Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.

Coming up on our program this morning...

China's Premier has been meeting with ASEAN leaders ahead of the official start of a China-ASEAN expo in Nanning this week.

A pair of leading Republicans are casting doubts about the fate of a congressional vote on US military intervention in Syria.

The judiciary in Egypt is recommending the Muslim Brotherhood be disolved.

Business... Chinese authorities have set the rules for T-bond futures trading.

Sports... the transfer window is now closed in European football.

Entertainment... David Bowie is moving to quash rumors of an impending tour.

First, let's check on what's happening on the weather front...

 

 

Weather

 

 

Beijing will be cloudy today, with a high of 26 degree Celsius in the daytime, and it will see slight rain tonight with a low of 18.

In Shanghai, it will be cloudy today, 30 the high, and it will be cloudy tonight, the low of 22 degrees Celsius.

Lhasa will have slight rain in the daytime the temperature's at 20, and tonight will also have slight rain with a low of 10 degree Celsius.

Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia

Islamabad, sunny, 33.

Kabul, sunny, with a high of 31.

And in North America

New York, thundershowers, with a high of 27 degrees.

Washington, thundershowers, highs of 33

Houston, overcast, 34.

Honolulu, sunny, 31.

Toronto, thundershowers, 24

Finally, on to South America,

Buenos Aires, overcast, 20.

And Rio de Janeiro will be sunny with highs of 31 degrees Celsius.

 

 

Top News

 

  

Chinese premier meets Myanmar president on ties

 

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has met with Myanmar's President as part of his diplomatic efforts at this week's ASEAN-China Expo taking place in Guangxi's capital, Nanning.

Speaking with Thein Sien ahead of the official start of the Expo, Li Keqiang has told Myanmar's President it's of great importance to shore up ties between Myanmar and China in the current complex global and regional situation.

Li Keqiang has also told Myanmar's President the Chinese government is speeding up its development plans for southwest China, which borders Myanmar.

For his part, Thein Sein says Myanmar is hoping to expand its cooperation with the Chinese side.

 

 

China and ASEAN to expand cooperation in 10th China-ASEAN Expo

 

Anchor

This year's ASEAN-China Expo is set to officially get underway later on this morning and runs through Friday.

AS CRI's Marc Cavigli reports, economic cooperation is set to be the main talking point at this year's session.

Reporter

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the China-ASEAN Expo, and the year also happens to mark the tenth anniversary of China- ASEAN Strategic Partnership.

China and ASEAN inked a free trade agreement back in 2002, with effect in 2010 when China implemented zero tariffs upon over 90% of ASEAN commodities.

Since then, the bilateral trade has expanded from over 54 billion U.S. dollars in 2002 to 400 billion last year, with an average annual growth rate of 22 percent.

Earlier, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced that China and ASEAN are slated to upgrade their free trade area by accelerating regional economic integration and further opening up markets.

Against such backdrop, this year's China-ASEAN Expo is offering new services to boost regional cooperation.

Wang Lei is the Deputy Secretary of the China-ASEAN Expo Committee.

"In terms of the scope of trade, instead of focusing on commodities trading, we are expanding to investment, technical exchange and service industry such as tourism. So the expo is designed to provide a comprehensive platform for trade. Meanwhile, we are also expanding our regional cooperation. This year, China started talks on Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership or RCEP with countries including Australia and New Zealand. So we have invited representatives from countries other than ASEAN members to boost border cooperation. "

The RCEP is an initiative to link the ten ASEAN member states and the bloc's free trade partners including China, Australia, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.

As an effort to engaging future RCEP members in the expo, Australia is invited to this year's event as an observer.

Julie-Anne Nichols is the Deputy Consul-General of Australian Consulate-General in Guangzhou.

"This is something very new to Australia. For example, I have been invited as an observer for the Australian government to come and to understand what the Expo is about. What China and ASEAN do through this trading. So after this trip, we hope you will see more Australian companies here in Guangxi. China is Australia's number one trading partner, so of course the Australian government is committed to continuing a very fruitful and expanding relationship with China. "

Australia will host the second round of negotiations for RCEP later this month.

Talks among the 16 nations over RCEP began in early 2013 and are scheduled to conclude by the end of 2015.

Once completed, the grouping which has a combined GDP of about 17 trillion US dollars, will account for about 40 percent of world trade.

For CRI, I'm Marc Cavigli.

 

 

Push for military strike on Syria continue to face new twists

 

The United Nations' refugee agency has updated its estimate of the number of people displaced by the ongoing Syrian unrest.

The UN says at least 7 million people, or around one-third of the country's population, have been forced from their homes.

The update comes as the United States' plans for military strikes on Syria continue to face new twists and turns.

President Barack Obama is still lobbying Congress to support a military strike to punish the Syrian government for its alleged chemical weapons use.

But two of most outspoken foreign policy hawks in Congress, Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, both say the administration has a long way to go to get its proposal passed.

Lindsey Graham.

"I am hopeful that over the coming days we'll learn more about this strategy of degrading and upgrading and that when the vote comes, we can go on the floor of the Senate and say the administration has a plan apart from a limited military action that will allow us to get to where we need to go as a nation."

Meanwhile in France, French intelligence says it has evidence indicating the Syrian government is behind the August 21st chemical weapons attack on the outskirts of Damascus.

The French side says 281 people were killed in the assault.

French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault says France is determined to take action, but will only act in coordination with others in the international community.

"There is no question of France acting by itself. The French president is continuing his work of persuasion to bring together a coalition as soon as possible."　

Meantime, NATO says the Allience will not commit itself to any military action in Syria.

However, NATO's Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen says the decision could change if Turkey, a NATO member, comes under attack.

"I can assure you that we have all plans in place, already, to ensure effective defence and protection of Turkey, so at this stage I don't see a need for further contingency planning."

Some of the Syria's Arab neighbors, namely, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, are on-record saying they're willing to commit some of their military assets to an military attack against Syria.

However, Russia - one of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's main supporters - continues to stand opposed to any intervention in Syria.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has announced plans to send a delegation of Russian lawmakers to the US to disuade the US Congress from endorsing US military intervention in Syria.

Here in China, the foreign ministry has confirmed the United States has offered the Chinese side its evidence about the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria.

Despite this, the Chinese government is maintaining its position that any action taken by the international community should abide by the principles of the United Nations.

 

 

Egyptian judiciary wants the Muslim Brotherhood be dissolved

 

An Egyptian judicial panel has advised the courts to dissolve the Muslim Brotherhood as a legally-registered, non-governmental organisation.

The recommendation comes a day after Egypt's interim authorities decided to refer deposed President Mohamed Mursi to trial on charges of committing and inciting violence.

The Brotherhood operated in Egypt for decades as a formally outlawed organisation until former President Hosni Mubarak stepped down in 2011.

The recommendation has some in Egypt worried about the repurcussions.

"Ideologies should only be battled by ideologies, but if they're dissolved then they'll just work in secret. There must be rules that prevent the use of religion in politics, and to prevent anyone from operating in secret."

Morsi is accused of inciting the violence which left a dozen people dead outside the presidential palace in December.

He has been held at a secret location since he was ousted in early July.

Fourteen other high-ranking members of the Muslim Brotherhood are also to stand trial on the same charges.

 

 

Indian upper house passes Food Bill

 

India's upper house of parliament has passed what is said to be the largest welfare program in the world.

The upper chamber of the Indian parliament has passed the controversial Food Bill.

The bill now moves to the President for approval.

Under the new legislation, the Indian government is going to provide 5-kilograms of wheat for around two-thirds of the population per-month for virtually free.

The program is going to cover around 800-million people, including around 75-percent of the population in India's rural areas.

The move is part of the current government's broader spending programs which are going to cost the Indian government tens-of-billions of US dollars a year.

 

 

Shinzo Abe reiterates government's role in Fukushima leak cleanup

 

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has issued a new statement, saying government of Japan remains committed to cleaning up the contaminated water leat at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

This comes after the plant's operator, TEPCO, revealed last month that highly radioactive water has been found to be leaking from tanks meant to contain it.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

"Regarding the continuing problem of contaminated water at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant - instead of relying solely on TEPCO, the government will come to the forefront and implement necessary measures to deal with the issue. Unlike past times where things were dealt with as issues arose, we must take fundamental measures."

Around 300 tons of radioactive water has leaked from the plant.

Some of that water has made it into the nearby ocean.

Meanwhile, TEPCO has confirmed a small leak has also been found over the weekend on a connecting pipe.

TEPCO says the minor leak has been dealt with.

At the same time, TEPCO has acknowledged it had only been assigning two workers to visually inspect all one-thousand tanks at the facility.

The company has since increased that number to 60.

 

 

Georgian PM plans to resign after presidential poll

 

Georgia's billionaire prime minister has announced plans to step down before finishing his term.

Bidzina Ivanishvili says he intends to step down after the October 27th presidential election.

In an open letter to the nation, he says his resignation will allow him to focus on the developent of civil society in Georgia.

Ivanishvili says he wants to contribute to a European-style, democratic and citizen-oriented state.

Ivanishvilli's 6-party coalition only took power just under a year ago.

It was shortly thereafter the billionaire announced his intention to step away from the office in a matter of months.

Ivanishvili had to receive a special exemption to form his government from the country's President after he had his Georgian citizenship revoked shortly after announcing his intention to run in the election.

 

 

Toure forms new gov't after appointed Senegal PM

 

Senegal's new Prime Minister has formed her new government.

Aminata Toure has put together her new administration just a day after being appointed by the country's President.

Toure is replacing Abdoul Mbaye as the Prime Minister.

He was unexpectedly sacked by President Macky Sall over the weekend.

There's still no word as to why Mbaye was relieved of his position.

Toure, Senegal's former Justice Minister, is the West African nation's 2nd female prime minister.

 

 

3 killed in Taliban attack targeting a US base in Afghanistan

 

At least 3 people have been killed in an attack targeting a US base in Afghanistan.

Insurgents set off bombs, torched vehicles and shut down a key road used by NATO supply vehicles.

The Taliban is claiming responsibility for the attack, which has taken place near the border with Pakistan.

The encounter is the latest in a surge of attacks in Afghanistan as US-led foreign troops reduce their presence en route to a full withdrawal by the end of next year.

NATO says the 3 killed are all Taliban insurgents.

 

 

Beijing tightens vehicle emission controls against air pollution

 

Authorities here in Beijing have unveiled a package of measures to try to curb vehicle emissions over the next five years.

The new plans are part of the drive to try to improve air quality in the Capital.

The municipal government is hoping to reduce PM 2.5 density by 25 percent or more by 2017 by restricting the number of new vehicles which can hit the road next year.

Under the new restriction plans, by 2017, the number of vehicles in the city is expected to be no more than 6-million.

There are an estimated 5.35 million vehicles on the road right now here in Beijing.

 

 

Crowd-Sourcing Clean Air

 

ANCHOR

The pollution in Beijing last winter, while depressing to some, has also inspired one group of creative people to find new ways to improve the environment.

CRI's Dominic Swire explains.

REPORT

The problem of air pollution is so big most people may feel powerless to do anything about it.

But this hasn't stopped a couple of Beijing residents setting up a competition they hope will inspire some grassroots solutions to this pressing issue.

Fei Jun is founder of the organisation Interactive Beijing.

"We involve designers, engineers, entrepreneurs and investors to work together on specific topics to help incubate crazy ideas. That's our mission." 2.43

Some of the crazy ideas proposed so far have involved buildings that reduce pollution, and bicycles that produce clean air.

The ideas are developed during short workshops where this wide range of skilled people are encouraged to focus their creative energies on solving some of today's most pressing problems.

Xin Lulu is Creative Director at Interactive Beijing.

"In our campaign we want to call for this new collectivism to rescue our last public asset, which is the air. As we all know, you can't meter it, you can't measure how much you breath. It can't be privatised. And you see how people react to this by putting masks on. I don't think that's a solution. This totally reflects the fact the public's run out of ideas. It's a serious crisis."

Eight of the best ideas will be given an expert to help further development, with the chance of receiving money to go into production.

Interactive Beijing is itself a new organisation having only started a few years ago.

They try to connect talented creative people skilled at problem solving with some of society's biggest problems.

"We take on the most urgent social problems... This year we couldn't ignore the air problem any more. So we were thinking, yes, this is an urgent issue. We design for change and we want to design for air quality change and leverage our platform to make this happen. It doesn't mean we are going to provide solutions, we want to crowd source solutions to spread awareness of this urgent issue."

Interactive Beijing is itself a start up. This is the first time they're focusing on one specific issue.

To what extent they succeed is still up in the air. But at the very least they hope to raise awareness of the problem of pollution.

For CRI, I'm Dominic Swire.

 

 

Biz Reports

 

 

Anchor

First off, a check on the stock market of North America and Europe.

Join me on the desk, CRI's Hu Jia.

Reporter

North American markets were closed for the Labor Day holiday.

European stock markets saw their biggest rally in almost two months Monday.

Mining firms, which are sensitive to growth indications from China, posted the largest gains in Europe.

Shares of Rio Tinto gained 4.2 percent, Anglo American Mining picked up 3.9 percent, and BHP Billiton PLC added 2.3 percent.

When the market closed,

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 jumped 1.5 percent, with new data showing British manufacturing has expanded at its fastest pace in over 2-years this past month.

Germany's DAX was up 1.7 percent while the CAC 40 in France closed 1.8 percent higher.

 

 

CFFEX Releases Finalized Contract and Trading Rules for Government Bond Futures

 

The finalized contract and trading rules for the trading of government bond futures has been released.

Securities regulators have approved the trading of 5-year government bond futures, with the margins being set between 2 and 5 percent.

The range was originally set at 2 to 4 percent in the draft.

Trading on the first day of a new contract is going to be limited to one-thousand bonds.

 

 

China 2012 GDP growth revised down to 7.7 pct

 

The National Bureau of Statistics has revised its growth estimates for the Chinese economy this year.

The NBS is now predicting China's economy is due to grow at 7.7-percent for the full year.

This is down from the 7.8-percent growth predicted after the first quarter.

The 7.7-percent estimate is still ahead of the Chinese government's full-year target of 7.5-percent GDP growth.

The downward revision comes as the Chinese government attempts to re-align the economy to a more consumer-based model.

The revision also comes amid the impending end to the US Federal Reserve's bond-buying program.

The end of that program is expected to see significant capital outflows from emerging economies, such as China.

 

 

Manufacturers try to make a turnaround amid China's economy restructuring

 

Anchor

HSBC's final Purchasing Manufacturing Index for August has come in within market expectations at 50.1.

The new reading comes a day after the Chinese government released its official manufacturing PMI, which has registered at a 16-month high at 51.0.

CRI's Hu Jia has more.

Reporter

Manufacturing still forms the backbone of the country's economy, accounting for more than 40 percent of the country's GDP.

Hao Yufeng, director of the research department at the China Enterprise Confederation, explains.

"Our ultimate goal by bolstering the service industry and domestic consumption is to try to make them the new engines for China's economic expansion. But we should acknowledge the obstacles during the transformation period; it is by no means a one-off conduct and will of course guarantee no immediate effect."

As all the sub-indices composing the official PMI have seen steady growth for the first time through August, some see this as a signal that domestic firms have learnt how to adapt to the market amid the current economic restructuring.

"Companies within the manufacturing sector are trying their best to cope with the transition; breaking out from the passive mode of sole dependence on upstream companies, and trying to turn into proactive companies. In our case, it means that we have to at least think or act on the same page compared to our up-stream companies or draw plans ahead of them."

That's Xin Jungao, General Manager of SHANG Group, one of the top 500 manufacturing companies here in China which provides eco-friendly packaging to beverage giants Wahaha.

"Our co-op pattern in the past was that we followed the steps of our up-stream companies, for example, once they set up a factory in a new city, we would later locate our operations nearby. But now that strategic partnerships have been formed, our time schedule for establishing operations in new locations almost coincides with that of our up-stream companies and we are sometimes reaching out in advance of them."

Xin says this is a big step forward because as more supporting companies follow suit, local governments will have more bargaining chips with which to attract qualified investment.

And that also partly clarifies the reason as to why the mid-west region here in China would in Hao's words rise to become the country's next growth pole.

As for concerns that development in the western region may fall into a lousy copycat model of that in the coastal cities where local governments have been taken hostage by overcapacity, Hao Yufeng, director of the research department at the China Enterprise Confederation shared his opinion.

"Local governments have undeniable responsibility for the overcapacity of some industries as they drove on hard to increase the number of projects but later found it hard to exit this strategy because the region's employment and economic output are all tied to the money-losing project. There emerges a mismatch target between local governments and corporate heads. The second factor is the irresponsible investment attitude seen in some big firms, as there're no strict rules to standardize how much dividends you have to pay back to shareholders. Thirdly, private businesses which are operating in the positive territory claim that they don't have overcapacity issues. However, their labor costs and environmental costs are externalized."

An industry survey reveals that mining, power generation, manufacturing and construction still account for more than half of the GDP in the western region over the past year.

However, the most recent list of the top 500 Chinese enterprises revealed that the combined revenue of China's top 500 services enterprises has for the first time outstripped the top 500 manufacturing firms this year.

For CRI, I'm Hu Jia.

 

 

BAC report says Chinese market likely to weather tapering US stimulus

 

A new report from Bank of America is predicting the Chinese market will stand strong in the face of a thinning US stimulus program.

Chinese stock markets have been the best-performing in Asia through August.

The BoA report is likely to help allay fears the Chinese market will suffer from the predicted cut to the US Federal Reserves stimulus program.

It's widely expected the end of that program will have repercussions on other emerging markets here in Asia.

Indonesian, Thai and Philippine bench mark indexes all suffered losses of between 8.5 to 9.1 percent last month.

Investors dumped some 2.2-billion US dollars worth of shares in those economies in August.

Conversely, the Shanghai Composite Index gained 5.3 percent in August, responding to indications that economic growth here in China is stabilising.

China's low foreign debt, large foreign exchange reserves and sustained current account surplus, on top of the high savings rate, is being cited by Bank of America as the main reason it feels China should be able to weather potential capital outflows.

 

 

Positive manufacturing data points to stronger British economic recovery: economists

 

Official data shows manufacturing activity in Britain has picked up speed in August, with the Purchasing Managers Index coming in at 57.2.

This has come in ahead of market expectation.

Most analysts had predicted the PMI for the UK to come at 55.

The PMI figure is strongest reading in some 2.5-years.

UK manufacturing in July came in at 54.6.

UK authorities are on-record saying the monetary policy won't change until unemployment falls to 7 percent.

Currently, the jobless rate is at 7.8 percent.

The upbeat data is giving a lift to the growth outlook for the UK this quarter.

It's projected manufacturing activity in the UK will rise 0.7-percent increase on a quarterly basis.

 

 

Verizon agrees to buy out Vodafone's stake in Verizon Wireless

 

US mobile carrier Verizon has agreed to buy the 45-percent stake in its wireless business held by Vodafone for 130 billion U.S. dollars.

It's being reported the deal will be made in cash and stock.

The deal, the 3rd largest in history, is expected to complete as early as next year.

Meanwhile, UK-based Vodafone is vowing to pay its shareholders a massive dividend with the proceeds of the sale.

It's being reported Vodafone will spend some 84 billion dollars to give money back to its shareholders.

 

 

Air France launches service of A380 from Paris to Shanghai

 

Air France has launched its first A380 route from Paris to Shanghai.

This makes Air France one of the first airlines to serve the Chinese financial centre via the Super jumbo.

Air France is running three flights a week to Shanghai via the A380.

The French national carrier operates eight Airbus A380's to six destinations around the globe, including New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Johannesburg and Tokyo.

 

 

Headline News

  

 

Chinese premier meets Myanmar president on ties

 

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has met with Myanmar's President as part of his diplomatic efforts at this week's ASEAN-China Expo taking place in Guangxi's capital, Nanning.

Speaking with Thein Sien ahead of the official start of the Expo, Li Keqiang has told Myanmar's President it's of great importance to shore up ties between Myanmar and China in the current complex global and regional situation.

Li Keqiang has also told Myanmar's President the Chinese government is speeding up its development plans for southwest China, which borders Myanmar.

For his part, Thein Sein says Myanmar is hoping to expand its cooperation with the Chinese side.

This week's ASEAN-China Expo in Nanning runs through Friday.

 

 

France not to vote on Syria in parliament: PM

 

NATO says the Allience will not commit itself to any military action in Syria.

However, NATO's Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen says the decision could change if Turkey, a NATO member, comes under attack.

The announcement comes after calls proposed by the opposition for a parliamentary vote on any French military action in Syria were rejected by the government.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is on record saying France will face negative repercussions if it takes part in any military intervention in Syria.

He is also challenging France and the United States to produce evidence of his government's involvement in any chemical weapons attack.

Meanwhile Russian president Vladimir Putin has announced plans to send a delegation of Russian lawmakers to the US to disuade the US Congress from endorsing US military intervention in Syria.

UN stats show that now some one third of population in Syria has been forced to be displaced by the ongoing Syrian unrest.

 

 

Egyptian judiciary wants the Muslim Brotherhood be dissolved

 

An Egyptian judicial panel has advised the courts to dissolve the Muslim Brotherhood as a legally-registered, non-governmental organisation.

The Brotherhood operated in Egypt for decades as a formally outlawed organisation until former President Hosni Mubarak stepped down in 2011.

The recommendation comes a day after Egypt's interim authorities decided to refer deposed President Mohamed Mursi to trial on charges of Committing and inciting violence.

Morsi is accused of inciting the violence which left a dozen people dead outside the presidential palace in December. Fourteen other high-ranking members of the Muslim Brotherhood are also to stand trial on the same charges.

 

 

CFFEX Releases Finalized Contract and Trading Rules for Government Bond Futures

 

The finalized contract and trading rules for the trading of government bond futures has been released.

Securities regulators have approved the trading of 5-year government bond futures, with the margins being set between 2 and 5 percent.

The range was originally set at 2 to 4 percent in the draft.

Trading on the first day of a new contract is going to be limited to one-thousand bonds.

 

 

Newspaper Picks

 

 

Beijing Times

Former vice-governor investigated

Summary:

Tian Xueren, former vice-governor of Jilin, has been charged with corruption.

Tian is accused of abusing his power to provide favors to 10 diffferent people.

He is also accused of accepting bribes of some 20 million yuan.

South China Metropolitan Daily

Boy to recieve artificial eyes

Summary:

6-year old Guo Bin, whose eyes were gouged out in an attack by an unknown assailant in Shanxi this past month, is expected to have artificial eyes implanted within three months.

The boy is in stable condition after the gruesome attack.

Psychological experts are providing counseling for the boy and his family.

Yanzhao Metropolitan Daily

Beijing to consider congestion fees

Summary:

Authorities in Beijing are reportedly mulling the idea of imposing a congestion fee for cars.

The idea would be to limit car use in the center of the city to help cut PM2.5 levels.

The move is part of a five-year clean air action plan for Beijing.

Shanghai Daily

Headline: Ticketless travelers nabbed

Summary:

More than 100 passengers have been caught at the Shanghai Railway Station traveling without tickets or with invalid tickets.

Passengers are being warned that anyone caught traveling without valid ticket will not only have to pay the full fare, but 50 percent of the fare as a fine.

Shanghai residents also stand to lose points on their personal credit records.

Beijing News

Environment agency to publish list of Net rumor targets

Summary:

Environmental authorities in Shandong are preparing to publish a list of companies affected by a wide-spread rumor.

A number of companies have been accused of piping waste into the local ground water, which the rumor claims has been spreading disease.

However, this has provent to be false.

A number of companies were forced to suspend their operations while the investigation into the reports took place.

Global Times

Banks ordered to upgrade ATMs

Summary:

A new system is being put in-place to track counterfeit notes withdrawn from certian Automatic Teller Machines.

By the end of this year, all money withdrawn from ATMs in China will be traceable.

China Daily

Translation contest

Summary:

A translation contest of contemporary works in Chinese has been launched.

The organizing committee has chosen 30 award-winning contemporary Chinese short stories from renowned writers.

Those taking part will have to translate one of the stories into either English, French, Russian, Spanish or Arabic.

The top prize for each language will be 5-thousand US dollars.

 

 

Sports

 

 

Report on rugby's development in China

 

Anchor

Rugby Sevens has made its debut at the National Games taking place in Liaoning this week.

CRI's Jordan Lee caught up with rugby fans in Shenyang to learn more about the sport's development in China.

Reporter

Three men wandered through the glass display cases at Shenyang's Agricultural university, as they looked at photographs of old rugby teams and vintage rugby balls yellowed with age.

All three had played rugby decades ago, when the sport was unknown in China.

One of them, Xu Xiao Ming is pleased that his beloved sport is slowly becoming more recognized in China.

"It can help to make people tougher and teach them how to cooperate in team and it can make people braver. So it is a good sporting activity when it comes to nurturing the personality of students."

Back in 2009, when it was announced that rugby sevens would be included in the 2016 Olympics, China snapped into action.

Teams were sent to train in rugby powerhouses like New Zealand. Foreign coaches were brought in. And a small number of grassroots rugby programs began to crop up around China.

Rugby Sevens was also officially included in the 2013 Liaoning National Games.

A small group of fans turned out in Shenyang to support the twelve teams that qualified for rugby seven's debut competition.

Lu Zhi Sheng made the trip from Beijing to Shenyang to watch the games, with his team flag proudly sticking straight out of the top of his baseball cap.

"Rugby games are very intense, very good. I like them better than soccer."

Many Chinese want to follow rugby, but they struggle to understand the rules and nuances of the game, which was originally imported from the British.

After watching matches for a couple days, 24-year old Liang Ting said she's slowly picking up the game rule by rule.

"I only know all the ball players are only allowed to pass the ball backwards. They all have a strong sense of teamwork. And they all seem friendly though the game itself is fierce."

Technically, rugby isn't a complete novelty in China.

The earliest evidences of the game can be traced back to the late 1800's, after Shanghai opened to the West as a port city.

In the 1990's, China even had an international rugby player, Zhang Zhi Qiang or Johnny Zhang, who played for the famous Leicester Tigers club in England.

Jeff Stone, an American expat in Liaoning, was one of the several foreign fans watching the Chinese teams in Shenyang.

Stone was impressed by the mens and womens teams from Hong Kong and Shan Dong in particular, and said they are far ahead the other squads in terms of fundamentals.

"You can tell the difference in the training that's been going on. You can tell which team looks like college students playing for fun and the teams that brought their rugby clubs with them. They seem to be a bit more technical."

Stone expects to see a boom in Chinese rugby because of its inclusion in the upcoming Olympics.

"Because it's become an Olympic sport in 2016, the Chinese are probably going to pay attention because they really pay attention to olympic sports. And because you only need 7 people to play it. Well..7 plus subs. You should be able to find enough athletes to grow it."

But there is still a lot of work to be done.

China's national rugby team is currently ranked 66th, and has yet to qualify for a Rugby World Cup.

For CRI, I'm Jordan Lee.

 

 

Chinese Olympic fencing champions upset at National Games

 

China's Olympic fencing champions Lei Sheng, Li Na and Sun Yujie have all been frustrated on the second day of the National Games.

Lei Sheng, the men's foil gold winner in London, missed the opportunity to grab his first individual gold in the National Games, going down to Zhang Liangliang from Anhui 15-14 in the final.

Li Na and Sun Yujie were also ousted in the women's event.

In other action from Liaoning yesterday,

Olympic rowing veteran Zhang Xiuyun secured a bronze medal in the women's single sculls.

Fujian's Duan Jingli took the gold medal, only 0.03 seconds ahead of second placed Tang Bin of Liaoning.

And in the team competition on the trampoline,

Fujian men's team has taken the gold.

Guangdong women's team clinched first place on their side.

 

 

Vinci beats fellow-Italian Giorgi at the US Open

 

In Tennis,

Rains have been wreaking havoc on the court, with many of the matches scheduled for Monday postponed.

However, a few matches have gone off.

In the women's single's draw,

Roberta Vinci needed just over an hour to defeat fellow-Italian Camila Giorgi 6-4, 6-2 on center-court to advance into the quarter finals.

The 10th seeded 30-year-old is now through to the quaters for the 2nd year in a row at Flushing Meadows.

Meanwhile, on the men's side, World number one Novak Jokavic has eased into the quarter finals after breezed past Portugal's Joao Sousa 6-love, 6-2 6-2.

"I am not obviously as comfortable on the net as I am on the baseline, but I've been working on it.　It's part of my game that I still need to improve. I'm aware of that. It makes me happy that I have room for improvement, and I keep on spending hours and hours on the court and working on variety in my game. And serve, especially that part of my game. I want to try and get as many free points on the serve as possible."

Jokavic is now set to take on take on Spain's Marcel Granollers in the last 16.

The defending champion Andy Murray is also through to the quarter-finals.

He is due to face Denis Istomin from Uzbekistan.

 

 

Kaka returns to Italy after re-signing for AC Milan

 

In football,

The transfer window has now closed.

It's being reported Arsenal has signed German international Mezut Ozil for around 60-million euros from Real Madrid.

The 24-year-old scored 27 goals in 158 appearances for Real Madrid since joining the club in 2010.

The big move, of course, before the close of the transfer window was the signing by Gareth Bale by Real Madrid.

It's being reported Bale's transfer price-tag is over 100-million euros, which would make him the most expensive signing in European football history.

Others being signed before the window closed include defender Martin Demichelis at Atletico Madrid.

Liverpool has signed central defenders Mamadou Sakho and Tiago Ilori.

AC Milan has confirmed that Brazil international Kaka has rejoined the club from Real Madrid on a two-year contract.

"Well, after a difficult period in Madrid, I dreamed about it a couple of times about this chance. So now it is come true and it is a beautiful reality for me. I am really happy."

Real Madrid has reportedly allowed the 31-year-old to return to his former club on a free transfer, having paid 65 million euros to get Kaka in the Spanish Premier League in 2009.

 

 

Netherlands prepare for World Cup qualifiers with Estonia and Andorra

 

The Dutch national squad has been put through their paces in a light training session in preparation for their next two World Cup qualifiers in Estonia and Andorra on September 6th and 10th.

The Dutch side sits at the top of European qualification Group D with a maximum 18 points from their six games so far.

Holland has only given up 2-goals, while scoring 20.

Wesley Sneijder has been called up for the forthcoming matches, despite concerns about his fitness.

Estonia and Andorra are currently at the bottom of Group D.

 

 

Boxer Tommy Morrison dies

 

Former World Heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison has passed away.

He was 44.

His family has not confirmed the cause of death, though it was known that Morrison was infected with HIV, even though he denied he had the virus.

Morrison shot to fame in the world of boxing after beating George Foreman to earn the WBO title.

Three-years later he was forced to retire after being diagnosed with HIV.

Morrison also starred along Sylvester Stalone in the film Rocky V.

His post-boxing life included a string of legal and social problems, including continued denials of his HIV infection, which he insisted was a global conspiracy.

 

 

Entertainment

 

 

Venice Film Fest; Tom Hardy's Performance

 

Many film buffs at this year's Venice Film Festival are claiming British actor Tom Hardy has by far given the best performance seen yet at the festival.

The British actor appears in the new Steven Knight film Locke which was already infamous for its hectic shooting schedule.

The entire production lasted only 5-days meaning everyone involved had to scramble to complete it on time.

Hardy has admitted the shooting schedule was so quick he didn't even have time to fulfill all his responsibilities as an actor.

"I read the whole thing off an autocue as I didn't know the lines. So the whole thing is me reading, which I thought was really exciting as well because I have never done a film where I didn't know what I was doing at all."

Despite reading his lines throughout the entire film Locke has received overwhelming praise despite it's bizarre pace.

The entire film takes place in Locke's car as he talks on his mobile phone juggling his business and personal life.

Locke is not in competition for this year's coveted Golden Lion Award.

 

 

David Bowie Will Not Tour

 

Following rumors a tour was about to be announced, eccentric singer David Bowie has revealed he has no current plans to tour in the near future.

(bowie clip)

Concert promoter Live Nation has reportedly offered Bowie a multi-million dollar deal to appear live at Olympic Park in London next summer.

He has also received offers to appear at other big name festivals such as next year's Glastonbury Festival.

Bowie has yet to tour or perform songs from his new album The Next Day yet sparking speculation he'd be announcing a tour soon.

 

 

Michael Jackson's Bent Spoon Sells at Auction

 

A spoon that once belonged to the king of pop Michael Jackson has sold at auction for 500-pounds or almost 800-US dollars.

(jackson clip)

However, this isn't any ordinary spoon.

This spoon was given to Jackson by the famous spoon-bender and magician Uri Geller.

Jackson was Geller's best man at his marriage vow renewals in 2001 where he presented Jackson with the signed bent spoon.

A drum skin signed by the band Deep Purple, and a signed photograph of Jon Bon Jovi were also sold at the auction which raised over 10-thousand US dollars for Thames Hospicecare charity.

 

 

Paul McCartney Reveals Nervous Breakdown Following Beatles Split

 

In his new biography ex-Beatle Paul McCartney has revealed he suffered a complete mental breakdown following the Beatles breakup in 1970.

(beatles clip)

In the new book by author Tom Doyle, the 71-year-old rocker confesses his late wife Linda was the only thing that saved him from an utter collapse.

Following the fab-four's split, McCartney apparently suffered from confidence issues, which he treated with an abundance of alcohol and marijuana.

After the tremendous success McCartney experienced with the Beatles, he admits after the breakup he felt utterly worthless for the first time in his life.

His wife Linda Eastman pulled him out of the funk in what McCartney describes as a domestic setting.

McCartney and Eastman married in 1969 and stayed married until her death in 1998.