China Opens Pinglu Canal as Hong Kong Releases First Five-Year Plan

China officially opened the Pinglu Canal to navigation on Wednesday, according to the South China Morning Post. The canal creates a new maritime gateway for the country's southwestern hinterland and offers a shorter route to Southeast Asia, part of Beijing's effort to deepen trade with the region. The opening was among the top stories in SCMP's recent reporting, which also included a speech by China's defence chief at the Xiangshan Forum ahead of a planned Xi-Trump summit; the defence chief avoided discussing flashpoints during his remarks. Another highlighted item concerned a Beijing Hyrox athlete and a faecal row. Hong Kong unveiled its first five-year plan, one of seven highlights compiled by the publication. The roundup was published at the URL https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3367930/china-launches-pinglu-canal-hong-kong-unveils-first-5-year-plan-scmps-7-highlights. The canal's launch is presented as a landmark infrastructure development intended to cut transit times to Southeast Asia, while the Xiangshan Forum speech is framed in the context of an upcoming Xi-Trump summit. No further details on the remaining highlights were provided in the source material.