In This EditionChina and Afghanistan agree to upgrade their bilateral relations to the level of a strategic and cooperative partnership.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says it's time to decide if the observer mission in Syria is still useful following massive killings in the past weeks.

Filipino President Benigno Aquino III's visit to the United States sparks a demonstration in Manila.

And analysts are suggesting that the interest rate cut by the People's Bank of China is pointing China in the right economic direction.

Hot Issue ReportsHamid Karzai Starts China Visit after SCO SummitChinese President Hu Jintao and his Afghan counterpart, Hamid Karzai, have agreed to upgrade bilateral relations to the level of a strategic and cooperative partnership.

Meanwhile, the Chinese government is also offering up a 150-million-yuan grant to the Afghan government this year.

The announcement was made following talks between the two leaders in Beijing on Friday.

President Hu Jintao.

"At present Afghanistan has entered into a critical transition period. China is a trustworthy neighbor and friend of Afghanistan. Both now and in the future China will continue to stay firmly committed to our policy of developing friendly relations with Afghanistan."Their time together has also included discussions about energy, infrastructure, engineering and agriculture.

Karzai's time in China has also included attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, where Afghanistan was made an official observer to the grouping.

China Calls for End of Violence in SyriaThe Chinese government has issued a fresh call for both sides in Syria to halt the violence and implement Kofi Annan's peace plan.

The comments comes come amid reports that 78 villagers have been killed by loyalists of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad this past week.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Liu Weimin.

"In the current circumstances, we believe that the importance of envoy Annan's mediation efforts has not diminished but rather increased. The support of all sides for the envoy Annan should strengthen, rather than weaken."Meanwhile, the foreign ministry has also taken time to condemn the killings.

"We express strong condemnation of the recent barbarity involving attacks on innocent civilians, especially women and children, and we hope that the perpetrators will be punished according to the law as soon as possible."Kofi Annan Floating the Idea of Creating a New Contact GroupMeanwhile, Annan is floating the idea of creating a new contact group for Syria.

The same concept was used during the height of the civil infighing in Libya.

Annan suggested the proposal during a three-hour closed session of the UN Security Council.

"The membership of the group, the contact group that was referred to, all these issues are at very early stage and is under consultation, but I think Iran as an important part of the region, I hope will be part of the solution."Annan says the contact group will include key regional players and the 5 permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Annan says the situation in Syria is "in sort of a civil war."Meanwhile, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has told the Security Council it's time for it to decide if the observer mission in Syria is still useful.

"The killing we have witnessed in recent weeks is indicative of crimes against humanity. The confrontations in certain areas of the country have taken on the character of internal conflict, subject to international humanitarian law and possible war crimes prosecution. The international community must recognize these realities and must act now."On Thursday, unarmed UN monitors came under fire as they tried to reach the scene of a reported massacre, which is now believed to have been carried out by loyalists of the Bashar al-Assad government.

The Syrian government says the killings have been carried out by groups trying to provoke international intervention in Syria.

Filipino Activists Protest President Benigno Aquino's Visit to the USFilipino President Benigno Aquino III's ongoing visit to the United States has sparked a demonstration in Manila.

Filipino activists are protesting in front of the U.S. Embassy, decrying the United States continued presence in the country.

"We view this as a very bad development, considering that 20 years after we kicked out the U.S. bases, it would appear that they are back in the Philippines, even without a formal basing agreement. The entire country is transformed into a military outpost."Aquino III is on the last day of his visit to the US.

He's scheduled for a sit-down session with US President Barack Obama later on this Friday.

It's being reported the US government will provide the Philippines with 30-million US dollars worth of military aid this year.

That's double the amount the US provided to the country last year.

Gold Plunges after Federal Reserve Chief Bernanke Offers No Signal of QE3Gold prices have plummeted in late-week trading, following suggestions by US Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke that the central bank isn't planning any stimulus anytime soon.

The August gold contracts have dropped by 46 U.S. dollars in trading Thursday, settling at 15-hundred-88 dollars an ounce.

That's the biggest drop in gold prices since April.

Traders have been bidding up gold since mid-May on expectations that the Fed might extend its bond-buying program or take other steps to lower interest rates.

That would have likely weakened the dollar, which tends to push up the price of gold.

For more on this, Paul James earlier talked with James Steel, analyst with HSBC New York.

Interest Rate Cut Gets Mixed Reaction in Stock MarketAnalysts are suggesting that the interest rate cut by the People's Bank of China is pointing China in the right economic direction.

Professor Zhou Qingjie is from Beijing Technology and Business University.

"The cut indicates that the measure to ease of the monetary policy is becoming clearer. And the cut will boost the stock market operation and liquidity."Yi Xianrong with the China Academy of Social Sciences suggests the move by the PBOC should be just the beginning.

"Wider floating band for interest rates is conducive to the liberalization of interest rates. However, the adjustment is still limited, and the liberalization still needs to pick up speed. And only when that happens, can our financial sector provide real support to the real economy."The move by China's central bank is the latest in a series of attempts by the authorities to inject more capital and spending into the domestic market to try to counter the economic slowdown being brought on by the debt crisis in Europe.

China to Extend Retirement AgeThe central authorities are now openly talking about extending the retirement age here in China to try to offset an expected shortfall in pension revenues.

CRI's Wang Wei has more.

As the topic has again provoked hot debate among the public, experts say it is time to put it on the government's working schedule.

Professor Zheng Bingwen is director of the Social Security Study Center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"The extension will have a significant effect on our pension system. As the average life expectancy of Chinese citizens has increased, the aging population has been exerting pressure on pension funds. If the retirement age remains unchanged, the current pension system will be unsustainable in the future. The problem is universal as it can be found in many countries in America and Europe."Zheng says the current retirement policy was introduced in the 1970s when the average life expectancy was 70. The retirement age was set at 60 for male employees, 55 for women officials and 50 for female workers. But during the past 30 years, the life span of Chinese citizens has increased to 75 years.

Zheng Bingwen points out another serious issue:

"Early retirement is a serious problem. Each year, 10 to 20 percent of the country's retirees haven't reached the retirement age. But if one retires too early and his non-working life is longer than his working life, it just won't make any sense."The annual pension report for 2011 indicates that the revenue in the public and individual pension accounts in 14 provinces and municipalities fell short when it came to paying the pensions and the deficit was almost 70 billion yuan. It is unrealistic for the central coffers to always subsidize the pension funds in the long run. Thus, extending the retirement age seems to be the best solution for filling the void. The extension would add 4 billion yuan to China's pension fund annually and cut expenditures by 16 billion yuan.

But some worry that extending the retirement age will reduce the opportunities for young job seekers. The number of university graduates will be around 6.8 million this summer. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences estimates that more than 800,000 will remain unemployed upon graduation, not including unemployed graduates from previous years. The extension of the retirement age will make it even more difficult for them to land a job.

But Zheng Bingwen believes the extension won't have much effect on the unemployment rate.

"In the U.S., the retirement age can be postponed to as late as 70. But their unemployment rate is not higher than ours is. I see a similar situation in northern Europe. And it is often the case that many people in China seek other jobs after their retirements, taking up large number of job openings."Zheng says making the adjustment will take years, and a quick jump in the retirement age from 60 years old to 65 is unlikely to occur. He advises the government to lay out a plan as soon as possible as we have already started late.

For CRI, I'm Wang Wei.

British MonarchyThe Queen's diamond jubilee this past weekend has focused a lot of the world's attention on the royal family in the UK.

CRI's Rebecca Hume now on what may lay ahead for the British monarchy.

So why does the UK love the monarchy so much?

For a country which has at various points in history become cynical about other big institutions such as Parliament, the press, the police. Why is it that people remain so loyal to the Royal family?

According to official statistics, support for a republic has lingered at around 18 to 19-percent since 1969, with polls being conducted most recently last year.

The other 80-percent of the population are firmly in favour of keeping the British Monarchy.

So what is it that keeps a system which favours inherited privilege and power so popular, even during time of social change and austerity.

British Primary school teacher Caroline Roberts favours the monarchy, she says it provides stability and tradition:

"I think its because whatever the occasion the Queen is always there to support the country. Throughout history England has always had a monarchy and I think it gives our country an individual identity. I think its such a massive part of our culture, England wouldn't be the same really."Arthur Hagopian is from Canada – one of the Queens Commonwealth countries.

He says the monarchy is also significant for them:

"The monarchy for the UK is something that is very special and it is uniquely English and I think that sets them apart of course from other countries around the world and the special relationship that they have with Canada as a member of the commonwealth is also very significant because even though we share a border with the United States, I believe personally that we share more with our friends in the UK and culturally."But its not only British people who are fascinated with the Royals, hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to London each year to visit sites such as Buckingham Palace.

Hagopian reckons many tourists are fascinated with the Monarchy because of its historical significance:

"I think it has to do again with this idea of nostalgia, with this idea of authenticity, and that's why people flock to see it. Aside from all the difficulties the royal family might have in the tabloids. I think the monarchy represents something that is pure and the representation of everything that is good and the best of the UK."For the most part it seems the Royal Family are loved not only as an institution which helps identify British culture, but as something unique which has a long reigning history of culture and tradition in Britain.

For CRI, I'm Rebecca Hume.

China DailyA college graduate in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi province, has employed a novel way to sell vegetables: through vending machines.

Since childhood, Wang Honggang had helped his father grow vegetables on their farm on the outskirts of Xi'an.

However, their farmland had to make way for high-rise offices and residential buildings as the city expands.

Wang and his friends came up with the idea after they bought beverages from a vending machine in downtown.

Wang, who majored in machinery automation, redesigned the machines to sell vegetables. The team also designed a reusable plastic package to hold the vegetables.

They rent farmland in the city's remote eastern suburb where they have 10 greenhouses to grow vegetables.

They started with eight vending machines, each based in a different residential community.

Wang and his partners chose residential communities with relatively better-off and busier white-collar employees.

The idea has proved a success. In March, they installed another two vending machines in two new communities.

Wang says the vending machines provide people who are busy at work with reasonably priced, fresh vegetables anytime within walking distance.

The Modern ExpressThe city of Changsha in central China's Hunan Province plans to finish building the tallest tower in the world in seven months.

The 838-meter skyscraper will replace the 828-meter Burj Khalifa Tower in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, as the world's tallest tower.

The building, dubbed Sky-high City, will have 220 floors and provide housing, dining, shopping and medical services as well as work opportunities.

But people are questioning the reliability of the skyscraper. Many in Changsha believe that seven months will be too short a time to build Sky-high City as the Burj Khalifa Tower took six years to build.

The construction company said the new tower is being built with prefab steel structures and that the process is as simple as building blocks.

But experts in construction have warned about the company's lack of experience in building high towers and the possible risks involved.

The construction company expects to complete the building by the end of 2012.

BBCScientists now say a parasitic mite has helped a virus wipe out billions of honeybees throughout the globe.

A team studying honeybees in Hawaii found that the Varroa mite helped spread a particularly nasty strain of a disease called deformed wing virus.

The mites act as tiny incubators of one deadly form of the disease, and inject it directly into the bees' blood.

This has led to "one of the most widely-distributed and contagious insect viruses on the planet".

The findings are reported in the journal Science.

The team, led by Dr Stephen Martin from the University of Sheffield, studied the honeybees in Hawaii, where Varroa was accidentally brought from California just five years ago.

Crucially some Hawaiian islands have honeybee colonies that are still Varroa-free.

This provided the team with a unique natural laboratory; they could compare recently-infected colonies with those free from the parasite, and paint a biological picture of exactly how Varroa affected the bees.

AFPA NASA mission to study the tiny algae vital to the ocean's food chain has turned up a massive amount of phytoplankton under the Arctic ice.

Using satellites and on-site measurements, a team from NASA sampled the ice pack off the Chukchi Sea along Alaska's coast in the last two summers.

Beneath the sea ice as thick as a five-year-old child is tall, researchers found the height of phytoplankton biomass was about fourfold greater than in open water.

Mission leader Kevin Arrigo says the under-ice bloom" appears to extend about 100 kilometers into the ice shelf, until "the waters literally looked like pea soup."Arrigo says the finding is completely unexpected as all phytoplankton require light and nutrients to grow.

More research is needed to determine how these under-ice phytoplankton affect local ecosystems.

The microscopic organisms are the base of the food chain and drive the food and reproductive cycles of fish, seabirds and polar bears. How larger animals may react to phytoplankton changes remains unknown.

Phytoplankton are also important because through the process of photosynthesis they remove about half of the harmful carbon dioxide produced by the burning of fossil fuels worldwide.

Market UpdateU.S. stocks ended the best week of this year on Friday, although concerns over the European debt crisis and global economic slowdown continued to weigh on the market.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained three quarters of a percent to 12,554. The Standard & Poor's 500 was up 0.8 percent to 1,326. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1 percent to 2,858.

The European markets ended lower. London's FTSE 100 lost 0.2 percent to 5,435. Frankfurt's DAX slipped 0.2 percent to 6,131. CAC 40 in Paris dropped 0.6 percent to 3,052.