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

Coming up on the program this evening...

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is now back in China after wrapping up his European tour this week.

China's Foreign Minister is suggesting an Iranian nuclear deal might not be far off.

One of the competing governments in Libya has announced its accepting the terms of a UN-backed peace deal.

Business.... Securities regulators have announced new plans to try to ease the massive sell-offs in China's A-share market.

In Sports.... the Australian Rules Football league has been stunned by the murder of one of the team's head coaches.

In Entertainment.... an acclaimed Chinese director is getting divorced.

All of that coming up in just a moment, but first, just a reminder there are several ways to reach out to us here on the Beijing Hour.

You can follow us on our weibo account at weibo.com/beijinghour, find us on WeChat by searching "beijinghour", or email us directly at [email protected]. You can also visit crienglish.com for the latest news and information from China Radio International.

topPremier Visits Toulouse, Signs New Airbus DealAnchor:

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is now back in China after wrapping up his 5-day visit to Europe.

In wrapping up his trip, the Premier has made a quick stop-over in southern France.

CRI's Qi Zhi has more.

Reporter:

Addressing a business summit in Toulouse, Li Keqiang again called for more bilateral cooperation in industry and energy, as well as joint efforts in exploring international markets.

"We've also decided to setup a mutual fund for international industrial capacity cooperation and exploring third-party markets to finance relevant projects and bring competitive products to third-party markets. This will be a strong countermeasure to the weak global economic recovery since the financial crisis. As such, China-France cooperation will benefit not only our two countries but also the world."As part of his time in Toulouse, Li Keqiang and his French counterpart Manuel Valls have witnessed the signing of another batch of cooperation deals covering such areas as energy, environment and finance.

The Chinese premier has also taken time to visit the headquarters of leading aircraft maker Airbus where an agreement was signed on setting up Airbus' second plant in northern China's Tianjin.

It came after China agreed to buy 45 A330 jets worth over 11 billion US dollars, with an option for an additional 30 aircraft.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls says aviation cooperation has long been a priority of bilateral cooperation.

"I was able to visit the remarkable site of Tianjin last January. And we have further deepened this partnership. Airbus has thus decided to expand its investment in Tianjin and to put in place a completion centre for the ultra-high capacity aircraft A330."Airbus' first manufacturing plant in Tianjin opened in 2008, and it has assembled more than 200 A320s so far.

The 150-million-euro new plant will be placed alongside the existing facility in late 2017.

It will be responsible for completing cabin work on A330 jetliners.

For CRI, this is Qi Zhi.

New Airbus Deal to Bolster China's Industrial Capacity Co-opAnchor:

Chinese airline industry insiders are suggesting the new deal signed this week as part of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's time in France is going to help bolster a growing sector for the Chinese economy.

CRI's Xie Cheng has more.

Reporter:

"The agreement has been signed by leaders from Airbus and China's Aviation Industry Corporation. Under the agreement, China will buy 45 A330 passenger aircraft from Airbus worth over 11 billion US dollars. The deal also has an option for an additional 30 aircraft, which will be worth over 7 billion dollars."Tao Wenge with the Airbus China branch outlined some of the details of the purchase.

On top of the aircraft deal, Airbus has also agreed to establish a new plant in Tianjin, where the company is already operating.

Tao Wenge says the new plant will be specifically designed to do the finishing work on the A330s.

"The insides of all the A330's sent to China will be empty. The new plant in Tianjin will be responsible for installing the interiors, including finishing work such as painting and decorating. This project brings cooperation between China and France up from A320 production to wide-body planes. The deal is also going to be beneficial for other sectors in China."Airbus' original manufacturing plant in Tianjin opened in 2008.

Since then it has assembled more than 200 A320s.

Airbus plans to spend 150-million euros in developing the new facility, which will be situated alongside the existing assembly line.

It's expected to be operational by late 2017.

A number of Chinese airlines are already flying aircraft built out of Tianjin.

Zhang Wu'an is with Chinese budget carrier Spring Airlines.

"We now have 50 A320's in-operation. Around 10 of them came out of the completion center in Tianjin. We always hope to buy more planes assembled in China. We think this will certainly help improve aircraft development in our country. "The agreement with Airbus, overseen by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his time in France this week, is also part of the Chinese government's attempt to create more "industrial capacity."Chen Fengying is an expert with the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

"Cooperation in industrial capacity includes working with other countries on research and development, as well as financing. This agreement with Airbus could be seen as a prototype for cooperation between China and Europe, and even the rest of the world."For CRI, this is Xie Cheng.

EU Ambassador to China speaks highly of the EU-China SummitThe European Union's Ambassador to China is lauding the results of this week's China-EU summit in Brussels.

Hans Dietmar Schweisgut says even though no new major documents emerged from Monday's meetings, the session was still helpful.

"All in all a very good very productive summit which enabled leaders to establish a very sound working relationship where I think a number of very specific agreements were reached but at the same time it was the starting point for more concrete work on a number of issues."The Ambassador notes both sides have been focusing on the implementation as well as a review of the China-EU 2020 Strategic Agenda for Cooperation, which was released in 2013.

The summit, involving Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, did touch on a number of areas including climate change, security policies and immigration.

The annual China-EU summit this week is also the first since the launch of the "Belt and Road" initative by the Chinese government.

China continues to play constructive part in resolving Iran's nuclear issue: FMChinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has arrived in Vienna for what could be the final round of negotiations to strike an Iranian nuclear deal.

Negotiators are expected to work through the weekend to try to finalize a nuclear agreement before a new deadline set for next week.

The original June 30th deadline was extended by a week, with negotiators hoping to bring the long-running talks to a conclusion.

Wang Yi says the Chinese side is optimistic a deal will be worked out before July 7th.

"I think there is a high possibility for a deal, but I still need to consult with my colleagues. The nuclear talks have entered a fast period; however, we are still faced with many important and sensitive issues that cannot be avoided. China has come here to help resolve the issue and we will bring some solutions and thoughts."Major sticking points in the talks have included the pace and timing of sanctions relief for Iran, as well as the monitoring and verification of Iran's nuclear program.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius also says they believe a deal is in-reach.

"There are things that have moved forward but the negotiations have not ended yet. There will be more work done by our collaborators and I expect to come back to Vienna Sunday night. And I hope that then, we will be able to move forward, to, maybe, let's hope for it, a final solution which would allow for a robust deal."While talks in Vienna continue on, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency is now in Tehran for talks with leading Iranian officials.

Yukiya Amano has sat down with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and other leading Iranian officials.

The two sides have reportedly reached an agreement on a timetable for future collaboration.

Tehran has been reluctant to allow UN inspectors access to its military sites and nuclear scientists, citing national security concerns.

If a deal can be worked out, its expected to see Iran slow down its enrichment activities under international supervision.

UN-backed sanctions which have been imposed on Iran are expected to be eased or eliminated all-together.

6 dead in 6.5-magnitude Xinjiang earthquakeAt least 6 people are dead following a strong, 6.5-magnitude earthquake in Xinjiang this Friday morning.

Around 50 others have been hurt, and some 3-thousand houses have been destroyed.

The quake hit on the southwestern edge of the Tarim Basin, about 150-kilometers west of the city of Hotan, shortly after 9am.

At least 4 aftershocks above magnitude-4 have been recorded.

Around 260-thousand people live in the area around the epicenter.

Emergency response measures have been enacted.

The epicenter is very close to the national highway running through southern Xinjiang.

It's unclear at this time if any damage has been done to the vital route linking the area with the rest of China.

China Injects huge fund to battle heavy metal pollutionThe Chinese government has announced its setting aside 2.8 billion yuan, or around 450-million U.S. dollars, for a 3-year program to help tackle heavy-metal pollution in China.

The money is going to be spent on cleaning-up metal pollution in 30 different Chinese cities.

Part of the money will also be spent on prevention and control projects.

This comes on the heels of a new report released this week which shows nearly 20-percent of this country's farmland is dealing with some form of pollution.

Chinese deputy Environmental Protection Minister Zhai Qing says a lot of those pollution problems are connected with heavy-metals.

"The growth in production has also brought more pollution. Among the five main pollutants, the overall amount of lead and arsenic has increased instead of decreasing. A number of key environmental protection projects in several provinces are moving too slowly. We also need to help increase our environmental management."The head of China's Environmental Remediation Associaiton, Gao Shengda, says much more needs to be done to protect China's farmland.

"We need to establish a system to protect soil and water. The system should cover the whole production process. Clean production should be carried out at the beginning. Enterprises should check contamination levels during the producing process. And environmental watchdogs should enhance supervision. And finally, if contaminations are found, besides paying a large amount of fine, enterprises should remedy the pollution they caused."It's estimated Chinese authorities have been forced to spend over 40-billion yuan between 2012 and 2014 on issues connected to heavy metal pollution.

22 Suspects Arrested for producing and Selling 20,000 Tonnes of Fake SaltChinese police have arrested 22 suspects for illegal salt production.

Authorities say the group has been responsible for passing off industrial salts as table salt.

It's believed they managed to produce around 20-thousand tonnes of the illegal salt worth an estimated 20-million yuan before being caught.

Dong Weihua with the Public Security Bureau in the city of Taizhou in Jiangsu says the group was able to pass-off the industrial salt in packaging that has long been discarded by a major salt company.

"They poured the industrial salt into a huge funnel and set the volumes. The bags of salt would then go through an assembly line, where it would be packaged under the branding of the China National Salt Industry Corporation, which has stopped using the packages for years."Counterfeiting salt, the production of which is strictly controlled in China, has been driven by the potential for huge profits.

Industrial salts cost around 400-yuan per tonne before production.

Edible salt costs ten-times as much to purchase.

China Authorizes Prosecutors to File Public Interest LitigationAnchor:

Chinese lawmakers have officially passed new legislation which will give prosecutors the ability to file lawsuits when they deem it vital to the public interest.

The new legislation provides more legal authority to prosecute offenders in areas such as food safety and environmental protection.

CRI's Huang Shan has more.

Reporter:

According to the document, a two-year program led by the office of China's top prosecutor is set to be implemented in 13 provincial divisions including Beijing, Guizhou, Shaanxi, and Inner Mongolia.

Zheng Xin with the civil administration office of China's top legislature gives more detail.

"Prosecutors can file a civil lawsuit against any act that compromises public rights and interests by way of pollution or food and drug safety. They can also file an administrative lawsuit against abuse of administrative power, or failure of officials, in cases related to environmental protection, state assets and state land use."For years in China, plaintiffs have been restricted to citizens, corporations, and organizations whose interests are directly related to a lawsuit.

The spokesperson of China's Supreme People's Procuratorate, Xiao Wei, gives the importance of engaging prosecutors in public interest litigation.

"Compared to other subjects of litigation, prosecutors have no self-interest involved in the case, so they are suitable to file a lawsuit on behalf of the country and society. They are authorized with investigative power and equipped with professional teams, which can facilitate the litigation in an efficient way, and significantly reduce judicial costs."A 2012 amendment to the Civil Procedure Law first allowed agencies or organizations to bring litigation against those who undermined public welfare by polluting or infringing on consumers' interests.

The revision to the Environmental Protection Law in April continued the process, allowing environmental organizations to institute public interest litigation.

For CRI, this is Huang Shan.

Death Toll Rises to 41 from Sinking Ferry in C. PhilippinesThe death toll from Thursday's capsizing of a passenger ferry in the Philippines has risen to 41, with two additional bodies located today.

12 others remain missing.

However, recovery operations have been suspended in the region for the time-being because of bad weather.

A tropical storm has formed off the east coast of the Philippines.

The bad weather stirred up by Linfa is being pointed to as one of the main factors behind the capsizing of the ferry.

The ship, with 187 people onboard, had just left port from the city of Ormoc when it overturned, just 200-meters from shore.

Survivors say the ship was hit by a large wave while making a turn.

Philippine President Benigno Aqino III has ordered a rapid investigation to determine exactly what happened.

Investigators will have to determine why the ship overturned so quickly after leaving port, and why it was allowed to go out during bad weather conditions.

Tubrok parliament formally accepts UN political agreement to end war in LibyaOne of the rival governments in Libya has signed-off a UN-brokered peace agreement.

The Libyan House of Representatives, known as the Turbok government, has formally accepted the offer put forward to end the internal struggle in Libya.

However, the Tripoli-based parliament, the General National Congress, says it still needs to debate internally whether or not to accept the deal.

The movement in the peace talks comes after months of UN-backed negotiations to settle the stalemate between the rival factions.

The two sides came together last weekend for the first time since the talks were re-launched in January.

Libya has been divided into secular and Islamist camps which emerged following the fall of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The UN has been trying since last September to broker an accord to bring stability to Libya, which observers believe is rapidly becoming a training-ground for Islamic extremists.

Tunisian authorities say they believe at least two of the suspects behind last week’s mass murder of tourists at a beach resort in the country were trained in neighboring Libya.

BP to Pay $18.7B to Settle Oil Spill ClaimsBritish Petrolium has come to a tentative compensation settlement with 5 US Gulf Coast states connected to its 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP is offering 18.7 billion US dollars to the states to settle its years-long battle with the US government on how much it has to pay in connection with the spill.

A federal judge will still have to sign-off on the agreement, which will provide funds to the states of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas.

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi says the settlement should help bring the matter to a close.

"I'm proud to report that our state not only helped lead this historic effort, but negotiated a landmark agreement on behalf of the people of Florida. A little more than five years ago, our state and our entire Gulf region woke up to a story that shocked our nation. An oil spill that not only threatened states that depend on the Gulf for their economic livelihood, but also resulted in the economic loss of 11 lives."The 18.7-billion US dollar settlement will be the largest-ever by a company.

BP estimates its already spent over 43-billion dollars in clean-up costs and compensation.

The company's off-shore rig Deepwater Horizion exploded in April of 2010, killing 11 and creating the largest oil spill in US history.

US Sent Switzerland Extradition Requests for 7 FIFA ExecutivesA series of hearings are set to be held in Zurich connected to an extradition request in Switzerland surrounding the FIFA scandal.

The US has asked Swiss authorities to extradite 7 high-ranking FIFA officials they're currently holding.

They are among a group of 14 officials facing charges in the US for corrutpion.

Once the extradition hearings are held, the seven will have upto 2-weeks to contest the outcome.

US prosecutors are hoping to take the lead in the case against football's top governing body.

The charges in the United States are connected to testimony given by a former US FIFA executive, who has admitted to taking bribes.

Emotion-reading droid wows visitors to Lyon robotics eventAnchor:

A variety of new robots are now on display at a technology event being held in the southern French city of Lyon.

CRI's Qian Shanming has more.

Reporter:

The 'Innorobo', a three-day international robotics exhibition in Lyon, is being touted as Europe's only international event completely dedicated to robotics.

Catherine Simon, founder of 'Innorobo,' says the show is an opportunity for robotics experts to share ideas and innovations.

"To demonstrate to those other industries that they will have their world, their business model, their innovation transformed by technological innovation. And the robotic innovation can help us to solve societal challenges and I hope for a better world."One of the highlights of this year's event is a new design put out by robotics firm Aldebaran.

'Pepper' is a robot designed to interact and live with human beings.

The designers has made 'Pepper' as close to cognisant as any robot has ever been.

It's albe to hold conversations with people, and can even recognise and react to different emotions.

Magalie Cuvier is a marketing manager with Aldebaran.

"Pepper lives with us. So needs to understand what's going on and needs understand and to adapt to things that are going on. So the idea is that he can detect if I'm happy, if I'm sad and then act depending on that. So that you know when I'm happy he's not doing things that are not appropriate. So it's really, the reason why we want to read these emotions is to make sure the robot takes the context into account and can interactive in the best way."There are over 200 different firms putting on exhibitions at the show in Lyon, with around 500 different robots on display from 20 different countries.

'Innorobo' founder Catherine Simon says this year's turn out is giving her high-hopes for the future of the event.

"Further exhibitors out of 140 last year so we have a great progression. As much as the robotic market is growing exponentially and we have about 500 technologies and robots demonstrating here and to 15,000 I hope, because it's the number of last year."The 'Innorobo' event in Lyon is set to wrap up later on this Friday.

For CRI, I'm Qian Shanming.

Red pandas in Taipei Zoo give birth to two pairs of twinsOfficials at the Taipei Zoo are keeping close tabs on a new litter of rare Red Pandas.

Two female Red Pandas donated from the mainland last year gave birth to separate pairs of twins this past month.

Director of the Haixia Panda Research Center, Chen Yucun, says they're keeping close watch on the four new cubs, as the survival rate for Red Pandas in captivity runs around 50-percent.

"A favorable outcome has been achieved after only a year. It is rare for red pandas to give birth to two sets of twins. We are very happy about what happened."The Haixia Panda Research Center sent the three Red Pandas to the Taipei Zoo last year.

Red Pandas are currently classified as a vulnerable species, as they are being threatened by both deforestation and illegal hunting.

Their native habitat is in the eastern Himalayas and parts of southwestern China.

Shanghai begins implementing new permanent residence rules for foreignersNew rules are now in effect in Shanghai when it comes to obtaining permanent residency for foreigners.

Under the new rules in the city, those who qualify as "highly skilled" in areas such as science and innovation will be able to apply for permanent residency in Shanghai after living there for 3-years.

The same group can now also qualify for 5-year working visas.

Paul Whitehead from the United States works for a pharmaceutical firm based out of Pudong.

"So the pressure is a little bit reduced and I can make decisions that makes sense. I think it's definitely easier, and it's definitely more options so people can really think through how to match what they need from the company perspective as well as the family perspective, and they can balance that with these new rules."At the same time, so-called "high earning" foreigners who have worked on the mainland for more than 4-consecutive years and have lived in Shanghai for 6-months are also eligible for permanent residency.

Only around 25-hundred foreigners in Shanghai have obtained permanent residency over the past 10-years.

While permanent residence, or green cards, are given out by the Chinese government to foreigners, only a few thousand have ever been issued, as there are a long list of qualifications required to obtain permanent residency in China.

First Sub-center of 999 Emergency Air Rescue Center EstablishedEmergency air-rescue services are now being made available in the Province of Shandong.

Tian Zhenbiao, vice-President of the 999 Emergency Rescue Center, says they've come to a new agreement with a hospital at Shandong University in Jinan to take air-rescue patients.

"Critical patients in Shandong can call the 999 air control center. Doctors from the air rescue team are standing-by. Our teams are prepared to conduct air rescue services."It's believed that around 60-percent of all the air-rescue calls to the Beijing 999 service have come from Shandong since it was first made available in 2012.

The Emergency Rescue Center is also working on establishing operations out of Tianjin, Hebei, and Shanxi.

weatherBeijing will be overcast tonight with a low of 20 degrees Celsius; tomorrow also overcast with a high of 29.

Shanghai will be overcast tonight with a low of 22; it will have showers tomorrow with a high of 25.

Chongqing will see moderate rain tonight with a low of 21, and the rain continues tomorrow with a high of 24.

Lhasa has thundershowers tonight with a low of 13, tomorrow also see showers with a high of 24.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad, cloudy tomorrow, 37.

Kabul, cloudy, 33.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, cloudy with a high of 14.

Brisbane, cloudy with a high of 19.

Perth, light rain, 18.

Headline newsChinese premier returns from EU visitChinese Premier Li Keqiang is back in Beijing after wrapping up a 5-day trip to Europe.

As part of his time in both Brussels and France, Li Keqiang sat down with top European leaders.

Numerous business deals have also been inked, including the purchase of 45 Airbus A-300's.

The Chinese and French governments have also agreed to establish a fund for companies from both sides to tap if they're working on joint projects in other countries.

Li Keqiang wrapped up his trip with a quick stop in the southern French city of Toulouse before returning to China.

Beijing to resume odd-even car ban during heavy pollutionMunicipal authorities in Beijing are taking new steps to try to ensure this year's downturn in air pollution levels will continue to stay-the-course.

Under the new plans, if air pollution levels hit their 2nd highest alert levels, authorities will implement the odd-even restriction on vehicle use.

That plan, which bans vehicles from the roads based on whether the last number of their license plate is an odd or even number, was first introduced during the Olympics to keep traffic and air pollution levels down.

At the same time, municipal authorities in Beijing will also ban heavy trucks from the roads during high-pollution days.

80-percent of all government vehicles will also be pulled off the roads during extreme air-quality problems.

Death toll in E. Pakistan's train accident rises to 17The death toll from a train derailment in eastern Pakistan on Thursday has now risen to 17.

It's widely expected the number of dead is going to rise, as searchers are still reportedly trying to gain access to one of the train's cars, which is said to be submerged in a river.

Four cars of the Pakistani military train plunged into a ravine after the bridge it was on gave way.

The train was transporting a Pakistani military battalion to a regional base when it derailed.

Officials are not ruling out the possibility of terrorism, though local officials have noted the bridge which collapsed was built during Pakistan's colonial era nearly 100-years ago.

Russian Soyuz unpiloted spacecraft launched in KazakhstanA new batch of supplies is headed for the International Space Station.

An unmanned Soyuz spacecraft has been sent up from the main Russian launch site in Kazakhstan.

It's ferrying food, fuel and other supplies to the ISS.

The launch had to be expedited after a SpacEx rocket meant to re-supply the Space Station blew up shortly after take off on Sunday.

biz reportsOne again, the mainland markets have seen another heavy sell-off to close out the trading week.

Shares fell across the board in most sectors, with utility, steel, cement and transportation companies leading the losses.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange ended the day down 5.8-percent, capping the largest three-week decline in Shanghai since 1992.

The Shenzhen Component Index slumped 5.3 percent.

Shares in Hong Kong also took hits today, though not nearly as bad.

The Hang Seng gave up 0.8 percent.

Elsewhere in Asia,Japanese stocks ended lower as investors await the result of Sunday's referendum in Greece on its bailout.

The Nikkei dropped 0.1 percent.

Gainers in Tokyo were led by the air transport, retail, and textile sectors.

South Korea's KOSPI edged down 0.1 percent.

Singapore's Straits Times Index gained 0.5 percent.

Finally, Australia's ASX 200 lost 1.1 percent.

China stock watchdog to reduce IPO and investigate market manipulationAnchor:

This week's massive sell-off on the mainland markets is prompting even more action from the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

The CSRC says it is going to reduce both the number of initial public offerings and the size of the offerings themselves.

It's believed the influx of companies going public in China over the past few weeks is one of the factors which has prompted the market downturn, with traders shifting money within their existing portfolios to pick up new issues.

At the same time, the security regulator has also launched an investigation of possible market manipulation.

The investigation will focus on activities occurring simultaneously in multiple markets.

In making the announcement, the CSRC says it has been tracking irregularities between securities and futures trades.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange has lost 18-percent of its value this week, despite moves by authorities to try to calm the markets, including a 30-percent cut in transaction fees and loosened restrictions on margin trading.

For more on what's happening with the mainland markets, CRI's Zhao Yang spoke earlier with Professor Huo Deming from the National School of Development at Peking University.

Back Anchor:

Professor Huo Deming from the National School of Development at Peking University, speaking with CRI's Zhao YangChina makes more fixed-income investment overseas last yearChina's sovereign wealth fund is suggesting its fixed-asset investments overseas have helped reap significant financial gains through last year.

The China Investment Corporation is reporting overall revenue growth of 89 billion US dollars last year.

CIC chief Ding Xuedong says their investments in real estate and infrastructure projects overseas have led to the gains.

"The international and domestic capital markets fluctuated a lot last year, which made it quite challenging for us to make investment. But still, our annual returns have remained at around 5.7 percent. Our performance is actually better than a lot of other countries' sovereign wealth funds."China Investment Corporation is tasked with managing part of China's foreign exchange reserves.

It's investments are meant to help fund various government areas, including social services and pension plans.

CIC currently holds revenues of around 740-billion U.S. dollars.

Wanda joins hand with online travel site LY.comWanda Group has announced a new partnership agreement with Chinese online travel website LY.com.

The deal, said to be worth 570-million US dollars, will allow LY.com access to Wanda's travel destination resources.

LY.com is being financed to the tune of around 6 billion yuan from multiple investors, including Tencent and CITIC Capital.

At the same time, it’s being reported that Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties is planning to gain more capital from the Chinese A share market, with reports suggesting its planning on issuing 12 billion yuan worth of shares.

It's expected that money will be used to fund additional plaza projects in China.

Evergrande, Alibaba eyes 1st listing for football club in AsiaIt's being reported Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande might go public.

Reports are suggesting Alibaba and Evergrande Real Estate Group, the clubs owners, have applied to list on the so-called New Third Board in China.

The New Third Board is a national share transfer system focused mostly on small and medium-sized companies.

Listing requirements for that board are looser than other Chinese exchanges.

If it gets the green light, Guangzhou Evergrande would become the first club in Asia to be listed on a stock exchange.

Alibaba paid around 190-million US dollars last year for a stake in Guangzhou Evergrande.

The real estate firm Evergrande remains the clubs principle owner, controlling 60-percent.

Unicom opens Australian operationsChina Unicom's new Australian branch has officially opened for business.

The company's foray into the Australian market is part of an "Information Silk Road" plan between the Chinese and Australian governments.

Unicom plans for Australia include involvement in Internet technology and cloud computing.

China's logistics sector growth slows in JuneNew stats are pointing to a slowdown in the logistics sector in China through June.

The logistics performance index for June has come in at 55.7.

This is down over 2 points from May's figures.

Like the PPI, any reading above 50 still indicates expansion.

A slowdown in the growth of the logistics sector through June is being attributed to seasonal factors, including high temperatures and heavy flooding.

China's logistics sector has been booming in recent years, particularly with the growth of e-commerce.

A number of new logistics hubs are also being built across the countries connected to the "Belt and Road" initiative.

SportsAussie Rules Football Coach Murdered, Son SuspectedThe coach of Australian Rules football team Adelaide Crows was stabbed to death and his son arrested and charged with murder today, sending shockwaves through the country's richest sporting competition.

Police and ambulance crews were called to Phil Walsh's Adelaide home at 2 a.m. local time on Friday and found the 55-year-old coach had suffered multiple knife wounds following an argument with his son.

Police say Walsh's son was found a short time later, and arrested for murder. He's currently being detained for psychiatric assessment.

Walsh's wife also suffered a "non-life threatening" leg injury during the domestic incident and was taken to hospital for treatment.

Australian Football League chief executive, Gillon McLachlan, says that Walsh's death leaves the sport at a loss for words:

"He was a man of boundless energy, enthusiasm and great intelligence. He was part of the AFL family for 32 years and there are not many words of comfort today for those who feel his terrible loss in these most difficult of circumstances."Adelaide Crows chairman Rob Chapman says that the club will do whatever it takes to cope with the news of Walsh's death.

The club is scheduled to play against the Geelong Cats on Sunday, but had made no decision as to whether the match would go ahead.

Tennis: Wimbledon UpdateIn tennis action getting underway at Wimbledon:

In men's actionAussie bad boy and 26th seed Nick Kyrgios is taking on seventh-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic.

(UPDATE)And Cyprus native Marcos Baghdatis is battling no. 16 Belgian David Goffin.

(UPDATE)In upcoming action later tonight:

French Open winner Stan Wawrinka takes on Spain's Fernando Verdasco;World no. 1 Novak Djokovic will face 27th-seeded Aussie Bernard Tomic;Eleventh-seed Grigor Dimitrov will face France's Richard Gasquet;And ninth-seed Croatian Marin Cilic will meet no. 17 American John Isner on the court.

On the women's side of things:

World no. 1 Serena Williams will take on England's Heather Watson;World no. 4 Maria Sharapova hits the court against Romanian Irina Begu;Sixth-seeded Lucie Safarova will take on American Sloane Stephens;14th-seeded Andrea Petkovic will face Kazakhstan's Zarina Diyas;and No. 16, Venus Williams will battle Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia.

Golf: Tiger Woods Shoots Best Round of Season at GreenbrierIn golf:

Tiger Woods capped his lowest PGA Tour round of the season with a trio of birdies to leave him four shots off the early lead at the Greenbrier Classic on Thursday.

Woods, who has struggled for form all season, mixed seven birdies with a bogey and double-bogey for an opening-round four-under 66 on Greenbrier's Old White Course in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.

"It was a pretty good day. I mean, I felt like I left a lot of opportunities out there too. I hit the ball better than what my score indicates. I gave myself a lot of looks and just didn't make enough but overall right now I'm only two back. It's going to be a bunched leaderboard come Sunday. The guys are all going to be somewhere up there. The nature of this golf course right now is soft and the guys are going to go get it."Coming off a missed cut at last month's U.S. Open, Woods hit 10 of 14 fairways and needed only 25 putts to sit four shots back of clubhouse leader Scott Langley, who shot a round of 8 under par 62.

On the European Tour's French Open:

Maximillian Kieffer has a one shot lead at the France Open after a halted day's play in Paris on Thursday.

The German still has four holes to complete as lightning disrupted play, but is currently four under par, one ahead of a host of players, including Frenchman Victor Dubuisson.

F1: Kimi Raikkonen Could Leave FerrariIn racing:

2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen could be on his way out of Ferrari, despite only signing with them last season.

Raikkonen faces a storm of speculation about his future at Formula One's most glamorous team ahead of the coming British Grand Prix.

The Finn is out of contract at the end of the season. Although Ferrari have an option on him, he's not sure what is in his racing future:

"Obviously they'll make the decision. We try to do good races. Obviously the last race was a bit difficult but that's part of the game, sometimes you have that. Who knows: I don't know anything more than you guys, so I will know hopefully at some point what will happen. There are always speculations to start off the year and it's always the same stories. It doesn't really surprise me a lot so let's see what happens."Raikkonen crashed on the opening lap in Austria 11 days ago after he lost control of his car.

Although he finished second in Bahrain, that was his first podium finish since he was at Lotus in 2013.

With Mercedes dominating and the rest playing catch up, there is plenty of room for improvement throughout the grid this coming weekend.

The British Grand Prix kicks off on Friday and runs through this Sunday.

NBA: Lakers Take 2nd Run at LaMarcus Aldridge, Wade Signs 1-year, $20mln Deal with MiamiIn news from the National Basketball Association:

The Los Angeles Lakers have taken a second run at their prime free-agent target, LaMarcus Aldridge, on Thursday, after their first attempt reportedly failed to impress the point guard.

ESPN reports that the Lakers' first meeting with Aldridge focused on marketing opportunities and off-the-court business, and less about actually playing basketball.

Aldridge granted the Lakers a second meeting, which focused on how Aldridge would fit into the team's plan at rebuilding following one of LA's worst season in recent memory.

In other news:

Dwayne Wade signed a one-year, 20 million-US-dollar contract to stay with the Miami Heat.

MLB: Cardinals Fire Scouting Director Allegedly Connected to Astros HackIn news from Major League Baseball:

The St. Louis Cardinals have fired scouting director Chris Correa, the man that allegedly admitted to hacking into the Houston Astro's internal database.

The St. Louis Dispatch broke the news of Correa's firing.

According to the publication, Correa admitted hacking into an Astros' database to "verify that the Astros had stolen proprietary data."News of the hack emerged last month, when the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice launched an investigation, going off what they said was evidence that the Cardinals hacked an Astros database.

The investigation is still ongoing.

EntertainmentWang Quan'an Confirms DivorceChinese director Wang Quan'an has confirmed his divorce from his actress wife Zhang Yuqi.

The 50-year-old Wang says the two have reached an amicable agreement.

Zhang Yuqi first confirmed the news on social media on Thursday.

The break-up had been widely expected.

Wang Quan'an just emerged from jail last month after being busted for hiring a prostitute in September.

The arrest has shaken a promising career, which has already seen him win Best Screenplay at the Berlin Film Festival for his 2010 work "Tuan Yuan."Chen Kaige Responds to Keeping JayCee Chan's Scenes in His Latest MovieChinese action film "Monk Comes down the Mountain" has opened in Chinese theatres.

The film stars Wang Baoqiang, Aaron Kwok and actress Lin Chiling.

JayCee Chan, son of action star Jackie Chan, also has a role in the movie.

His appearance has stirred controversy, as JayCee Chan is currently black-listed because of a drug conviction.

Director Chen Kaige says they tried to cut out as much as they could of JayCee Chan from the film, but did have to leave some scenes in for continuity.

"Monk Comes Down the Mountain" is a martial arts film set in the warlord period between the ouster of the last Emperor in 1912 and the formation of the PRC in 1949.

Taylor Swift to Sing One More Night during Shanghai TourTaylor Swift has announced she's adding one more show to her "1989" World Tour when it hits Shanghai later this year.

She's adding the extra date after the tickets for her first two shows in November sold out within hours.

Taylor Swift is now set to play three back-to-back shows starting from November 10th.

Her stop in Shanghai is part of her "1989" tour.

The new album is the largest selling of the year so far, with 1.3-million sales through its first week after its release.

Oscar-winning Marisa Tomei Joins "Empire"Fox's hit drama "Empire" has added an Oscar-winner to its cast for its second season.

Marisa Tomei has signed a multi-episode deal to play a venture capitalist who becomes involved in the Lyon family.

Tomei joins a growing list of big names appearing on "Empire," including Chris Rock, Alicia Keys and Adam Rodriguez.

The series itself follows a family whose father, played by Terrence Howard, has become one of the leading record producers in the world.

Season 2 of "Empire" is due to start airing in September.

Prince Pulls Music from Streaming ServicesPrince has decided to pull most of his music from the streaming sites, including Spotify.

However, his music is still being made available on Jay Z's site Tidal.

His songs are also still available on iTunes, but won't be on Apple's latest streaming platform Apple Music.

Prince has not said why he's made the moves.

He's had an odd relationship with the internet.

In 2010 he declared the Internet was "completely over," and then released an album as a CD insert only in several European newspapers.

Prince also withdrew from social media last year.

However, he has since returned to Twitter to promote his new "Hit and Run" tour.

Singer Diddy Will Not Face Felony ChargesProsecutors in Los Angeles have decided not to file felony charges against Sean "Diddy" Combs connected to a fight he got in last month at the University of California.

The 45-year-old was arrested a couple of weeks ago after getting into an altercation at a gym at UCLA.

"Diddy" claims he was trying to defend himself and his son from an attack.

He still faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon, battery and making terrorist threats.

The case is now being handed over to the Los Angeles city attorney's office, which is likely to file misdemeanor charges.

weatherBeijing will be overcast tonight with a low of 20 degrees Celsius; tomorrow also overcast with a high of 29.

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

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

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is now back in China after wrapping up his European tour this week.

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, I'm Paul James in Beijing hoping you'll join us for our next edition of the Beijing Hour to open a window to the world together...