Le Journal

Malaysians’ foreign-policy satire, Japan’s fighter jet project boost: 7 Asia highlights

Viral Zumba video triggers police probe in Malaysia over revealing attire

Meet Giancarlo Giammetti, long-time partner of the late Valentino Garavani
Legendary couturier Valentino Garavani, founder of the Valentino fashion house, died yesterday in Rome. He was 93. Those closest to the designer included his long-time friend and business partner Giancarlo Giammetti, also known as GG. Throughout the 1960s until the early 70s, the duo were in a romantic relationship, and while it didn’t last, they remained inseparable for decades. Here’s what to know about the gentleman who was always by Valentino’s side. He co-founded Valentino Born in Rome in...

What is glamping like in Hong Kong? A reluctant camper and his family try it out

Bangladesh’s student leaders ‘sidelined’ by Islamist allies in poll pact

China snack firm Busy Ming to test investor appetite for consumer plays with Hong Kong IPO
Busy Ming Group, China’s largest snack and drink retailer, is seeking to raise up to HK$3.34 billion (US$428 million) in a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO), testing investors’ appetite for consumer-oriented stocks. The firm, which focuses on a value model, planned to sell 14.1 million shares at HK$229.60 to HK$236.60, according to its prospectus filed with the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday. The stock is expected to begin trading on January 28. Busy Ming owns two brands – Busy for...

DeepSeek technique to improve AI’s ability to ‘read’ long texts questioned by new research
A group of researchers from China and Japan has challenged a method unveiled several months ago by Chinese artificial intelligence start-up DeepSeek that was designed to improve AI’s ability to handle long blocks of text, marking a rare case of the company’s research being publicly questioned. The DeepSeek-OCR (optical character recognition) method, designed to compress text by using visual representations, potentially revolutionising how AI models handle long texts, was flawed due to...

Prioritise scam victims’ well-being in fighting transnational cybercrime
Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words I refer to your editorial, “Scam victims need mental health support” (January 15). You rightly highlight the severe financial toll of internet fraud – nearly HK$14 million (US$1.8 million) lost in the first week of 2026 alone – and stress the urgent need to support victims’ mental...

Ciao UFO wins best picture in 2025 Hong Kong Film Critics Society awards

Record snow in Russia’s far east blocks building entrances, buries cars

Singapore’s retail ownership data sparks debate about foreign chains’ influence

