Scott Kennedy on China’s ‘slow tech dragon’ and 2 more Xi-Trump meetings

South China Morning Post - Sep 27, 2026

Scott Kennedy is a senior adviser and trustee chair in Chinese business and economics at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. His areas of focus include China’s hi-tech drive, US-China relations and global economic governance. Open Questions first appeared in SCMP Plus. For other interviews in the Open Questions series, click here. How would you characterise the outcomes of the China-US summit compared to expectations going in? Is it largely a continuation of that track or do you...

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Excessive questions from relatives top list of Chuseok irritations

Excessive personal questions and interference from relatives have been named the most unwanted aspect of the Chuseok holiday this year. Comparisons with siblings and other people were also cited as the most uncomfortable topic of conversation. According to a 2026 Chuseok holiday survey conducted by research firm PMI, 48.5 percent of 1,000 adults aged 20 to 69 nationwide said “excessive interference and personal questions from relatives” was the holiday tradition they most wanted to see changed. The survey was conducted from Sept. 11 to 14, ahead of the Chuseok holiday. The next most frequently cited practices were “excessive preparation for ancestral ritual tables” at 40.8 percent, “unequal distribution of holiday chores” at 29.8 percent, “holiday cash gifts” at 25.5 percent and “excessive holiday gift giving” at 23.7 percent. Intrusive questions from relatives also topped the list of holiday customs considered most urgently in need of change, cited by 30.6 percent of respondents. When asked which topics they would rather avoid discussing with family members and relat

Excessive questions from relatives top list of Chuseok irritations

Plan to serve airline meals to deportees divides immigration officials

A proposal to upgrade meals for foreigners awaiting deportation at Incheon International Airport has divided immigration officials, with front-line officers raising safety concerns and some questioning whether better food is appropriate for those ordered to leave Korea for violating the law. According to immigration authorities, Sunday, the Incheon Airport Immigration Office under the Ministry of Justice is considering providing in-flight meal boxes to foreign nationals awaiting deportation through the airport. Foreign nationals ordered to leave the country are generally transferred to Incheon International Airport after local immigration offices confirm their illegal stay and complete the necessary procedures. After that, they remain in a designated departure waiting area until their flights. Those awaiting deportation are currently provided with bread and drinks supplied by local immigration offices. The Incheon Airport Immigration Office is now seeking to provide meals directly, replacing the basic food with airline-style meals, considering them the most practical option. The office v

Plan to serve airline meals to deportees divides immigration officials

Korean Air faces maintenance capacity crunch from Asiana acquisition

Korean Air faces a growing maintenance capacity challenge, as its acquisition of Asiana Airlines creates a fleet of more than 230 aircraft at a time when heavy-maintenance slots remain increasingly difficult to secure across Asia. The integrated carrier, scheduled to launch in December, will operate the larger fleet and employ more than 4,000 maintenance workers. It will require more airframe, engine and component maintenance that must be handled internally or secured through outside maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) providers. However, constrained global MRO capacity and a shortage of international heavy-maintenance slots have become a material operational risk to Korean Air. Securing wide-body base-maintenance slots has become particularly difficult across Southeast Asia. Korean Air is responding by expanding its own capabilities. In November last year, the airline and Incheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC) agreed to invest 176 billion won ($130 million) to build a next-generation maintenance hangar at the airport's High-Tech Aviation Complex. The facility will be able to ac

Korean Air faces maintenance capacity crunch from Asiana acquisition

The US-China relationship has stabilised but on Beijing’s terms

For all the solemnity of the B-2 flyover with four F‑22 Raptors and a silent South Lawn drill, the real business of US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week was narrower than the choreography. The Chinese readout reiterated the concept that should frame the relationship’s next phase: constructive strategic stability – cooperation as the primary track, competition kept within bounds, differences managed, conflict avoided. Stripped of banquet rhetoric, the...

The US-China relationship has stabilised but on Beijing’s terms

Scott Kennedy on the Xi-Trump summit and US-China instability

Scott Kennedy is a senior adviser and trustee chair in Chinese business and economics at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. His areas of focus include China’s hi-tech drive, US-China relations and global economic governance. SCMP Plus readers get early access to articles in the Open Questions series. How would you characterise the outcomes of the China-US summit compared to expectations going in? Is it largely a continuation of that track or do you see it moving the relationship...

Scott Kennedy on the Xi-Trump summit and US-China instability

Police arrest man, 34, over hidden cameras found in Hong Kong gym changing rooms

Hong Kong police have arrested a 34-year-old gym user in connection with the installation of three suspected pinhole cameras found in changing rooms at a 24/7 Fitness branch in Sha Tin. The arrest on Sunday came a day after police launched an investigation into the suspected voyeurism case at the outlet on Lek Yuen Street. A police spokesman said officers arrested the suspect, a local man, in Sha Tin and he remained in custody as investigations continued. In a statement on Sunday night, 24/7...

Police arrest man, 34, over hidden cameras found in Hong Kong gym changing rooms

Ulsan's 1st multicultural youth baseball team helps kids find their place

ULSAN — “Okay, this time, pretend you’ve hit a ground ball and run all the way to first base! I’ll roll the ball, and Team B will play defense!” “Which one is Team A?” “Why are you wearing someone else’s glove? You’re supposed to step on the base! Is that how you do it or not?” “Nooo!” “Everyone, focus! Focus! Keep your eyes forward and run!” It is supposed to be a practice session, but the coach seems to be getting the most exercise. The players’ faces are full of smiles, and as soon as their turn is over, they quickly find something else to do. Every now and then, even a coach joins in the mischief before getting a scolding from the head coach. They are still learning to tell a strike from a ball. But when someone manages a rare hit, everyone knows exactly what to do. “Good job!” “Nice!” In one corner of the field, meanwhile, one batter practices swinging with surprising seriousness, as if determined to make every attempt count. “Still, this year’s new members are pretty good at baseball. And since it’s the second semester, they’re less awkward

Ulsan's 1st multicultural youth baseball team helps kids find their place

At Insa Historic Sites Museum, heritage is preserved through destruction

Some of the world's oldest extant movable metal type is on display at a new museum in central Seoul, and entry is free of charge for anyone who wants to see it. However, Insa Historic Sites Museum comes across as surprisingly modest in how it displays these remarkable pieces of typographic history. The museum's collection includes 441 examples of movable metal type, selected from approximately 1,700 replicas of the originals found at the site. This includes "gabinja," originally cast in 1434, predating Johannes Gutenberg's own movable metal type by almost two decades. There are also replicas of "eulyuja" type, cast originally in 1465, representing the oldest known surviving metal types bearing examples of Hangeul, or Korean characters. Hundreds of the little metal pieces were unearthed during a 2020-21 archaeological survey and subsequent excavation. Such surveys are a mandatory part of the redevelopment process, which wiped out the southeastern corner of downtown Seoul's historic Insa-dong neighborhood to make way for G1 Seoul, a new office building that houses the museum in its basem

At Insa Historic Sites Museum, heritage is preserved through destruction

Number of S. Koreans with family in N. Korea down to less than 33,000

The number of South Koreans with family members in North Korea following their separation during the 1950-53 Korean War continues to drop, with less than 33,000 now remaining and the majority of them already aged over 80 years, data showed Sunday. As of late August, a total of 134,848 people have registered as having separated family members in the North, but only 32,948 of them were still living, according to the data from the unification ministry submitted to Rep. Woo Won-shik of the ruling Democratic Party. Of the survivors, two-thirds were aged 80 and older -- 10,945 aged 80 to 89 and 11,007 aged 90 and older. Around 3,000 people with family in the North die every year, the data showed. "As not much time remains for separated families, the unification ministry must start preparing now so that inter-Korean dialogue can be discussed as a priority agenda item in the event talks resume between North Korea and the United States," said Woo, who himself has family in the North. The war left many people separated from their families, but ongoing inter-Korean tensions have made reunions diffi

Number of S. Koreans with family in N. Korea down to less than 33,000

Lee heads home after wrapping up state visit to Mexico

MEXICO CITY — President Lee Jae Myung headed home Saturday, wrapping up his two-nation trip that earlier took him to New York for the annual United Nations General Assembly. Lee addressed the 81st U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday, reaffirming his envisioned role as a "pacemaker" to help the U.S. resume dialogue with North Korea. The president also presented his phased approach to denuclearizing North Korea, beginning with a halt and reduction of North Korea's nuclear and missile programs. The same day, Lee held a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in New York, during which Trump reaffirmed his commitment to dialogue with North Korea, according to South Korean officials. On a state visit to Mexico that began Wednesday, Lee held summit talks with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum the following day and adopted a joint action plan calling for efforts to deepen economic cooperation and expand bilateral collaboration into artificial intelligence (AI), the defense industry and other sectors. Lee is scheduled to return home on Sunday.

Lee heads home after wrapping up state visit to Mexico

Nearly 4 in 10 Korean industrial technology leaks involve semiconductors: data

Korea's spy agency has detected more than 100 cases of industrial technology leaks overseas over the past five years, with semiconductors accounting for nearly 40 percent of the total, data showed Sunday. According to data submitted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources to the National Assembly, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) detected 107 cases of overseas industrial technology leaks between 2021 and 2025. Semiconductor technologies accounted for the largest share with 40 cases, followed by display technologies with 21 cases, and electrical and electronics technologies with 10 cases. Seven cases involved automotive technologies, while six involved shipbuilding technologies. Of the 107 cases, 31 involved national core technologies, which the government designates as critical to national security and the economy due to their technological and economic value or growth potential, the NIS data showed. Semiconductors also accounted for the largest share of leaks involving national core technologies, with nine cases, followed by displays and electrical and electronics technol

Nearly 4 in 10 Korean industrial technology leaks involve semiconductors: data

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