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ByteDance raises pay, boosts bonuses to retain staff amid AI talent war Beijing-based ByteDance has raised pay and sweetened incentives as the TikTok owner steps up efforts to retain and attract talent globally, as it makes progress on settling the future of its US business. In an internal letter released to all staff on Friday and seen by the Post, the social media giant said it would lift both the upper and lower limits of compensation packages for staff across all ranks. For its full-year 2025 performance cycle – with reviews starting on January 15, 2026 –...

South China Morning Post

ByteDance raises pay, boosts bonuses to retain staff amid AI talent war

The TikTok owner has announced higher bonuses, wider pay bands and faster equity payouts as it seeks to stay competitive in the global talent race.

Operation Santa Claus: Hong Kong Disneyland spreads magic to support charity drive Hong Kong Disneyland has joined an annual fundraising drive to bring holiday warmth to communities across the city, extending a partnership that began in 2019. Operation Santa Claus (OSC), jointly established by the Post and public broadcaster RTHK in 1988, invites supporters to build connections across different parts of society. Disneyland has participated through a blend of creative merchandise, guest engagement and staff involvement. The Holiday Wishes Postcards, first introduced in 2019,...

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Operation Santa Claus: Hong Kong Disneyland spreads magic in charity drive

Resort to donate all proceeds from its Holiday Wishes Postcards to Operation Santa Claus, extending a partnership that began in 2019.

Bearly any time left for Japan’s panda lovers? Row with China threatens loan programme For more than half a century, pandas have helped serve as ambassadors for China around the world, but their time in Japan appears to be drawing to a close with the last two bears in the country set to return next month. Hopes of receiving new ones soon appear dim given the current tensions between the two countries. Tokyo’s metropolitan government has reportedly been in talks with China about receiving new pandas, but there is no sign of agreement in the wake of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae...

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Bearly any time left for Japan’s panda lovers? Row with China threatens to end loans

A 50-year tradition of panda diplomacy appears to be reaching its end with the last pair set to leave amid heightened diplomatic tensions.

Turkish court rules man liking women’s posts could undermine marital trust, prompts debate A court in Turkey has ruled that a husband repeatedly liking online posts made by women other than his wife could break marital trust, thereby serving as grounds for divorce. The landmark decision came from a case in the central city of Kayseri. According to a local media outlet, Haberler, a woman identified as HB accused her husband of constantly verbally humiliating her and failing to provide financial support. The woman also noted that her husband spent a lot of time on social media,...

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Turkish court rules man liking women’s posts may erode marital trust, prompts debate

Judges rule against husband who ogled at ‘seductive’ and ‘suggestive’ photos of women online; lawyers say actions may be grounds for divorce.

Trump tries to allay voter anxiety by touting economic wins, dodges Epstein files in rally US President Donald Trump began a rally on Friday night in North Carolina talking about crime and then highlighted his efforts to combat economic uncertainty – while also steering clear of addressing new disclosures involving the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In front of hundreds of people at Rocky Mount Event Centre in eastern North Carolina, Trump cited a high-profile crime that galvanised his base and went through recent consumer price index data, recounting stories of threatening...

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‘I inherited mess’: Trump hits out at Democrats, dodges Epstein files in rally

The US presidents also warned that the government could be headed towards another lockdown in late January.

Mexico’s 50% tariff shock shuts Asia’s North American trade bypass For much of the past year, Asian exporters have been racing to stay ahead of a global tariff storm – re-routing shipments, reconfiguring supply chains and absorbing rising costs as the United States tightened its trade barriers. Now another pressure point is emerging. From the start of next year, Mexico plans to impose import duties of up to 50 per cent on a wide range of goods from Asia, threatening to choke off a key workaround companies have relied on to maintain access to the North American...

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Mexico’s 50% tariff shock shuts Asia’s North American trade bypass

A tariff wall will soon separate protected partners like CPTPP members Singapore and Malaysia from exporters facing a shutout.

Malaysia allows halal hotels, eateries to deck halls with Christmas decor Halal-certified hotels and food premises in Malaysia are allowed to display Christmas decorations, according to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Zulkifli Hasan. He clarified that there are no restrictions against halal certification holders from displaying festive decorations linked to religions other than Islam, provided that halal standards are upheld. “The position is in line with a decision made by the Islamic Development Department Malaysia (Jakim) in 2023,...

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Malaysia allows halal hotels, eateries to deck halls with boughs of holly

The multiracial country’s religious affairs minister says festive decorations or images are allowed where halal food is served.

US strikes at Isis fighters in Syria after 3 Americans killed US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday announced the start of an operation to “eliminate Isis fighters, infrastructure and weapons sites” in Syria following the deaths of three US citizens. “This is not the beginning of a war – it is a declaration of vengeance. The United States of America, under President Trump’s leadership, will never hesitate and never relent to defend our people,” he said on social media. Two Iowa National Guard members and a US civilian interpreter were killed on...

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US strikes at Isis fighters in Syria after 3 Americans killed

The ‘large-scale’ strike reportedly hit 70 targets in areas across central Syria that had Isis infrastructure and weapons.

The quiet US-China tech contest for the future Power shifts begin in places most people never see – on assembly lines making batteries and robots, along transmission lines feeding data centre clusters, in local offices selling land and in labs training artificial intelligence models. The United States and China are using these quiet levers to construct different futures. The contest will be decided not by slogans but by who builds the most productive, trusted and durable infrastructure. Those choices will shape billions of lives. The global...

South China Morning Post

Opinion | The quiet US-China tech contest for the future

The competition will be decided by who builds the most productive, trusted and durable infrastructure. Those choices will shape billions of lives.

Chipmaker CXMT eyes US$42 billion Shanghai listing, sources say Chinese memory chipmaker ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) plans an initial public offering (IPO) in Shanghai as soon as the first quarter of next year, eyeing a valuation of up to 300 billion yuan ($42.12 billion), according to two sources briefed on the matter. Founded in 2016 with government backing, CXMT leads China’s strategic push to build a foothold in a global DRAM market long dominated by companies from Japan, South Korea and the United States. China’s leading manufacturer of dynamic...

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Chipmaker CXMT eyes US$42 billion Shanghai listing, sources say

IPO plans come as China’s semiconductor stocks surge, with the benchmark CSI CN semiconductor index rallying 49 per cent year-to-date.