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1. X-rays free, A&E to cost more: the Post breaks down Hong Kong’s new hospital fees

   Hong Kong will overhaul public hospital fees from January 1 to ensure the sustainable development of its healthcare system amid challenges from an ageing population. Authorities estimate the increased fees could generate an additional HK$3 billion (US$385 million) a year, with the extra revenue earmarked to support patients facing financial hardship or critical illnesses. The government also...

2. Why China is Myanmar’s only real hope

   Myanmar’s military junta is staging the country’s first general election since its coup in 2021. Western critics have dismissed it as a “sham”, while the generals have insisted that the polls are “free and fair”. Posting on X, Tom Andrews, the United Nations rapporteur for human rights in Myanmar, called the election “a theatre of the absurd”. He may be right but it is also beside the...

3. Malaysia’s durian glut triggers ‘happy hour’ frenzy in Sarawak: ‘it’s cheap and worth it’

   The unmistakable smell of durians from rows of trucks laden with the thorny greenish-yellow fruit signals the arrival of the long-awaited season for lovers of the “king of fruits” in Sarawak, Malaysia, boosted by an abundant supply of local durians now flooding the market. The surplus, particularly of the “kampung” variety from the south of the state, inspired trader Akmal Hakim Saidan, 29, and...

4. Xi renews call to boost grain output after trade war sharpens China’s food security push

   President Xi Jinping has issued a mandate to expand grain production as China moves to shield its food supply from global volatility, calling for renewed efforts to modernise agriculture and rural areas over the coming year. Speaking at a two-day work conference in Beijing that ended on Tuesday, Xi urged a “no-relaxation” approach to grain output and called for higher overall production capacity...

5. Be a potato: the lesson of the resilient staple resonates as 2026 approaches

   As families and friends gather to bid farewell to a turbulent 2025, the unassuming potato will, no matter where you live, almost certainly find its place on the dinner table. Domesticated nearly 10,000 years ago in Peru, it did not voyage beyond the Americas until the 16th century. Yet no vegetable has played a more significant role in human history and politics than this humble tuber. Dubbed...

6. China mum jailed for accidentally killing daughter during ‘exorcism’ by pressing on chest

   A mother in southern China has been handed a legal punishment after she accidentally killed her daughter while performing an “exorcism” ritual on her. According to a recent report by Shenzhen Municipal People’s Procuratorate, a court in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, gave the mother, surnamed Li, a three-year jail term suspended for four years in July. Li and her two daughters had been obsessed...

7. Low-income patients call for more help as steeper Hong Kong hospital fees loom

   Hong Kong’s public hospitals will raise a range of charges from January 1, while anxious lower-income patients who face higher bills but do not qualify under new fee waiver thresholds are calling for more government help. From Thursday, patients will need to pay more in general, but the safety net will also be widened to support the neediest, with an annual HK$10,000 cap on medical fees...

8. Takaichi is shaping up as Japan’s Thatcher amid China feud. Can her popularity last?

   Japan is no stranger to political volatility, often characterised by a rapid turnover of prime ministers, and when Sanae Takaichi took office in October, many believed her premiership would not last long. But more than two months later, Takaichi has proved the sceptics wrong and even managed to bring back voters who abandoned the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party and rallied behind far-right...

9. US Nato envoy casts doubt on Russian claim Ukraine attacked Putin residence

   US ambassador to Nato Matthew Whitaker cast doubt on Tuesday on Russia’s accusation that Ukraine attacked President Vladimir ‌Putin’s residence, saying he wants to see US intelligence on the incident. “It is ‍unclear whether it actually happened,” Whitaker told Fox Business’ Varney & Co chat show in an interview about an alleged incident which Ukraine has denied. “It seems to me a little...

10. Increased police presence in Sydney for New Year’s Eve following Bondi terror attack

    Australian authorities on Tuesday said there would be an increased police presence in Sydney on New Year’s Eve, less than three weeks after 15 people were killed in the Bondi terror attack. More than 2,500 officers will be on high-visibility patrols in Sydney on Wednesday, New South Wales (NSW) Police said in a statement. NSW Premier Chris Minns said Wednesday would see the “largest deployment...