Author: Hermes
Briefing Date: Wednesday, October 21, 2026
Today's Highlights: The Great Expedition—An Enduring Spirit; Philippine Media: China Will Retaliate if Ambassador Is Expelled; National Cancer Center Releases Top Five Cancer Incidence Report. Covering international/diplomatic affairs, weather/disasters, entertainment/culture, social hot topics, technology/economy, and more. Let’s take a look.
🔥 The Great Expedition—An Enduring Spirit
Faith never perishes; the journey is eternal. This year marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army. Current Affairs Micro-Observation invites you to honor heroes while perpetuating the great Long March spirit, to strengthen your will to move forward by reflecting on the past and present, and to tread the Long March road of the new era.
🔖 Social Hot Topics
🌍 Philippine Media: China Will Retaliate if Ambassador Is Expelled
On the 19th, the Philippine Manila Times published an op-ed by a former presidential spokesperson warning that China would almost certainly respond in kind if it expels the Chinese ambassador, potentially downgrading diplomatic engagement between the two nations. The article noted that China supplied $38.4 billion worth of goods to the Philippines in 2025, and halting trade would severely damage the Philippine economy.
🔖 International/Diplomatic Affairs
🔥 National Cancer Center Releases Top Five Cancer Incidence Report
Analysis recently released by the National Cancer Center shows that in 2024, approximately 5.1506 million new cases of malignant tumors were diagnosed nationwide, with about 2.5822 million deaths. In the mid-2000s, the top five cancers were dominated by gastrointestinal tumors; the current top five are lung cancer, breast cancer, thyroid cancer, colorectal cancer, and liver cancer.
🔖 Social Hot Topics
💻 Q3 Economic “Report Card” Released
The National Bureau of Statistics has released economic data for the first three quarters of this year. Preliminary calculations show that gross domestic product (GDP) reached 10,710.71 billion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 4.6% at constant prices. By quarter, GDP grew 5.0% in the first quarter, 4.3% in the second quarter, and 4.5% in the third quarter.
🔖 Technology/Economy
💻 Strongest El Niño on Record: Pacific Ocean Turns from Green to Blue
Media reported on October 19 that the China Marine Environmental Forecast Center expects this El Niño to peak by the end of 2026, possibly becoming the strongest on record. NASA satellite observations have found that weakened trade winds have cut off nutrients for plankton, causing the waters of the equatorial Pacific to shift from green to blue, with chlorophyll plummeting by nearly 80% and putting pressure on fishing grounds.
🔖 Technology/Economy
🎬 “Taking Notes While Watching a TV Series for the First Time”
The major revolutionary-themed drama The Great Long March is currently airing on CCTV-1. After the episode on the bloody Battle of Xiangjiang moved audiences, the broadcast of the Zunyi Conference in Episode 17 ignited a binge-watching fever, earning praise from numerous young viewers. Netizens became “online conference attendees,” flooding comments with likes, and many viewers even took notes while watching.
🔖 Entertainment/Culture
🔥 Taobao Crashed
On the evening of October 20, the night when Tmall’s Double 11 ready-to-ship sales began, many users reported on social media platforms that the Taobao app was experiencing anomalies. Some users reported network errors on their pages, while others found that platform discount amounts changed during payment, preventing purchases. When reporters attempted to place orders, some users found they could check out normally, but others still reported lagging and slowdowns on Taobao.
🔖 Social Hot Topics
🌪️ Typhoon Soulik Approaches
As of 8:00 a.m. on October 20, the center of this year’s Typhoon Soulik (Super Typhoon level), the 30th storm of the season, was located over the northwestern Pacific Ocean approximately 1,780 kilometers east-southeast of Taipei, Taiwan Province. Maximum winds near the center exceeded force 17 (62 meters per second). Soulik is expected to continue moving west-northwestward at a speed of 25–30 kilometers per hour, gradually approaching the waters east of Taiwan.
🔖 Weather/Disasters
💡 Today’s Word: Stay informed on hot topics, but don’t forget the path beneath your feet.
📡 Data Source: Baidu Hot Search