新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2014/05/07

 
The Beijing Hour
 
Evening Edition
 
 
Paul James with you this Wednesday, May 7, 2014.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on the programme this evening...
Yingluck Shinawatra has been removed as Thailand's interim Prime Minister following a ruling from the country's constitutional court.'
China and Nigeria have signed off on a multi-billion dollars agreement to build railways in the country.
The US government is offering its assistance to Nigeria as authorities try to track down over 200 school girls who are being threatened with being sold into slavery as wives.
In business, Alibaba has officially filed for its much-anticipated IPO in New York.
In sports, all eyes on Man City tonight as it looks to advance to the top of the English Premiership.
In entertainment, a new Chinese film will not be edited, despite a controversy surrounding one of the actors.
 
 
Weather
 
 
Beijing will be clear tonight with a low of 12 degrees Celsius. Overcast tomorrow with a high of 23 degrees.
Meanwhile Shanghai will be clear tonight, with a low of 17, cloudy tomorrow, with a high of 27.
Chongqing will be overcast, 18 degrees the low, showers tomorrow tomorrow with a high of 24.
Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia
Islamabad, thundershowers with a high of 35.
Kabul, sunny, 25.
Over in Australia
Sydney, rainy, high of 19.
Canberra, sunny, 17.
Brisbane, rainy, 23.
And finally, Perth will also be rainy with a high of 18
 
 
Top News
 
 
Yingluck removed from office for abuse of power
 
Thailand's Constitutional Court has ordered caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra be removed from office for abuse of power.
The ruling stems from a personnel transfer in 2011.
The courts have ruled Yingluck broke the constitution by transferring the country's National Security Chief to a new position.
The Security Chief was originally put into the position by the former Thai government, which is Yingluck's current opposition.
The ruling is being seen as the culmination of some 6-months of political unrest in the country.
The unrest was originally set off when Yingluck's government proposed an amnesty bill which would have exonerated her fugitive brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
For more on the fallout from the ruling, we spoke earlier with Phatsurang Decha buddha rungsi, associate producer at Infocus Asia.
…
Back Anchor:
Phatsurang Dechabuddharungsi, associate producer at Infocus Asia.
 
 
New caretaker PM appointed in Thailand
 
In a latest development, Thailand's caretaker cabinet has appointed Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan as the new caretaker prime minister in place of Yingluck Shinawatra.
Niwatthamrong had been the acting deputy premier and commerce minister in Yingluck's caretaker cabinet.
He used to work as a top executive of Shin Corporation, a conglomerate once owned by the Shinawatra family.
 
 
China, Nigeria Sign $13.1 Bln Rail Deal
 
China and Nigeria have signed a framework agreement to build a 13-billion-dollar rail project in the African country.
The China Railway Construction Corporation has signed the deal with Nigeria's Federal Ministry of Transportation.
The rail line is expected to cross 10 Nigerian states, including the oil-producing delta in southern Nigeria.
The deal has been inked as part of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's current African tour.
Li Keqiang says he hopes to see China and Nigeria expand their bilateral relationship.
The Chinese premier is scheduled to attend this year's World Economic Forum on Africa meeting in the capital Abuja.
He's expected to have sideline discussions with several African leaders as part of his time there.
 
 
Economic, cultural ties "two wheels" of China-Africa cooperation: Chinese premier
 
Anchor:
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is now in Nigeria for the 2nd leg of his current 4-day African tour.
As part of his last day in Ethiopia on the first stop on his trip, Li Keqiang has met with leaders in the business, education and art sectors in the country.
CRI's Jordan Lee has more.
Reporter:
Li Keqiang says economics and trade, together with people-to-people and cultural cooperation between China and Africa, are "the two indispensable wheels" of their overall cooperation.
The Chinese premier says the China-Africa cooperation should be further driven by these two wheels into the fast track of development.
"China and Africa have a total population of 2.3 billion, with one of them a promising developing country, and the other a hopeful continent. The collaboration between China and Africa today is based on both of us having a similar fate and are also based on our traditional friendship. China and Africa view each other as a vast opportunity for their own development, and have enjoyed close cooperation in various fields and various levels."
Li Keqiang notes that employment is a basic need for Africa to improve the living standards of its people, and that China and Africa are mutually complementary at this stage of development.
The premier says China is ready to transfer the industries best suitable for Africa, especially the labor-intensive ones, so as to create more jobs in the continent.
Besides encouraging more Chinese business into Africa, Li Keqiang also calls for increasing cultural cooperation between the two sides.
"Our enterprises should respect the local customs and habits in Africa, and are also supposed to fulfill their social responsibilities, which comes to the cultural issues. And for enterprises who come to the African continent for cultural exchanges, they should also think about how to contribute to the development in the region."
Thirty African representatives from China, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Ghana and Djibouti participated in the meeting.
For CRI, I am Jordan Lee.
 
 
China urges Philippines to "immediately" release fishermen and boat: FM spokeswoman
 
The Chinese government is calling on Philippine authorities to "immediately" release a group of Chinese fishermen and their boat.
The Chinese boat has reportedly been seized this morning by Philippine Police in the waters surrounding the Nansha Islands.
Reports suggest a group of several armed men, though to be Filipino Police officers, stormed the boat, firing warning shots and then seizing control of the vessel.
Eleven Chinese fishermen are onboard the boat.
Another Chinese vessel in the area managed to escape after witnessing the incident.
The Chinese foreign ministry has released a statement, calling for an explanation as to why the boat has been seized.
Both China and the Philippines claim control over the Nansha Islands.
 
 
Six injured out of danger in Guangzhou knife attack
 
Authorities in Guangzhou say the 6-people injured in Tuesday's stabbing spree at the city's main railway station are all going to survive.
A lone man began randomly hacking at people at the train station Tuesday morning before police finally intervened, shooting the suspect.
The suspect survived and is now in custody.
Police have yet to provide a possible motive for the attack.
This is the 3rd knife attack at a train station here in China so far this year.
The attack has prompted a response from the Chinese government.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying.
"I want to emphasise that no matter what, violence against innocent people is unacceptable. It is a crime that deserves to be punished by law. Regarding the recent violent attacks, everyone should note that the government has taken forceful and effective measures to defend social stability and the safety of lives and property."
The stabbing comes on the heels of an attack at a train station in Xinjiang's capital Urumqi last week which saw two suspects run through crowds stabbing people randomly before they then blew themselves up.
That attack left 3 dead.
In early March, terrorists armed with knives attacked a train station in Yunnan's capital Kunming, leaving 29 dead and over 140 others injured.
 
 
Boko Haram sunk to new depths: UN Human Rights
 
The United Nations' is decrying the threat by Boko Haram to sell dozens of abducted school girls as wives.
Rupert Colville is with the UN Human Rights council.
"I think Boko Haram is sinking to new depths. It is hard to see how they could sink further, but this is quite appalling. Slavery and sexual slavery are absolutely prohibited under international law. And in certain circumstances, and this could well be one of them, they can be considered crimes against humanity, which is one of the most serious crimes that exists."
At least eight more girls have been kidnapped in northeast Nigeria this week.
A video released by a Boko Haram leader is threatening more kidnappings and attacks on schools after claiming responsibility for the kidnapping of 234 teenage school girls at gunpoint from a school in the restive northeastern Nigerian state of Borno.
Boko Haram has been engaged in a long-running insurgency in its attempt to pressure the Nigerian government to enshrine Sharia Law into the Nigerian constitution.
 
 
Obama pledges to help Nigeria find kidnapped schoolgirls
 
Meanwhile, the US government says Nigerian authorities have accepted US help in tracking down the 200 plus school girls kidnapped by Boko Haram.
US president Barack Obama says his administration has offered up both military and law enforcement officials to help in the search for the girls, who were kidnapped in mid-April.
"Boko Haram, this terrorist organization that's been operating in Nigeria, has been killing people and innocent civilians for a very long time. I can only imagine what the parents are going through. In the short term our goal is obviously to help the international community, and the Nigerian government, as a team to do everything we can to recover these young ladies."
The Nigerian government has so-far been unable to locate the hostages.
The kidnapping has put intense pressure on the administration of Nigerian President Goodluck Johnathan.
His government has been grappling with an increasingly militant Islamic movement in the country's northeast.
Nigeria is divided among a predominantly Christian south and Islamic north.
 
 
Ukraine says ready for new talks if Russia supports presidential election
 
Ukraine's interim government says it will be ready for a new round of negotiations in Geneva to ease tensions, so long as Russia supports its presidential election.
Valery Konovalyuk is one of 21 candidates running in the Presidential elections, which are scheduled for May 25th.
"We want United States and Russia to distance and take several steps back from the crisis in Ukraine and let Ukrainians to solve their internal problems themselves. Ukraine needs today a Marshall Plan to rebuild the economy and create the conditions for the real development. The conflict which tied up Russia and the United States does not have prospects with the new sanctions as this may bring serious financial and economic consequences for the whole world."
The candidate has made the comments after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested it will be "unusual" to hold a presidential election while the government deploys the army against "some of its people."
Lavrov also says any new round of international negotiations on de-escalating the tensions in Ukraine should include the "opposition".
Ukraine's interim government has already rejected that call.
Meanwhile, the Obama administration is blasting attempts by pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine to organize an independence referendum next week.
US Secretary of State John Kerry.
"We flatly reject this illegal effort to further divide Ukraine and its pursuit will create even more problems in the effort to try to de-escalate the situation. This is really the Crimea playbook all over again and no civilised nation is going to recognise the results of such a bogus effort."
In another development, energy ministers from the G7 have agreed to help Ukraine now that Russia is threatening to halt gas supplies over Ukraine’s unpaid bills.
A disruption of gas supplies from Russia has the potential to create havoc in Europe, as around one-quarter of all of Europe's natural gas is supplied by Russia via Ukraine.
 
 
Federal report: Global warming disrupts Americans' lives
 
A new US federal report on climate change is warning that immediate action is needed to ward off the effects of man-made global warming.
White House science adviser Doctor John Holdren.
"The single most important bottom line that shines through all these hundreds of pages, is that climate change is not a distant threat, it is something that is happening now, it is affecting the American people now in important ways. Summers on the whole are longer and hotter, with longer periods of extreme heat. Wildfires in the west start earlier in the Spring and continue later into the Fall."
The release of the new report, the third edition of a congressionally-mandated study, should give US President Barack Obama an opportunity to advance his campaign against climate change.
Obama has been struggling to subdue voices in the US who continue to question climate change.
The Obama administration is working on new regulations to reduce emissions from existing coal-fired power plants.
However, the plans are already encountering resistance from the conservative right.
 
 
Israel Celebrates 66th Independence Day with Peace Still Concerned
 
Anchor:
This year's celebrations in Israel marking the 66th anniversary of the declaration of the state of Israel has come to an end.
CRI's Alexander Aucott has more on what Israelis have been talking about to mark the Independence Day celebrations.
Reporter:
Celebrations across the country included live music, fireworks and the annual air show.
For Israelis the achievements during the past 66 years are worth celebrating, with most living peacefully following the Holocaust, and working towards the development of their country.
"The enterprise is very high in Israel, the science, technology, high-tech, medicine, the agriculture.... When the fathers of fathers came here, all Israel was a desert, then they made it something like a garden. Amazing, for 66 years."
Peace in the region remains a concern however and Israeli President Shimon Peres reiterates the importance of forming closer ties with its neighbours.
"Israel is really, in many ways, a miracle. We can and we should be proud but never satisfied. Our task is not over. We have to work hard to achieve peace. We have peace with two Arab countries, we have to have peace with all of them. To pursue peace is a Jewish value, and we have to achieve it in our time, the more and the sooner, the better."
The nine-month peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Territories ended last month without an obvious breakthrough, but people still cherish the hope for peace.
"With many times it comes, it always fades away. It's not good for us, and also not good for them. We are hoping for peace and trying all the ways. We'll never give up."
For CRI, this is Alexander Aucott .
 
 
Biz Reports
 
 
Stocks 
 
Reporter:
Asian stocks declined sharply this Wednesday, with Japan leading the downturn on a firmer yen and a sell-off overnight on Wall Street.
Following substantial losses on the U.S. market, Japan's Nikkei closed down nearly 3 percent.
A downward revision to HSBC's China manufacturing PMI and a decline in its services sector readings weighed down the Chinese market.
Both the Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Component fell some one percent.
Hong Kong-listed tech stocks were also weak, with Chinese Internet giant Tencent dropping nearly 4%, and software provider Kingsoft dumping over 7%.
The Hang Seng Index finished the day 1% lower.
South Korea's KOSPI ended down 1% and Australia's ASX 200 lost four fifths of a percent.
Singapore stocks finished lower with the Straits Times down a third of a percent.
 
 
OECD cuts China, global growth forecast for 2014
 
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has cut its growth forecast for China this year.
The OECD is now predicting Chinese economic growth for the year will come in at 7.4-percent, significantly down from the 8.2-percent forecast it put out in November.
At the same time, the Paris-based agency expects world growth to slow down to 3.4-percent this year, slightly lower than its previous estimate of 3.6-percent.
The OECD is forecasting the US economy will grow at 2.6-percent for the year, down from a 2.9-percent estimate in November.
On the up side, the organization is increasing its growth projection for the euro area to 1.2-percent from 1-percent.
 
 
ALIBABA FILES FOR ITS IPO
 
Anchor:
Alibaba has officially filed for its initial public offering in the US.
In its prospectus, the Chinese e-commerce firm has set a target to raise 1 billion US dollars.
However, the one-billion dollar target is believed to be a holding figure, as most observers expect Alibaba's IPO to raise upward of 15-billion dollars.
Its unclear at this point whether Alibaba is going to list on the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq.
For more on the impending listing, CRI's Shane Bigham spoke earlier with Benjamin Cavender, Principal of China Market Research in Shanghai.
…
Back Anchor:
Benjamin Cavender, Principal of China Market Research in Shanghai, speaking with CRI's Shane Bigham.
 
 
Zhaopin.com job site gets ready for IPO
 
Chinese online employment website Zhaopin.com has filed for its initial public offering in New York.
The company is hoping to raise around 100-million US dollars in its listing.
Zhaopin has yet to put out its expected listing price.
The company is hoping to use the cash from its New York listing to repay debt, expand into more markets and upgrade its website.
Zhaopin.com generated revenues of around 750-million yuan last fiscal year. That's about 120 million US dollars.
The website saw its user-base increase to 74-million people last year, representing an annual increase of 19-percent.
 
 
HSBC China Services PMI Falls in April
 
New data is suggesting China's services sector is growing at a slower pace through this past month.
The HSBC services Purchasing Managers' Index for April has come in at 51.4, half a point lower than that for March.
Any reading above 50 indicates expansion.
 
 
Shangri-La Hotel enters British market
 
Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts has opened its first hotel in London.
The new hotel follows the opening of Shangri-La Hotels in Paris and Istanbul the past few years.
The new hotel in London takes up the 32nd to 52nd floors of the At The Shard building.
The hotel offers views of London in every direction, overlooking landmarks including Parliament, the Tower of London and St. Paul's Cathedral.
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently manages more than 80 hotels under the Shangri-La brand.
 
 
Siemens buys Rolls-Royce energy business for 1.3 billion USD
 
Rolls-Royce has agreed to sell its energy gas turbine and compressor business to Siemens for 1.3-billion US dollars.
The deal has reportedly been in the works for the last month.
The Rolls-Royce unit turned a profit of over 120 million US dollars last year.
Its customers include mostly oil and gas companies.
Siemens' energy business generated sales of around 38 billion US dollars last year.
The deal comes as Siemens emerges as a possible rival to General Electric in the bidding for French firm Alstom's power business.
 
 
Mitsubishi Heavy to buy Siemens metal business
 
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Siemens have worked out a deal to combine their business arms that make machinery for steel mills and other metals plants.
Mitsubishi will own the controlling stake of the joint venture.
Mitsubishi's Heavy metals equipment unit is already involved in joint ventures with Japanese firms Hitachi and IHI Corp.
The company's Heavy metals equipment business has sales of about 600 million US dollars a year.
Siemens' unit has sales of about 20-billion annually.
 
 
Nintendo vows to return to profit despite Wii woes
 
Nintendo is predicting a return to profitability in this current fiscal year following a dismal 12 months marked by sagging sales of its flagship Wii U game console.
The Japanese video game maker says it expects to turn an operating profit of over 390 million US dollars this fiscal year.
Nintendo lost 460-billion US dollars this past fiscal year.
It has been in the red for 3 consecutive years.
The company sold 2.7-million Wii consoles this past fiscal year, which is less than a third of what the company was hoping to sell.
 
 
HP to invest over $1 billion in open-source cloud computing
 
Hewlett-Packard says it plans to invest more than a billion US dollars over the next two years to develop and offer cloud-computing products and services.
The company says it will make its OpenStack-based public cloud services available in 20 data centers over the next 18 months.
 
 
Headline News
 
 
Yingluck dumped as Thai PM, new PM appointed
 
Thailand's Constitutional Court has ordered caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra be removed from office for abuse of power.
The ruling stems from a personnel transfer in 2011.
The courts have ruled Yingluck broke the constitution by transferring the country's National Security Chief to a new position.
The Security Chief was originally put into the position by the former Thai government, which is Yingluck's current opposition.
The interim cabinet has now appointed Yingluck's deputy to be the new interim Prime Minister.
 
 
China & Nigera ink new railway deal
 
China and Nigeria have signed a framework agreement to build a 13-billion-dollar rail project in the African country.
The China Railway Construction Corporation has signed the deal with Nigeria's Federal Ministry of Transportation.
The rail line is expected to cross 10 Nigerian states, including the oil-producing delta in southern Nigeria.
The deal has been inked as part of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's current African tour.
 
 
China urges Philippines to "immediately" release fishermen and boat: FM spokeswoman
 
The Chinese government is calling on Philippine authorities to "immediately" release a group of Chinese fishermen and their boat.
The Chinese boat has reportedly been seized this morning by Philippine Police in the waters surrounding the Nansha Islands.
Reports suggest a group of several armed men, though to be Filipino Police officers, stormed the boat, firing warning shots and then seizing control of the vessel.
Eleven Chinese fishermen are onboard the boat.
Another Chinese vessel in the area managed to escape after witnessing the incident.
The Chinese foreign ministry has released a statement, calling for an explanation as to why the boat has been seized.
Both China and the Philippines claim control over the Nansha Islands.
 
 
16 hurt in powerful blast in Philippine Army headquarters
 
An arms depot in the suburbs of the Philippine capital, Manila, has been rocked by an explosion.
16 people have been hurt in the blast.
The extent of the injuries have not been revealed.
The explosion took place after a fire broke out in the armory early Wednesday morning.
The blast was strong enough to level the building.
 
 
Woman killed, 20 injured as passenger train derails in S. Pakistan
 
Three people are dead and some 20 others hurt after a passenger train derailment in Pakistan.
The train's engine and three cars behind it jumped the tracks in the country's southern province of Sindh.
The Karakoram Express was on its way to Karachi when it derailed.
It's unclear at this point what caused the train to derail.
 
 
Alibaba files for IPO
 
Alibaba has officially filed for its initial public offering in the US.
In its prospectus, the Chinese e-commerce firm has set a target to raise 1 billion US dollars.
However, the one-billion dollar target is believed to be a holding figure, as most observers expect Alibaba's IPO to raise upward of 15-billion dollars.
Its unclear at this point whether Alibaba is going to list on the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq.
 
 
Newspaper Picks
 
 
Xinhua
"Chinese police to patrol Paris in summer"
French sources say Chinese policemen were expected to help patrol tourist destinations in Paris this summer amid a rise in attacks and robberies targeting Chinese visitors.
The French police will invite 10 Chinese counterparts to patrol with them to better serve the Chinese tourists.
In addition to patrolling, the Chinese policemen would also serve as interpreters when Chinese tourists need to communicate with local police.
Specific arrangements are still being negotiated and will be revealed to the public soon.
An unnamed official said the proposal was put forward by the French side.
Chongqing Evening News
"Chongqing school introduces military ranking system"
A middle school in Chongqing has introduced China's military ranking system to motivate students to behave better.
At Huayu Experimental School, students are all holders of "virtual military ranks" based on the school's system of hierarchical relationships similar to the current Chinese army.
According to the system, every student is a "private" at the beginning of a semester. Students will start out with a base score of 30, but that will fluctuate during the semester based on their performance. Their military ranks are set based on the scores.
Students can earn points by answering questions in class, helping classmates, joining school activities, or doing good deeds.
On the other hand, disciplinary infractions such as eating in class, littering, cheating, and bullying will lower their rank.
The Los Angeles Times
"Want to really appreciate your food? A higher price may do the trick"
A new study says price affects consumer satisfaction, and getting a deal doesn't necessarily make diners like their food better.
The research was conducted by researchers at Cornell University.
Researchers say pricing has little impact on how much one eats, but a huge impact on how people interpret the experience.
According to researchers, just cutting the price "dramatically affects how customers evaluate and appreciate the food".
The researchers gave 139 diners a menu for an all-you-can-eat buffet that cost either $4 or $8 for lunch. The customers were asked to evaluate the food and the restaurant.
The two groups ate the same amount of food. But the people who paid $8 liked it an average of 11% more.
And the people who paid less more often said they felt like they had overeaten. They liked their food less and less over the course of the meal.
CTV News
"Frequent nightmares could mean child is being bullied: study"
A new British-led study reveals if your child suffers from regular nightmares, it could be a sign that they were a victim of bullying in the past.
Researchers at the University of Warwick said night terrors were more common in 12-year-olds who had reported being bullied when they were eight and 10 years old.
The findings indicate that being bullied is a significant stress/trauma that leads to increased risk of sleep arousal problems, such as nightmares or night terrors.
It is an easily identifiable indicator that something scary is being processed during the night.
Researchers warn parents should be aware that this may be related to experiences of being bullied by peers, and it provides them with an opportunity to talk with their child about it.
 
 
Special Reports
 
 
Surviving in the Fierce Mobile Game Market 
 
Anchor:
With more and more video game producers targeting the smartphone market, industry observers are suggesting companies need to become more innovative to remain competitive in an quickly-saturating market.
CRI's Qizhi has more.
Reporter:
With smartphones having become widespread in China, many PC game producers are attempting to break into the mobile gaming market.
Xiao Hong is the CEO of Beijing Perfect World Network Technology Co., Ltd., a PC network game producer which began preparations to enter the rapidly developing mobile market two years ago.
"When the new mobile platform started dramatically developing, we started to consider making smartphone products. There are no essential differences between the PC and mobile platforms; we have this opportunity and are capable of developing mobile network games."
An industry guideline specifies that if more than 40% of users choose to play a game on their phones the day it enters the market, 20% the next week, and 10% the next month, it can be considered a success.
However, out of the numerous games available in the App Store or Android Market, the majority only stay on smartphones for a few days after installation.
Tu Xiangfei, the co-founder of 1006.tv, China's biggest mobile game media company, attributes the low retention rate to the lack of innovation in the industry.
"There're a lot of copycat games. When a player finds that a game is like another one, he may quickly stop playing. The important thing is the way it's played. A copycat game or one that charges users for playing it will find it difficult to survive."
Ji Gu, the business director of FunPlus Game, a social gaming and mobile gaming company, agrees.
She adds that innovation is the reason for the popularity of many foreign mobile games such as Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja in China.
"The reason why they are super successful is that they're the first in their own merit. They use a slightly different gameplay. Plant V.S. Zombie, it's a traditional defense game, but it adds a new skin and a new way of playing it. So it's a micro-innovation that makes it different."
In order to improve the retention rate of Chinese mobile games, Tu suggests that domestic game makers improve the interactivity of their products.
"Many games developed by Wechat for example, lack creativity in their playing format, but are notable for their social aspect. Users can identify how many friends are playing the game, and a ranking system between friends inspires users to compete with each other. The interaction between friends improves the retention rate, which doesn't only depend on the game itself."
In contrast to PC games which users can easily play for hours, Xiao Hong points out that smartphone games have a much shorter duration of play, which game designers should bear in mind.
For CRI, I'm qizhi.
 
 
Sports
 
 
Manchester United defeat Hull City 3-1 in final home game
 
In the English Premier League,
Coming up later tonight, title chasers Manchester City will be at home against Aston Villa in a game all English football fans will be watching.
Man City sits just one point back of Liverpool for the top of the Premier League, but has 2 games remaining to Liverpool's one.
Speaking ahead of tonights match, Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini is rebuffing suggestions his squad is in the driver's seat to win the league this season.
"I only know we have two games and we have to win the game against Aston Villa. At the end of the week we will see which team has more points. You cannot be sure you are winning until the end, until the last minute."
The other match this evening in the Premiership has Sunderland at home to West Bromwich Albion.
Sunderland needs a draw in the match to avoid potential relegation as the squad sits just 2 points clear of Norwich in the relegation zone, though Sunderland has the advantage, as it has one additional game left in the season.
Last night, it was Manchester United finishing off its home games this season on a high note, downing Hull City 3-1 at Old Trafford.
Teenage striker James Wilson made a dramatic first appearance with the 'big club,' notching a pair of goals.
Man U's Player/Manager Ryan Gigg says the match was a chance to give the club's fans an opportunity to see some of the squad's rising talent.
"If you give young players at the club a chance, they will more often than not take it, and they didn't disappoint me. I was really happy and proud to see them do so well."
The victory caps a disappointing home season for Manchester United, which finishes the season at Old Trafford with a home record of 9-7-3.
Man U currently sits 7th in the Premiership after taking the title last year.
In soccer here in Asia, in AFC Champions League action,
Guangzhou Evergrande notched a huge 5-1 away win at Cerezo Osaka in the first leg of their round of 16 tie, virtually ensuring the defending champions will advance to the quarter-finals.
 
 
Second round results at Madrid Open
 
In tennis,
Chinese ace and world number-2 Li Na is into the 3rd round of the Madrid Open after cruising past her Chinese compatriot Zheng Jie 6-2, 6-3 this morning.
In other action from the women's side, Maria Sharapova was given a bit of a scare in her first match of the tournament after receiving a bye through the first round.
Sharapova trailed 4-1 in the final set, but rallied to win 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 over American Christina McHale.
Still to come in round two, China's Peng Shuai is up against world number-1 Serena Williams.
On the men's side,
Australian Open champion Stanislas Wawrinka has been handed an upset, with Austrian Dominic Thiem stunning the third seed 1-6, 6-2, 6-4.
Fifth-seeded Spanish David Ferrer barely managed to avoid an upset, outlasting compatriot Albert Ramos 7-6, 5-7, 6-3.
In other action, Japan's Kei Nishikori eased into the third round following a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Spain's Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
Both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are out of this round of the Masters series.
Djokovic is dealing with a wrist injury, while Federer has gone back to Switzerland for the birth of his 2nd set of twins.
 
 
Heat beat Nets to keep perfect in playoffs
 
In the NBA playoffs,
The Miami Heat have maintained their perfect record so-far this playoffs, downing the Brooklyn Nets 107-86 this morning to take a 1-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semi-final.
LeBron James poured in 22 points for the Heat.
Deron Williams and Joe Johnson led the Nets with 17 points.
Game 2 will take place in Miami on Thursday.
The San Antonio Spurs have coasted to a 116-92 win over the Portland Trail Blazers in the opener of their Western Conference semi final.
The Spurs' Tony Parker led the scoring with 33 points and nine assists.
LaMarcus Aldridge led the Trail Blazers with 32 points and 14 rebounds.
Game 2 is Thursday in San Antonio.
In off-court NBA news,
The Golden State Warriors have fired coach Mark Jackson, after 3-years at the helm.
Los Angeles Clippers President Andy Roeser has taken an indefinite leave of absence following team owner Donald Sterling's expulsion for his racist comments.
Roeser joined the Clippers in 1984, the year the team moved from San Diego to Los Angeles.
Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant has received his first regular season MVP award in his 7-season NBA career.
Durant finished the regular season averaging 32 points, the best in the league.
He becomes the first player since Allen Iverson in the 2000-2001 season to take both the scoring championship and the MVP award in the same season.
 
 
Montreal Canadiens beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 in the EC semi finals playoff
 
In the National Hockely League Playoffs,
The Montreal Canadiens downed the Boston Bruins 4-2 this morning to take a 2-1 series lead in their NHL Eastern Conference semi final.
P.K. Subban, Dale Weise and Lars Eller each had a goal and an assist for the Canadiens.
Patrice Bergeron and Andrej Meszaros scored for the Bruins, who outshot Montreal 28-26.
Game 4 is set for Thursday night in Montreal.
The Minnesota Wild have gotten themselves back into their series with Chicago, blanking the Blackhawks 4-nothing this morning.
The game went scoreless into the 3rd before the Wild exploded for 4 unanswered goals.
Mikael Granlund scored twice for Minnesota.
Minnesota still trailes in the series 2-games-1.
Game four is Friday in Minnesota.
 
 
Entertainment
 
 
Popular Tomb Raiders novel made into film
 
A film based on the popular Chinese novel "The Adventures of Three Tomb Raiders" will begin shooting in August.
Three production giant Wanda film, Enlight Media and Huayi Brothers will co-produce the film.
The production companies say the film will be released in December of next year.
They're hoping for ticket sales of 2 billion yuan.
The writer of the popular online novel 'Tian Xia Ba Chang' is the screenwriter for the film.
The series is about a grave robber, and is very popular among online readers here in China since it was first published in 2006.
The cast for the new film hasn't been announced yet.
 
 
Filmmaker defends contentious actor's role in film
 
Hong Kong filmmaker Pang Ho-Cheung says he will not remove the part of actor Chapman To Man-chat from his new film "Aberdeen," despite a controversy To has aroused on the Internet.
Chapman To and internet users on the mainland have been fighting a war of words after To posted that mainlanders are "self-righteous and not capable enough".
He has also posted numerous supportive comments on Taiwan's disapproval of the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement on his Facebook account.
To has since come under fire by mainland Internet users.
A forum page on Weibo has more than 30-thousand supporters calling for a boycott of To's films.
Despite the controversy, "Aberdeen" Director Pang Ho-Cheung says he will keep all of To's three-minutes in the film.
"Not deleting his role doesn't mean I support Du's view. The film is a collective effort of the cast and crew, and the audiences deserve to see a complete film,"
Chapman To did not appear at the premiere here in Beijing.
His latest film "Let Go For Love" opened in theaters on April 30th. The film has grossed less than a million yuan in ticket sales through the first two days.
The new film "Aberdeen" staring Gigi Leung and Louis Koo is set to hit theatres tomorrow.
 
 
TV's '24'-hour hero returns
 
Emmy Award-winning TV show "24" is returning for a ninth season after a four year hiatus.
Star and executive producer Kiefer Sutherland is reprising his role as Agent Jack Bauer in "24: Live Another Day".
Sutherland has turned out for the premier of the show in London where the new season has been filmed.
"Fantastic. I just think it gives '24' kind of international scope that the show never had before. I think certainly for an American audience, it's going to be very visceral and kind of exciting, you're going to feel like you went on a trip. And then we've had just access to a pool of actors here, that we would not normally get and so that's been extraordinary as well."
In the new season, Jack Baucer once again races against the clock to thwart a terrorist plot.
But this time he's a fugitive being hunted by American agents.
The cast and crew have spent the past five months filming 12 episodes in the British capital.
Actress Mary Lynn Rajskub who plays Chloe O'Brian, has been getting to know the British lingo.
"I wear my wellies when it rains. And I used to say, no this is too filthy. I used to say, 'I go to the toilet.' But then somebody told me that was number two. So now I say 'loo.' Is it true?"
Former 'Law & Order' star Benjamin Bratt has joined the show as Steve Navarro, the head of a CIA division in London.
 
 
ABC extends Jimmy Kimmel late-night show
 
Jimmy Kimmel's contract for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" has been extended for two more years.
Kimmel's new deal means he'll remain the host of his ABC late-night show through at least January 2017.
Kimmel is currently competing with the "Tonight Show" and Jimmy Fallon in the 11:30 time slot.
Kimmel moved to the time slot in January of last year, and has seen his ratings increase, despite going head-to-head with both Jimmy Fallon and David Letterman on CBS.
Kimmel's viewership has gone up 28 percent in its full first season at 11:30.
The 46-year-old has hosted the show for the last 11-years.
 
 
Eurovision 2014: 10 song contest qualifiers from first semi-final
 
Ten artists have emerged from the first semi-final of this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Denmark.
The qualifiers are from Armenia, Russia, Ukraine and another seven countries.
Aram Sargsyan, or Aram MP3 as he calls himself, represents Armenia.
He is the current favorite among the bookies' with his song "Not Alone".
"It was great, really great. I want to take this stage to my country actually. Thank you very much."
Sergej Cetkovic is performing for Montenegro with the song "Moj Svijet."
"It's a great task for Montenegro. For several years we didn't get to the finals for the last five years so as (inaudible) it's a small step for mankind, but it's great for Montenegro."
Fifteen countries will take part in the second semi-final to be held on Thursday.
Only 26 countries will compete in the final.
The so-called Big 5 countries - Italy, France, Germany, Great Britain, Spain and Germany - and hosts Denmark qualify for the final automatically and do not compete in the semi-finals.
 
 
A quick recap of headlines before we go.
Yingluck Shinawatra has been removed as Thailand's interim Prime Minister following a ruling from the country's constitutional court.'
China and Nigeria have signed off on a multi-billion dollars agreement to build railways in the country.
The US government is offering its assistance to Nigeria as authorities try to track down over 200 school girls who are being threatened with being sold into slavery as wives.
In business, Alibaba has officially filed for its much-anticipated IPO in New York.