Secular News

The Democratic politician took his oath over a Quran in the disused Old City Hall subway station.

The Democratic politician took his oath over a Quran in the disused Old City Hall subway station.

The Democratic politician took his oath over a Quran in the disused Old City Hall subway station.

Chinese rocket maker LandSpace aims to raise 7.5 billion yuan (US$1 billion) from an initial public offering (IPO) in Shanghai, after becoming the first home-grown aerospace firm to have its listing application accepted via a fast-tracked process. The Beijing-headquartered company, regarded as a challenger to Elon Musk-led SpaceX, said its listing aimed to “actively respond to national strategic plans and urgent market demands”, according to its prospectus. The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE)...

Beijing’s top office overseeing Hong Kong affairs said on New Year’s Day that the city’s administration had lived up to expectations, stressing its effective response to the deadly Tai Po fire demonstrated unity and resilience. Acknowledging President Xi Jinping’s New Year wishes for the city, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu also pledged in a social media post on Thursday that the city must focus on its priorities, promote high-quality development, further deepen reforms and open up. The Hong...

Mamdani, a democratic socialist, claimed an unlikely win in New York City’s mayoral race on a campaign promising a rent freeze and universal childcare

The US government ‍has granted an annual licence to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to import American chip manufacturing equipment to its fabrication facilities in Nanjing, the capital of eastern China’s Jiangsu province, according to the company. The approval “ensures uninterrupted fab operations and product deliveries”, TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said in a statement on Thursday to Reuters. South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have also received...

More Chinese travellers are pivoting from mass-market sightseeing to bespoke adventures to ring in the new year, fuelling a surge in demand for pet-friendly itineraries and winter excursions as service consumption defies a broader economic gloom. “Tailored travel is gaining traction,” online travel platform Fliggy said in a December 23 statement, citing a shift towards immersive “experiences that go beyond sightseeing”, favouring more memorable moments and personalisation. In particular,...

From Dubai to London to Times Square, crowds cheered as fireworks burst across the night sky, lighting up the world in a shared celebration to welcome 2026.

A unique wedding ritual among China’s Bao’an ethnic group known as “flogging the father-in-law” sees the family of the groom symbolically whip the bride’s father 20 times. As he endures his “punishment”, the bride’s father kneels to apologise for “failing to properly discipline his daughter”. The Bao’an ethnic group primarily lives in Gansu province in northwestern China and has a population of around 24,000. They practise Islam and speak Banan, which belongs to the Altaic language family. They...

Sir David Attenborough explores the surprising wildlife of his hometown – London.

Sir David Attenborough explores the surprising wildlife of his hometown – London.