiency.

This emerging technology is poised to reshape geopolitical competition across techno-economics, influence and opinion-shaping, and security. The entry of DeepSeek, a low-cost, open-source model, into the generative AI space has already disrupted the perceived US dominance in AI, signaling a shift in the balance of power and highlighting the transformative potential of agentic AI.

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Hong Kong dad accused of killing daughter allegedly abused her more than 20 times

一名香港男子被控通过剧烈摇晃导致其三岁女儿死亡,他在与女儿同住的两个月内,涉嫌对她进行了超过20次的虐待。 这些虐待行为包括将她倒立,使她的头部撞击地板,以及在淋浴时用冷水淋她。

高等法院周三听取了证词,42岁的被告刘启平在女儿梁雅诗去世前的两个月里,对她的虐待行为日益加剧。母亲梁海伦(41岁)在由四名男性和三名女性组成的陪审团面前作证时表示,刘启平曾抓住女儿的小腿将她倒吊起来,并使她的头部撞击地面。这些虐待行为发生在2020年5月中旬至7月期间,当时刘启平与梁海伦和他们的女儿住在深水埗的公寓里,尽管他受到儿童保护令的禁止,不得与女儿接触。

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DeepSeek founder provides clue on start-up’s AI priorities in new technical study

DeepSeek is prioritizing the development of more efficient AI models, as indicated by a new technical study focusing on "native sparse attention" (NSA). This system, detailed in a study co-authored by founder and CEO Liang Wenfeng, aims to streamline the processing of vast amounts of data by AI, reducing costs without compromising performance.

The study, published just before Liang attended a symposium with President Xi Jinping, highlights DeepSeek's commitment to research and innovation. The NSA system optimizes computing hardware to accelerate inference – the process by which an AI model recognizes patterns and makes predictions on unseen data. This focus on efficiency follows DeepSeek's previous breakthroughs in developing advanced open-source AI models like V3 and R1 at significantly lower costs than industry standards.

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China’s DeepSeek-led AI revolution could boost financial sector profit by up to 13%: UBS

UBS预测,中国人工智能技术的突破,特别是DeepSeek的出现,将通过大幅降低劳动力成本,显著提升对AI依赖度高的金融行业的利润。瑞银证券的金融分析师曹刚表示,生成式AI每降低10%的劳动力成本,券商行业的净利润可能增长8%,保险行业则可能增长13%。

瑞银预计,今年券商和保险类股票的估值将分别上涨高达21%和18%。曹刚认为,AI具有根本性的颠覆作用,尤其是在对大型语言模型依赖度高的岗位上。DeepSeek-R1是杭州一家初创公司于1月20日发布的开源推理模型,其能力可与OpenAI、Anthropic和谷歌的模型相媲美,但训练成本显著降低,引发了广泛关注。尽管目前生成式AI在各行业的应用率低于10%,但金融机构的使用案例在2023年和2024年已占总量的37%。

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Chinese media echoes Xi’s speech on private sector with flurry of editorials

China's state media outlets are strongly backing the private sector, echoing President Xi Jinping's recent supportive statements. Editorials in prominent publications like the People's Daily highlight the private economy's vital role in China's modernization and high-quality development, emphasizing the government's commitment to unwavering support, equal competition, and legal protection.

These editorials extensively reference Xi's speech, reinforcing the message that the government's policies toward the private sector are integral to China's socialist system and represent a long-term commitment. A commentary in the same newspaper praised the "innovative spirit" of private enterprises and their potential to contribute to technological innovation, sustainable development, and the digital economy as China enters a stage of high-quality development.

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Malaysia’s Johor-Singapore SEZ gets US$150 million boost from Hong Kong battery maker

Gold Peak Technology Group将成为柔佛-新加坡经济特区(JS-SEZ)的首批投资者之一,计划投资约1.5亿美元在柔佛建设新工厂,以扩大在中国大陆以外的生产。此举旨在应对全球不确定性,并利用JS-SEZ的机遇拓展全球市场。

Gold Peak是首家使用Invest Johor和UOB联合推出的“绿色通道”倡议的公司,该倡议旨在加速投资者进入该经济特区。该公司计划在柔佛建立一个集制造、研发于一体的新工厂,并已签署意向书。Gold Peak高管表示,除了平衡生产以避免过度集中于中国市场外,地缘政治不确定性也是其向外扩张的重要原因,此举有助于缓解相关问题。

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PolyU head confident of securing approval to run Hong Kong’s third medical school

香港理工大学校长邓锦光表示,对该校获得政府批准开办香港第三所医学院“充满信心”,理由是该校在医疗保健教育方面拥有坚实的基础。邓锦光是在该校理事会主席表示,希望即将到来的政府预算案中,大学的潜在资金削减不会过于剧烈时发表上述言论的。

邓锦光指出,理大已经开设了许多与医疗保健相关的课程,如物理治疗、眼科、医学实验室科学、放射学和护理学。此外,该校还拥有1300多名与医学相关的教学和研究人员,以及可以支持医学院启动的实验室。理大在提供医疗保健教育方面拥有45年的历史,并为医疗保健行业培养了5万名毕业生,这是一个坚实的基础。

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Consensus Hong Kong: regulators seek ‘global liquidity’ in crypto, roll out road map

香港监管机构表示,香港正积极争取成为虚拟资产行业的“全球流动性”中心。在香港举办的全球加密货币大会Consensus上,香港证监会(SFC)表示,香港正在制定监管框架,以促进负责任的创新,并吸引全球流动性。此前,SFC已向总部位于纽约的Bullish颁发了虚拟资产交易平台牌照,使其成为首家在香港获得该牌照的国际加密货币交易所。

Consensus香港会议由Bullish子公司CoinDesk组织,标志着自Bullish在2023年收购CoinDesk以来,该领先加密货币会议的首次重大扩张。与会议同期,SFC公布了一项包含十二项举措的新路线图,旨在“面向未来”地发展香港的虚拟资产生态系统。该框架旨在扩大产品供应,充当传统金融的桥梁,并“吸引全球平台、订单流和流动性提供商”,尽管监管机构也指出,香港的虚拟资产市场目前在范围上仍然受到限制,影响了投资者的选择。

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Taiwan’s marine corps to rebuild brigade with modern coastal mission

台湾正在重组海军陆战队,以提高其沿海打击能力,应对来自中国人民解放军日益增长的压力。此次重组将参照美国海军陆战队濒海作战团模式,组建新的77旅,旨在打造一支更敏捷、更现代化的部队。

据报道,77旅曾于2013年解散,此次将重新组建,并配备远程精确打击武器,类似于美国海军陆战队使用的武器。一位不愿透露姓名的军方人士表示,此次调整是台湾领导人赖清德旨在实现台湾防卫结构现代化的指示的一部分,第一阶段的重点是海军陆战队。前海军上校姜新彪表示,新成立的旅必须具备远程打击能力。

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China’s subsea data centre could power 7,000 DeepSeek conversations a second: report

中国建成一个水下数据中心,其计算能力足以支持每秒7000次与DeepSeek的对话。这个数据中心通过利用海水冷却,提高了计算效率,同时节省了土地、淡水和电力。该项目由深圳海兰云数据中心科技有限公司运营,旨在为人工智能模型训练、游戏制作和海洋科学研究提供强大的计算支持。

这个水下数据中心位于中国最南端的海南岛附近,新增的数据舱进一步增强了其计算能力,相当于30000台高端游戏电脑同时运行。与传统的计算机相比,该集群可以在一秒内完成需要一年才能完成的任务。此外,该项目的推出正值中美科技竞争加剧之际,DeepSeek凭借其低成本高效能的AI模型,上个月在全球范围内引起了广泛关注。

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Henderson offers 63 flats in Eight Southpark at discount amid warming Hong Kong market

Hong Kong property developers are increasingly offering new projects at discounted prices to capitalize on improving market sentiment amid a significant supply glut. Henderson Land Development, for example, is selling the first units of its Eight Southpark project in Kowloon City at an average price of HK$17,388 per square foot, approximately 10% cheaper than comparable properties in the area.

This trend follows New World Development's successful sale of all units at its State Pavilia project after pricing them at a substantial discount, energizing buyers and signaling a potential market upturn. Other developers like Wang On Properties are also offering significant discounts, with their Coasto project in Ap Lei Chau priced 36% lower than a comparable project launched last year. The recent surge in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index has further incentivized buyers to enter the property market.

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