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October art calendar in Manila, Bacolod, and New York
October is a packed month for the regional visual arts ecosystems within Southeast Asia, with works that explore movement, time, memories, and labor
Marcos offers prayers for Pope Leo's swift recovery
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Thursday said the Philippines is praying for the speedy and full recovery of Pope Leo XIV, who has been recently diagnosed with lung cancer.
Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: start-up turns to tech to tackle urban waste
Inconvenience is one of the biggest obstacles to recycling, a challenge that prompted a Hongkonger to establish a one-stop recycling service. Jorch Wong Ching-hei left advertising in 2019 and started The Loops Hong Kong after finding that recycling different materials often required travelling to different collection points. With no prior background in the industry, he contacted recycling operators, visited plants and learned how paper, plastics and metals were processed. Wong also taught...
Malfoid and an unlikely boost for ‘Harry Potter’
Amid the J.K. Rowling hate train, Malfoid—the fan-made art of a female Draco—seems to be the one thing fans are happily agreeing upon
Vehicle may have sparked Mongolia wildfire, putting China rescuers on high alert
A grassland fire in Mongolia has raised fresh concerns in China, underscoring the recurring risk of cross-border environmental hazards. This is not the first time an environmental disaster originating in Mongolia has threatened to cross the 4,700km (2,920-mile) border into China, with the impacts sometimes also affecting the Korean peninsula and Japan. The blaze, which erupted on October 8 in the inland country’s easternmost Dornod province bordering Russia and China, advanced rapidly towards...
Watchdog warns devil is in details for home moves
Movers have been urged to better spell out their quotation details and service arrangements to boost the confidence of people moving homes. The Consumer Council made the suggestion on Thursday as it noted that complaints about movers has stood at about 30 annually since 2023, even though their services are not frequently used. In one case, a complainant, Mung, was notified he was going to be charged a 15-percent surcharge for a five-step staircase after he paid a deposit upon receiving a quotation. Another complainant, Ma, failed to reach an agreement with his mover on the amount of compensation to be paid to him after his television set had been damaged by the company despite protective materials being used. Council chief executive Alaina Shum said firms should be more proactive in ascertaining the moving environment before making a quotation. They should also actively list out all possible additional charges and compensation arrangements. "Before entering into a transaction, apart from the compensation cap, traders should also explain the factors that they will take into account when determining the compensation amount," Shum said. "This will enable the consumers to make an [informed] decision." People hiring movers should, for their part, keep track of all records, Shum said. "Before moving, prepare inventory lists and take photos of valuable, large, fragile [items], or to record their condition," she said. "This will actually better protect the consumers against any unforeseeable damages of the valuable items." It is also crucial for them to study the terms and conditions carefully and provide as much information as possible for a more accurate quotation, Shum added. Edited by Aaron Tam
AI job losses set to rein in office demand in developed Asia-Pacific economies: report
A mild displacement of jobs across the Asia-Pacific region as companies expand their use of AI would trim five percentage points off growth in office space demand in the next few years, according to property consultancy CBRE. In a report released on Thursday it said 3.9 per cent of office jobs were vulnerable to artificial intelligence-driven displacement in developed markets in the region, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand. However, only 1.7...