The Beijing Hour

 

Evening Edition

 

 

Spencer Musick with you this Tuesday, June 30, 2015.

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

Coming up on the program this evening...

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang promising greater cooperation between China and France during his official visit to Paris...

China and the EU vowing greater cooperation during the Chinese Premier's time in Europe...

And Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras defiant as a Grexit looks ever more likely...

Business.... Chinese and Asian stocks recover today...

In Sports.... Djokovic and Wawrinka through at Wimbleton...

In Entertainment.... NBC pulling the plug on its relationship with Donald Trump due to comments made during the launch of his presidential bid...

 

 

Top

 

 

China Premier Li arrives for four-day visit

 

Visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has met and talked with his French counterpart Manuel Valls in Paris.

Li Keqiang arrived in France late on Monday for a 4-day official visit to the country.

Li is set to deliver a speech at the headquarters of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, as well as meet with other French leaders.

Li Keqiang is also scheduled to visit Marseilles and Toulouse during his trip.

An array of deals are to be signed, ranging from aviation and finance to civil nuclear power.

The trip is his first official visit to France as the head of the Chinese government.

He says he hopes the two countries can start a new chapter in relations and international cooperation.

 

 

Li Publishes Article in France

 

Before his visit, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang published a signed article in the local Le Figaro newspaper.

In the article, the Premier calls on the two sides to follow the trend of world development and develop new areas of cooperation.

He notes that China's industrial production capacity and France's advanced technologies can be combined so as to benefit developing countries by promoting industrialization, and benefit developed countries by increasing exports and creating jobs.

Li says China supports France's commitment to the success of the UN Climate Change Conference to be held this December in Paris, vowing China will work with France to contribute to the establishment of a global climate governing system that is fair and reasonable.

Li also says that he is looking forward to developing new areas of bilateral cooperation, such as civil nuclear energy and partnership for third markets.

 

 

Airbus Expects More Opportunities in China

 

Anchor:

As Chinese Premier Li Keqiang starts his visit to France, a world's leading plane maker is expecting to further benefit from the enhanced Sino-French relationship.

CRI's Zhao Jianfu reports.

Reporter:

The cooperation between China and Airbus started back in 1985.

Nine years later, the world's leading plane maker set up its representative office in Beijing.

Tao Wenge, publicity head of Airbus' China branch, says the company has greatly benefitted from China's rapid development over the past decades.

"In 1995, there were only 20 Airbus planes operated in China. But as of this May, the in-service Airbus fleet with Chinese operators now comprises more than 1,100 aircraft. Half of the country's planes with over 100 seats are made by Airbus."

Tao says the cooperation between Airbus and China's civil aviation industry has developed well on track and made-in-China parts have been used in all civil airliner models produced by Airbus.

He notes the cooperation has benefitted both sides.

"This is a win-win cooperation mode. The cooperation with Airbus enables Chinese enterprise in the civil aviation industry to go abroad, learning both the most advanced technologies and business operation methods. On the other hand, the cooperation also helps increase Airbus' fame in China. It's mutually beneficial."

So far, the assembly plant of Airbus in north China's Tianjin City has produced more than 220 A320 planes.

Tao says the success of the project encourages his company to expand business in China.

According to an agreement signed last year between Airbus, Tianjin Free Trade Zone and Aviation Industry Corporation of China, Airbus is to set up an A330 Completion and Delivery Centre in Tianjin, which is aimed at supporting the fast growth of air traffic in China with larger aircraft.

For CRI, I'm Zhao Jianfu.

 

 

Premier calls for breaking new ground in China-EU cooperation

 

Anchor:

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is calling on China and the European Union to deepen political trust and break new ground in bilateral cooperation.

The premier made the call while visiting Brussels to meet with the new EU leadership.

CRI's Qi Zhi reports.

Reporter:

On a busy schedule in Brussels, Premier Li Keqiang co-chaired a China-EU leaders' meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Junker and President of the European Council Donald Tusk.

He also addressed the opening session of a China-EU business summit, emphasizing bilateral cooperation on infrastructure construction.

Li Keqiang has told the EU leadership that China is ready to join the European Commission's three-year, 300-billion-euro investment plan launched last year to revive the European economy.

"The Chinese side is of the view that China-EU relations, particularly economic relations and trade, is not only about buying and selling. We should expand mutual investment and even make joint investment. The Chinese side is willing to positively participate in the EU's investment plan."

China believes the so-called "Junker Plan", named after the current European Commission President, fits well with the Chinese government's "Belt and Road" initiatives.

Addressing the business summit, Li says China is considering launching a China-EU investment platform to back the plan, in particular large infrastructure projects.

He says as two major economic powers, China and the EU should also join hands in promoting international industrial capacity cooperation.

"In my view, international industrial capacity cooperation combines the needs of countries at the early stage of industrialization, the strong production capacity of countries like China and the advanced technology and innovation of developed countries to achieve a win-win result for all three sides. Such cooperation will enable us to effectively withstand the pressure from the slowing world economy and stimulate market demands around the globe."

Li Keqiang has also called for China and the EU to carry out more advanced financial cooperation to meet the demand of industrial investments.

He says China will expand its purchase of bonds issued by the European Investment Bank and improve the Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor system.

Following the China-EU leaders' meeting, the two sides issued a document outlining future cooperation priorities and a statement on climate change.

The premier says China is committed to dealing with climate change.

"We are willing and we will make strenuous efforts to tackle and address climate change. By the end of this month the Chinese side will submit to the U.N. Secretariat on Climate Change our Intended National Determined Contribution plans."

As part of his time in Brussels, Li Keqiang has also met with his Belgian counterpart Charles Michel, and both witnessed the signing of an array of cooperation deals between China and Belgium worth more than 18 billion euros.

The Chinese premier's visit to Brussels coincides with the 40th anniversary of the establishment of official ties between China and the EU.

For CRI, I'm Qi Zhi.

 

 

China, EU to deepen cooperation in joint development: Expert

 

Anchor:

China and the European Union have reached a wide range of agreements on climate change, infrastructure investment and people-to-people exchanges.

The two sides have also decided to integrate China's "Belt and Road" initiatives with the Investment Plan for Europe and establish a China-EU joint investment fund.

CRI's Yu Yang reports.

Reporter:

China and the EU have agreed to establish an interconnectivity platform and resolved to reach a comprehensive investment deal as soon as possible.

Cui Hongjian, Director of European Studies from the China Institute of International Studies, says there is strong common ground for China and the EU to get more connectivity in joint development.

"First, China and the EU are facing similar tasks and environments for economic growth. More connectivity is needed in fields like infrastructure, telecommunication, transport and other areas. Second, the two sides have a solid foundation for economic and trade cooperation. Trade cooperation has expanded into new areas such as finance and currency in recent years. Third, as two important economies in the world, Sino-EU joint development is of great significance to the global economic recovery."

Visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang says that China and the EU should also join hands in promoting international industrial capacity cooperation.

Cui Hongjian believes that deeper industrial cooperation can also help reduce trade frictions.

"The two sides need to enhance capacity cooperation on the basis of joint development. It would be beyond the seller-buyer relation. We need deeper cooperation on the value chain. It can help avoid some trade frictions."

Premier Li Keqiang has arrived in Paris for a four-day visit to France after wrapping up a trip to Belgium.

Premier Li says that he is looking forward to developing new areas of bilateral cooperation, such as civil nuclear energy and partnership for third markets.

Cui Hongjian says the development of third-country markets has great potential.

"As we know, outside China and the EU there are vast emerging markets in the world. Take Africa for example. European countries have traditional influence over African countries, while China has done a good job in deepening cooperation with African countries. With investment from China as well as advanced technology and managerial experience from Europe, the development of third-country markets is promising."

Premier Li is scheduled to visit the cities of Paris, Marseilles and Toulouse during his stay in France.

He is also going to deliver a speech at the headquarters of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and attend the closing ceremony of a China-France business summit.

For CRI, I'm Yu Yang.

 

 

China to Submit INDCs Soon

 

Anchor:

A high-level meeting on the topic of climate change is taking place in Bonn, Germany.

Xie Zhenhua, China's special representative on climate change, is urging accelerated efforts for an agreement at this year's Paris conference.

CRI's Luo Bin reports.

Reporter:

In his speech to the meeting, Xie Zhenhua says China will submit its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions soon.

"China will soon submit its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, which includes not only China's goals to mitigate and adjust to climate change, but also policies and measures to ensure the implementation of these goals."

The so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions are documents in which countries outline what post-2020 climate actions they intend to take under a new international agreement.

The INDCs will largely determine whether the world achieves an ambitious 2015 agreement.

So far, only 39 countries of the 196 parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change have submitted their INDCs.

Xie says China hopes a "powerful" agreement can be reached in Paris while noting that justice should be taken into account.

"The agreement to be reached in Paris should follow the principles of justice, common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities. It should reflect each country's historical responsibilities, development stages, national conditions and response capabilities."\

China has promised to peak its carbon dioxide emissions around 2030 and is striving to reach the peak at an even earlier date by increasing energy saving measures and cutting the level of CO2 per unit of GDP.

It's estimated that China will invest about 6.5 trillion US dollars before 2030 in energy-saving programs, the development of new energy and adjustment of its energy structure.

At the meeting, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon called for more efforts to speed up the talks on climate change so that a universally binding agreement can be reached before the end of this year.

"The pace of the UNFCCC negotiations is far too slow. It's like a moving snail's pace. The key political issues are still on the table. With only ten days left, negotiating days, I really count on leaders-presidents, prime ministers and ministers, to exercise their political directions, so that this negotiation will move much, much faster. Now is when true leadership is needed from the highest levels."

Ban also urged developed countries to meet their commitments of 100 billion U.S. dollars per year to support developing countries to adapt to climate change by 2020.

The Paris Conference is set to take place on Dec. 7-8.

The overarching goal of the conference is to reach an agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions to limit the global temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

For CRI, I'm Luo Bin.

 

 

Over 50 killed in Indonesian military plane crash

 

An Indonesian military plane has crashed into a residential area of Medan city in Sumatra, killing at least 55 people, including five crews.

The C-130 Hercules plane carried 12 military personnel when the crash took place on Tuesday around noon.

Head of the Indonesian Air Force said the crash was caused by trouble with the plane.

The officer added he feared the death toll will continue to rise as the plane also hit several houses on the ground.

The plane reportedly crashed two minutes after taking off from the airport.

 

 

Tsipras defiant as default looms in Greek debt crisis

 

Anchor:

Greece appears likely to default on its 1.6 billion Euro debt to the International Monetary Fund as the deadline for repayment expires today.

But Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras remains defiant and is urging Greek voters to reject the creditors' demands at a snap referendum this weekend.

CRI's Poornima Weerasekara reports.

Reporter:

Greece's bailout from the European Union expires on Tuesday, the same day it faces a deadline to repay a 1.6 billion Euro loan to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The loan needs to be repaid by 18:00 Washington time, but Greek officials said on Monday, that there was no way they could come up with the money.

The European Union had earlier offered to extend its bailout and inject a further 7.2 billion Euros to Greece's cash strapped economy. But that deal now off the table after talks between the two sides broke down last week.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is now urging voters to reject creditors' demands in a snap referendum due on July 5.

Tsipras says a clear vote against austerity on Sunday would help Greece negotiate a better settlement to the crisis.

Otherwise, he warned, he would step down as Prime Minister as he did not want to oversee further austerity cuts.

"And I am saying that if the people, using as a basis the climate of fear mongering, decide that I am mistaken, I will serve as I always did: my truth, my believes, and my dignity. If the people want to have a prime minister humiliated and ridiculed, they can choose someone, there are many that are willing to do it. I am not."

EU leaders warn that if the Greek public rejects the creditors' proposals at the ballot box on Sunday, this would take Greece a step closer to leaving the Eurozone.

But Tsipras says he does not want this to happen.

"I don't believe they want to throw us out of the euro or that they will. They won't do this. Let me explain why: Because the cost is massive. The financial cost of breaking up the euro, the start of the break-up, the cost of a bankruptcy of one country which has a European Central Bank exposure of more than 120 billion is massive. It won't happen, that's my estimation."

Meanwhile, on Monday thousands of Greeks rallied in support of the "No vote."

One protester says further spending cuts would kill the country's economy, where a quarter of the workforce is already unemployed.

"Everybody's message here today is a loud and powerful 'no' against all these measures that Europe wants to impose on Greece. Why? So they can give us some pocket change?"

Despite this defiant stance, the country is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy as panic stricken depositors lined up day and night to withdraw small amounts of money from ATMs. Greece has been forced to close all national banks until the referendum to avoid a possible bank run. The country has also kicked in capital controls after the European Central Bank refused to throw Greek banks another lifeline.

The Athens stock exchange also remains closed as part of the emergency measures.

Meanwhile, Policymakers across the world are scrambling to ensure that the turmoil in Athens does not escalate into a broader financial panic.

For CRI I'm Poornima Weerasekara.

 

 

Injured carried out after bullet train blaze

 

Two passengers on a Japanese Shinkansen bullet train died after one doused himself in oil and set himself ablaze on Tuesday.

37-year-old businessman Akira Takamuro said he smelled the smoke as the incident occured.

"Passengers evacuated from the cars in front of us. And then I smelled the smoke. I don't know if the smell came from the clothes of the evacuated passengers or because the door between the carriages opened. But I sensed the strong smell in the sixth car that we were on."

The train carrying about 1,000 passengers was on its way from Tokyo to the western city of Osaka.

It made an emergency stop after smoke started to fill at least one carriage.

No immediate indication of any possible motive for the man's actions is available as of now.

The exact number of casualties and injuries remain unconfirmed.

 

 

South Korea MERS toll reaches 33

 

One more person with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) died on Tuesday, bringing the number of fatalities to 33.

The 33rd reported MERS death was an 81-year-old woman who had an existing heart ailment and high blood pressure before being infected.

The Director of South Korea's Disease Prevention center Jeong Eun-kyeong said that MERS contagion cases remained at 182 for three straight days.

"As of now, a total of 54 patients are undergoing treatment, 95 patients have been discharged from hospital and 33 people have died. And the total number of confirmed MERS cases is 182. Compared to yesterday, the total number of patients undergoing treatment has declined by three, and two patients left hospital. There was one additional death, and there were no new confirmed cases of MERS yesterday."

Jeong added that the first reported MERS patient has now tested negative and left the quarantine ward.

"The first MERS patient tested negative on further MERS tests and has been released from a quarantine ward. However, he will be staying in hospital for a couple more days due to complications."

Data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control shows South Korea has the highest number of infections outside Saudi Arabia.

The number of those quarantined reduced from 2,682 on Monday to 2,638 on Tuesday.

MERS was first identified in humans three years ago.

No cure or vaccine has been discovered so far.

 

 

In first instance, IS beheads 2 women in Syria

 

The Islamic State militants have beheaded two women in eastern Syria, the first known beheading of women since the IS group became active in the country.

UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the beheadings took place against two women in the province of Deir al-Zour near Iraq.

But the group has not spared humiliating treatment of women in the past, capturing Iraqi women from the Yazidi sect recently and selling them as sex slaves in Iraq and Syria.

 

 

Tsinghua University, Peking University Vie for High-score Applicants

 

Anchor:

China's Education Ministry issued a statement on Monday regarding universities' student recruitment practices.

The statement says universities are not allowed to lure applicants by promising admission, providing students with enhanced scholarships, or offering privileges like the ability to change majors at will.

CRI's Niu Honglin has more.

Reporter

This is the Education Ministry's first response to recent news story about Peking University's recruitment team in Sichuan province accusing Tsinghua's Sichuan recruiters of "luring students to Tsinghua with money." The allegations were first published on Sina Weibo and later attracted wider public attention.

Xiong Bingqi, Vice dean of the 21st century education research institute, says the lack of a proper autonomous enrollment system is mainly responsible for the improper recruitment behaviors.

"Under the current college enrollment system, the universities are not authorized to have independent recruitment. To recruit good students, the universities have only to focus on the scores while having no better evaluation method of the students' performances. As a result, recruiting personnel will try every means in persuading the students with high scores to choose them while the students are filing their applications."

Pecking University also implied that Tsinghua's recruitment team called the top 10 scorers of the recent college entrance exams, or gaokao, and lied that PKU would not be able to place them in their desired programs, and says that Tsinghua has broken its promises to perspective students several times in the past five years.

Tsinghua's Sichuan recruiter forwarded the post and claimed that PKU was the one that was attempting to "buy" students with money.

These posts received thousands of comments and forwards in a short time, quickly climbing to the top of the list among trending topics.

It is not the first time top universities launched battles for top students in China. Recruitment teams contact top students even before scores are released, offering them campus tours, inquiring about their desired programs and persuading them to join.

Xiong says if Chinese universities do not find a way to improve their overall quality, recruitment will get even harder.

There are three kinds of students who give up during the whole Gaokao process. Those who give up taking the exam mostly chose to study abroad. There are students who give up after taking the exam mostly because they could not get in their desired college. And there are other students who got admitted but decided not to go. Why do the three kinds of "giving up" exist? It's all related to the quality of our higher education. If the school can't provide high quality education with characteristics, students tend to abandon it.

Back in 2012, China's Education Ministry issued regulations forbidding several bad behaviors, including bribery, in university recruitment.

For CRI, I'm Niu Honglin.

 

 

Weather

 

 

Beijing cloudy to clear tonight with a low of 18 degrees Celsius; tomorrow sunny to cloudy with a high of 33.

Shanghai, moderate rain tonight with a low of 22, tomorrow moderate rain to overcast with a high of 25.

Chongqing, heavy rain tonight with a low of 23, moderate rain tomorrow with a high of 30.

Lhasa has showers tonight with a low of 14, tomorrow showers with a high of 27.

Elsewhere in Asia,

Islamabad, light rain tomorrow, 37.

Kabul, cloudy, 31.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, cloudy with a high of 18.

Brisbane, cloudy with a high of 20.

Perth, cloudy, 20.

And finally Auckland, New Zealand will have light rain with a high of 15 degrees Celsius.

 

 

Headline news

 

 

China Premier Li arrives for four-day visit

 

Visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has met and talked with his French counterpart Manuel Valls in Paris.

Li Keqiang arrived in France late on Monday for a 4-day official visit to the country.

Li is set to deliver a speech at the headquarters of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, as well as meet with other French leaders.

Li Keqiang is also scheduled to visit Marseilles and Toulouse during his trip.

An array of deals are to be signed, ranging from aviation and finance to civil nuclear power.

The trip is his first official visit to France as the head of the Chinese government.

He says he hopes the two countries can start a new chapter in relations and international cooperation.

 

 

Floods, landslides leave at least 28 dead or missing in China

 

Rain-triggered floods and landslides in four provinces across China over the weekend have left nearly 30 people dead or missing.

5 people have died in landslides in Henan, where heavy rain has forced the evacuation of nearly 800 people, the collapse of 100 dwellings and damage to over 200 buildings.

Floods have killed 4 people and left 9 others missing in Shaanxi, where economic losses are estimated to reach 170 million yuan.

Meanwhile in Sichuan, 3 residents were killed by landslides, which reported its worst floods since 1949.

The disaster has forced the relocation of more than 260-thousand people across the province.

Currently, the downpour is still battering 7 provinces in China.

 

 

Shanghai calls off color run in wake of Taiwan dust blast

 

Shanghai has withdrawn from this year's Color Run and other running events that use colorful powders, due to safety concerns in the wake of a tragic dust explosion in Taiwan.

The capital city of Shenyang in Liaoning Province is also considering whether to carry out its color run event, scheduled on Saturday.

Investigators in New Taipei City are still looking into the cause of the blast at a water park when colored powder sprayed from the stage caught fire.

They have been focusing on the possibility that a cigarette butt or spark caused the blaze.

So far, nearly 500 people were injured by the explosion last Saturday.

One of them, a young woman died in the hospital on Monday.

Taiwan authorities have announced a ban on colored powder at future private events.

The water park has been ordered to close after the fire.

 

 

Biz Reports

 

 

Stocks

 

Anchor:

Turning now to business news.

First a look at the numbers from across the Asian markets to close out this Tuesday evening.

Joining me on the desk is CRI's Luo Bin.

Reporter:

Thank you Spencer

Chinese stocks closed sharply higher with the benchmark Shanghai index posting its biggest gain since 2009 after swinging 432 points.

About 200 stocks jumped by their daily limit, led by financial, mining and medical companies.

At close,

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index surged 5.5 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index rallied 5.7 percent.

Hong Kong stocks snapped three days of losses to close higher on the day.

Investor sentiment recovered after several private equity funds said the slump on the previous trading days provides a good chance to get back into the stock market.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index finished nearly 1.1 percent higher.

Elsewhere in Asia,

Japanese stocks rose after a big drop on the previous day as investors maintained optimism over Japan's economy.

The benchmark Nikkei ticked up 0.6 percent.

Gainers were led by air transport, retail, and textiles and apparel issues.

South Korea's Kospi increased 0.7 percent.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index edged up 1.1 percent.

Finally, Australia's ASX 200 closed 0.7 percent higher.

Back to you Spencer.

 

 

Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Credit Rating

 

Anchor:

Chinese authorities are calling for a new international credit rating system that is objective, just, rational and balanced.

This comes as political leaders and business insiders gather at the World Credit Rating Forum here in Beijing.

At the forum, CRI's Luo Yu spoke about the credit rating with Kevin Rudd, the former Prime Minister of Australia.

Rudd is also member of the International Advisory Council of the Universal Credit Rating Group.

…

Back anchor:

Former Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd speaking with CRI's Luo Yu.

 

 

China's pension fund seeks investment in stock market

 

China's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MHRSS) has released a draft guideline that allows pension funds to be invested in the stock market.

Besides the stock market, the fund may be invested in government and corporate bonds, major national construction projects and leading state-owned enterprises.

Li Zhong, spokesman for the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, says there are certain restrictions on the fund's investment in stocks and equities.

"The guideline restricts the maximum proportion of investment in stocks and equities to 30 percent of total net assets. The proportion is set to help manage risks in such investments. In practice, the actual proportion and timing are not managed by the government but rather by authorized market institutions. Such investments may not reach the maximum proportion very quickly."

Currently, the pension funds can only invest in bank deposits and treasuries.

The new rules aim to improve investment management and supervision of the social security fund and diversify investment channels.

The national outstanding pension fund stood at over three trillion yuan or around 500 billion U.S. dollars at the end of last year.

 

 

Beijing, Shanghai offer tax refunds to overseas tourists

 

It is being reported that Beijing and Shanghai are going to offer tax refunds to overseas tourists from July 1st.

An 11 percent VAT rebate applies to purchases of 500 yuan or more made on a single day at a participating store.

Under the new policy, foreign tourists who stay in the Chinese mainland for no more than 183 days can receive the tax rebate on consumer goods purchased at designated stores.

Tourists from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan can enjoy these same rights while visiting the mainland.

Refunds can be claimed on departure, which must be within 90 days of the purchases being made.

Yuan Baiwei with Shanghai Municipal Finance Bureau says the new policy will help attract more overseas visitors to the city.

"This is a favorable policy for the tourism industry. It will help attract more overseas tourists to visit and shop in Shanghai. It will further boost local economy and encourage Shanghai to make itself into a shopping paradise. "

The policy follows a trial program introduced in 2011 in Hainan province.

 

 

China continues to see deficit in foreign service trade

 

Official figures show China continued to see a deficit in foreign service trade in May.

Service trade deficit reached some 111 billion yuan or about 18 billion U.S. dollars in May, up about five percent from April.

Last month, China spent a total of 224 billion yuan in international service trade, double the 112.3 billion yuan it gained during the period.

Trade in services refers to the sale and delivery of intangible products such as transportation, tourism and telecommunications.

The data also shows that in May, China saw a surplus of nearly 360 billion yuan in foreign merchandise trade.

 

 

China's CRRC denies reports on buying Bombardier's railway business

 

China's high-speed rail maker CRRC Corporation has denied media reports that it plans to buy the railway business of Canadian transportation company Bombardier.

The company states that neither CRRC nor its subsidiaries have had plans to make such an acquisition.

Last week, media reports said that a plan announced by CRRC to purchase the stocks of a Hong Kong-listed company would pave the way for acquiring Bombardier's railway business.

CRRC announced on June 19 that its subsidiary CSR (Hong Kong), intends to subscribe 6.5 billion new stocks that may be issued by China Properties Investment Holdings.

The announcement triggered speculation that CRRC might use China Properties Investment Holdings as a shell company to increase financing for investment in Bombardier.

CRRC was formed by the merger of China's former top two train manufacturers, China North Railway (CNR) and China South Railway (CSR).

 

 

Sports

 

 

Wawrinka beats Sousa in straight sets in first round at Wimbleton:

 

In Tennis action at Wimbledon,

French Open champion Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland eased into the second round of the Wimbledon Championships on Monday with a 6-2 7-5 7-6 win over Joao Sousa of Portugal.

Stan Wawrinka says that he is playing well and feels full of confidence following his first-round victory.

"The mentality is the same as last year. I know I'm playing well. I have a lot of confidence. It's a new year, new tournament. We all start from zero.　We need to win match after match. We take match after match if we want to go through and go further in the tournament. I'm confident with myself, but I'm really careful with how mentally I get ready for every match. So far I'm really happy with the first one today. In general I feel good. I know where is my game. I feel ready for the next one."

Fourth seed Wawrinka, who upset world number one Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the French Open final in Paris earlier this month, began his challenge to add a third grand slam title to his 2014 Australian title with a comfortable win after one hour, 50 minutes of play.

Old warrior Australian Lleyton Hewitt waved an emotional goodbye to Wimbledon after losing a dramatic five-set match to Finland's Jarkko Nieminen, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0, 11-9.

Hewitt reflects on his long Wimbledon career after bowing out for good following defeat to Nieminen.

"For me, it's the home of tennis. I don't get the same feeling walking into any other ground in the world - no other tennis court, no other complex than I do here. I really do get goosebumps walking into this place."

In other first round action,

Novak Djokovic took out German Philip Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.

Five-time champion Venus Williams defeated fellow American Madison Brengle 6-0, 6-0.

Grigor Dimitrov eased into the second round with a 6-3 6-0 6-4 victory over Federico Delbonis.

Kei Nishikori survived a 6-3 6-7(4) 6-2 3-6 6-3 test against Italy's Simone Bolelli.

 

 

Chile beat 10-man Peru 2-1 to reach Copa America final

 

Chile qualified for the Copa America final on Monday after two goals from Eduardo Vargas gave them a 2-1 win over Peru in an action-packed semi-final marked by another controversial refereeing decision.

Peru had to play with 10 men for most of the match after Carlos Zambrano, who was yellow carded in the seventh minute, was sent off for a high challenge 13 minutes later.

Chile got the opener on 42 minutes when Vargas managed to poke the ball home from three yards after an Alexis Sanchez cross had come back off the post.

Peru equalised on the hour mark when Paolo Guerrero split the Chilean defence with a pass for Luis Advincula and his vicious cross was turned into his own net by Gary Medel.

Peru's lead lasted just four minutes, though, and again it was Vargas who got Chile's goal, lashing home an unstoppable strike from 30 yards.

Chile will play the winners of Tuesday's semi-final between Argentina and Paraguay.

 

 

Houston Astros beat Kansas City Royals 6-1

 

In Major League Baseball,

Jose Altuve and Chris Carter both scored home runs as the Houston Astros beat the Kansas City Royals 6-1 on Monday in Texas.

Royals starter Joe Blanton walked Domingo Santana, his third straight walk, to force in a run to give the Astros a 1-0 lead in the second inning.

Houston broke open the game in the third inning. Jose Altuve led off the inning with a solo home run to leftfield to make it 3-0.

Preston Tucker and Santana added RBI singles later in the third to extend the Astros advantage to 5-0.

Astros starter Lance McCullers induced Christian Colon to hit into an inning ending double in the fifth.

Houston went on to beat Kansas City 6-1 and snapped the Royals' four-game winning streak.

In other actions,

New York Rangers cracked Baltimore Orioles 8-1.

Milwaukee Brewers beat Philadelphia Phillies 7-4.

Cleveland Indians took out Tampa Bay Rays, 7-1.

The Los Angeles Angels beat out the New York Yankees, 4-1.

 

 

Australia ready to face Essex before Ashes series in Cardiff

 

In Cricket,

The Australia Ashes squad are in Colchester on Monday having won the first warm-up game in their Ashes tour.

They beat Kent by 255 runs and move on to play Essex in readiness for the opening Ashes test against England which begins on July 8 in Cardiff.

The team against Essex includes bowler Mitchell Johnson and batsman Steve Smith which could indicate they are unlikely to play in the opening test.

Johnson said he was satisfied with Australia's performance in the first match of their tour.

"Yes it was the best possible start for myself and the team. To get a win on the board, you know, is really satisfying. The way I bowled you know gave me a lot of confidence coming into the start of the Ashes series. It's always nice to start like this, so taking pace up there in these slower, slower wickets, it is quite nice so I think everybody did a pretty good job throughout the game and got a lot out of it so we've got one warm-up game to fine tune everything and then we are into it."

Steve Smith is playing in his first Ashes series in England but is conscious that the last Australia series win was in 2001.

Left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc said the wealth of talent in the Australia squad gave the selectors the difficult task of deciding who to leave out.

Brad Haddin, the 38-year-old wicketkeeper is on his fourth Ashes test series, and is looking to win in England.

 

 

Discovery wins European TV rights through 2024

 

US-based Discovery Communications has secured the European broadcast rights for four Olympics through 2024 in a landmark deal worth 1.3 billion euros, roughly 1.5 billion US dollars.

The parent company of the Discovery Channel and Eurosport won the rights to the games of 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024.

The deal covers all platforms - including free television, subscription and pay TV, Internet and mobile phones - in 50 countries across the continent.

But the agreement excludes Russia and does not cover Britain and France for the 2018 and 2020 Olympics.

As part of the deal, Discovery also agreed to collaborate with the International Olympic Committee on its new year-round Olympic Channel across Europe.

The channel, which was approved by the IOC in December, is scheduled for launch next April.

 

 

Entertainment

 

 

BBC loses control of TV rights for Olympics

 

The BBC could lose coverage of the Olympic games after the broadcast rights were awarded to Eurosport in a 1.45billion US dollar deal.

Eurosport, owned by parent company Discovery Communications, has secured the exclusive European television rights to air the next four Olympics Games on platforms ranging from TVs to tablets.

The BBC has reported that the deal means the public broadcaster could lose coverage of the games in the UK from 2022, although Eurosport's parent company Discovery may lease back some of the rights.

The deal will be effective for most of Europe from 2018, and in France and the UK from 2022.

Discovery has committed to share at least 200 hours of the summer games, and 100 hours of the winter games, with free-to-air television companies, according to the IOC.

 

 

Donald Trump says he'll consider suing after fired by NBC

 

Real estate developer Donald Trump says he'll consider suing after NBC announced it was ending its business relationship with him over comments he made about immigrants during his campaign kickoff.

Trump states on Monday that he's not apologizing for claiming that Mexican immigrants are rapists who bring drugs and crime to the country.

He says that if his so-called "strong stance" on immigration fuels NBC's decision, he's fine with it.

Last week, Univision announced it was canceling coverage of the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants.

NBC said it would no longer air the pageants, which had been a joint venture with Trump, while "Celebrity Apprentice" will continue without him.

 

 

'Guardians of the Galaxy' Sequel Title Confirmed: 'Volume 2'

 

The official title for the follow-up to Guardians of the Galaxy has been confirmed.

The title for the Guardians sequel is Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2.

"Vol. 2" seems to be a reference to the mix tape that Peter Quill aka Star-Lord's mother gave him as a child.

2014's "Guardians of the Galaxy" was a massive hit. The movie managed to pull in close to 800million US dollars at the box office worldwide.

The sequel was originally announced at Comic-Con in 2014.

"Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 2" is currently set to hit theaters May 5, 2017.

 

 

Top Gear in the running for TV Choice award

 

Jeremy Clarkson could be going out on a high note, after his final series of Top Gear was nominated for best entertainment show at the 2015 TV Choice Awards.

The series finale, which also featured Richard Hammond and James May, bowed out with 5.8 million viewers when it aired on Sunday night.

Filming on the BBC Two motoring show was suspended after Jeremy was sacked for punching producer Oisin Tymon in a row over food in March.

Chris Evans has signed a three-year deal to lead an all-new line-up of presenters for the programme.

Top Gear faces TV favourites Ant and Dec, whose show Ant And Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway is also up for the prize, along with ITV2′s Celebrity Juice and The Graham Norton Show.

 

 

Lu Chuan's upcoming film "The Ghouls" releases trailer

 

Chinese director Lu Chuan's upcoming action adventure fantasy thriller film "The Ghouls: nine floors' evil tower" releases its first trailer.

The film is based on the first book of the fantasy novel series "Ghost Blows out the Light" written by Chinese Internet writer Zhang Muye.

Set in the 1980s, the novel follows two grave robbers team up with an American archaeologist after they fall victim to a curse, and to release themselves from it they must seek clues found among ancient mythical sites in China.

The book quickly became the bestselling online novel in China since it was published online in 2006 with an estimated readership of six million.

The adaption film by Lu Chuan stars Taiwan actor Mark Zhao, Rhydian Vaughan and mainland actress Yao Chen and Tang Yan.

The film is slated for release on the National Day of October 1.

 

 

Weather

 

 

Beijing cloudy to clear tonight with a low of 18 degrees Celsius; tomorrow sunny to cloudy with a high of 33.

Shanghai, moderate rain tonight with a low of 22, tomorrow moderate rain to overcast with a high of 25.

Chongqing, heavy rain tonight with a low of 23, moderate rain tomorrow with a high of 30.

Lhasa has showers tonight with a low of 14, tomorrow showers with a high of 27.

Elsewhere in Asia,

Islamabad, light rain tomorrow, 37.

Kabul, cloudy, 31.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, cloudy with a high of 18.

Brisbane, cloudy with a high of 20.

Perth, cloudy, 20.

And finally Auckland, New Zealand will have light rain with a high of 15 degrees Celsius.

 

 

That’s it for this edition of the Beijing Hour...

A quick look at the headlines before we go...

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang promising greater cooperation between China and France during his official visit to Paris...

China and the EU vowing greater cooperation during the Chinese Premier's time in Europe...

And Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras defiant as a Grexit looks ever more likely...