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

Coming up on our program this morning...

The Chinese government has listed a series of new priorities for 2015 in its ongoing campaign against corruption...

The French government has announced it is sending an aircraft carrier to the middle east to assist the coalition bombing campaign against Islamic State militants...

and searchers have found the fuselage of missing AirAsia flight 8501 in the Java Sea and will send divers to the site today...

In business...China's cabinet has announced a multi-billion dollar fund that will be used to spur innovation...

In Sports...another victory for China at Football's Asian Cup tournament...

In entertainment...a Chinese film competing at the Berlin Film Festival...

First, let's check in with what's happening with the weather... 

 

Weather 

 

Beijing will be hazy today with a high of 3, overcast tonight with a low of minus 3 degrees Celsius.

Shanghai will be overcast with a high of 11, cloudy tonight with a low of 4.

Chongqing will be overcast with a high of 13 and a low of 9.

Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia.

Islamabad, sunny with a high of 15.

Kabul, cloudy with a high of 6.

Over to North America.

New York will be overcast with a high of 2 degrees.

Washington will be rainy with a high of 3 degrees.

Honolulu, overcast, 27.

Toronto, Canada, will have snow with a high of minus 4 degrees.

Finally, on to South America,

Buenos Aires will be cloudy with a high of 28.

And Rio de Janeiro will also be cloudy with a high of 33 degrees Celsius.

 

 

Top News

 

 

CPC Steps up Fight against Corruption

 

Anchor:

The Communist Party of China is stepping up its anti-corruption drive, listing a series of priorities for 2015.

The CPC's top corruption eradication authority has concluded three-days of meetings, vowing that the ongoing fight against graft will not be just a "whirlwind campaign".

CRI's Qi Zhi has the details.

Reporter:

The CPC's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection has put forward seven priorities for fighting corruption in 2015, including tighter scrutiny of senior officials and intensified efforts to track down corrupt fugitives hiding abroad.

The top task will be the tightening up of the Party's internal management and supervision with new rules and regulations.

Professor Zhu Lijia with the Chinese Academy of Governance believes the CPC is moving to address the root causes of corruption.

"To root out corruption, an effective mechanism must be established to control, manage and supervise the power of officials. The Party has done a great deal of work in creating a strong sense of deterrence for those who tend to be corrupt. What we need next is a system under which officials cannot and would not abuse their power."

Another key priority of this year's fight against corruption will target major state-owned enterprises, as more than 70 senior SOE officials were put under graft-related investigation last year.

Inspectors will be sent to all major SOEs while supervision will be tightened across the board.

Professor Zhu says the move is in the right direction.

"As most SOEs provide basic public services such as water, power, and gas, how well they are managed will directly affect people's daily lives as well as the public's trust in the government. Reining in the abuse of power by SOE officials will be significant in the fight against corruption. We should focus more on the SOEs in order to achieve greater results in the fight."

The CPC's anti-corruption body is also vowing to strengthen international cooperation in the hunt for corrupt fugitives and asset recovery, following the successful Fox Hunt operation in 2014 which saw nearly 700 fugitives being brought back to face justice.

Last year, China's fierce anti-corruption campaign saw a number of high profile cases that shocked the country, including former security chief Zhou Yongkang, military leader Xu Caihou and political advisor Ling Jihua.

Nearly 72 thousand officials were punished for violations of the eight-point anti-graft rules.

For CRI, I am Qi Zhi.

 

 

China to Strengthen Auditing amid Major Policy Implementation

 

China's top auditing body has outlined several key areas to be targeted this year, including pension insurance, affordable housing, and expressway construction.

The National Audit Office says it will strengthen auditing to ensure public funds are not misused amid major policy shifts.

Liu Jiayi, auditor general of the audit office.

"For major problems involving violations of law and party disciplines, major losses and waste, and failure on any level to perform official duties, we will intensify our efforts to investigate and punish those officials who have jeopardized the interests of the people."

The office says it will focus on major projects concerning people's livelihoods, such as disaster relief, poverty reduction and environmental protection.

The office will also intensify auditing to detect potential problems in the fields of finance, state assets, energy and resources.

It will underline local government debts and regional financial stability.

 

 

China Unveils Measures to Unify Pension System

 

China has unveiled new measures to unify the country's pension system in a bid to level out the massive pension gap between the public sector and those working in enterprises.

Under the new scheme, about 40 million staff in the public sector will now have to start paying for their pension plans.

According to the plan, employees in government agencies and public institutions will pay 8 percent of their monthly salaries into the plan, while their employers will pay 20 percent of the employee's total salary each month.

Jin Weigang, an official from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, says the reform aims at equality.

"Currently, we have different mechanisms for the pension system, so there exist differences in treatments, especially in government agencies. Their employees don't have to pay for the pension, but they enjoy a relatively higher treatment than enterprise employees. The reform could settle the disputes of equality on this matter."

Under the dual pension system, employees in a state agency can get 80 to 90 percent of their salary after retirement while the employees of a private business may only get 30 to 60 percent.

Experts say the reform will relieve the burden on the private sector and encourage free flow of staff between public and private firms.

 

 

Officials' alleged banquet on night of fatal stampede investigated

 

Shanghai authorities are investigating allegations of an opulent banquet held for district officials on New Year's Eve.

The investigation was sparked by media reports that Huangpu District officials were dining at a high-end restaurant in the same district at the same time as a fatal stampede that left 36 dead.

According to media reports, the officials ate at a Japanese restaurant, where private room patrons spend on average 3,000 yuan or nearly 500 U.S. per person.

 

 

CY Leung delivers 2015 Policy Address, with constitutional development and people's livelihood top on agenda

 

Anchor:

Hong Kong's Chief Executive has delivered his annual policy address to the local Legislative Council, this time highlighting constitutional development and people's livelihoods.

CRI's Hong Kong correspondent Li Jing has more.

Reporter:

Delivering his annual policy address to lawmakers, Hong Kong Chief Executive CY Leung says this year is crucial for Hong Kong's constitutional development.

He's calling for both lawmakers and people across the city to support universal suffrage, rather than being at, what he calls, a "standstill".

"We have to lobby members of the Legislative Council and obtain two-thirds majority support from them for the passage of the proposal made in accordance with the Basic Law and the relevant stipulations. To secure the implementation of democratic universal suffrage, we must respect one another and seek common ground while accommodating differences. Neither the community nor the Government will accept or tolerate any unlawful acts."

CY Leung also says people's livelihood in Hong Kong remains another priority for the government in 2015.

"Building on the groundwork we have laid to provide adequate housing, alleviate poverty, care for the elderly and support the disadvantaged, we will stay committed to improving the livelihood of the general public, particularly the underprivileged, by changing mindset, implementing appropriate policies and making effective use of financial resources."

CY Leung is also promising to set-aside a reserve of 50-billion Hong Kong dollars for the needs of retirees. What exactly that money is going to be used for hasn't been made clear.Hong Kong Financial Secretary John Tsang.

"For the money that we have reserved, we still have to await the study by the respective bureaux. And when they have come up with some concrete proposals, then we will examine the feasibility."

Meanwhile, CY Leung's speech has also revealed the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme is being eliminated immediately.

The program, which has been in-place since 2003, allowed people to gain residence in the city by investing at least 10-million Hong Kong dollars in the local markets.

The scheme has created nearly 40-thousand permanent residents in Hong Kong. 90-percent of them are from the mainland.

At the same time, with this year being the 25th anniversary of the promulgation of Hong Kong's Basic Law, the Hong Kong government is planning to organize a number of activities to promote more understanding of the Basic Law, as well as the "One Country, Two Systems" policy it's based on.

For CRI, this is Li Jing in Hong Kong.

 

 

French aircraft carrier to join anti-terrorist fight: Hollande

 

The French government has announced that it's sending an aircraft carrier to the Middle East to work more closely with the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State militants.

French President Francois Hollande.

"Thanks to the Charles de Gaulle, we will have valuable information, intelligence. We will be able to, if necessary, carry out operations in Iraq with more intensity and more efficiency. The aircraft carrier will work in close collaboration with coalition forces. It will give us all the means of a projection at any time in case of increased tensions."

The announcement comes after terror attacks killed 17 in Paris last week.

One of the gunmen claimed allegiance to the Islamic State group.

Since the attacks, France has deployed 10,000 troops and 120,000 security forces to protect sensitive sites, including Jewish schools and synagogues, mosques and travel hubs.

France is already carrying out air strikes against the IS group in Iraq.

A branch of Yemen's al-Qaida has claimed responsibility for last week's attack on Paris newspaper Charlie Hebdo.

The satirical weekly itself has seen millions copies of its latest edition being sold out within hours.

However the issue has triggered demonstrations in some Muslim countries as it depicts a crying Prophet Mohammed on its cover.

 

 

Fuselage of the AirAsia passenger jet is found

 

The fuselage of the crashed AirAsia passenger jet has been discovered, raising hopes that more missing bodies will be recovered.

Bambang Soelistyo, Head of National Search and Rescue Agency

"The location where we found the fuselage was about 3,000 meters from the area where we found the tail section of the plane and 800 meters from the place where we found the FDRs (Flight Data Recorders),"

Handout photos from the agency show images of the fuselage taken by a Remotely Operated Vehicle.

The discovery was made at night so no divers have visited the wreckage just yet.

The goal is to send some to the underwater scene later today to confirm if there are more bodies trapped in the passenger and crew areas of flight 8501.

 

 

Israeli soldiers shoot Palestinian dead near Bethlehem

 

A Palestinian youth has been shot dead by Israeli soldiers and another has been wounded.

Local paramedics say the incident happened at a roadblock south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem.

Israeli police say the two youths were attempting to steal cars owned by Israeli settlers.

No justification for the use of deadly force has been given as of yet.

Local residents say the two youths were critically wounded and left where they were, bleeding, until one of them died.

They also say the soldiers at the roadblock are in a state of panic all the time, and tend to fire at anything moving or any Palestinian who gets to close to them.

 

 

Russia calls for investigation into Ukraine bus attack

 

Russia has called for a fair and independent investigation into a bus attack in eastern Ukraine in which at least 12 people were killed.

Foreign minister Sergey Lavrov.

"We warn our Ukrainian colleagues against attempts to return again to forceful scenarios. Only through a direct dialogue, only by peaceful means, this conflict can be settled. "

The comemnt comes afer Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree to call up at least 50,000 military reservists.

The decree is expected to reach the floor of the parliament later today.

Kiev has been blaming rebles in the eastern Ukraine for the attack.

The rebel forces have rejected the blame.

 

 

Kerry and Zarif Hold Lengthy Iran Nuclear Talks

 

The United States and Iran have expressed hope that nuclear talks can be accelerated in order to meet a target for a framework agreement in March.

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif have met in Geneva for six hours of intensive talks.

The meeting comes a day before negotiators from Iran, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany are to resume talks there.

Earlier, Zarif stressed that serious dialogue with the West would be easier if it respected Muslim sensitivities.

"We won't be able to engage in a serious dialogue if we start disrespecting each other's values and sanctities. I think we would have a much safer, much more prudent world if we were to engage in serious dialogue, serious debate about our differences."

Iran and the six world powers have renewed their quest for an elusive nuclear deal after negotiators failed for the second time in November to meet a self-imposed deadline.

A new deadline has been set for June 30 for a deal that would gradually end sanctions imposed on Iran in exchange for verifiable curbs on its uranium enrichment program.

 

 

Ammonia leak on space station likely "false" alarm: NASA

 

NASA says a previous emergency reported by the International Space Station might be a false alarm.

Astronauts on the US side of the station evacuated to the Russian side after an alarm indicating a possible ammonia leak sounded.

NASA says no actual leak has been detected.

The six astronauts aboard the ISS are safe.

The American space agency says it's still assessing the situation.

 

 

Chinese pilot trainees complete debut submersible dive in southwest Indian Ocean

 

Six pilot trainees for the Chinese deep-sea manned submersible "Jiaolong" have completed their first dive in the southwest Indian Ocean.

The Chinese submersible conducted dives on Sunday and Monday near hydrothermal sulfide vents on the ocean floor. Two female pilot trainees, Zhao Chengya and Liu Xiaohui, operated Jiaolong during the dive.

Ding Zhongjun is the deputy commander of Jiaolong's 35th expedition.

"This sea area is quite challenging to them, as the sea bed environment is much more complicated, which requires them to respond quickly. They performed well during the dive and completed their mission. Jiaolong faces high-grade and urgent requirement from our country, especially from scientists involved in deep sea researches. So more and more diving missions are waiting for us."

Trainees need to act as co-pilots and pilots for three dives respectively before becoming qualified pilots.

Jiaolong, which is named after a mythical dragon in Chinese legend, reached a record depth of over seven thousand meters in a test dive in the Pacific's Mariana Trench in June 2012.

 

 

750 websites shut down amid piracy crackdown

 

China's copyright and Internet watchdog has shut down 750 websites for rights infringements, under a campaign launched in June 2014.

440 cases been identified with 66 of them sent already to the courts.

Violators have been fined more than 3.5 million yuan in total.

The Copyright Administration says authorities will next focus on copyright cases on music and writings.

The administration has already strengthened supervision over the country's 20 major video websites regarding their obtaining and use of copyrights.

 

 

Biz Reports

 

 

Stocks

Anchor:

First, a quick look at the closing numbers across North America and Europe.

Joining me on the desk, Luo Wen.

Reporter:

U.S. stocks declined for a fourth session on Wednesday as a World Bank forecast sparked concerns about weak economies and December U.S. retail sales missed expectations.

Crude prices rebounded as U.S. crude oil settled up 5.6 percent and Brent ended up 4.5 percent, snapping a four-day slide.

Copper, a key industrial metal, tumbled 4.6 percent in its ninth straight day of losses.

Bank shares also lost ground, with JPMorgan Chase off 3.5 percent after the biggest U.S. bank by assets reported a 6.6 percent drop in quarterly profit.

Shares of Wells Fargo, the biggest U.S. mortgage lender, shed 1.2 percent after posting quarterly results.

At close,

The Dow Jones fell one percent.

Both the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 trimmed around half a percent.

Over in Europe, shares also retreated sharply on Wednesday as deflation fears swept across the region, while tumbling commodity prices sent mining and oil share prices crashing.

At the closing bell,

UK's FTSE 100 plunged about two and a third of a percent.

Germany's DAX decreased one and a quarter of a percent.

And Finally France's CAC 40 cut about one and a half of a percent.

 

 

China to Create 40-bln-yuan Fund to Spur Innovation

 

Anchor:

China's State Council has announced it will create a 40 billion yuan or 6.5 billion U.S. dollar fund to spur innovation.

The government-initiated scheme aims to attract social capital investment.

After an open bidding process, several fund management companies will be selected to manage the fund and be given the authority to make investment decisions.

The fund will mainly channel into start-up companies in emerging industries.

For more on the fund, we're now joined live with CRI Financial Commentator Cao Can.

Questions…

Back anchor: Cao Can,CRI Financial Commentator.

 

 

China to Boost Service Trade

 

China's State Council has announced a string of measures to accelerate the development of trade in services.

The government will nurture enterprises in transportation, telecommunication, research and design, ecological protection and try to boost the export of cultural and art products.

Enterprises are encouraged to invest in the service sector in overseas markets by establishing new or acquiring local companies.

The country also aims to build a new platform for service trade based on big data.

It will speed up service trade liberalization between the mainland and Hong Kong & Macao.

 

 

Proper Rules Mooted for Rental Homes

 

China will establish a diversified and standardized residential rental market within three years.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development says it will build a government-led service portal for rental information.

It also encourages real estate agents to either lease or purchase social housing to rent to the public.

Meanwhile, the ministry will support developers who wish to rent property to the public and pilot specific funds to bring in social capital to the market.

The ministry has asked local authorities to step up policy support of the scheme.

 

 

Europe Court Backs ECB Bond-buying Program

 

The European Central Bank has won crucial backing for its planned bond-buying program from a top EU legal advisor.

Pedro Cruz Villalon, advocate general of the European Court of Justice, says that the ECB's offer in 2012 to buy government bonds of troubled countries is legal in principle.

 

 

Headline News

 

 

CPC Steps up Fight against Corruption

 

The Communist Party of China is stepping up its anti-corruption drive, listing seven priorities for 2015.

The CPC's top corruption eradication authority is calling for tighter scrutiny of senior officials and intensified efforts to track down corrupt fugitives hiding abroad.

The Party's internal management and supervision will be tightened up with new rules and regulations.

Another key priority of this year's fight against corruption will target major state-owned enterprises, as more than 70 senior SOE officials were put under graft-related investigation last year.

 

 

Beijing police investigate 7,398 terrorism tip-offs last year

 

Police in Beijing have investigated nearly 7400 tip-offs related to terrorism with more than 420 people detained.

Those detainees include suspected terrorists, rumormongers, and those who disseminated terrorist propaganda online.

11 anti-terror drills were also run by the police in 2014.

 

 

Update:11 injured after 5.0-magnitude quake in SW China

 

Eleven people have reportedly been injured following a moderate earthquake in Sichuan on Wednesday.

The quake hit on the Jinkouhe District of the city of Leshan and the China Earthquakes Network Center says it had a magnitude of 5.0.

About 11,000 people were affected with more than 2,000 houses damaged.

Traffic and telecommunications in the quake zone have been restored to normal.

Jinkouhe Distric is home to about 60,000 people, including many from the Yi ethnic minority.

Tremors were also felt in many other parts of Sichuan, including its capital city Chengdu.

 

 

10 killed, 5 injured when prison bus hits train in western Texas

 

Ten people have been killed and five others injured in the US after a bus carrying state prisoners slipped off an icy highway and collided with a train.

The bus was carrying 12 prisoners and three corrections officers, and travelling from the mid-west to Texas when the accident happened.

Two police officers are among the dead.

The cause of the accident is now under investigation.

 

 

Fuselage of the AirAsia passenger jet is found

 

The fuselage of the crashed AirAsia passenger jet has been discovered, raising hopes that more missing bodies will be recovered.

Handout photos from the agency show images of the fuselage taken by a Remotely Operated Vehicle.

The discovery was made at night so no divers have visited the wreckage just yet.

The goal is to send some to the underwater scene later today to confirm if there are more bodies trapped in the passenger and crew areas of flight 8501.

 

 

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano announces his resignation

 

Italy's President Giorgio Napolitano has resigned as promised.

That is less than two years after accepting an unprecedented second term as head of state because squabbling lawmakers couldn't agree on a successor.

Napolitano has said in the past that he wouldn't serve the full seven years of his second mandate due to his advanced age.

Now, Parliament and regional electors must hold a special election within 15 days for a new president.

And there is no immediate cross-party consensus on a candidate to succeed Napolitano.

 

 

Newspaper Picks

 

 

South China Metropolitan Daily

Headline

A visit to Zhongnanhai

Summary

Ten netizens have been invited by the central government official website to visit Zhongnanhai, the working compound of China's top leaders.

They were encouraged to express their opinions and suggestions for current policies.

The visitors come from various work areas, including nurses, a young entrepreneur, students and a journalist.

Global Times

Headline

Illegal signals threaten flights at intl airport

Summary

Airport officials say a suspected illegal radio broadcast has caused confusion for four flights landing at an airport in Liaoning Province and threatened their safety.

An employee of the Dalian International Airport said all the planes landed safely after adjusting their signals and communicating with the control tower.

Investigators say equipment used in the illegal broadcast, which airs illegal drug advertisements at night, were found in a residential area.

Jianghuai Morning Post

Headline

High-speed rail blacklist

Summary

Local authorities in Anhui are mulling a move to forbid over four thousand people who've been put on a blacklist because of misdeeds from taking high-speed railways this year.

The people on the list have already been banned from taking flights and soft sleepers on the train.

Shanghai Daily

Headline

Art scam gang leader jailed

Summary

A local court in Shanghai says cold-calling art scammers swindled 3.5 million yuan out of householders by offering over-priced reproductions of famous artworks.

The gang leader received a sentence of five years and three months in prison.

China Daily

Headline

Cancer patient held for buying overseas drugs

Summary

A leukemia patient who had reportedly purchased unlicensed anticancer drugs overseas for himself and other patients via an illegal credit card has been arrested in Beijing.

Hundreds of patients' have appealed for his pardon.

Prosecutors say current Chinese law states that any medicine that has not been given the green light by authorities will be considered fake, even if it is effective.

The Beijing News

Headline

Stem cell donation

Summary

Jiang Yongfeng, a 36-year-old shanghaier has donated stem cells to a 7-year-old British boy.

The stem cells will be delivered from a hospital in Beijing to Britain within 48 hours.

 

 

Special Reports

 

 

China ends use of prisoners' organs for transplants

 

Anchor:

The head of China's organ donation authority is expecting to see an increasing number of people donating their organs, now that the practice of harvesting organs from executed prisoners in China is no longer legal.

CRI's Niu Honglin has more.

Reporter:

"I believe that after stopping the use of organs from executed prisoners, and after showing our respect to them, there will be more voluntary donations from the public."

That's Huang Jiefu, one of the creators of China's current organ donation system.

Also the head of China's organ donation committee, Huang was the man who originally revealed back in November that as of the start of 2015, harvesting organs from executed prisoners in China isn't allowed, unless those condemned give their consent before hand.

Harvesting organs from dead prisoners had been prevalent in China before this.

In making the change, Huang Jiefu admits the previous system wasn't fair to those condemned to death, and also opened up avenues of potential corruption.

"The announcement I made is a requirement for the 169 medical institutions qualified to perform human organ transplant surgery to strictly follow the law. Our move, I feel, is proof that we are facing up to the mistakes we made in the past and are now trying to make it right. I myself believe, China's establishment of the rule of law is building up step by step through moves like this."

Voluntary organ donation in China is still comparatively low.

Only 6 in ever 10-million people voluntarily give up their organs for transplant, as many in China still maintain cultural traditions, which in many cases, call for bodies to be buried or cremated as the person was when they died.

As such, the use of organs harvested from those executed became common during the 50 years China has had an organ transplant system.

However, that program led to criticism, with some arguing the Chinese justice system was too eager to hand down death sentences in an attempt to keep organ transplant numbers from falling.

Last year, four out of five organs transplanted in China were from public donations. However, tens-of-thousands across China die every year while waiting for an organ transplant.

For CRI, this is Niu Honglin.

 

 

Sports

 

 

Asian Cup: China Beats Uzbekistan 2-1, Advance to Knockout Stage

 

In Asian Cup action:

China is in the knockout stage after beating group favorites Uzbekistan 2-1 yesterday.

Team Dragon scored twice in 13 minutes to come from behind and upset Uzbekistan 2-1 and book themselves a spot in the quarter-finals.

Trailing 1-0 at halftime against the group favourites, China drew level after 55 minutes when Wu Xi scored then snatched the lead with a spectacular solo strike from substitute Sun Ke.

Wu Xi said after the match that support from fans was important for their victory.

"When we were behind, the fans kept up their support for us. With our relentless effort, we finally managed to turn the tide. I'm very grateful to them."

As Group B winners, China will play the runner-up in Group A, either Australia or South Korea. The Group B runners-up will play the Group A winners.

Uzbekistan, who took an early lead through an opportunist goal from Odil Ahmedov, could not find a late equaliser and now face Saudi Arabia in their final group game in Melbourne on Sunday to decide the pool runner-up.

Beaten 1-0 by China this past weekend, Saudi Arabia saw its strikers feast on a chaotic North Korea defence to fire the Green Falcons to a 4-1 victory and stave off elimination.

Today;

At 4 p.m., Beijing time:

The U.A.E. are looking to go 2-0 when they face a Bahrain team that needs a win to stay in the tournament.

And Qatar will have their hands full when they face one of the continent's best teams in Team Melli of Iran.

 

 

Football: Kings Cup, FA Cup, Italian Cup

 

In more football news;

In La Liga's Copa del Rey action just finishing up this morning;

Athletic Bilbao went scoreless against Celta Vigo 2-0.

Getafe shut out Almeria 1-0.

Real Sociedad and Villarreal went 2-2 in their match.

Sevilla beat Granada 2-0 (UPDATE)

Over in England at the FA Cup;

Bradford City beat Millwall 4-0;

Southampton shutout Ipswich 1-0;

And Tottenham beat Burnley 4-2;

Over in Serie A's Coppa Italia:

Parma went 2-1 against Cagliari,

And Torino went down to Lazio 3-1.

 

 

Basketball: CBA recap, NBA preview

 

Taking a look at basketball action:

Last night in the CBA;

Tianjin downed the Bayi Rockets 106-98;

The Sichuan Blue Whales beached against Shandong; Shandong winning that one 100-78;

Xinjiang won their match against Zhejiang Guangsha 110-96;

Shanghai edged Fujian 103-100;

Beijing route Shanxi 126-101;

Guangdong Southern clinched the W against Jiangsu Tong Xi 125-112;

Jilin Northeast beat Chongqing 113-103;

Liaoning trounced Zhejiang Chouzhou 130-101;

And the Jiangsu Dragons go down to Dongguan 130-119.

Over in the NBA;

The San Antonio Spurs will go up against the Charlotte Hornets; Charlotte is looking for its fifth consecutive win.

Houston is looking for its fifth win in a row against the Magic when they hit Orlando;

The Memphis Grizzlies could bring new addition Jeff Green into today's game against a Brooklyn Nets team looking to snap its longest losing streak in three seasons.

And Detroit is looking to keep their 180 turn-around going against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Toronto needs a spark to rejuvenate what was once a promising season when they face an improving Philly 76ers team;

Central division leading Chicago will host the Washington Wizards.

The Atlanta Hawks is playing against the Boston Celtics.

The Golden State Warriors will face up Miami Heat.

And the Portland Trailblazers will face up the Los Angeles Clippers.

 

Tennis: Apia Int'l Sydney Recap and Preview

 

In Tennis,

Down at the Apia International in Syndey,

After a late-night three-set thriller against Daria Gavrilova in the previous round,　Germany's Angelique Kerber moved into the last four on Wednesday with another gutsy performance, beating Garbine Muguruza 0-6, 6-1, 6-4.

Kerber will face Czech Karolina Pliskova later today. Pliskova herself is coming off a win against world no. 17 Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro.

 

 

Entertainment

 

 

"Gone with the Bullets" to compete in Berlin Film Festival

 

Acclaimed Chinese director Jiang Wen's latest film, "Gone with the Bullets", will compete in next month's Berlin Film Festival.

The controversial 1920s Shanghai gangster movie will have its international premiere, and compete in the main showcase of the festival.

British production "Mr Holmes" by Bill Condon starring Ian McKellen and Laura Linney, will be one of the international productions up against the movie.

New film "Taxi" by Iranian director Jafar Panahi, and period drama "Queen of the Desert" starring Nicole Kidman and Robert Pattinson will premiere at the event.

The 65th annual Berlin Film Festival will run from February 5th to the 15th.

The complete Competition programme will be announced next week.

 

 

China's Bruno Wu to Back 'Wife Finding' Comedy From Quentin Lee

 

Chinese media entrepreneur Bruno Wu is to back new movie "Secret Book of Wife Finding," an adult comedy set in Vietnam.

Wu will co-finance the movie through his Content Media Group.

The film sees three over-the hill single men caught in a mail-order-bride scam, ending up with an adventure in Vietnam.

The screenplay is by Los Angeles-based stand-up comedian Jeffrey Tipton.

Wu, who also heads the Sun Seven Stars Entertainment and Media Group, said he was excited to work with a stellar cross-cultural filmmaking team.

Adding that this is the first China-Vietnam-U.S. co-production of its kind.

"Wife Finding" will be directed by Quentin Lee and will start shooting from April in Vietnam and the U.S.

 

 

Willie Nelson, Usher, Chris Martin to pay tribute to Wonder

 

Musicians Willie Nelson, Usher and Coldplay's Chris Martin will pay tribute to Jazz legend Stevie Wonder at a concert next month.

The Recording Academy announced that Ed Sheeran and Janelle Monae will also perform at "Stevie Wonder: Songs in the Key of Life — An All-Star Grammy Salute" on February 10th.

The concert will take place two days after the 57th annual Grammy Awards.

The concert will be held at the Nokia Theatre live in Los Angeles, airing as a two-hour special on CBS on February 16th.

Wonder has been awarded 25 Gra mmy Awards during his illustrious career.

 

 

James Cameron Delays 'Avatar' Sequel Until Late 2017

 

Some sad news for Pandora fans…

Director James Cameron has pushed back production on the "Avatar" sequels.

And the next chapter won't hit theaters until Christmas 2017, a year later than originally planned.

It confirms what had been rumored for months, that the director had yet to deliver a shooting script to 20th Century Fox, delaying budgeting and production work on the vastly ambitious project.

Part of the issue is that Cameron is shooting his planned trilogy simultaneously.

"I'm writing parts of it. I've got a writing team, they're supposed to be submitting the other portions. As you know, we're writing three simultaneously. And we've done that so that everything tracks throughout the three films, we're not just going to do one and then make up another one and another one after that. And parallel with that we're doing all the design. So we've designed all the creatures and the environments and all that sort of thing with the art team in Los Angeles. And so we're well on track. We're a bit behind, time-wise, what we'd hoped for. "

"Avatar" remains the biggest box office hit in history, with a box office gross of 2.8 billion U.S. dollars.