We have put together stories from our coverage on electric and new energy vehicles from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China’s EV and battery makers race to cut charging times to under 10 minutes Battery makers and electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers have seized on the Beijing Auto Show to showcase technologies promising shorter charging times in a race triggered by BYD and Contemporary Amperex...

Hong Kong expects about 980,000 mainland Chinese visitors over the Labour Day “golden week” holiday from May 1 to 5, a 7 per cent increase from last year. Instead of rushing through major attractions, many travellers are opting for slower, highly curated itineraries centred on exhibitions, neighbourhood walks and carefully timed photo spots – trends driven by popular social media platforms such as RedNote. Here, the South China Morning Post highlights what mainland tourists are currently...

A South Korean appeal court increased the sentence of jailed former president Yoon Suk-yeol on Wednesday to seven years for obstructing justice, up from five years. A lower court had handed Yoon the initial sentence in January after he was found to have used presidential security agents to block his own arrest. Both Yoon and the prosecution lodged appeals. He argued that the arrest warrants against him were based on an “unlawful investigation”, while special prosecutors said his punishment...

Hong Kong will introduce a two-month subsidy for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) used by taxis, minibuses and school buses from May, amid soaring fuel prices, while a previously announced diesel subsidy will take effect on Thursday. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said on Wednesday that the interdepartmental task force monitoring fuel price movements had proposed a 50 HK cents per litre subsidy for two months, starting in May, to alleviate operational pressure on taxis and minibuses, among...

A massive genomic study of indigenous peoples in the Americas has uncovered evidence of a previously unknown migration into South America that occurred as recently as 1,300 years ago – during China’s Tang dynasty. These new settlers carried genes remarkably similar to indigenous populations in what is now Australia and the Pacific Islands, according to the study published online by the journal Nature on April 22. The international team, which included scientists from the University of Sao Paulo...

A Hong Kong cook has been jailed for 18 years for persistently sexually abusing the daughter he shares with his mistress, with the presiding judge also criticising the victim’s mother for trying to keep her silent. The High Court on Wednesday said a deterrent sentence was necessary for the 61-year-old to reflect society’s abhorrence of the “evil” crimes he committed against the girl when she was aged 11 to 18. The accused, identified only by his initials, TML, to protect his daughter’s identity,...

Thailand is turning to live-streamers to clear a looming durian glut, slashing prices as weaker Chinese demand threatens its biggest export market. Top online seller Pimradaporn Benjawattanapat, or Pimrypie, led a high-energy live stream on Tuesday night, pitching to her combined 31 million TikTok and Facebook followers. Known for selling everything from her own-brand fish sauce to luxury perfumes, Pimrypie priced premium Monthong at as low as 100 baht (US$3) per fruit, well below typical market...