The Chinese founder of the massive router maker facing national security probes by the Trump administration has applied for an expedited visa under the Trump Gold Card programme, according to people familiar with the matter. California-based TP-Link Systems told the federal agencies scrutinising its operations that founder and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Chao had applied for permanent residency under the programme, the people said. Successful Gold Card applicants must give a US$1 million...

US crypto advocates have increasingly pointed to competition with China’s new interest-bearing e-CNY to demand legislative clarity on stablecoin yields, but China is charting a completely different course for the future of digital money, experts said. “The world’s two largest economies are not so much competing in digital assets as they are pursuing very different strategies,” said Andrew Fei, a partner at law firm King & Wood Mallesons in Hong Kong. Winston Ma, adjunct professor and executive...

A high-stakes summit between US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday appeared to get off to a good start as the two touted the bilateral relationship and pledged to work cooperatively on trade, stabilising the global energy market and regional security. Takaichi was the first US ally to meet face to face with the mercurial president, amid concern that he would take out his anger on her for the large number of security partners who have declined to help...

A US F-35 fighter aircraft was hit by suspected Iranian fire and had to make an emergency landing on Thursday. This would be the first time Iran has hit one of the US$100 million planes since the US and Israel launched their attack on the country on February 28, according to CNN, which first reported the incident. The F-35 was “flying a combat mission over Iran”, a spokesman for US Central Command said. “The aircraft landed safely, and the pilot is in stable condition,” Captain Tim Hawkins said....

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Thursday there was no “time frame” for ending the US-Israeli war against Iran, which was launched three weeks ago. “We wouldn’t want to set a definitive time frame,” Hegseth told a news conference, adding that “we’re very much on track” and that President Donald Trump would be the one to decide when to stop. “It will be at the president’s choosing, ultimately, where we say, ‘Hey, we’ve achieved what we need to.’” American objectives in the war had not...

Contractors for a renovation project at the site of Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades got away with covering up the use of substandard material because of systemic defects in government supervision, a public inquiry into the blaze that claimed 168 lives has heard. In the first of a series of evidential hearings, a judge-led independent committee was told on Thursday that six “human factors” led to the almost complete failure of fire safety measures at Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court before seven of...

About two out of every five professionals in China expect no pay rise this year after more than half missed out on one last year, with both figures higher than the Asian average, according to survey data gathered by a recruiting firm – a trend suggesting further pessimism among an already dissatisfied workforce. London-based recruitment firm Hays found that 44 per cent of professionals in China – the highest share anywhere in Asia – anticipate no salary increase in 2026. Six per cent expect a...