No quick rebound for 2009 economy

China's economy is unlikely to rebound quickly in 2009, and there is further room to loosen the monetary policy, an official from a top government think tank said.

It will take a while for enterprises to absorb their stock and the economy will continue to decelerate in 2009, Fan Jianping, chief economist of the State Information Center, was quoted by the China Securities Journal as saying.

Fan said deflationary pressure will appear in 2009. Producer price index is likely to have negative growth in the first half, while consumer inflation may remain low.

China's economic growth slowed to 9 percent in the third quarter year-on-year, the lowest in five years. Meanwhile, the consumer price index also declined from a record high of 8.7 percent in February to 2.4 in November.

Fan said the central bank could continue to loosen monetary policy if loan growth turns out to be sluggish next year.

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Credit Suisse gets permit for China securities JV

Credit Suisse Group, the second-largest Swiss bank, said it has received a business permit allowing its China investment banking venture with the country's Founder Securities Co to start operation.

The joint venture, Credit Suisse Founder Securities Ltd, is 33.3 percent owned by Credit Suisse and intends to focus initially on the sponsoring and underwriting of A shares, as well as government and corporate bonds in China.

It was announced in June 2008 that the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) had given its approval to establish this joint venture. It was the first approval that the CSRC had granted since the new regulations related to the establishment of Sino-foreign securities companies were announced in December 2007.

Lei Jie, chairman of Founder Securities, has been appointed chairman of the Beijing-based joint venture, with Neil Ge as its chief executive officer. Previously, Ge was the managing director at Credit Suisse's Investment Bank Shanghai Representative Office.

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Sinoma establishes $88m cement plant in Gansu

China National Materials Group Corporation (Sinoma), China's largest cement-making equipment producer, inaugurated a new dry-process cement plant in Baiyin, Gansu province on Dec 29.

With a total investment of 600 million yuan ($87.61 million), the plant is designed to produce 4,500 tons of cement daily and 2 million tons of high-mark quality cement annually.

When the plant comes into operation, it will consume 900,000 tons of industrial residues like pulverized fuel ash, copper ore slag and hydrofluoric acid residue.

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Chery sales down 8.9% on low demand

Chery Automobile Co, China's biggest domestic automaker, said its car sales stood at 320,000 units in the first 11 months of 2008, down 8.9 percent from a year earlier.

The sales volume means the automaker is unlikely to fulfill its 480,000-unit sales target mapped out at the beginning of the year. It planned to sell 300,000 units at home and 180,000 units abroad.

The drop in sales was contributed to the decreasing demand around the global market triggered by the expanding financial crisis.

Due to the weakening demand, most automakers in the country are not able to complete their sales target for 2008.

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China Q3 non-cash payments fall for first time, in line with economic slowdown

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The amount of non-cash payments in China in the third quarter declined for the first time, according to a central bank report released Tuesday.

The amount of money involved in non-cash payments, including commercial papers and bank cards, was about 157.3 trillion yuan (22.97 trillion U.S. dollars) in the third quarter, down 8.3 percent year on year, according to the People's Bank of China.

The first-ever fall was a proof of a less active economy, as the country saw its third quarter growth slow to 9 percent, the slowest pace in five years.

The central bank said the biggest drop, without giving the exact number, was reported with the use of commercial papers, which are more often used by small and medium-sized enterprises.

Transactions made with bank cards continued to rise, with the amount of money involved up 4.1 percent in the third quarter from the same period last year. But the growth rate was 58.8 percentage points lower than last year's figure.

The use of bank cards, instead of cash, continued to be more popular among consumers. The report said transactions using bank cards, excluding large commodities like real estate and wholesale purchases, took up 25.7 percent of the country's total retail sales in the third quarter. The figure was 1.8 percentage points higher than in the second quarter.

The average spending on each bank card was 592 yuan in the third quarter, up 0.7 percent than in the second quarter, and spending for each transaction was 1,435 yuan, down 8.7 percent than in the second quarter, according to the report.

Tuesday's report also said the use of credit cards continued to spread quickly despite a slowdown in economic growth. As of the end of the third quarter, more than 130 million credit cards had been issued, representing a year-on-year increase of more than 70 percent.

In the meantime, outstanding credit on these cards reached 891 billion yuan, up 70.9 percent year on year, and the credit figure was 3.5 times that of the end of third quarter in 2006.

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Hong Kong stocks open 1% higher

HONG KONG, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong' benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 148.26 points, or 1.03 percent, to open at 14,476.74 on Tuesday.

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Chinese equities open flat on Tuesday

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Chinese shares open flat on Tuesday. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, gained 0.08 percent, or 1.43 points, to 1,851.91 at the opening.

The smaller Shenzhen index was down 0.35 percent, or 23.32 points, to open at 6,629.88 points.

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Putin: Global economy to improve in 2nd half of 2009

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

MOSCOW, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told the media on Monday that he foresaw an improvement in the global financial situation during the third and fourth quarters of next year.

Putin said the world economy had never experienced a crisis like this before.

He believed the situation will improve in the third and fourth quarters of 2009, and will produce a positive effect on the Russian economy in 2010.

Putin also said on Monday that Russia had designated 10 trillion rubles (about 340 billion U.S. dollars), which is almost equal to the country's annual budget, to cope with the impact of the global crisis.

Meanwhile, the Russian government's press office said that Putin had approved the Finance Ministry's issuance of state negotiable securities with a par value up to 535.8 billion rubles (about 18.5 billion U.S. dollars) next year.

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Another two in China tainted milk scandal appear in court

SHIJIAZHUANG, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Two more people involved in China's tainted milk scandal stood trial Tuesday at a court in Shijiazhuang, capital of northern Hebei Province.

The Shijiazhuang Intermediate People's Court accused Geng Jinping, manager of a milk production base and Geng Jinzhu, a driver at the base, of adding 434 kg of protein powder that contained the industrial chemical melamine to about 900 tonnes of raw milk.

The two Gengs sold the tainted milk to Shijiazhuang-based Sanlu Group, the dairy at the center of the scandal, and other places from October 2007 through August 2008, and made 2.8 million yuan(409,000 U.S. dollars), the court heard.

The protein powder, mainly made of melamine, malt dextrin and whey powder, was used to increase the apparent protein content in milk. Children can develop kidney stones after drinking the melamine-contaminated milk.

The Ministry of Health has said it was likely the contamination killed at least six babies. Another 294,000 infants suffered from urinary problems such as kidney stones.

So far, 17 people in the scandal have been put on trial in Hebei in the past few days. No verdicts have been announced yet.

Tian Wenhua, Sanlu's former board chairwoman and general manager, will face trial Wednesday in the Shijiazhuang Intermediate People's Court. She faces charges of producing and selling fake or substandard commodities, according to court sources.

Sanlu Group stopped production on Sept. 12. A bankruptcy petition for Sanlu has been filed in the face of an 1.1 billion yuan debt, the city government said last week.

China's Dairy Industry Association announced Saturday victims who fell ill or died after drinking tainted baby formula will soon get financial compensation from 22 Chinese dairy producers. But the association did not say the amount of compensation or when the victims will receive it.

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Gold futures settle higher after backing off intra-day peak

CHICAGO, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- After backing off intra-day peak, the price of gold futures on the COMEX Division of the New York Mercantile Exchange remained higher on Monday due to the Middle East conflict and the rising oil price. Silver and platinum also went up.

The gold price for February delivery ended up 4.10 dollars, or 0.5 percent, to 875.30 dollars an ounce. March silver climbed 28 cents to 10.81 dollars per ounce. January platinum gained 28.90 dollars, settling on 923.40 dollars per ounce.

During the early session in electronic trade, gold climbed as high as 892 dollars per ounce because of stepped-up tensions in Gaza.

Investors generally tend to buy precious metals as risk hedging instruments during political turmoil.

At the day trade session, the gold price retreated with crude oil falling and the U.S. dollar rebounding sharply, but it managed to end higher for the third consecutive day.

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Chile to use all available tools to cope with financial crisis

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

SANTIAGO, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Chile will use all the available tools to cope with the global financial crisis, Finance Minister Andres Velasco said Monday.

The government will do its best to defend the economy and employment in 2009, a year forecasted to be difficult for Chile and the world, Velasco said.

We have used and will continue to use all the available tools to defend the economy and employment, he said.

Velasco said Chile had worked out opportune and strong measures to ease the impact of the crisis on the country's economic growth, adding that the government's budget for public works will grow almost 14 percent, which will also help employment next year.

While other countries are concerned about slow economic growth, we must remain relatively optimistic, he said.

He said the Chilean market was maintaining stability and had received record investments during the year.

However, Velasco admitted that it would not be easy to keep this trend going in 2009.

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Stocks close higher in Argentina, Brazil, lower in Mexico

MEXICO CITY, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Latin America's three major stock markets ended mixed on Monday.

Mexico City's IPC stock index dropped 0.55 percent to 22,392.38points. A total of 98.2 million shares were traded with a value of about 125 million U.S. dollars.

At the Buenos Aires stock market, the Merval index closed at 1,076.41points, up 1.68 percent. The trade volume was 6.67 million dollars.

In Sao Paulo, Latin America's biggest bourse, the leading Bovespa index closed at 37,060 points, up 0.53 percent. The trade volume was 807milliondollars.

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Brazil to announce new measures to fight financial crisis

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Monday that the government will announce new measures in January to fight the ongoing international financial crisis.

By Jan. 20, we will present other proposals to stimulate the economical growth, Lula said in his weekly radio show Breakfast with the President.

We will not wait for this crisis to shake Brazil. We will work so that the crisis does not cause perverse effects it is causing in the United States and Japan, with millions of unemployed.

According to the president, the next year will demand much work from the Brazilian government, society and companies.

He admitted Brazil's economy may grow less than expected in 2009, saying the country will keep on generating jobs.

The government set a growth target of 4 percent for the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2009, while the country's budget for next year foresees a 3.5 percent growth.

Lula said Brazilians must have confidence in and hope for the future, stressing the country has a strong domestic market and is capable of resisting external shocks.

Lula said Brazil should take the crisis as an opportunity to accomplish what it had not accomplished yet.

He said Brazil's domestic market continued to grow and the country generated more jobs in 2008 despite the difficulties in the fourth quarter due to the credit crunch in the world.

I would say that Brazil had a good year. I will not say it was great, but it was good, the president said.

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Air New Zealand successfully conducted first biofuel test flight

AUCKLAND, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Air New Zealand's two-hour test flight of a second generation new biofuel was successfully conducted above Auckland on Tuesday.

A Boeing 747-400 took off at 11:30 a.m. local time (2230 GMT Monday) and flied over the wider Hauraki Gulf area, powered by a 50:50 blend of jatropha and Jet A1 fuel.

Jatropha plants produce seeds that contain inedible lipid oil, which is used to produce fuel.

During the flight the crew conducted a number of fuel tests confirming and measuring the performance of the engine and fuel systems at various altitudes and under a variety of operating conditions.

The flight was part of a series of trials taking place at airlines around the world, testing different types of biofuel as a sustainable alternative to the fossil fuel-based Jet-A1 fuel.

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2010 World Expo Theme Pavilion takes shape

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The metal framework for the 2010 World Expo Theme Pavilion has been completed in Shanghai's Pudong area. Exhibitions in the pavilion will showcase innovative solutions to urban problems.

Themajorexhibitionhallcovers30,000squaremetersand
theothertwohallsarebigenoughtoaccommodatefourlarge
passengerjets.

The major exhibition hall covers 30,000 square meters and the other two halls are big enough to accommodate four large passenger jets. The pavilion's roof will be covered with energy-producing solar panels. The structure should be completed by September, and is expected to attract 125,000 people everyday during the 6 month event.

After the expo ends, the pavilion will be turned into an exhibition center part of a new commercial hub in Shanghai.

China to begin civilian helicopter production

Special Report:Tech Max

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China's first jointly-funded civilian helicopter production project has held its signing ceremony. The first batch of civilian helicopters is expected to roll off the production line by the end of next year.

Thefirstbatchofcivilianhelicoptersisexpectedtoroll
offtheproductionlinebytheendofnextyear.

The project is designed to manufacture 200 helicopters a year and realized profits and taxes of 1 billion yuan. The joint venture will produce low-cost light helicopters that can be employed in emergency rescues, airborne traffic control, and forest protection.

Relief efforts continue in Yunnan quake area

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110,000 people affected by Friday's earthquakes in Yunnan Province have been transferred from the disaster area. Relief efforts in the area continue.

110,000peopleaffectedbyFriday'searthquakesinYunnan
Provincehavebeentransferredfromthedisasterarea.Relief
effortsintheareacontinue.

The first batch of relief material has been distributed. Basic power, telephone and transport links have been restored and schools have reopened. Ruili city, on the border with Myanmar, was hit by two quakes measuring 4.9 and 4 on the Richter Scale, early Friday morning.

China, Kuwait pledge to bring relations to higher level

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Vice Premier Li Keqiang is continuing his first overseas trip since taking office in March. He met with the Emir of Kuwait and the two agreed to promote pragmatic cooperation in various fields.

EmirofKuwaitSheikhSabahal-Ahmadal-Jaberal-Sabah
(R,front)meetswithvisitingChineseVicePremier
LiKeqiang(L,front)inKuwaitCity,capitalofKuwait,
Dec.28,2008.(Xinhua/RaoAimin)

China and Kuwait pledged to step up relations to a higher level.

Vice Premier Li Keqiang called for increasing high-level exchanges based on equality and mutual benefit.

He said China highly values its ties with Kuwait, and China is ready to strengthen cooperation with the Gulf Cooperation Council, which plays an important role in the region.

A dialogue mechanism with the Council will be launched next year, and negotiations on setting up a free trade area have entered a critical phase. Li Keqiang expressed hope that Kuwait will continue playing a significant role in boosting China's relationship with the council.

Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, said growing cooperation in economics and trade would continue to push forward two way ties. Emir al-Sabah thanked China for its efforts to work for Middle East peace. He said Kuwait will work with the Chinese government to safeguard regional peace and stability.

Last year, two way trade volume between China and Kuwait reached 3.6 billion US dollars, a thirty percent jump over the previous year.

Kuwait is the final leg of Li Keqiang's 11-day overseas visit, which has already taken him to Indonesia and Egypt.

Trials continue for Sanlu suspects

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Another four people accused of involvement in China's tainted dairy scandal went on trial today (Monday) in Shijiazhuang, capital of northern China's Hebei province.

AnotherfourpeopleaccusedofinvolvementinChina's
tainteddairyscandalwentontrialtoday(Monday)in
Shijiazhuang,capitalofnorthernChina'sHebeiprovince.

The Shijiazhuang Intermediate People's Court began the hearing for Gao Junjie, Xue Jianzhong and two others charged with endangering public safety.

The court was told the suspects began producing protein powder containing melamine starting November 2007. From then until August this year,they produced more than 200 tons of the protein powder. The accused sold over 110 tons to the Sanlu Group with the sales volume exceeding 1.2 million yuan. On Friday,six other people involved in the scandal stood trial in four courts in Hebei on charges of producing, selling or adding protein powder that contained melamine.The courts have not announced the verdicts. A bankruptcy petition for Sanlu was filed as the company faced debts of 1.1 billion yuan.

Wenchuan infrastructure long road to recover

Special Report:Post-quake reconstruction

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The May earthquake has greatly damaged Sichuan's basic infrastructure. For the past seven months, efforts have been made to resume conditions in full capacity.

TheMayearthquakehasgreatlydamagedSichuan'sbasic
infrastructure.Forthepastsevenmonths,effortshave
beenmadetoresumeconditionsinfullcapacity.

Today, inthe last episode of our Revisiting Wenchuan series, correspondent Han Bin examines the reconstruction of the basic infrastructure in the quake zone. As he finds out, the pace of reconstruction is speeding up, yet full recovery is still a long way off.

We're on the highway from Chengdu to Wenchuan. Seven months ago, we couldn't get through. Reconstruction is still in progress, but we're not complaining.

Efforts made to improve migrant workers skills

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Migrant workers are extremely vulnerable to the global economic downturn, with some already losing their jobs. Following a government appeal, some bosses have already begun efforts to improve migrant workers' skills and knowledge.

Migrantworkersareextremelyvulnerabletotheglobal
economicdownturn,withsomealreadylosingtheirjobs.

Wei Tianfu from Guizhou has worked at a building site in Guangzhou for more than half a year. With the skill of re-bar through training, he has easily found work. Recently, he persuaded his wife to come to Guangzhou to work with him.

China ensures agricultural development

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The Ministry of Agriculture says this year's grain output has reached a record 528.2 billion kilograms, which is a robust 5.4 percent growth over last year. This also represents an annual grain output growth for the fifth consecutive year, the first time in nearly 4 decades. Despite the harvest, China's Minister of Agriculture Sun Zhengcai says it's a big challenge to ensure the continual increase of farmers' incomes in the next year.

TheMinistryofAgriculturesaysthisyear'sgrainoutput
hasreachedarecord528.2billionkilograms,whichisa
robust5.4percentgrowthoverlastyear.

The Chinese Agriculture Minister says the impact of the global economic crisis is being felt by the country's agricultural sector. At this stage, there is a downturn in the prices of the country's agricultural produce.

China to stimulate farmers incomes

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As the financial crisis worsens and western consumers keep a firm grip on their shrinking wallets developing countries, like China, have to count on domestic consumption to sustain their economic growth.

Ruralresidentsmakeup56percentofChina'spopulation,
andtheyarethefocusofthegovernment'splanstoboost
internalspendingandlending.Buthigherspendingdemands
moremoneyinthepocketfirst.

Rural residents make up 56 percent of China's population, and they are the focus of the government's plans to boost internal spending and lending. But higher spending demands more money in the pocket first.

Henan province, the bread basket of China. Each year, rural lands here yield 10 percent of the country's total grain output. But high production doesn't bring wealth, due to the declining world grain price.

Geological Museum of Huangshan opens

VisitorswatchadisplayattheGeologicalMuseumof
Huangshan,inHuangshanCity,eastChina'sAnhuiProvince.
Themuseumwasopenedhererecently,tointroducethe
geologicalandbiologicalknowledgesinvolvedwithHuangshan
Mountain.(Xinhua/ShiGuangde)

Trees covered with rime in Inner Mongolia

ThephototakenonDec.26,2008showstrees
coveredwithrimeinHexigtenofInnerMongolia
AutonomousRegion,China.(XinhuaPhoto)

08/12/29 China Today

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24th Winter Universiade Games organizers unveil medals

The 24th Winter Universiade organizers unveiled the medals on Monday, one day before the 50-day countdown to the games.

The medals' design looks similar to that of the Beijing Olympic Games, except they feature crystal instead of jade for the outside rim. The sign of the International University Sports Federation is in the middle of the front side. The logo of the 24th Winter Universiade is on the back. Host city Harbin, capital of Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, will combine the games with Chinese culture.

The organizing group finished most of its preparation work after releasing the medals' design.

Tour de Ski China continues in Inner Mongolia

The Tour de Ski China went into its second stage in Xiwuqi, Inner Mongolia on Monday. Chinese women cross-country skiers wrapped up the podium in the 5-kilometer freestyle.

The length means the athletes need to ski for eight complete laps. The weather forced the skiers to fight against the low temperatures and heavy wind, in addition to beating the other competitors.

In the women's group, Chinese veteran Li Hongxue led from the very beginning to the end. She finished in a time of 10 minutes 33.6 seconds. Her compatriots Li Xin and Guo Liping took second and third place respectively. On the men's side, stage one winner Anders Hogberg of Sweden kept his momentum to win the stage. The tour moves to Changchun, Jilin Province on Wednesday.

Dutch football: AZ Alkmaar edge past Nec Nijmegen

AZ Alkmaar continued its remarkable start to the season with a 1-nil victory over NEC Nijmegen. The win consolidated Alkmaar's position on top of the standings.

As expected, Alkmaar dominated the first half. Striker Stijn Schaars produced numerous threats to the NEC goal, but could not convert any of them.

Graziano Pelle stood out for AZ Alkmaar in the second half. He made no mistake on this shot, slotting it home from close range to put Alkmaar ahead with 15 minutes to go. And that was how the game ended, as AZ Alkmaar collected three points.

Angola: A basketball loving country

Basketball has always been one of the most popular sports in Angola. With normality returning to the country after years of civil war, the African country is beginning to dominate the sport in the continent once again.

Basketball as a part of daily life remained consistent even through the troubled years of Angola. That's probably why it came to be the most successful basketball nation in African history, winning the African Championship nine times. Their two biggest teams, Primeiro de Agosto and Petro de Luanda, are both based in the capital Luanda. The big two not only dominate the domestic league, but have also competed in the last two African Club Championship finals, with the teams winning one each.

The growing Angolan economy allows the government and corporations to invest for basketballers to play professionally. The best players tend to stay in the country, while foreign players are drawn there. Shannon Crooks is one of them. He played at the University of Massachusetts and in the Portuguese league before signing for Petro.

Shannon Crooks, foreign player, Petro de Luanda, said, "There's still some people that I don't want to say are naive but are uninformed about Africa in general. They think it's still like lions and things running around, but I knew some people from Angola through Portugal and what to expect. But everywhere around the world people are the same, it's just a different language. There's a good side to everything and a bad side to everything."

All Star game in Paris

LaurentSciarra(L)ofEntenteOrleanaiseLoiretvieswithAustinNichols
ofHyeres-ToulonVarBasketduringtheFrencheditionoftheAllSta
rgameinParis,France,Dec.28,2008.(Xinhua/ZhangYuwei)

Rockets roll past Jazz in double overtime in NBA

The Houston Rockets needed two overtimes to take a tight victory over the Utah Jazz. Houston for most of the game, but conceded their advantage in the final stanza and had to fight hard for the final win.

UtahJazzguardRonnieBrewer,center,drivesto
thebasketoverHoustonRocketsguardBrentBarry,
left,andAaronBrooks,right,inthefirsthalf
oftheirNBAbasketballgameinHouston,Saturday,
Dec.27,2008.(APPhoto/BobLevey)

The Rockets got off to a dream start, taking a 10 point lead in the first quarter.

Yao Ming extended that lead for Houston to 15-points before the break.

The home side kept control of the game going into the final quarter with this three pointer from Ron Artest.

Utah bounced back in frenzied fashion and consecutive shots helped them tie the game to force overtime.

In the second overtime, Artest would burst out, capping 10 points in the last four minutes. His efforts gave the Rockets a tense 120-115 victory.

12/29 Sports Scene

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08/12/28 Double edged globalization changes China

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08/12/26 Chinas patrol mission off Somalia

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Jazz great Freddie Hubbard dies at 70

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhuanet)-- Freddie Hubbard, the great American jazz musician who has influenced a generation of trumpet players, died Monday at the age of 70, according to media reports Tuesday.

The Grammy winner died at Sherman Oaks Hospital, California, said his manager, fellow trumpeter David Weiss of the New Jazz Composers Octet.

Hubbard had been hospitalized since suffering a heart attack a day before Thanksgiving.

As a towering figure in jazz circles, Hubbard played on hundreds of recordings in a career dating to 1958.

In his earliest recordings, which included Open Sesame and Goin' Up for Blue Note in 1960, the influence of others is obvious. But within a couple of years he developed a style all his own, one that would influence generations of musicians.

As a young musician, Hubbard became revered among his peers for a fiery, blazing style that allowed him to hit notes higher and faster than just about anyone else with a horn. As age and infirmity began to slow that style, he switched to a softer, melodic style and played a flugelhorn, impressing his fellow musicians.

Hubbard won his Grammy in 1972 for best jazz performance by a group for the album First Light. In his playing life, he collaborated with such greats as Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins.

News Analysis: Hollywood feels pains as economic recession deepens in 2008

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Traditionally considered to be in an industry that has the ability to stay away from economic downturns, Hollywood movie studios began to feel pains in 2008 when a credit crunch resulting from the U.S. housing crisis turned into the worst economic recession since the Great Depression.

With almost every sector of the economy being hit hard by the financial crisis as consumers reduced their spendings and companies laid off employees, few industries could remain immune from the deteriorating economic situation, entertainment executives and industry observers said.

Hollywood's major studios have been retrenching their operations in recent months by cutting back production projects and slashing marketing jobs, mainly due to the reluctance of their parent companies to risk more movie investments amid declining advertising revenues and worsening financial conditions.

The entertainment industry in fact has been bracing for massive job cuts since Warner Bros. Pictures, owned by media conglomerate Time Warner, announced laying off as many as 1,000 employees in January in the wake of the 100-day strike by Hollywood writers.

The strike, launched by the Writers Guild of America after the union failed to renew its three-year labor contract with studios through negotiations, had halted the production of many new television drama episodes and delayed some film projects. Some economists estimated the lingering work stoppage cost the industry about 2 billion U.S. dollars in losses.

Although Hollywood has recovered somewhat from the devastating strike almost a year ago, the global credit crunch and economic recession are forcing entertainment companies and movie studios to tighten their belts in preparation for a major slump.

Universal Pictures' parent company NBC-Universal announced earlier this month the layoff of 500 jobs, or 3 percent of its staff, while Viacom, which owns Paramount Pictures, cut 850, or 7 percent of its workforce.

Fashion designer Liang Zi

In the fashion field, designer Liang Zi is a maverick. She uses gambiered Guangdong silk as her main material, but the aura of luxury that her garments exude make Liang Zi a must-have label.On today's "The List", we introduce designer Liang Zi, whose naturally beautiful clothes cast a spell over fashion fans even at first glance.

Inthefashionfield,designerLiangZiisamaverick.

On a Zen-like stage, with ethereal music in the background, the models looked serene and peaceful. That's the feeling Liang Zi wants to pass on. Her clothes are in accordance with this mood. The skirts exude a controlled dignity, the same mood can be felt through the floating pants. Her gorgeous clothes help to calm troubled minds, and immerse the wearer into the serene mood which is the designer's spiritual home.

The show, a must-see for many at Beijing International Fashion Week, was titled "Kong" or "nothing". In Zen meditation, when one obtains an empty state of mind, one can see things for what they truly are. Liang Zi promotes a peaceful mind in face of the hectic modern world. And her clothes perfectly communicate her ideas.











Amodelpresentsacreationbydesigner
LiangZiduringtheTANGYcollection
Spring/Summer2009fashionshowatChina
FashionWeekinBeijing,November9,
2008.[Agencies]

Liang Zi, said, "My interpretation of the theme "Kong", or "nothing" is a kind of a spiritual status. Your heart is very strong, you can face anything, that kind of status. Everything in life is wonderful, either frustrations, or the whole life circle, you are broad-minded and at peace in face of anything."

Liang Zi has shown at Beijing International Fashion Week since 2001. No matter what the themes are, the core of her shows is always "ode to nature", and a harmonious attitude towards nature, society and the inner self.

Gambiered Guangdong silk is an eco-friendly material, and its production process does not harm the environment.

08/12/29 Qingming by the riverside (I)

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Today, City of Kaifeng, Henan Province was once known as Bianjing, capital of Northern Song Danasty. The painting Qingming by the riverside stands as a testimony to the imposing sight Bianjing presented to the travellers.

Hot market for comedies at 2008 year end

Hollywood star Jim Carrey just released his latest comedy "Yes Man". The movie is considered by many to be one hundred percent Carrey-ish: he's quite himself in the performance, but how will audiences respond? We have to wait and see.

HollywoodstarJimCarreyjustreleasedhis
latestcomedy"YesMan".

"Yes Man" is Jim Carrey's latest comedy, after a three-year absence in this genre. Having experienced the frosty response of movie critics for his previous thriller "The Number 23", this time Carrey pays great attention to the promotion of "Yes Man".

The Canadian braved chilly weather for the flick's London premiere.

"Yes Man" follows a guy who challenges himself to say "Yes" to everyone for an entire year. And that triggers a slew of laugher and a chain of hilarity.

"Yes Man" provides Carrey a chance to fully showcase his versatile talents ---from performing to even the courageous act of bungee jumping.

Although the release of "Yes Man" comes during the global credit crunch, it has exceeded Will Smith's "Seven Pounds" at the box office. Carrey said he wasn't much surprised by the box office return, and he's happy to be back to the genre again.

Although Carrey was absent from big screen comedies over the past three years, the circle had never been silent and still. "Tropic Thunder" by Ben Stiller, secured a niche in the market by exposing the social innuendos in a distinctively hilarious way. Scenarios from movies such as "Full Metal Jacket" and "Windtalkers" are re-interpreted in "Tropic Thunder", in a rather screwball style.

Posterof"YesMan"

Adam Sandler, who's well versed in portraying roles in both romantic films and comedies, has more movie productions than Jim Carrey, although his 2008 effort "You Don't Mess With the Zohan" left much to be desired.

Zhang Yadongs musical Journey

After five long years of preparation, composer Zhang Yadong held a variety concert on December 20th at the Olympic Sports Center Stadium in Beijing. More than ten famous singers from across China were invited to interpret 30 pieces written by Zhang Yadong. On today's list, we'll review Zhang's music career.

ComposerZhangYadong (File photo)

For Zhang Yadong, the acoustics are one of the keys to presenting the perfect concert. Familiar tunes are interpreted by famous singers from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The man behind all these melodies didn't appear until the end of the concert. Zhang rarely speaks much in public, and merely said that he was dedicating the next song to his grandfather. His song "Slow Flow" brought the concert to a perfect end.

The performance was not only a review of Zhang's decade-long career in music, but also helped promote his new album, which will be released next month. It's been ten years since Zhang published his first album in 1998.

Not many people know the name Zhang Yadong, since he often shuns the limelight. But his songs are much-loved across the Chinese-speaking world. Zhang is behind many of Faye Wong's classic songs, from "Impatience" and "Bored", to "If You are Happy I'll be Happy" and "Only Love Strangers".

That last track was originally sung by Zhang on his eponymous debut album. The friendship and partnership between Zhang and Wong can be traced back to their shared love of British band the Cocteau Twins.

ComposerZhangYadong(Filephoto)

Zhang's mother is an actress of Jinju or Shanxi opera, one of China's traditional operas. Zhang started learning the cello at 8 and began composing at 13. Even today,Zhang still loves the music of the 60s and 70s. He's particularly fond of the recording styles of the era and the nature of its sound. Zhang also collects ancient musical instruments. All these have helped Zhang to create his own music style today.

Tofu and Duck Liver

What's the best kind of food for winter? Contrary to popular opinion, it's not meat or spicy hot pot, but some milder, nutritious food.

TofuandDuckLiver

Too much spice can result in "Shang Huo", an illness caused by excessive internal heat. Today, we recommend a gourmet Beijing fusion which blends smoked Tofu and duck liver.

The terrine dish fits the criterion of winter food perfectly, so don't miss today's Chopsticks.

TofuandDuckLiver

Coming Attractions: Dec. 30th 2008-Jan. 6th,2009

Wu Jing’s "Legendary Assassin" to hit big screen

Kung Fu flick "Legendary Assassin" is currently on big screens across the country. It's both directed by and starring Wu Jing, a young Kung Fu movie star from the Chinese mainland.

The film's biggest draw is Wu Jing's authentic Kung Fu fighting stunts. The movie portrays Wu as a hero who fights for his life in a huge scuffle. All the Kung Fu master's high-difficulty action moves are on display.

The film is slated for a year-end release. It's loaded with action, fights, love and all sorts of antics.

Dec.30th
New Year Concert of Classic Chinese Music
Beijing Forbidden City Concert Hall

Dec.30th - Jan.1st
Musical "Why Do I Love You"
Nanjing Jiangnan Theatre

Dec.30th - Jan.4th
Play "Runaway Bride"
Shenzhen Futian Cultural Theatre

Jan.1st
Irish Dance "Rhythm of Dance"
Great Hall of the People, Beijing

Jan.1st - Jan.2nd
Ballet "Swan Lake"
Shanghai Majestic Theatre

Jan.1st - Jan.2nd
Children's Play "Wooden Puppet Adventure"
Shanghai Little Friends Theatre

Jan.3rd - Jan.4th
Dance Drama "Carmen"
Guangzhou Zhongshan Memorial Hall

Jan.5th - Jan.6th
Dance Drama "A Dream of Red Mansion"
National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing

Countdown albums of the year

The twelve months of 2008 have seen few new releases by the current crop of reigning divas.

Instead, some pop veterans are staking their claim to a piece of the star-studded landscape. Let's take a look at five of the most prominent albums released in 2008.

NO. 5: Elva Hsiao "Three Faced Eva"

Known for her style of rapid-fire dance tunes, Elva Hsiao was the number one female singer in the mando-pop world in 2008.

Knownforherstyleofrapid-firedancetunes,
ElvaHsiaowasthenumberonefemalesingerin
themando-popworldin2008(FilePhoto)

After about a year of relative inactivity, the young woman returned to the stage in fantastic form.

It seems that Elva Hsiao is determined to regain control of the dance tune arena, capitalizing on her diverse fan base.

A memorial to Mei Lanfang

Special Report:Mei Lanfang

The story of Peking Opera maestro Mei Lanfang came to life on the silver screen as "Forever Enthralled" premiered across China. Specializing in portraying young ladies, Mei Lanfang earned enduring world wide acclaim. The older generation still cherish his consummate performances and dedication to the traditional genre. For the young, it's a chance to learn more about him. Join us as we visit a museum and a theatre dedicated to the master and his art.

ThestoryofPekingOperamaestroMeiLanfangcametolife
onthesilverscreenas"ForeverEnthralled"premiered
acrossChina.

It is a typical Beijing courtyard house. A horizontal board inscribed by Deng Xiaoping, the late leader of the Communist Party of China, hangs above the door. Entering the yard, a bust of Mei Lanfang welcomes the visitors. The cozy museum is a memorial to the Peking Opera star.

The museum preserves the original look of Mei's former residence. The decor and furniture in the living room, study and bedroom are arranged according to his preference. A lantern, a couple of lacquer chairs and several sprays of plum blossoms.. these reveal the late artists' characteristics, such as elegance and diligence.

An exhibition room in the museum displays pictures and materials which are the records of his art, and his private and social life. In another hall, visitors enjoy videos of Mei Lanfang's exquisite performances, beautiful singing and elegant demeanor.

Chinese vice premier arrives in Kuwait on official visit

KUWAIT CITY, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- At the invitation of Kuwaiti First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang arrived here Saturday evening on a four-day official visit.

VisitingChineseVicePremierLiKeqiang(Linfront)walks
outoftheKuwaitiInternationalAirportwithawelcome
delegationheadedbyKuwaitiFirstDeputyPrimeMinister
andMinisterofDefenseSheikhJaberMubarakAl-Hamad
Al-Sabah(Rinfront)inKuwait,Dec.27,2008.
(XinhuaPhoto)

Li said in a statement delivered at the airport that he is delighted to pay an official visit to Kuwait, noting that the relationship between China and Kuwait, especially in the fields of trade, energy, finance and culture, has witnessed remarkable growth since the two forged diplomatic relations in 1971.

"China highly values the friendship with Kuwait and will make concerted efforts with the Kuwaiti side to step up the bilateral cooperation to a higher level," Li said.

Kuwait is the final leg of Li's 11-day overseas visit, his first foreign visit since he took office as vice premier in March, which has already taken him to Indonesia and Egypt.

According to official statistics, China and Kuwait renewed their record of bilateral trade volume in 2007 with 3.6 billion U.S. dollars, a 30 percent growth compared with that of 2006.

China imported 2.3 billion dollars worth of goods from Kuwait in 2007, with 90 percent of oil products, while only exporting 1.3billion dollars of goods to Kuwait.

Two NPC deputies expelled

Two deputies of 11th National People's Congress, China's top legislature, have been expelled after being accused of breaking the law. One of them is the former director of the Budgetary Work Committee of NPC Standing Committee -- Zhu Zhigang.

A resolution adopted by members of the NPC Standing Committee says Zhu is now under investigation for suspected violations of discipline and law. The resolution did not detail the violations.

The other expelled deputy was elected from eastern Fujian province -- Chen Shaoyong. Chen is suspected of taking a huge sum of bribes.

Tainted milk firms to compensate melamine victims

Chinese dairy companies that sold melamine-tainted milk are ready to pay compensation to the families of the nearly 300,000 children who became ill or died from drinking contaminated infant formula, China's Dairy Industry Association announced Saturday.

Twenty-two dairy producers will make a one-time cash payment to the victims' families, the Xinhua News agency quoted China's Dairy Industry Association as saying. No specific amount was given.

"The money for compensation is in place now and will soon be handed to the people who have custody of the sickened children through various channels," the association said. The group did not specify a date.

At least six babies died and some 294,000 other children suffered kidney and urinary problems from drinking formula contaminated with melamine, an industrial chemical which is used in the manufacturing of plastics and can increase the apparent protein content in milk. As of late November, 861 babies still remained in the hospital.

The report did not name specific companies involved, saying the 22 dairy producers, including the Shijiazhuang-based Sanlu Group, sold products tainted with melamine.

The association also said that the 22 companies have set up an extra fund to cover medical bills for future health problems.

"If the babies suffer from relative aftereffects, all medical fees will be covered by the fund," the association said.

"The enterprises offered to shoulder the compensation liability. By doing so, they hope to earn understanding and forgiveness of the families of the sickened children," the association said.

Sanlu, which was at heart of the scandal, has filed for bankruptcy in recent days with a reported 1.1 billion yuan (US$160 million) of net debt.

On Friday, the first trials associated with the scandal opened. Six men, including the owner of a workshop that was allegedly the country's largest source of melamine, appeared at four different courts, where they are accused of producing and selling melamine.

Sanlu's chairwoman and general manager, Tian Wenhua, will go to trial Wednesday.

5000 officials punished for corruption

China's top disciplinary authorities say that about 5000 officials above the county head level have been punished for corruption since November last year. Senior disciplinary officials are stressing that there will be no let up in the fight against corruption.

China'stopdisciplinaryauthoritiessaythatabout
5000officialsabovethecountyheadlevelhavebeen
punishedforcorruptionsinceNovemberlastyear.

Corruption is a major challenge for China's ruling party on its way in leading the 3-decade reform forward.

At the 17th CPC National Congress in last October, General Secretary Hu Jintao described the anti-corruption campaign as a matter of "life and death" to the Party.

Senior officials have promised on various occasions to step up anti-graft efforts and "win trust from the people with actual results."

This year's results are significant. 800 officials were prosecuted, including former vice major of Beijing, Liu Zhihua, who was also in charge of infrastructure construction of the Summer Games. He was given the death penalty in October.

Discipline inspection and supervision departments settled more than 140,000 cases involving 150,000 officials. And 6 billion yuan in losses were recovered.

Corruption in government and dereliction of duty has also caused social unrest in some areas and major food safety violations. The discipline watchdog says the officials responsible for these have been punished.

Observers note that serious corruption cases exposed the loopholes in China's legal systems. The government has acknowledged that building a comprehensive anti-corruption mechanism is urgent and encourages the general public and media to supervise the integrity of officials.

Premier Wen tours Beijings science park

Premier Wen Jiabao has visited the Zhongguanchun Science Park in the Haidian district. The park is China's leading science base, housing more than 20-thousand hi-tech enterprises.

Wen Jiabao visited several companies and spoke to both scientists and technicians. He said China's confidence in dealing with recent troubles in the financial world is largely due to human talent, as well as advances in science.

Premier Wen urged further development of companies into strong bases of innovation and training with a greater focus on making hi-tech and market-oriented products to boost competitiveness and economic growth. Wen Jiabao also promised government support for efforts in these areas.

Kim Jong Il inspects army unit

PYONGYANG, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- Kim Jong Il, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), has conducted inspections of Korean People's Army (KPA) units, the state-run Rodong Sinmun daily reported Sunday.

KimJongIl,topleaderoftheDemocraticPeople's
RepublicofKorea(DPRK),inspectsKoreanPeople'sArmy
(KPA)AirForceUnit1017inthispicturereleasedby
KoreanCentralNewsAgencyofDPRK.Itisreportedthat
KimJongIlinspectedthecommandofKPAUnit323and
alsoKPAAirForceUnit1017.(Xinhua/KCNA)

Kim inspected the command of KPA Unit 323 Saturday and also KPA Air Force Unit 1017, the date for which was not mentioned in the report.

Kim called on the army to inherit the revolutionary spirit proposed by the late president Kim Il Sung, the founding father of the DPRK.

He also urged soldiers to increase their combat capabilities and become stronger in ideology.

Indian PM confident to face challenge

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh says the country is ready to face any challenge.

At a gathering to honor a freedom fighter in New Delhi on Saturday, Singh said that India knows how to rise to a challenge. He said anyone who wishes to weaken India's unity and hurt the nation should remember that India has endured problems and emerges stronger.

The remarks come after India blamed Islamic militants based in Pakistan for last month's terror attacks in Mumbai, which killed 179 people.

Egypt, Iran condemn Israels attack on Gaza

In Lebanon, thousands of angry Palestinian refugees flooded the streets of their refugee camps on Saturday, protesting Israel's attacks on Gaza.

Pro-FatahcrowdscarryahugeportraitoflatePalestinian
leaderYasserArafatastheydemonstrateinthesouthern
suburbsofBeirutagainstIsrael'sdeadlyraidsonthe
GazaStrip.HundredsofprotestersagainstIsrael's
deadlyraidsontheGazaStripdemonstratednearthe
EgyptianembassyinLebanononSaturdayamidagreatly
reinforcedsecuritypresence,anAFPjournalistsaid.
(AFP/RamziHaidar)

Protesters blocked roads and burned tyres while chanting anti-Israel slogans in several camps. Lebanon is the host to some 400 thousand Palestinian refugees. Shi'ite group Hezbollah also condemned the attacks and said Hamas would be victorious against Israel. In Cairo, hundreds of Egyptians protested. The head of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, Mehdi Mohammed Akef, wants Israel's ambassador to Egypt expelled and the abrogation of Egypt's peace agreement with Israel. Egypt's foreign minister has summoned the ambassador.

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Egyptian Foreign Minister said "We summoned, or we are going to summon the Israeli ambassador in Cairo, in order to protest these actions in addition to demanding that Israel immediately stop these operations."

Meanwhile, Palestine also won Iran's support. Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad condemned the unprecedented wave of air strikes on Gaza. He says the Arab Foreign Ministers Council meeting will take place soon, and he hopes Arab leaders will take more of a stand.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian President said "You can not find anything in history like what they are doing now. Putting a nation under such pressure and imposing a blockade on food, medicine and energy is without precedent. We support that and we hope that they will show some power. It should not be as such they gather together without any outcome. There should be some movement, words or statements."

Manhmoud Abbas calls for help

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has called for international support and has demanded an urgent meeting of Arab foreign ministers to address the Israeli attacks.

PalestinianPresidentMahmoudAbbasspeakstoreporters
inRiyadhDecember27,2008.Israeliwarplanesand
helicopterspoundedtheHamas-ruledGazaStriponSaturday,
killingatleast205peopleinthebloodiestone-daydeath
tollin60yearsofconflictwiththePalestinians.
MilitantsintheGazaStrip,whohavelauncheddozens
ofrocketattacksagainstIsraelsinceatruceexpired
justoveraweekago,firedmoresalvoesthatkilledone
Israelimanand wounded several others.REUTERS/Fahad
Shadeed(SAUDIARABIA)

Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian President said "Now we want quickly an Arab foreign ministers meeting. We would assume that the foreign ministers would come and meet and take the necessary action and, if found necessary, to have an Arab summit."

Abbas made the remarks after he had talks with King Abdullah in Saudi Arabia. The talks focused on the Gaza attacks, and the Saudi leader promised to call US President George W. Bush and other leaders, asking them to push Israel to halt its operation.

Meanwhile, Arab foreign ministers are set to meet in Cairo on Sunday to seek a common position on the attacks. Libya, the only Arab country on the UN Security Council, will seek an urgent meeting of the council in New York over the issue.

Hamas threatens to take revenge

Protests have erupted across the West Bank following the unprecedented Israeli air strikes across the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Palestinian authorities are considering ways to respond to the attacks and Hamas is threatening revenge. But Israel is defending the air strikes.

PalestiniansprotestagainstIsraelistrikesinGaza
intheWestBanktownofHebron,Saturday,Dec.27,
2008.Israeliwarplanesretaliatingforrocketfire
fromGazapoundeddozensofsecuritycompoundsacross
theHamas-ruledterritoryinunprecedentedwavesofair
strikesSaturday,killingatleast200andwounding
nearly400inthebloodiestdayinGazaindecades.
(APPhoto/NasserShiyoukhi)

After the Israeli air strikes the West Bank and Gaza both declared three days of mourning for those Palestinians killed during the attacks.

Meanwhile Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad called for an emergency meeting of the Council of Ministers in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

As the leaders were discussing how to politically and diplomatically react to the Israeli strikes, protesters marched through the center of Ramallah.

Demonstrations have also been held in the West Bank cities of Nablus and Hebron. Protestors are calling for solidarity with the people of Gaza.

Meanwhile Hamas leaders have threatened to take action.

Irmail Haneya, Hamas Leader in Gaza said "We will not compromise or back down on our religion or cause."

Facing growing international condemnation of the air strikes, Israel is defending the air strikes. They insist they have no option but to retaliate against the rocket attacks by Gaza militants.

Ehud Barak, Israeli Defense Minister said "There is a time for a truce and a time for fighting and now is the time for fighting."

Past Israeli incursions and air strikes have not halted rocket barrages from Gaza.

Since a ceasefire with Hamas expired a week ago, some 200 mortars and rockets have been launched into Israel. And pressure has been mounting in Israel for the military to take action.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has admitted that the military campaign may last for a few days and the operation would not be easy.

Chinese Navy sends most sophisticated ships on escort mission off Somalia

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The three warships forming the small fleet that set sail from Sanya in south China's Hainan Province for escort mission off Somali are among the most sophisticated vessels of the Chinese navy.

AceremonyisheldbeforeaChinesenavalfleetsets
sailfromaportinSanyacityofChina'ssouthernmost
islandprovinceofHainanonDec.26,2008.TheChinese
navalfleetincludingtwodestroyersandasupplyship
fromtheSouthChinaSeaFleetsetoffonFridayfor
watersoffSomaliaforanescortmissionagainstpiracy.
(Xinhua/ZhaChunming)

The flagship of the fleet, DDG-169 Wuhan, is a multi-purpose missile destroyer of Type 052B of the People's Liberation Army Navy. It was built by Jiangnan Shipyard of Shanghai in 2002.

With a displacement of 7,000 tonnes, DDG-169 Wuhan is equipped with 16 anti-ship missiles, 48 surface-to-air missiles, close-in weapons system and a helicopter.

DDG-171 Haikou, the Navy's latest destroyer model, is one of the two Type 052C destroyers. It was built by Jiangnan Shipyard in2003.

DDG-171 Haikou is equipped with China's first generation of phased-array radar and a vertically launched long-range air defence missile system. It will provide air defense the fleet. The ship displaces nearly 7,000 tonnes.

Type 052C destroyers provide the Navy with China's first true aerial defense capability. Both the Wuhan and Haikou have a maximum speed of 30 knots.

Chinas most sophisticated destroyers sent on escort mission

Pics: Chinese Navy sends most sophisticated ships on escort mission

Three Chinese Navy ships are on their way to take part in the country's first overseas escort mission.

The convoy includes two of China's most sophisticated destroyers, and will help patrol the Gulf of Aden, where piracy has become a serious problem.

AceremonyisheldbeforeaChinesenavalfleetsets
sailfromaportinSanyacityofChina'ssouthernmost
islandprovinceofHainanonDec.26,2008.TheChinese
navalfleetincludingtwodestroyersandasupplyship
fromtheSouthChinaSeaFleetsetoffonFridayfor
watersoffSomaliaforanescortmissionagainstpiracy.
(Xinhua/ZhaChunming)

Roughly eight hundred seamen saluted crowds as they departed China's southernmost naval port in Sanya on Hainan island. Among the crew are 70 special forces troops who are trained to neutralize pirates in the event of an onboard attack.

The primary mission of the two destroyers, Wuhan and Haikou, and the supply vessel Weishanhu, is to join the multi-national efforts to patrol one of the world's busiest marine routes.

Rear-Admiral Du jingchen, Mission Commander, said, "We will escort some ships, and remain close at hand for others, depending on the different materials they carry. As for those with important materials, we will put personnel on board to protect the ships and crew."

Haikou, one of the most sophisticated PLA Navy destroyers, has both air and underwater defensive capability with a phased-array radar and a vertically launched long-range air defense missile system. The ship's defense capabilities were designed by Chinese engineers.

The multi-purpose missile destroyer Wuhan, the flagship, is equipped with 16 anti-ship missiles, 48 surface-to-air missiles, a close-in weapons system and a helicopter.

The most versatile supply vessel in service, the Weishanhu is able to conduct 24/7 replenishment to the others on short notice.

The mission commander says the crew of the three vessels are quite experienced. He says they have made complete preparations to face the challenges of the mission.

CPC Political Bureau meets on anti-corruption issue

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held a meeting Friday to study the current state of anti-corruption campaign and to make plans for combating corruption in 2009.

The meeting, which was presided over by CPC Central Committee General Secretary Hu Jintao, agreed that the Third Plenary Session of the 17th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the CPC will be held in January.

At the meeting, the participants heard a report on the fight against corruption in 2008 delivered by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

This year, the CPC has made remarkable achievements in fighting corruption while promoting the development of socialist economy, culture and society and the building of the Party itself, in accordance with the strategic arrangements made by of the 17th CPC Congress in late 2007.

The meeting stressed that the anti-corruption drive faces new problems because certain departments and sectors are more vulnerable to corrupt activities.

It urged the whole Party to persist in fighting corruption and increase efforts to deepen anti-corruption campaign.

In 2009, the Party will strengthen a system for punishing and preventing corruption. The meeting called for implementing the Work Plan on Building the System of Perfecting and Preventing Corruption between 2008-2012.

The Party vowed to make substantial efforts to strengthen supervision over leading officials, main leaders in particular in 2009.

Earthquakes jolt Guizhou, Yunnan

An earthquake measuring 4.0 on the Richter scale jolted southwest China's Guizhou Province on Friday night.

No casualties have been reported. The quake occurred in Luodian County, about 160 kilometers from the provincial capital of Guiyang.

Anearthquakemeasuring4.0ontheRichterscalejolted
southwestChina'sGuizhouProvinceonFridaynight.
(CCTV.com)

Earlier on Friday, 19 people were injured and thousands were affected by two earthquakes that took place in the neighboring Yunnan Province. A 4.9 magnitude quake hit Ruili city on the China-Myanmar border.

It destroyed the municipal government's old office building and damaged 32 schools. Ninety-nine houses collapsed and 35 thousand were damaged.

Officials have allocated 300 thousand yuan of quake-relief funds and are distributing relief supplies.

Another quake, measuring 4.3 on the Richter scale, jolted Yiliang County near the provincial capital of Kunming. More than 100 houses suffered damages, but no casualties have been reported.

2008 Year-end review (Part 2)

Guest--HuoDeming

Guest: Huo Deming, Professor of Economics of Peking University

Topics:

1. Growth prospect for 2009

2. China's 4 trillion yuan stimulus package

3. Is China's fiscal deficit in acceptable range?

4. China's "moderately easy" monetary policy

5. Employment pressures in 2009

6. Expection and advice for 2009

Yearender: Review of Chinas economy in 2008

Special Report:Bizchina 2008 year-end review

That could be the best word. Before Professor Huo gives us more analysis. let's first take a look back over the past year.

For China, 2008 started with a winter storm that disrupted journeys as people returned home to their families, halting transportation and paralyzing the electricity network.

ForChina,2008startedwithawinterstormthatdisrupted
journeysaspeoplereturnedhometotheirfamilies,halting
transportationandparalyzingtheelectricitynetwork.

But this was not the end of disasters. Just months later, the whole nation was shaken by a devastating earthquake in May in Sichuan Province. The catastrophe killed nearly 70-thousand people and led to direct economic losses of over 845-billion yuan.

But the world witnessed China's strengths through its relief efforts.

Hu Jintao, Chinese President,said, "I firmly believe that no hardship could knock down the heroic Chinese people."

The government said the disasters did not affect the fundamental aspects of China's economy. But they did bring more uncertainties to the country's development,such as inflationary pressures.

But all this didn't affect China's ability to successfully host the Beijing Olympic Games. The event was not only a promotion for Beijing, but the whole country. And analysts believe the Games will have long term advantages for China's economy.

But it was the unfolding global financial crisis, the worst ever since the Great Depression in the late 1920s,that actually made China even more attractive.

Yearender: Stocks fall sharply in 2008

Special Report:Bizchina 2008 year-end review

We often say stock market is the barometer of the country's economy. China's stock market has experienced a roller-coaster ride in 2008.

The indices have dropped over sixty percent so far. The loss is even more than the US market which was at the centerpiece of the economic crisis.

Theindiceshavedroppedoversixtypercentsofar.Theloss
isevenmorethantheUSmarketwhichwasatthecenterpiece
oftheeconomiccrisis.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite index hit a high of 5522 in the second trading week of 2008, but then it turned around and started a year-long bear run.

The index nose-dived to around 3000 in April, and further sank to below 2000 after the Olympic Games in August.

The lowest point of 1664 was touched in late October. Investors driven in by the rosy gains in 2007 found themselves suffering from big losses. Even institutional investors could not escape the sharp fall.

Analysts say the worsening macro economic environment is to blame.

Zhao Xijun, Deputy Dean, Financial and Securities Inst., Renmin Univ., said, "The sub-prime crisis started last year and is getting worse. It has a profound negative impact on global financial markets, and real economy. And the recession of the US economy starting from the fourth quarter, as well as the global economic downturn both have a big impact on our export and economic growth. The change in the economic environment has affected investors' state of mind and companies' performance. The stock markets are thus impacted."

SOEs get 54.7-billion yuan boost

China says it will offer support worth nearly 55-billion yuan to State-Owned Enterprises, to help them make it through a global downturn.

China will soon allocate 54.7 billion yuan to centrally controlled SOEs their operational budget for 2009.

Li Rongrong, head of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, said around 27 billion yuan would be spent on increasing the assets of key SOEs related to the national economy, jobs, and national economic security.

Li Rongrong, Director of SASAC, said, "All the spending will be open to public review. The money is a state asset. It should be spent carefully, and in a more transparent way. All the cities and provinces should use the money on key programs. And capital injection in each new project should not be less than 50 percent."

19 billion yuan of the budget will be reserved for the recovery of SOEs which suffered losses in natural disasters this year.

And around 8 billion yuan will be used to improve the structure and development of SOEs. The spending is also expected to help SOEs fight the impact of the global financial downturn.

Chinas foreign debt rises to 442 billion US dollars

China's foreign debt grew at a slower pace in the third quarter.

The country's foreign exchange regulator says foreign debt reached 442 billion US dollars by the end of September -- up 18 percent from the same period last year.

China's foreign debt rose 8.9 percent in the second quarter and 5.1 percent in the first quarter.

Central bank official: Chinas economic fundamentals in good shape

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Yi Gang, a senior official of China's central bank, said Friday that the nation's economic fundamentals are "in good shape" and urged people to have faith in the country's growth.

Yi, vice governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), said his assessment is based on the balance sheets of residents, enterprises, the financial sector and the government, which are all in a "healthy" state.

Bank savings of residents have exceeded 20 trillion yuan (2.9 trillion U.S. dollars), while their loans, including those for cars and housing, added up to merely 3.7 trillion yuan, Yi told a financial forum here.

Deposits of Chinese residents stood at 20.8 trillion yuan at the end of September.

"This indicates that the debt level of Chinese households is quite low and such balance sheets are very healthy, compared with those for U.S. and European households, making it possible to create room for development," he said.

Zhou Xiaochuan, PBOC governor, who also attended the China Finance Forum 2008, said the country needs to expand domestic consumption at the same time as it increases investment, to achieve the goal of spurring domestic demand.

Yi said corporate finances are also relatively healthy.

"The average debt to assets ratio of 5,000 non-financial enterprises monitored by the central bank is 55 percent," which is below previous figures, he said.

Yi added the country's lenders as a whole have a very high capital adequacy ratio with a low non-performing loan ratio, and he stressed that the financial sector is capable of supporting the economy.

Liu Mingkang, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, told the forum that the total assets of the banking sector stood at 61.1 trillion yuan as of the end of November.

Wall Street mixed on GM rally

NEW YORK, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street moved mixed Friday, as General Motors rallied after GMAC was allowed to convert into a bank.

The Federal Reserve allowed GMAC Financial Services, the finance arm of struggling GM, to become a bank holding company on Dec. 24 and thus qualify for the U.S. government's 700-billion-U.S.-dollar rescue plan. Both GM and Ford jumped on the news.

The market was also boosted by Amazon.com Inc., after the company sold 6.3 million items on Dec. 15, the busiest day of what the world's largest Internet retailer said was its best holiday shopping season.

Crude oil advanced over 37 dollars a barrel Friday, as bargain hunters came back to the market. Exxon Mobil rose 1.4 percent.

The Dow Jones rose 28.59 to 8,497.07. Broader indexes were traded mixed. The Standard Poor's 500 index rose 0.71 to 868.86 and the Nasdaq dipped 3.59 to 1,521.31.

U.S. stocks rose after GMAC bank bid approved

NEW YORK, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street rose moderately on Friday as GMAC Financial Services, the financing arm of General Motors, was approved to become a bank holding company.

The U.S. Federal Reserve announced Wednesday that it has granted a request by GMAC to become a bank. That means the company has been allowed to petition for money from the government's 700 billion dollar financial rescue program.

GMAC Financial Services will also be able to get emergency loans directly from the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States. Without backing, GMAC could have been forced into bankruptcy protection.

GM's stocks jumped to close 12.62 percent higher, Ford rose 8.53 percent.

The market also was boosted by Amazon.com Inc., after the online retailer sold 6.3 million items Dec. 15, the busiest day of what the world's largest Internet retailer said was its best holiday shopping season.

However, the chance of a big year-end rally of stocks is slim as total U.S. retail sales during the Christmas-New Year period plunged amid a prolonged recession.

Total retail sales dropped by up to eight percent during the traditional November-December shopping period, the MasterCard Inc.'s Spending Pulse unit said in a preliminary survey report.

The Dow Jones rose 47.07 to close at 8,515.55. Broader indexes were also higher. The Standard Poor's 500 index rose 4.65 to 872.80. The Nasdaq rose 5.34 to 1,530.24.

08/12/28 BizChina

08/12/27 BizChina

Revisiting Wenchuan 4: Jobs key for recovery in quake hit China

Seven months after the Wenchuan earthquake, thousands of people in both towns and the countryside are still out of work.

The government has pledged to support labor-intensive industry and small- and medium-sized enterprises to protect jobs amid the global financial meltdown.

Thegovernmenthaspledgedtosupportlabor-intensive
industryandsmall-andmedium-sizedenterprisesto
protectjobsamidtheglobalfinancialmeltdown.
(CCTV.com)

Today, in Revisiting Wenchuan, Han Bin examines the reemployment situation of the survivors in Sichuan Province. As he finds out, jobs are key, to putting life into both the local economy and its people.

Tomorrow in the Revisiting Wenchuan series, Han Bin checks on a family he interviewed 7 months ago. He also examines what survivors need aside from social donations. Please join us.

This man is teaching aspiring entrepreneurs how to run a small business. The training program is jointly run by the ILO and the Provincial Labor and Social Security department. The students are all from the quake zone. The program helps them identify market opportunities and provides financial support to the most needy.

Deng Banshan is one of the project initiators. He believes that creating opportunities is more important than providing skills.

Deng Banshan, Crisis Program Coordinator, International Labour Organization, said, "We are trying to provide integrated approaches to support local small enterprises to recover, and the creation of new small enterprises, because only the small enterprise at the time, can create a lot of job opportunities. "

Deng Baoshan says the big enterprises need longer time to recover. His organization reckons about a million and a half people in quake-hit Sichuan Province lost their jobs, with unemployment rates in some areas exceeding 80 percent.

Li Jun from the provincial Employment Bureau says over a million have been re-employed over the past months, but still about 400,000 are still jobless. Employment is an important part of the recovery process.

Li Jun, Deputy Director, Sichuan Employment Bureau, said, " Most of the eliminated job positions not been restored, and re-establishment projects have yet to be started. This has put great pressure on the employment situation in Sichuan."