Hong Kong

Friday also marks the halfway point of the 50-year governance model agreed by Britain and China under which the city would keep some autonomy and freedoms, known as One Country Two Systems.

China's Tianqi Lithium Corp will sell its shares for between HK$69 and HK$82 ($8.79-$10.45) each for a Hong Kong listing which could raise up to $2 billion, said two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.

Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 after 156 years of British colonial rule.

Hong Kong on July 1 will mark its 25th anniversary under Chinese rule.

In 1997, the world watched as Britain returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule, with some pessimistic or wary about the outlook for the city and its role in the global financial system.

Hong Kong's iconic floating Jumbo restaurant capsized when it was being towed away to a different location in the South China Sea on Saturday.

Bryan Ong has made it his mission to preserve items that tell the story of Hong Kong's British colonial past even as Beijing increasingly shapes life in the city that is firmly back in the fold of the mainland.

Patten hits outs at China's 'vengeful' acts in Hong Kong

In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin was last up 5.1% at $31,277, having touched its lowest since December 2020 last week

Across Asia, share indexes were a sea of red. The Nikkei lost 0.9%, Australian shares shed 2.5% and Korean stocks lost 2%.

A man who bit off a former politician's ear and gashed another person during Hong Kong protests in 2019 has been sentenced to 14 and a half years in prison.

The rate of deaths by suicide during the fifth Covid wave in Hong Kong reached a crisis level, according to a new study carried out by researchers at the University of Hong Kon

The researchers at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) have found that pet hamsters were the most likely source of the latest Covid-19 outbreak in Hong Kong. The Delta variant of the coronavirus has been leading the current surge in the region.

Authorities also said Sunday that people cannot leave or enter Shanghai without a negative test taken in the past 48 hours.

The risk of transmission from animals "remains low", the World Health Organization has said, but is a possibility.

In France, President Emmanuel Macron warned people not yet vaccinated that he planned to make life difficult for them by limiting access to key aspects of life.

Nathan Law, a former lawmaker now living in Britain who is wanted by the Hong Kong authorities, called the weekend's vote a "fake election".

Authorities have asked local governments to prepare for Evergrande's potential collapse

Europe's main equity markets advanced, while Asian markets were mixed.

US stocks had dropped the last two sessions, with analysts pointing to a weak retail sales report amid the Delta variant

Wall Street's streak of five straight records for the Dow and S&P 500 indices ended with a thud

Oil prices were down around 1.5 percent on the weak Chinese economic data.

Crude prices rallied on Tuesday, with some analysts saying the worries over the hit to demand from the Delta variant have been overstated.

Biden's declaration came nearly three weeks after the US government formally warned American businesses of the "growing risks" of operating in the Asian financial hub.

British data showed unemployment dipped to 4.8 percent in the three months to the end of May from 5.0 percent in the three months to February.

Since the law was implemented, 117 people had been arrested for "committing acts and engaging in activities that endanger national security".

Hong Kong and Chinese authorities have hailed the security law as successfully restoring stability after the demonstrations that convulsed the finance hub in 2019.

Chinese companies looking at selling shares in the city include Tencent's music group and video site Bilibili.

China's actions "threaten the rules-based order that maintains global stability," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

Any Hong Kong resident born before 1997 is eligible for BN(O) status.