新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 08:00 2014/04/01

The Beijing Hour
 
Morning Edition

 
Shane Bigham with you on this Tuesday, April 01st, 2014.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on our program this morning...
China and Belgium are pledging to develop a closer and friendlier relationship, at the close of President Xi Jinping's European visit...
The central government is again stating it will not participate in any arbitration hearing with the Philippines over the Nansha Islands...
Still no debris from missing flight MH370, though Malaysian authorities have issued a new statement regarding the communication with the plane...
In Business... Huawei overtakes Ericsson in revenue...
In sports... Asian champions league football action...
In entertainment...a new album from Michael Jackson
But first... lets get a check on the weather...
 
 
Weather
 
 
Beijing will be cloudy today, with a high of 22 degree Celsius.
Overnight temperatures should drop down to around 11.
Shanghai will be overcast with a high of 18, and a low of 12.
Chongqing will see slight rain today with a high of 16.
Overnight lows are expected to be around 14.
Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia.
Islamabad will be cloudy with a high of 28.
Kabul will see variable amounts of cloud with a high of 18.
Over to North America.
New York will be cloudy today with a high of 13 degrees.
Washington will see periods of sunshine with a high of 18 degrees.
Houston, Texas will see slight rain on Tuesday with a high of 27.
Honolulu, cloudy, 28.
Toronto, Canada, will see slight rain with a high of 7 degrees.
Finally, on to South America,
Buenos Aires will be sunny with a high of 23.
And Rio de Janeiro will see moderate rain with a high of 28 degrees Celsius.
 
 
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TIMECHECK
 
 
Top News
 
 
China, Belgium form all-round partnership of friendship, cooperation
 
China and Belgium have upgraded relations to an all-round partnership of friendship and cooperation.
The decision was made following a meeting on Monday between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo in Brussels.
President Xi says bilateral relations between the countries have enjoyed smooth development since the establishment of diplomatic relations 43 years ago.
He also spoke of the respect and trust between China and Belgium concerning core interest, saying it helps foster a pragmatic level of cooperation.
The leaders have agreed to maintain a long-term friendship in the political sphere, viewing bilateral relations from strategic and long-term perspectives, while promoting cooperation in economy, science and technology, people-to-people exchanges, and many other areas.
Belgium is the last leg of President Xi's trip in Europe, including stops in the Netherlands, France, and Germany.
He has also pledged a greater willingness to deepen ties with the European Union.
In turn, the European Parliament has signaled its support for launching a political dialogue with China, enhancing mutual understanding and trust, and further strengthening the partnership.
 
 
Panda: Animal Ambassadors Strengthening Sino-European Relations
 
Anchor:
Earlier, a pair of giant pandas arrived in Belgium from China's Sichuan province. It's seen as a display of friendship between the two countries. For more on China's panda diplomacy , here is Liu Yan.
Reporter:
You can tell they are big shots, because wherever they go, they receive the kind of welcome usually reserved for celebrities.
This is the giant panda, a unique animal that can only be found in China.
However, due to their rarity, only a dozen overseas zoos own these widely popular animals.
Pairi Daiza Zoo in Belgium is the latest one to receive these wonderful creatures.
According to Michel Malherbe, Belgian Ambassador to China, the largest Chinese garden built inside the zoo and the friendship of the two nations helped the zoo win the application to loan pandas.
"When they asked whether they could receive giant panda from China, the Chinese side reacted very positively, and also in a very quick manner. So on the one hand, there was perfect infrastructure; and then on another hand, there was the quality of the bilateral relationship between Belgium and China. "
In 2012, Belgium's Prime Minister Di Rupo presented the request to Chinese premier Li Keqiang.
One year later, a 15-year loan agreement was signed.
In February of 2014, when Xing Hui and Hao Hao, a pair of 4-year-old pandas flew all the way to Belgium, they received a royal welcome from the Prime Minister and the public.
In order to welcome the guests, a 6,500 square meter panda venue was built inside the zoo's classic Chinese garden, which cost around 8 million euros.
Malberbe says the preparations are extensive.
"You know pandas only eat specific type of bamboo, so that was not easy to ensure sufficient supply of the necessary food in Belgium. A lot of cares were also given to the way they interact with the public, since these animals are quite shy. So you have to, as the zoo, to find the way to make them visible to the public with cameras and a lot of complicated arrangements. "
Britain has an affinity with pandas dating back to the 1930s. Over 70 years, 14 pandas have visited or lived on the British Isles. Yang Guang and Tian Tian are the current two tenants residing in Edinburgh Zoo.
According to Iain Valentine, director of the zoo's giant panda program, at the end of 2013, the number of people visiting panda house alone has reached a staggering one million.
Using pandas as a starting point, Valentine and his colleagues aim to strengthen the cultural and educational links between China and Britain.
"So what you do, is you use giant panda as the start of a story, and with giant pandas, you can get school children get interested in Chinese culture, the language, the history of China. And also, we use giant pandas to talk about trade, about how important China is to the world, and its impact on countries, and the economy of China, and the link already exist between UK and China. "
Since Belgium is China's sixth-largest trading partner among 28 European Union member countries, while China remains Belgium's second-largest trading partner outside the EU; Ambassador Malherbe says the pandas serve as the symbol of this flourishing relation.
"China-Belgium relation and the relation between China and Europe as a whole depend on people. We are talking about business, investment, universities, people-to-people contact. That is the reality. But everybody enjoys, when the symbols can represent the human relation."
For CRI, this is Liu Yan.
 
 
China will not participate in the tribunal on the disputed waters
 
Anchor:
The Chinese government has stated it will not accept the international arbitration filed by the Philippines over a territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
A Chinese expert says the tribunal has no jurisdiction on the matter and China is not obliged to participate in it.
CRI's Li Jing has the story.
Reporter:
The Philippines filed a formal plea over the weekend to an international tribunal regarding a territorial dispute with China over the Nansha Islands. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei says China will not accept and participate in the arbitration.
Jia Yu, deputy director of China Institute for Marine Affairs with the state Oceanic Administration, first clarifies what arbitration is.
"Arbitration is not a lawsuit in a court. The Philippines is not pleading at the International Court of Justice, or the Hague Tribunal. The tribunal is only a temporary one consisting of five members, who are arbitrators and not judges. The biggest feature of international law is the respect of sovereignty. China has a clear stance on the issue which is that China will not participate in the tribunal. If the tribunal insists on proceeding with the procedure and making any arbitration ruling, China will not enforce it regardless."
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei says China holds the clear and consistent stance that it has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and the adjacent waters.
China is urging the Philippines to stick to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea and return to the path of bilateral talks in resolving disputes.
Jia Yu adds the Philippines's move is just a one-man show.
"I don't think the arbitration should be established because the tribunal has no jurisdiction over the dispute. As early as in 2006, China excluded any compulsive resolution in terms of territorial sovereignty or marine disputes. The arbitration is considered as a kind of compulsive solution, so China will not "play in the game" from the very beginning."
Over the weekend, the Philippines also sent a supply ship with journalists on board to the Ren'ai Reef off China's Nansha Islands. The Philippines grounded a warship near the Reef in 1999 and refused to retrieve the ship.
In a recent statement, the Philippine side claimed that the stranded warship has served as a permanent installation. The Philippines has also repeatedly attempted to deliver construction materials to build on the reef, in order to intensify and expand its military presence.
China says the Philippines' action cannot change the fact that China has sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and China's stance is in full compliance with international law.
For CRI, this is Li Jing.
 
 
New version of MH370 pilot's last words released
 
Anchor:
Turning to the international search effort for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight.
Nothing related to the missing jet has been retrieved so far, as Malaysian authorities release a new version of the last conversation between air traffic control and the cockpit of the flight.
CRI's Tu Yun has more.
Reporter:
Malaysia's Transport Ministry has confirmed that the last words spoken by one of the pilots of missing flight MH370 to the traffic controller were "Good night Malaysian three seven zero".
Previously, the ministry had said the last message was a more casual "All right, good night" from the co-pilot.
The authorities say their forensic investigation to determine whether those last words from the cockpit were spoken by the pilot or co-pilot is ongoing.
A total of 10 aircraft and 11 ships scoured the search area west of Australia on Monday looking for any trace of the flight.
Seven Chinese vessels participated in the mission.
Zhang Bin is the captain of one of the vessels.
"We've been searching in the northern area, as arranged by the Australia authorities. The weather is conducive to the search effort as the visibility is over 10 kilometers. As far as we know, aircraft of other countries are also searching in the area but there haven't been any new discoveries."
Search teams are now towing a pinger-locator, listening for signals from the plane's black box data recorders.
The signals from the flight recorders last about 30 days.
Malaysian acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has once again pledged that Malaysia will not give up hope of finding the remains of the plane.
"And I promise the families that Malaysia, working with our international partners will not give up hope. We will continue with all our efforts to find MH370. This is a promise that Malaysia intends to keep, we will continue searching, and we will keep investigating and we will never give up until we find out what happened to MH370."
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak will travel to Perth to see first hand the search operations on Wednesday.
In Beijing, Chinese vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui has met with his Malaysian counterpart, urging the Malaysian side to put in greater effort in the search.
Back in Malaysia, several dozen relatives of the missing Chinese passengers visited a Buddhist temple near Kuala Lumpur to pray for their loved ones.
The family members made a statement, expressing their appreciation to the people of Malaysia and volunteers who have been assisting them.
Meanwhile, they are also demanding answers and more information from the authorities.
A community of Malaysian Chinese also held a candlelight vigil to pray for the passengers and crew of the flight.
Tan Yew-sing is the president of the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly.
"We understand with you. We are together with you in this very difficult moment. We hope you come with me, you see of the candle on your life with hope, and we'll have to make sure the truth will be revealed as soon as possible."
Malaysian authorities have said the government will soon hold a briefing for the families, which will include international experts, to explain the data gathered and methods used in the search operation.
For CRI, I'm Tu Yun.
 
 
Russia PM visits Crimea
 
Russia's prime minister and a delegation of cabinet ministers have made a surprise visit to Crimea.
Dmitry Medvedev has promised to quickly pour funds into the peninsula and to create a special economic zone in Crimea, with tax breaks to attract investors.
"After joining Russia, people in Crimea, people of Sevastopol, mustn't lose anything. They must only make gains. This is exactly what people expect from us - to create conditions for calm and respectable life, confidence in tomorrow, the feeling of being part of an honourable, strong country."
The prime minister also pledges that Russia will seek to develop Crimea as a top tourist destination.
In response, Ukraine condemned the visit, saying the trip to Crimea by officials from Moscow is a crude violation of international rules.
Meanwhile, it is reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a partial withdrawal of troops from the border with Ukraine.
The move comes after a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
Kerry said progress on resolving the Ukraine crisis depends on a troop pullback from the border.
NATO foreign ministers are expected to meet in Brussels later today to discuss further steps over additional ways to help Ukraine.
 
 
Kerry says diplomatic solution needed, Russian troop build up causing
 
Moscow and Washington have agreed to work with the Ukrainian government and the country's people to overcome the current crisis.
US Secretary of State John Kerry was speaking after meeting with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in Paris.
"The US and Russia have differences in opinion about the events that led to this crisis, but both of us recognise the importance of finding a diplomatic solution and of simultaneously meeting the needs of the Ukrainian people."
Kerry also made clear that any decision about the future of Ukraine could not happen without Ukraine at the table.
For his part, Lavrov also said Russia will work with the Ukrainian government.
"We agreed to work with the Ukrainian government and with the Ukrainian people in a wider way to reach fulfilment of peace on priorities areas such as minority rights, language rights, achieving disarmament of the irregular forces and provocateurs, and achieving inclusive constitutional reform and conducting elections under international observation."
The meeting between the two diplomats came after a phone call between U.S. President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin last week.
Relations between Russia and the West have been getting tense after Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Black Sea peninsular Crimea earlier this month and Moscow's military moves along its border with Ukraine.
 
 
At least six killed in twin blasts in Kenya
 
At least six people have been killed and two dozen others injured in twin explosions in Kenya's capital Nairobi.
The explosions came as attackers hurled explosives into a food kiosk and a bus stop, which are about 50 meters apart in the Eastleigh suburb of the city.
Local police says the explosives are believed to be grenades.
Benson Kibue is the Nairobi police chief.
""It is believed that some bad boys, either went there, inside with some grenades and of course we suspect because of the magnitude of that attack, could be an IED, we suspect. There inside, quite unfortunate, we can say that we lost six."
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
Eastleigh, which is called Kenya's "Little Mogadishu " has seen several grenade attacks over the last year.
Somalia's al Shabaab Islamist group has been blamed for these attacks.
Kenya has several thousand troops in Somalia, helping the UN-backed government tackle al-Shabab, who are linked to al-Qaeda.
 
 
Biz Reports
 
 
US stocks rallied broadly on the final trading day of the quarter, capping a lackluster three months with strong gains, led by the beaten-down biotechnology sector.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.8%.
The S&P 500 also added 0.8%.
The Nasdaq gained 1%.
On Monday, investors welcomed news that the European Central Bank may start quantitative easing to address the threat of deflation in the euro-zone.
Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen's comments about the state of the economy and monetary policy propped up indexes further.
In a speech on Monday, Yellen said that the recovery still feels like a recession to many Americans, which is why the central bank will keep its "extraordinary" support for the economy for "some time to come."
On Tuesday, investors are likely to focus on readings on manufacturing activity. The closely-watched monthly employment report comes out on Friday.
In Europe,
Consumer prices in the euro zone rose 0.5% on year in March, below expectations of a 0.6% increase, and well below the European Central Bank's target of just under 2%.
Among country-specific indexes, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 picked up 0.5%, while France's CAC 40 gained 0.2%. Germany's DAX advanced 0.3%.
 
 
China raises foreign institutional investor quota by $85.9 billion in March
 
China granted nearly 86 billion US dollars in fresh quotas to licensed overseas institutional investors during the month of March.
The State Administration of Foreign Exchange reports a sum of nearly 54 billion US dollars was issued under the dollar-denominated Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor program, known as QFII. (Q-FEE)
About 32 billion US dollars was issued under the Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor program or RQFII. (R-Q-FEE)
Institutional investors need to apply for a license from the securities regulator to seek investment quotas from the foreign exchange regulator.
 
 
Huawei overtakes Ericsson in revenue
 
Shenzhen-based Huawei Technologies has overtaken Ericsson in revenue for the first time. The milestone was reached last year.
China's biggest telecommunications equipment maker says its revenue came in at nearly 240 billion yuan, or around 38 billion US dollars, in 2013. That's an increase of 8 percent on an annualized basis.
Ericsson's revenue came in at some 35 billion US dollars.
The increase also marks Huawei's fastest profit growth in four years.
The company's net profit rose more than 34 percent to over 20 billion yuan last year thanks to a steady carrier business and rapidly growing enterprise and consumer activities.
Huawei's carrier network business grew only 4 percent, but it still accounted for 70 percent of its total income.
The enterprise business surged 32 percent while the consumer business, including the phone unit, rose 18 percent last year.
Huawei expects revenue to grow 10 percent annually from this year reaching 70 billion US dollars in 2018.
 
 
PICC net profits rise 18.8 percent in 2013
 
The People's Insurance Company of China or PICC is reporting its net profit has risen nearly 19 percent year on year to more than 12 billion yuan in 2013.
The country's largest non-life insurer attributed the increase to a more diversified business mix and the better-than-peers profitability of its property insurance business.
Premiums reached surpassed 300 billion yuan last year, up more than 15 percent on an annualized basis.
The total assets of the PICC stood at 755 billion yuan by the end of last year, up nearly 10 percent year-on-year.
 
 
"Auxiliary capital" talk inflates housing bubble
 
Anchor:
Recently, housing prices in Baoding in north China's Hebei Province have been surging on rumors that the city will become an "auxiliary national capital".
However, the provincial government of Hebei, Beijing and Tianjin's neighboring province, has made no mention of the idea in two guidelines.
According to the documents, the guidelines describe enlarging Baoding to accommodate a slew of public institutions, which will be transferred from Beijing.
Hebei's plans come after Chinese President Xi Jinping called for coordinated development of the region around Beijing in late February.
Investors nationwide have rushed to snap up properties in Baoding, 150 km south of the capital city, driving up property prices by some 10 percent in just a week.
Baoding is a city accustomed to a somewhat lackluster real estate market.
For more on this, we're joined live now by Gao Shang, analyst of the Beijing-based GuanTong Futures.
Questions
1, Some experts suggest as Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei become more integrated, the capital will transfer functions to nearby cities, but it will take time for detailed measures to be drawn up and carried out.
In your opinion, how likely is it that this scenario will play out?
Is it worth investing in properties in Baoding?
2,  The integration of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei is not a new concept, but little progress had been made so far.
What steps need to be taken to create an "auxiliary national capital"? What kind of announcements would you expect to hear from various levels of government?
Anchor:
Gao Shang, analyst of GuanTong Futures
 
 
France returns to pre-crisis growth level in 2013
 
New data shows economic growth in France has returned to pre-crisis levels in 2013.
France's national statistics institute says French GDP growth came in at 0.3 percent last year compared with zero growth a year earlier.
That is above the government estimate of 0.1 percent.
The growth has been mainly attributed to improved investment and household' consumption.
GDP grew by 0.5 percent over the last quarter of 2013, marking the first rise since 2011.
Meanwhile, consumer expenditure gained 0.4 percent on a quarterly basis.
According to the report, French public spending reached a record 57.1 percent of GDP in the previous year while tax income was at 46 percent.
Last year, gross public debt grew to 93.5 percent, nearly 3 percentage points more than a year earlier.
 
 
Headline News
 
 
China-Belgium New Partnership
 
The Chinese and Belgian governments have pledged to upgrade relations, fostering an all-round relationship of friendship and cooperation.
President Xi Jinping and Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo announced the deal following a meeting in Brussels.
The two countries have agreed to maintain a long-term friendship in the political sphere, and have agreed to deepen ties in such areas as the economy, science and technology, and people-to-people exchanges.
The Chinese president has also expressed a greater willingness to deepen ties with the European Union.
Xi Jinping is in Belgium on the final leg of his four-nation European tour, which included stops in the Netherlands, France, and Germany.
 
 
Missing Flight MH370
 
Malaysian authorities have released a new version of the last conversation between air traffic control and the cockpit of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.
The Ministry of Transport says the final communication from the plane was "Good night Malaysian three seven zero."
It's unclear if the pilot or co-pilot uttered those words.
Previously, the ministry had said the last message was a more casual "All right, good night" from the co-pilot.
Meantime, despite a massive international search effort that has been ongoing for weeks, no trace of the missing flight has been identified among the numerous objects of interest that have been spotted floating in the southern Indian Ocean.
A total of 10 aircraft and 11 ships scoured the search area west of Australia on Monday looking for any trace of the flight.
Search teams are now towing a pinger-locator, listening for signals from the plane's black box data recorders.
The signals from the flight recorders last about 30 days.
 
 
Kerry in Israel attempting to salvage peace talks
 
US Secretary of State John Kerry has made an unplanned trip to Jerusalem in an effort to save the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
Kerry arrived on Monday amid a crisis that could scuttle the latest attempt to reach a deal. The issue is over the release of a group of 26 Palestinian prisoners who were supposed to be let go on Saturday.
Apparently, right-wing Israeli ministers are refusing to include Israeli-Arab citizens in the deal.
According to news reports in Israel, Kerry has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. may release incarcerated American-Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard, who has been imprisoned on espionage charges since 1987, in exchange for Israel agreeing to release 14 Israeli-Arab prisoners.
Israeli-Palestinian peace talks resumed in July following a three-year hiatus. Israel in turn agreed to release 104 Palestinian prisoners. 78 have been released so far.
 
 
UN chief welcomes latest IPCC report on climate change
 
The UN Secretary-General has welcomed the latest UN report on climate change, again urging the international community to "make every effort needed" to reach a global agreement on the issue by 2015.
The report was released on Monday in Yokohama, Japan. It states that the world is largely ill-prepared for climate-related risks.
A statement from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also warns that managing the risk of climate change will be increasingly difficult with higher levels of warming.
World leaders will gather for a summit on climate change in September.
 
 
Newspaper Picks
 
 
CHINA DAILY
Headline
Counterfeit crackdown to focus on children's products
Summary
A spokesman for China's quality watchdog says the country will focus this year's efforts on counterfeit products. Specifically, children's products, food and cell phone products will be the focus.
When it comes to children's products, the authority will focus on things like electronic toys, strollers, infant car seats, feeding bottles and paper diapers.
GLOBALTIMES
Headline
Harsh road rules bring down violations, deaths
Summary
New data is showing that traffic regulations including harsher penalties and stricter driving license exams have effectively brought down traffic-violation rates and deaths.
The number of recorded cases of people driving at 50 percent or more above the speed limit has seen a drop of nearly 60 percent on a year-on-year basis.
Moreover, the statement says accidents linked to drunk driving have declined over 11 percent year on year and the death toll reduced by 5.7 percent.
SHANGHAI DAILY
Headline
Police think 'Big' in fight against petty crime
Summary
Police in Shanghai are turning to information technology to help them combat a rising tide of petty theft.
The "Big Data" system has been set up by the Shanghai Public Security Bureau to fight crime.
The system can provide officers with up-to-date information about all manner of felonious activity — including the personal details of known offenders, a geographical breakdown of the city's crime hot spots and a log of stolen goods .
BEIJING NEWS
Headline
Air medical service
Summary
An official from the Beijing Red Cross Emergency Rescue Center says Beijing will be the first city in China to upgrade its emergency medical service with the use of professional medical helicopters.
The center has signed a deal with Airbus Helicopters China to purchase two EC135 helicopters.
The center's deputy head says each helicopter will be refitted with up-to-date medical equipment.
BEIJING TIMES
Headline
Temporary civil servants in Shanxi only paid $48 a month
Summary
Some government departments in Fenxi county of Shanxi province are accused of hiring a large number of temporary workers and paying them low wages.
A temporary worker at the local water resource bureau says he gets only 300 yuan in monthly salary with no insurances and house funding
The county's personnel bureau director says local government agencies are banned from hiring temporary employees. However, manpower shortage pushes some departments to ignore the rules.
BEIJING MORNING POST
Headline
Mercury squeezed out of 5-year-old boy's hip
Summary
A five-year-old boy in southwestern China is reportedly in critical condition after a hazardous level of mercury was found in his body.
Testing at a hospital showed that the level of mercury in his blood was more than 200 times higher than normal, and it was more than 10-thousand times above normal in his urine.
The source of the mercury is not yet known.
SOUTH CHINA METROPOLITAN DAILY
Headline
Killer storm lashes Guangdong
Summary
A violent storm that included egg-size hail has pounded Guangdong province, killing at least nine people and injuring 10.
Cities reporting deaths include Gaoyao, Dongguan and Shenzhen.
Forecasts say heavy rains are going to continue over the next few days.
 
 
Special Reports
 
 
Public hospital doctors allowed to open private practices
 
Anchor:
The Beijing municipal government has just released guidelines designed to help enterprises and individuals set up private hospitals and clinics.
This follows an earlier announcement allowing doctors in public hospitals to open their own private clinics, a move designed to make medical services more widely accessible.
Zhou Heyang has more.
Reporter:
The guidline specifies that in order to be eligible, professionals need to have been practicing medicine for at least five years since receiving their national physician licenses.
Many doctors are welcoming the new policy. However, few have applied to practice at multiple institutions. The high initial cost of investment has put many doctors off at the idea of starting their own clinic. Liang Cunhe is with Beijing Tongren Hospital.
"In large cities such as Beijing, costs relating to employing medical staff and renting facilities are quite high. We are worried that the initial financial and bureaucratic investment needed will be too high, preventing the business from being profitable."
At present, the application process for opening a clinic involves more than twenty documents and administrative approvals from local government, but that is not all. A staff member of the Dongcheng district health bureau explains the procedure in more details.
"You need to first choose the site where you want to open the clinic, then get the environmental evaluation certificate as well as attain approval from industrial and commercial authorities; I don't know how long this would take. After all that, you bring all the documents to us and we shall give you the final approval in THREE months. It's the procedures before our part which is most time-consuming."
Therefore, experts suggest loosening the grip on unnecessary application procedures could help facilitate change in the medical industry and attract more skilled doctors into health centers and private clinics.
They also suggest that the city should revise the regional health planning policies to make it easier for medical personnel to enter the private business. Liu Guoen is professor of economics at the National Development Research Institute of Peking University.
"Improving the regional planning policies regarding medical resource distribution should attract social capital into the relatively closed system of public hospitals. It should also restrict the unlimited expansion of public hospitals."
Experts agree the new policy aims to lessen the burden on public hospitals and provide more access to qualified doctors. Increasing the number of private clinics may create competition for public institutions and thus improve the quality of service provided.
For CRI, I'm Zhou Heyang.
 
 
Sports
 
 
Beijing Guo'an takes on Central Coast in Asian Champions league
 
In football,
Asian Champions League actions continue later today with two Chinese teams battling in their group games.
Beijing Guo'an will play their away game at Australia's Central Coast Mariners.
Guo'an goes into this match having already won their home game 2-1 two weeks ago here at Worker's Stadium.
Meanwhile, the Chinese FA Cup holders Guizhou Renhe will host South Korea's Ulsan Hyundai.
Ulsan Hyundai was held to a 1-1 draw in their home game and will find Guizhou particularly strong in this match as the latter is desperately in need of a win to have any chance to progress to the next round.
Guizhou is currently at the bottom in Group H, having only managed to get one point after three matches.
 
 
Victor Valdes out for seven months and set to miss World Cup
 
European football news,
Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes will be out for seven months after undergoing a successful knee surgery in Germany.
The 32-year-old will miss the chance to play for his country, Spain, in this summer's World Cup in Brazil.
Valdes suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage in last week's 3-0 win over Celta Vigo in the Spanish La Liga.
He is leaving Barcelona when his contract ends this summer.
Valdes was part of the Spanish squad that won the 2010 South African World Cup and 2012 European Championships.
His absence means Real Madrid's Iker Casillas and Napoli's Pepe Reina will likely compete for the number one spot in Brazil.
 
 
Ding Junhui opens China Open action against wildcard winner John Astley this afternoon
 
And in snooker,
Today is the second day of action at the China Open here in Beijing.
English player Judd Tump opens the day with a clash against Northern Irishman Kurt Maflin. The match starts at 9:30.
Following that, Marco Fu of Hong Kong is up against another Chinese player, Li Hang.
At 2 pm, world number four Ding Junhui opens his campaign against wildcard winner John Astley of England.
Today happens to be Ding's birthday.
The evening will see Shaun Murphy going up against fellow Englishman Jamie Cope.
Scotsman Anthony McGill takes on Mark Williams of Wales.
World number one Mark Selby of England is also in action in the evening, playing compatriot Stuart Carrington.
Yesterday, defending champion Neil Robertson dumped Anthony Hamilton 5-4 and progressed into the second round.
Chinese ace Yu Delu, who beat Ronnie O'Sullivan at last week's Players' Championship Grand Final, ousted Chen Zifan 5-2 in the wildcard round.
 
 
Ten games in the NBA lineup
 
Ten games in the lineup in the NBA today.
Five games are just starting now.
The Indiana Pacers are battling Western Conference leaders San Antonio.
The Pacers are playing back-to-back, having lost yesterday's road game at Cleveland 90-76.
Over in Charlotte, the Bobcats are taking on Washington.
Atlanta is looking to fend off the 76ers.
Milwaukees is trying to get away with a win at Detroit.
Elsewhere, its Miami against the Toronto Raptors.
Chicago awaits Boston.
The Los Angeles Clippers are in Minnesota.
New Orleans is up against Sacramento.
And later on,
Denver faces Memphis while the New York Knicks are on the road at Utah.
 
 
Sri Lanka books semifinals in the World Twenty20 with 59-run romp of New Zealand
 
In cricket, Sri Lanka has breezed into the World Twenty20 semi-finals after spinner Rangana Herath destroyed New Zealand in a 59-run romp in Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Playing his first match in the tournament proper, 36-year-old Herath claimed five wickets for only three runs in 3.3 overs and was involved in two run outs as well.
For New Zealand, Kane Williamson contributed 42 of the 60 runs while none of his team mates managed double digits in their spectacular collapse.
Afterwards Kiwi captain Brendon McCullum said the dry pitch was a factor.
"The wicket was completely different to be honest, we anticipated it would skid on as it has done right throughout every game that has been played here and every team that has won the toss has wanted to chase at night as well so we expected that to happen. And it was really dry, it was almost under-prepared a little bit the way it played towards the end and we didn't adapt our game quick enough."
Earlier in the day, English cricket reached a new low as the team was beaten by 45 runs by a part-time Dutch squad.
Both teams failed to make it into the semifinals though, sitting in the fourth and fifth spots respectively in Group One.
 
 
Entertainment
 
 
New Michael Jackson album set for release
 
(Jackson BorW)
Good news or bad news for Michael Jackson fans.
It's been announced that a new album will be released featuring eight new tracks from the late King of Pop's archive.
The album entitled "Xscape" has been assembled by going through decades of old demos and off-cuts and then splicing them together and updating them with contemporary producers such as Timberland.
A deluxe version of the album will also feature the eight tracks in their original form before being tampered with however.
A previous album of unreleased material, entitled Michael was released in 2010 – a year after his death – to not so good reviews. But we'll just have to wait and see if this will be any better?
"Xscape" is out on May 13.
 
 
Mandarin band Mayday end mammoth tour in Los Angeles
 
(Mayday)
The Taiwan based rock band Mayday brought their NOWHERE WORLD TOUR to a close at the weekend.
After playing more than 50 cities over two years and three months, performing to an estimated 2.64 million fans they made their final stop in Los Angeles on the same date as their first ever gig back in 1997.
Eight albums and seventeen years later, Mayday is one of the biggest rock bands in Mandarin music.
Band member Stone gave his thoughts as the tour ended:
"We've arrived at the period (conclusion), but I think it shouldn't be a period, but a comma, because there are so many cities and so many touching moments that I believe will remain in the hearts of Mayday.　Although this is the last day, I still feel like the five of us will still go to the next city and the next stage to perform for you (fans) tomorrow.　This is a never-ending destiny for us."
After the tour wraps, the band will take a short break before hitting the stage again - playing seven dates at the Hong Kong Coliseum in May.
 
 
Johnny Depp in Beijing to promote "Transcendence"
 
Hollywood star Johnny Depp is in Beijing to promote his new film "Transcendence".
The American science fiction thriller "Transcendence" stars Depp alongside Morgan Freeman and Rebecca Hall.
Depp explains that far more than being just a sci-fi thriller, the film is really a story about love:
"What would you do? What would everyone do? If the person you loved were seconds away from death, if you had the opportunity to upload their consciousness into a computer, or let them go. I mean it's a split-second decision almost. It's an interesting thing to ponder because I think we all know what we would do. We would do anything for love".
During his stay in Beijing, Depp, also a musician, will be invited to experience Chinese rock and roll music and vanguard painting.
The film "Transcendence" is set to hit Chinese screens on April 18th.
 
 
Frozen becomes top grossing animated film in history
 
The Disney animation Frozen has become the top-grossing animated film in box office history.
(Frozen)
The hit musical from the end of last year has now made an astonishing 1.072 billion US dollars worldwide.
The previous record of 1.063 billion was set in 2010 by Toy Story 3.
Frozen, which is loosely based on the Hans Christian Anderson fairytale "The Snow Queen" is now also the 10th biggest grossing film in box office history regardless of genre.
But the two time Oscar winner may not hold the record for long, as the Lego Movie is hot on its heals.
That picture –which was released in February- is the first this year to gross 400 million dollars globally and there are still lots of places where it has not been released yet.
 
 
That’s it for this edition of the Beijing Hour.
A quick recap of headlines before we go.
China and Belgium are pledging to develop a closer and friendlier relationship, at the close of President Xi Jinping's European visit...
The central government is again stating it will not participate in any arbitration hearing with the Philippines over the Nansha Islands...
Still no debris from missing flight MH370, though Malaysian authorities have issued a new statement regarding the communication with the plane...
In Business... Huawei overtakes Ericsson in revenue...
On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, this is Shane Bigham in Beijing hoping you'll join us for our next edition of the Beijing Hour to open a window to the world together.