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The Pakistani rupee strengthened against the US dollar, appreciating 0.09% during the opening minutes of trading in the inter-bank market on Tuesday. At 10am, the local currency was hovering at 280.25, a gain of Re0.26 against the greenback. On Monday, the local unit closed at 280.51. Internationally, the US dollar remained under pressure on Tuesday as weaker-than-expected manufacturing activity data from the world’s biggest economy heaped pressure on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates at its policy meeting later this month. The US dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major peers, edged lower…

Artificial intelligence start-up DeepSeek has unveiled its most powerful model variant, DeepSeek-V3.2-Speciale, which is said to match Google DeepMind’s new Gemini 3 Pro model in certain tasks, despite the Chinese firm having limited access to advanced semiconductor chips.The achievement by the open-source lab has sparked extensive discussion within the AI research community as it coincides with the prestigious annual Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems, or NeurIPS.In its announcement on Monday, Hangzhou-based DeepSeek said V3.2-Speciale equalled Google’s Gemini 3 Pro, released two weeks ago, in reasoning capabilities, while V3.2-Speciale’s base model, the V3.2 introduced on the same day, performed on…

Chinese drug maker 3SBio plans to raise HK$3.12 billion (US$401 million) by selling a 4.14 per cent stake in the company to fund clinical research in China and the US and expand the global reach of its drug portfolio.The Shenyang-based biopharmaceutical firm has agreed to sell 105.1 million new shares at HK$29.62 each. The placing price represents a 6.5 per cent discount compared with Monday’s closing price of HK$31.68, according to its filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday.The share placement follows strong investor appetite for 3SBio shares, which have soared more than fourfold so far this year.3SBio…

Chinese drug maker 3SBio plans to raise HK$3.12 billion (US$401 million) by selling a 4.14 per cent stake in the company to fund clinical research in China and the US and expand the global reach of its drug portfolio.The Shenyang-based biopharmaceutical firm has agreed to sell 105.1 million new shares at HK$29.62 each. The placing price represents a 6.5 per cent discount compared with Monday’s closing price of HK$31.68, according to its filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday.The share placement follows strong investor appetite for 3SBio shares, which have soared more than fourfold so far this year.3SBio…

Lebanon is bracing for intensified Israeli attacks in the new year, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration set a December 31 deadline for Hezbollah to disarm, following its assassination of the group’s military commander.Rather than heralding another land invasion like a year ago, however, analysts say the military ultimatum issued by Defence Minister Israel Katz last week aims to further diminish the role of Hezbollah – and its creator Iran – in Lebanon’s national politics.Speaking days after the elimination of Hezbollah’s chief of staff Haytham Ali al-Tabatabai in an air strike on a block of flats in suburban Beirut, Katz…

Northern regions across China are introducing “snow breaks” this winter as part of broader efforts to stimulate domestic tourism and spending amid deflationary pressures.Northeastern Jilin province is the latest to announce the initiative, with plans to give primary and secondary school pupils a short holiday from Wednesday to Sunday. The additional days off will not shorten the traditional winter and summer holidays, the local government said.Government agencies, enterprises and public institutions have also been encouraged to grant parents leave during the break, Jilin’s education bureau announced on Friday.The new holiday is part of a wave of measures aimed at spurring…

The PLA’s new “drone carrier”, a key asset for potential amphibious operations against Taiwan, appears to have conducted its second sea trial, marking quick progress towards deployment amid heightened tensions between Beijing and Tokyo over the island.A large vessel departed from the Hudong–Zhonghua shipyard on Friday, according to a navigation warning issued a day earlier by the Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration.The notice did not identify the vessel, but it is believed to be the Sichuan, the People’s Liberation Army’s first Type 076 amphibious assault ship, which was built and berthed at the same shipyard in Shanghai. An image of the…

Hong Kong stocks rose to a two-week high as asset managers and investment banks bet that equities would stretch their decent run into 2026.The Hang Seng Index climbed 0.8 per cent to 26,244.46 as of 10.08am local time, heading for the highest close since November 17. The Hang Seng Tech Index gained 0.6 per cent.On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index slipped 0.1 per cent and the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.3 per cent.Technology stocks led the gains as short-video operator Kuaishou Technology advanced 3.9 per cent to HK$71 and Alibaba Group Holding rose 2.8 per cent to HK$159.40. Chinese…

The Asian neighbours have been working to improve relations in recent months, following a deadly clash in 2020.But the sensitivity of the border issue – one of the most intractable disputes between the two countries – can be traced back to the 1962 conflict, which left a profound fault line.However, a peer-reviewed study by an Indian academic published earlier this year said “policies pursued by the United States and the Soviet Union during the late 1950s and early 1960s had a mix of intended and unintended consequences on India and China”.“While the Soviets wanted to collaborate with India and China,…

DNIPROPETROVSK REGION, Ukraine (AP) — Moving between damp basements and muddy dugouts to fend off constant Russian attacks in the nearly 4-year-old war, exhausted Ukrainian soldiers say their motivation is fortified by knowing they’re fighting for higher cause: the defense of their homeland.But as negotiators try to hammer out a peace deal, the troops also believe that Russia remains determined to conquer Ukraine — either now, or with a fresh army in a few years’ time — no matter what kind of agreement is reached.And they also say Kyiv must maintain a sizable military to protect the now-800-mile (nearly 1,300-kilometer)…