Australia hands Ming dynasty Buddha back to China amid ongoing mystery over its arrival

South China Morning Post - Oct 16, 2026

A 500-year-old Buddha statue that was found buried by a roadside in Australia has been returned to China, leaving an ongoing mystery about how it arrived in the country. The 15cm (six-inch) bronze figurine was formally handed over to Chinese consular representatives during a ceremony in the coastal town of Denham in Shark Bay on Tuesday, the public broadcaster ABC reported. It will be taken to China for further evaluation to establish its history before being displayed at a museum in...

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China bought half of Brazil’s oil exports as Iran war shut Hormuz, driving sales to record

China bought half of Brazil’s oil exports as Iran war shut Hormuz, driving sales to record

Trade between Brazil and China reached a record US$143 billion in the first nine months of the year, driven by Brazilian oil sales that surged after the war on Iran disrupted Gulf supply, according to a report by the Brazil-China Business Council. Brazilian exports to China rose 12 per cent to US$84.7 billion between January and September, while imports from China grew 9.9 per cent to US$58.6 billion, the council said in its quarterly analysis of government data. The resulting US$26.1 billion...

Firm accused of cost-cutting, false declarations over fire-safety parts in 48 lifts

Firm accused of cost-cutting, false declarations over fire-safety parts in 48 lifts

Hong Kong authorities have uncovered alleged corner-cutting and false declarations involving fire-safety components in a contractor’s replacement of 48 lifts at two public housing estates. The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department said on Thursday that surprise inspections had found serious deficiencies in projects carried out by Taizoom Elevator (Hong Kong) at Tsui Ping (North) Estate in Kwun Tong and Pok Hong Estate in Sha Tin. It said 39 lifts replaced between May 2025 and July this...

EU open to creating ‘kill switch’ weapon to kick Chinese firms out of market

EU open to creating ‘kill switch’ weapon to kick Chinese firms out of market

Brussels is open to developing a powerful new trade weapon that could contain a kill switch that would quickly eject Chinese companies from the EU market, the bloc’s national leaders were told during a top level meeting in the Belgian capital on Thursday. There was broad support among the 27 members for such a tool, first laid out in a French-German joint paper last week, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signalling that her trade team could get to work on developing it,...

Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority appeals for liver donor for boy, 13

Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority appeals for liver donor for boy, 13

Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority has appealed to the public for a liver donation for a 13-year-old boy suffering from severe liver failure who urgently needs a transplant. The authority, which is also seeking help from mainland China, said on Thursday evening that the boy, being treated at Queen Mary Hospital in Pok Fu Lam, was now in a serious condition. “The patient has been experiencing severe hepatic failure and developed severe complications including recurrent hyperammonemia and...

Migrant Indie Art Festival seeks artistic independence with Declaration of Freedom

Migrant Indie Art Festival seeks artistic independence with Declaration of Freedom

The Migrant Indie Art Festival is back for its 15th year, but this time it's being held under a new name. Organized by the Asian Media Culture Factory, it started in 2012 as the Seoul Migrant Art Festival. This year's festival will be held in two venues from this Saturday to Oct. 25 in Seoul’s Yeongdeungpo and Seodaemun districts, featuring events including music and screenings of films made by migrants living in Korea. Founded in late 2011, the Asian Media Culture Factory is a nonprofit cultural and arts organization led by migrants. The organizers told The Korea Times that their mission is to support migrant-led artistic practices and build a cultural and artistic platform for people who arrived from overseas. “We believe that everyone should have the right to engage in the arts, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, religion or visa status," they said. “We hope to create a space where migrant artists and cultural practitioners, who often have limited cultural and artistic networks and few opportunities to present their work in Korean society, can showcase their work and gain rec

N. Korea could bolster drone capabilities through workers at Russian factory: report

N. Korea could bolster drone capabilities through workers at Russian factory: report

North Korea could strengthen its military drone capabilities by gaining technical expertise through workers deployed to a major Russian drone production facility, potentially posing a new security threat to South Korea and U.S. forces in the region, a U.S. think tank report showed Wednesday. The report, jointly published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the George W. Bush Institute, examined the security implications of North Korea's involvement in Russia's drone manufacturing industry, as well as the roles of China and Iran in supporting Moscow's war against Ukraine. According to a separate report issued by the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT) in September, Russia hosted an estimated 15,000 to 30,000 North Korean workers as of the end of 2025, some of whom were involved in manufacturing military drones. The report also said Moscow had established a student visa scheme to disguise North Korean workers as students. "North Korean labor also transfers technical know-how. Technicians sent to Alabuga will return to Pyongyang with invaluable lesson

Lee Soo-man's new girl group A2O Lite tops Melon chart

Lee Soo-man's new girl group A2O Lite tops Melon chart

A2O Lite, the first girl group produced by former SM Entertainment chief Lee Soo-man, reached No. 1 on Korea's largest music streaming platform shortly after releasing its debut single, before falling to sixth place hours later, data showed Thursday. The group's debut digital single, "Neon," had topped Melon's Top 100 chart by 11 p.m. on Wednesday, 29 hours after its release at 6 p.m. the previous day, according to music industry experts. It is unusual for a rookie group to top the chart within less than two days of a song's release, although it dropped to sixth place the following morning. As of 10 a.m. Thursday, Soyeon's "I'm Gonna Toesa (feat. Kian84)" returned to No. 1. A2O Lite is a nine-member group launched by A2O Entertainment, the company founded by Lee after he left SM Entertainment. Lee simultaneously introduced A2O Lite and 15-member boy group A2O Soul at a media showcase in Goyang, near Seoul, on Monday. He returned to the domestic K-pop market after a three-year non-compete agreement expired earlier this year. He agreed to the restriction when he sold his stake in SM Entert

Seoul mayor says to press ahead with housing supply plan

Seoul mayor says to press ahead with housing supply plan

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said Thursday the city government plans to press ahead with its supply plan for the housing market, noting that construction has already begun for 15,000 units this year. The municipality plans to break ground on 310,000 housing units by 2031 through redevelopment and reconstruction projects amid recent supply shortages that have contributed to sharp price hikes. "Under the principle that sufficient and continued supply is the starting point of reducing housing concerns, we have sped up improvement projects through rapid integrated planning," Oh said during a parliamentary audit of the city government. "Going forward, we will continue to ease on-site difficulties and unfair regulations so that housing can be supplied continuously without stopping." He also pledged to actively respond to shortages in the rental housing market by broadening the foundation for private supply. Later in the session, Oh reiterated his opposition to the central government's proposal to use parts of Yongsan Park in central Seoul for housing development. Oh argued that the government's plan t

President Lee to meet US-Korea Business Council chair to discuss cooperation

President Lee to meet US-Korea Business Council chair to discuss cooperation

President Lee Jae Myung was set to meet Thursday with the chair of the U.S.-Korea Business Council (USKBC) to discuss economic cooperation between the two countries and trade relations, officials said. During the meeting with Evan G. Greenberg, chair of USKBC and CEO of Chubb Group, scheduled for Thursday afternoon, Lee plans to hear the outcome of a joint plenary meeting of the U.S.-Korea and Korea-U.S. Business Councils held in Seoul the same day. The plenary meeting brought together the USKBC and its Korean counterpart, which is operated by the Federation of Korean Industries. The USKBC is a major business advocacy organization representing top U.S. companies engaged with Korea. During the meeting, Lee also plans to call for the USKBC to play a role in expanding economic cooperation between Seoul and Washington, Cheong Wa Dae said.

S. Korea to kick off annual Hoguk exercise next week

S. Korea to kick off annual Hoguk exercise next week

The South Korean military will launch an annual outdoor defense field exercise next week, along with some joint field drills with the United States that were pushed back as the allies scaled back their combined summertime exercise, officials said Thursday. The Hoguk exercise will begin Monday for a five-day run, aimed at bolstering joint operational capabilities and the readiness posture of the armed forces across the land, maritime and air domains, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). This year's drills will involve a similar number of troops to the 2025 exercise and incorporate the operation of opposing forces and simulated combat training to better reflect realistic threats, the JCS said. The drills will be conducted alongside computer-simulated command post exercises and various strategy discussions as part of efforts to maintain a "robust" readiness posture, it added. The U.S. Forces Korea will also participate in the drills to enhance interoperability with South Korean troops, a JCS official said. Launched in 1996, the Hoguk exercise is aimed at enhancing the interoperabili

BTS' 'Hooligan' music video tops 100 mil. YouTube views

BTS' 'Hooligan' music video tops 100 mil. YouTube views

The music video for “Hooligan,” a track from BTS’ fifth studio album “ARIRANG,” surpassed 100 million YouTube views at around 6:40 a.m. Wednesday, according to the group’s agency, BigHit Music, a label under HYBE. It is the third music video from the album to reach the milestone, following those for lead single “Swim” and “2.0.” The album, named after a traditional Korean folk song widely regarded as the country’s unofficial national anthem, was released March 20. The “Hooligan” video was unveiled April 8 on the HYBE LABELS YouTube channel. The video contrasts a moss-covered gray space with vivid red sets. The seven members, in black outerwear and sporting tooth gems, perform a hard-hitting synchronized dance with a large group of backup dancers. “Hooligan” serves as the opening number of the group’s “ARIRANG” world tour. The alternative hip-hop track reflects on BTS’ journey of carving out its own path around the world. Its intro layers the sound of clashing blades over sweeping strings, and the song pairs a blade-based rhythm with deep 808 bass, a

Sejong University forum addresses quality of education for international students

Sejong University forum addresses quality of education for international students

Sejong University hosted an international higher education forum at its Seoul campus on Oct. 1 to discuss ways to improve education for international students and support their career development. The 8th International Student Future Higher Education Korea 2026 Fall was organized in collaboration with Stuvisor, a global study-abroad platform, and Careertus, which supports international students’ employment and entrepreneurship. The university said the event consisted of a career fair for international students and a higher education forum for representatives of universities and other institutions. The event has served as a networking platform where international students can explore employment, further study and entrepreneurship opportunities, while university and institutional representatives discuss ways to improve education and support systems for international students. This year’s event took on added significance as the number of international students in Korea surpassed 300,000, highlighting the need to move beyond enrollment growth and focus on educational quality and talent d

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