Factories in China's southwest will remain closed until Thursday and power use restricted in malls because of the prolonged heatwave and drop in hydropower output

Some Chinese traders expect more Russian coal to flow into China in the fourth quarter when utilities in the northern region build stocks for the winter heating season.

Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb is making the third trip to Taiwan this month by a U.S. delegation after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's earlier visit infuriated China.

The onshore yuan opened at 6.82 per dollar and touched a low of 6.8308, the weakest level since Sept 2020, while its offshore counterpart fell to a near two-year low of 6.852

China's economy narrowly avoided a contraction in the second quarter as widespread lockdowns and a property crisis took a heavy toll on consumer and business confidence.

Officials in western Sichuan province have maintained their ban on industrial facilities using power until Thursday, when rain has been forecast, a report on Sunday said

"We can expect more geopolitical contestation in the Asia-Pacific," he said, adding that Singapore would try its best to avoid being caught up in the "major power rivalry".

Japan is considering extending the range of its missiles from 100 kilometres to 1,000 kilometres to boost its ability to strike back against China, the Yomiuri daily said.

Extreme temperatures in July caused direct economic losses of 2.73 billion yuan ($400 million), affecting 5.5 million people and 457,500 hectares of land

A Shanghai court gave Xiao Jianhua 13 years in jail, while his Tomorrow Holdings group was hit with a record 55-billion-yuan fine ($8.1 billion) for illegally siphoning public money, bribery

The Taiwanese group signed a $300m agreement with local developer Kinh Bac City to expand its facilities northeast of Hanoi, amid reports it will make the Apple Watch there

China imported 7.15 million tonnes of Russian oil last month via the East Siberia Pacific Ocean pipeline and shipped from Russian ports, but domestic demand was weaker