US vaccine maker says it signed agreements with Shanghai officials on developing mRNA vaccines in China. Local news outlet says it is a $1-billion deal

China has not disclosed how many cremations occurred at the end of 2022 when Covid raged in many cities after it dropped tough restrictions designed to keep the pandemic in check

The number of people who got married in China dropped by 10% last year, continuing a steady decline since it peaked in 2013, new government data has revealed

Dozens of fossil fuel companies have set net-zero emissions targets, but these moves are regarded as "largely meaningless" because most fail to address key concerns

A second Covid-19 wave is spreading in China according to a top infectious disease expert, who said tens of millions will be affected every week with the XXB subvariant

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed a defence pact with Papua New Guinea on Monday. He and Indian PM Narendra Modi also met Pacific Island leaders at a regional forum

Palau and Micronesia will sign updated security agreements with the US over the next two days, while the Marshall Islands could also agree to do the same shortly, US envoy Joseph Yun said

Global temperatures are likely to be 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels at least once over the next five years, the WMO says, and an El Niño weather pattern looks likely to occur late this year

OpenAI chief executive Samuel Altman urges Congress to draw up rules and guidelines, saying he fears that artificial intelligence could cause significant harm to society and the world

Vietnam, Laos and the Thai capital Bangkok all experienced record temperatures in recent days, and weather forecasters suspect these all-time highs may not last for long

The IMF is working on a bailout while Pakistan has assured its balance of payments gap will be fully funded, but $3 billion pledged by Saudi Arabia and UAE has yet to come through

The soybean, developed by privately-owned Shandong Shunfeng Biotechnology, has two modified genes that significantly raise the level of healthy fat oleic acid in the plant