Bessent blames US Commerce Department for not restricting Nvidia chip exports to China

South China Morning Post - Nov 13, 2026

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday blamed the Commerce Department, led by Howard Lutnick, for delaying the blacklisting of Megaspeed, an Nvidia customer suspected of diverting advanced AI chips to China, days before US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet in Shenzhen. Bessent spoke a day after Nvidia co-founder Jensen Huang resigned as chief executive following reports that he had an affair with Alice Huang, a former executive at Singapore-based...

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Catholic diocese asks parishes to hold special masses to mark Tai Po fire anniversary

Catholic diocese asks parishes to hold special masses to mark Tai Po fire anniversary

The head of Hong Kong’s Catholic diocese has asked all of the city’s parishes to hold special masses and prayers to mark the first anniversary of the deadly Tai Po fire later this month. Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan invited parishes to offer mass for the deceased on November 26, one year after the blaze broke out, according to a notice issued by the Hong Kong Catholic Diocesan Liturgy Commission on Friday. The inferno at the Wang Fuk Court housing estate raged for more than 43 hours, killing...

Trump to press Southeast Asia nations to join Pax Silica at Asean summit in Manila

Trump to press Southeast Asia nations to join Pax Silica at Asean summit in Manila

US President Donald Trump will press Southeast Asian economies to join Pax Silica, his campaign to China-proof AI and chip supply chains, when he attends the Asean summit in Manila next week. According to people familiar with the matter, artificial intelligence and critical minerals will top his agenda at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations gathering, his first trip abroad since his party’s bruising midterm defeats. In particular, he is expected to urge regional leaders to sign up for AI...

A bad year for Hong Kong construction: 6 scandals that shocked city

A bad year for Hong Kong construction: 6 scandals that shocked city

Hong Kong’s construction industry is facing mounting public scrutiny following a string of scandals involving substandard work, defective installations and questionable maintenance practices. From malfunctioning hospital lifts and missing fire-safety components in lift door frames to defective columns at a railway station and structural flaws in residential projects, the incidents have raised concerns over construction quality, regulatory oversight and accountability. Secretary for Development...

Hong Kong nature reserve samples test positive for ‘highly pathogenic’ bird flu virus

Hong Kong nature reserve samples test positive for ‘highly pathogenic’ bird flu virus

Two environmental samples taken from Hong Kong’s Mai Po nature reserve have tested positive for the “highly pathogenic” H5 avian flu virus, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) has said. A department spokesman said that a research team from the University of Hong Kong’s School of Public Health had confirmed the positive tests on samples collected on Wednesday as part of regular surveillance. “The AFCD is closely monitoring the situation of the birds in the Mai Po nature...

US-China AI safety talks face hurdle over how to define ‘serious’ incidents: analysts

US-China AI safety talks face hurdle over how to define ‘serious’ incidents: analysts

China and the United States have a shared interest in preventing artificial intelligence (AI) from being misused, but differing views over what constitutes a serious safety incident could complicate efforts to build a bilateral communication mechanism, according to analysts. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday that Washington and Beijing should cooperate on AI risks while harbouring no illusions about their differences. He noted the two governments had established a new dialogue...

Hong Kong nursery ordered to submit report after boy’s mystery head injury

Hong Kong nursery ordered to submit report after boy’s mystery head injury

Hong Kong education authorities have ordered a nursery in Kowloon Tong to submit a report after it allegedly failed to explain why a two-year-old pupil had a large bump on the back of his head after classes. The Education Bureau said it was highly concerned about the incident at Cannan Kindergarten (Waterloo Road) and had told the school to submit a report. “Upon receiving the complaint from the parents, the bureau immediately contacted the parents and the school to understand the situation and...

14-month-old girl is Hong Kong’s third child fatality this flu season

14-month-old girl is Hong Kong’s third child fatality this flu season

A 14-month-old girl died in Hong Kong on Friday after catching influenza, the third death of a child recorded by the city’s health authorities this flu season. The Centre for Health Protection said that although influenza activity had shown signs of decline since the city entered flu season in late June, it remained above the baseline thresholds. Twenty-nine severe cases involving children have been recorded. Apart from the three who died, two children remained in a serious condition in...

How a close friend of labor activist Jeon Tae-il keeps his legacy alive

How a close friend of labor activist Jeon Tae-il keeps his legacy alive

Choi Jong-in, 78, still aches for his friend Jeon Tae-il, who was just 22. When Jeon set himself on fire in the middle of Pyeonghwa Market in Seoul's Jung District on Nov. 13, 1970, Choi was the first to rush to his side, taking off his jacket to smother the flames. “His hair was burning and curling like nylon fabric, his lips were turning inside out, but he sprang back to his feet and shouted, ‘We are not machines!” More than half a century has passed, and one might expect Choi to recount the incident with the composure of an elderly man who has come to terms with life. But for a while, he cannot bring himself to continue. He has never really given an interview about Jeon. While Jeon's mother, the late Lee So-sun (who died in 2011), was alive, Choi says he held back because he did not want to cause her further grief. Even after she passed away and was reunited with her son, he found it too painful to speak. The trauma never entirely left him, but it did not break him. Instead, he turned his guilt over losing Jeon, chairman of the Samdong Friendship Association (Samdonghoe), into a

'I'd rather stay an intern': Why some Gen Z workers in Korea are choosing less responsibility

'I'd rather stay an intern': Why some Gen Z workers in Korea are choosing less responsibility

For some young Korean workers, leaving the office on time matters more than finishing every task, and avoiding the responsibilities of a permanent position can be more appealing than climbing the corporate ladder. These attitudes are emerging among members of Generation Z, who are challenging workplace expectations long shaped by loyalty, overtime and deference to senior colleagues. In a roundtable discussion organized by the Hankook Ilbo, young participants shared their views on work, career advancement and workplace relationships, revealing both generational differences and contradictions in their own approaches to professional life. Their experiences suggest that while younger employees increasingly demand clearer boundaries and more explicit instructions, they sometimes struggle to meet those same expectations when they become responsible for guiding others. Leaving work on time, even with tasks unfinished For Korea's Generation X, now largely in their 50s, staying late at the office was once considered a badge of dedication. In her 2000 novel "A Very Old Joke," acclaimed Korean author

[WEEKENDER] Samsung Guide Dog School marks 33 years of changing lives

[WEEKENDER] Samsung Guide Dog School marks 33 years of changing lives

Samsung Guide Dog School, which marks its 33rd anniversary this year, is Korea’s first guide dog training institution and the world’s only guide dog school operated by a single corporation, with its operations fully funded by Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance. The school was established in September 1993 by late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee as part of efforts to foster greater understanding and acceptance of people with disabilities. At the time, corporate involvement in guide dog training was unprecedented worldwide. The school became a full member of the International Guide Dog Federation in 1999 and went on to host the organization's general assembly in Korea in 2002. Lee was also honored by the federation that year for his efforts to raise awareness of people with disabilities. Since its first guide dog, Bada, was paired with a visually impaired person in 1994, the school has provided more than 320 guide dogs to visually impaired partners free of charge. Its responsibilities extend beyond raising and training guide dogs. The school also teaches visually impaired partners how

[WEEKENDER] How guide dogs and humans become partners

[WEEKENDER] How guide dogs and humans become partners

Completing professional training does not mean a guide dog is immediately ready to accompany a visually impaired person. The dog must first be matched with a suitable partner, and the two must learn to walk and live together. Few understand this process better than Yoo Seok-jong of Samsung Guide Dog School. Born with a visual impairment, Yoo now lives with his fifth guide dog. Drawing on his own experience, he helps visually impaired people find dogs suited to their needs and lifestyles. During an interview at the school in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Nov. 2, Yoo was accompanied by Gori, a 5-year-old demonstration dog. Yoo's own guide dog was at a veterinary clinic after falling ill that morning. Friendly and sociable, Gori normally helps introduce visitors to guide dogs and accompanies visually impaired people on trial walks. Yoo said one of the most important factors in matching a guide dog with a prospective partner is walking speed. "The person's walking speed needs to match the dog's natural pace," he said. "Trying to force either one to adjust can be difficult." Temperament is equa

[WEEKENDER] A day with Jerry, guide dog in training

[WEEKENDER] A day with Jerry, guide dog in training

As Jerry, a Labrador retriever, approached a crosswalk, he came to a stop at the curb. His trainer, Keum Jung-hun, had given no command. Jerry simply recognized the boundary between the sidewalk and the road and stopped on his own. Keum pressed a small device, producing a sharp click. Known as a clicker, the tool signals that Jerry has performed a task correctly. "It means he did a good job," Keum explained. "Verbal praise takes time, but a clicker lets us mark the exact moment he does something right." Jerry is an almost 2-year old guide dog in training. The Korea Times met him during a training session at Samsung Guide Dog School on Nov. 2. The school in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, is fully funded by Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance. After six to seven months of professional training, he has passed his final walking assessment and is now completing the remaining steps before being paired with a visually impaired partner. Accompanying Jerry and Keum on their morning training walk outside the school grounds near Bundang Central Park in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, revealed that guide dog tr

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