The Beijing Hour
Morning Edition
Shane Bigham with you on this Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on our program this morning...
The bodies of two Chinese passengers have been recovered from the wreckage of a sunken ferry off of the coast of South Korea...
Japan's Prime Minister has made an offering at a controversial war shrine, angering many countries across southeast Asia including China...
and top UN officials are expressing concerns over plans by the Syrian government to hold elections in June...
In Business...Netflix shares surge on higher-than-expected earnings...
In sports...a tough spot for Guangzhou Evergrande in the Asian Champions League..
In entertainment...Chinese film Coming Home will not be in competition at Cannes...
But first... lets get a check on the weather...
Weather
Beijing will be sunny today, with a high of 26 degree Celsius.
Overnight temperatures should drop down to around 13 with clouds gathering.
Shanghai will be cloudy with a high of 19.
The sky will become clear during night, temperatures should stay around 12.
Chongqing will be cloudy with a high of 23.
Overnight lows are expected to be around 16.
Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia.
Islamabad will be sunny with a high of 30.
Kabul, sunny with a high of 22.
Over to North America.
New York will see slight rain with a high of 17 degrees.
Washington, cloudy with rain to expect, a high of 24 degrees.
Honolulu, cloudy, 28.
Toronto, Canada, will see slight rain with a high of 11 degrees.
Finally, on to South America,
Buenos Aires will be sunny today with a high of 19.
And Rio de Janeiro will see slight rain with a high of 26 degrees Celsius.
There are several ways to keep in touch with us on the BJH
Weibo/Wechat account: the Beijing Hour
Email: [email protected].
Top News
Bodies of two Chinese passengers found in sunken ferry
Anchor:
The death toll in the South Korean ferry sinking accident has surged to 87, as more bodies were pulled from the wrecked ship on Monday. That includes the remains of two Chinese nationals.
CRI's Yu Yang has more.
Reporter:
The bodies of two Chinese men have been identified thanks to the ID cards they carried. The nationality of a third man whose body was pulled from the sunken ferry on Monday remains unknown at this time.
The Chinese embassy in South Korea has confirmed that the two Chinese nationals were on the list of missing passengers.
Earlier, the embassy said four Chinese, including two men and two women aboard the ill-fated ship, were missing.
22 bodies were retrieved from passenger cabins on Monday, bringing the death toll to 87.
215 others are still missing.
The 69-year old Captain of the Sewol, Lee Joon-seok, is facing five charges, including negligence of duty and abandonment resulting in deaths.
Lee expressed his apology.
"I am sorry to the people of South Korea for causing a disturbance and I bow my head in apology to the families of the victims (the passengers on the sunken ship)."
It is being alleged Lee ordered the passengers on the stricken ferry to stay in place and then was one of the first people to abandon ship.
A doctor who attended the captain says Lee identified himself as a passenger after he was rescued.
"I didn't ask him directly, but I remember seeing a list stating him as a 'passenger.' I think he said so when he was questioned about his status. We were not told he was the captain and we never thought he was the one."
Four more crew members have also been arrested for negligence of duty and violation of the rescue act.
South Korea's President Park Geun-hye has said that the behavior of the captain and crew is unacceptable and tantamount to murder.
"The action of the captain and some of the crewmen is incomprehensible from a common-sense point of view and it was like an act of murder that must not be tolerated. We will force those responsible to face criminal and civil charges regardless of their ranks."
Prosecutors say the captain was not on the bridge when the ferry started listing and the vessel was steered by a third mate who had never navigated the waters where the accident occurred.
Investigators are focusing on whether the sharp turn the ferry took before the sinking destabilized the vessel.
Meanwhile, the search operation will continue as tidal currents are forecast to slow down till Thursday.
Two unmanned submersibles have been used to search the hull where divers have been unable to enter.
There were 476 passengers and crew aboard the ship when it sank on Wednesday, including 325 highschool students. The ferry was heading for the holiday island of Jeju.
For CRI, I'm Yu Yang.
Navy plane continues search for missing Malaysian plane
Turning to the search for the missing Malaysian Airlines jet.
At least one aviation expert seems to believe that it could be some time before the mystery of flight MH370 is solved.
Over the weekend, Malaysian authorities suggested they may be getting closer to pinpointing where the wreckage of the plane is.
But aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas suggests the authorities should not back down in their search.
"There was discussion a week ago about winding back the air search. The only part that has been wound back so far is the civil component. They were using two or three executive jets with volunteer spotters on board. That part has been wound back last Thursday (April 17) but there's no sign of any abatement in the military search and I think while there's a chance of finding something on the surface that search should continue".
The search for the missing flight is now in its 7th week.
The underwater search with a deep-sea submersible is heading into its 2nd week.
Thomas suggests the underwater search isn't going to be easy.
"With relationship to the Bluefin-21 scanning the bottom we have to remember that in the search for Air France 447 it took them 18 missions to finally find the wreckage of that aeroplane. They found it 10km (6.2 miles) away from where they thought it was and they knew exactly where that plane crashed on the surface so we're only in mission number eight, sorry nine, so far. Eight completed, into the ninth so we have a long way to go yet with the Bluefin-21 operation."
So far the submarine has not detected any sign of the aircraft's wreckage.
As the underwater search continues, the surface search with close to 2-dozen ships and planes is also taking place on a daily basis.
That search has not discovered any sign of the plane either.
Meanwhile, authorities warn that the search may be affected as a tropical cyclone moves south over the ocean.
Japan's PM makes offering to war-linked Yasukuni, drawing criticism
The Chinese government is lashing out at Japan's Prime Minister for making another offering to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Qin Gang.
"Japan should face up to and reflect on its past wartime history. Distancing itself from its past militarism is an important political foundation for Sino-Japanese ties. We urge Japan to adopt a correct attitude toward history and stop provocative acts. Japan should be trying to win the trust of its neighbors and the international community through practical action."
Shinzo Abe has made the offering to the Yasukuni Shrine on the first day of the three-day spring festival in Japan, which began yesterday.
The move comes ahead of a visit this week to Japan by US President Barack Obama.
The United States has been critical of previous moves by the Japanese government when it comes to the Yasukuni issue, saying visits to the shrine continue to damage ties in the region.
South Korea has also denounced Abe's offering.
The Yasukuni Shrine honors 14 Japanese war criminals and is considered a symbol of Japan's past militarism.
Joe Biden visits Ukraine
US Vice-President Joe Biden is now visiting Ukraine in an effort to push for the implementation of an international agreement tailored to de-escalate tensions with Russia.
After welcoming Biden, Ukraine's foreign minister Andrii Deshchytsia says the two parties will hold talks.
"Once again, we are conducting intensive dialogue between Ukraine and the United States and we will continue to implement those agreements which were reached during the visit of the prime minister of Ukraine to the United States."
It is reported that Biden also plans to announce new technical support for Ukraine's government to assist its energy reforms.
Biden's trip comes a day after at least three people were killed in a shootout at a checkpoint manned by pro-Russian activists in eastern Ukraine.
Russia has blamed the Ukrainian government for the attack.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
"The Geneva agreement is not only not being implemented, but also steps are being taken - primarily by those who have seized power in Kiev - that is a crude violation of the agreements reach in Geneva. Claims are being advanced with regards to the south eastern regions that they are reportedly not vacating seized buildings and are not removing roadblocks. The authorities in Kiev aren't doing anything."
Last week, Ukraine, Russia, the U.S and EU have reached a deal in Geneva to take tentative steps toward calming the volatile situation.
Meanwhile, pro-Russian militias have continued to hold key regional administrative buildings across eastern Ukraine.
Earlier, it is reported that three foreign journalists were detained by pro-Russian activists in the region.
Top UN officials warn against Syrian presidential elections
Top United Nations officials are warning that Syria's newly announced presidential election may undermine efforts to achieve a political solution to the country's three-year-old civil war.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Syria mediator Lakhdar Brahimi issued the warning after Syria announced a presidential election would be held on June 3.
U.N. spokesman, Stephane Dujarric.
"Such elections are incompatible with the letter and spirit of the Geneva communique. We will nonetheless continue to search and build upon any opening for a solution to the tragedy in Syria."
The Syrian parliament on Monday opened the registration for presidential candidates in its upcoming election.
Parliamentary speaker, Mohamed Jihad al-Laham
"I call citizens of the Syrian Arab Republic inside and outside the country to practise their right in electing the President of Syria and I call those who want to nominate themselves to the post of Syria's President, to present the request of nomination to the Higher Constitutional court in ten days starting from Tuesday April 22, 2014 and ends on Thursday May 1, 2014."
Voting for Syrians outside the country would take place at Syrian embassies on May 28.
This will be the first multi-candidate election since the adoption of the current constitution.
Under Syria's constitution the election is due by July.
President Bashar al-Assad has not publicly said he will run, but is widely expected to win another seven-year term.
The election comes as the Syrian conflict enters its fourth year.
Death Toll from U.S. Drone Strikes Rises to 55 in Yemen
The death toll of multiple U.S. drone strikes launched on Sunday against al-Qaeda training camps in Yemen's southern provinces has risen to 55.
The Yemeni Interior Ministry says three local militant leaders are among the dead.
It said that its security services are working to identify the nationalities of foreign fighters who were killed during the airstrikes.
The drone attack has been described as the strongest assault launched against the militants since 2012, when the army retook several southern cities after months of fighting.
In a reaction to the air raids, the militants assassinated three senior intelligence officials on Monday in two separate attacks.
The Yemen-based al-Qaida offshoot has frequently staged revenge attacks on local targets, including military and foreign missions in the impoverished Arab country.
U.S. warns against disbanding Palestinian National Authority
The US has warned the Palestinians against taking moves to disband their transitional authority, saying the move will have serious implications for bilateral relations.
The US and other countries have put millions of dollars into the authority.
Palestinian officials broached the possibility of dismantling the Palestinian National Authority in response to the ultimate demise of the current round of peace talks with Israel, which started in late last July and are scheduled to end by April 29.
Washington is trying to extend the negotiations but without success as of now.
Palestinian negotiators are preparing to meet this weekend to discuss what the next steps will be.
The PNA's disintegration will render the Palestinian territories a state under occupation, a move that would increase legal and international pressure on Israel as it has to fill in a power vacuum.
The PNA was established in 1994 under the 1993 Oslo peace accords reached between Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization.
It was intended to be a temporary transitional entity until May 1999 when the parties were expected to have concluded their final-status negotiations.
Draft law ups punishment for environmental wrongdoing
Anchor:
A new draft amendment to China's Environmental Protection Law has been submitted to lawmakers.
It calls for heavier punishments.
CRI's Xie Zhao has more.
Reporter:
In recent years, environmental issues, such as smog and drinking water problems, have become some of the biggest public concerns in China.
Controls connected to air pollution have been included in the latest draft of China's Environmental Protection Law.
Chai Hefa, deputy director with the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, says air pollution is a regional problem.
"There are some basic points in preventing air pollution: first, we should have unified planning for better regional economic progress. Secondly, we should have unified standards to curb emissions over regional areas. For instance, no matter whether a factory is located in Beijing, in Hebei or Tianjin, the same standard should be used in evaluating the emissions. What we are promoting now is a special emission limit index, and it is very effective."
When it comes to enforcement, Chai Hefa says the latest draft will allow environmental regulators more powers.
Companies will also face heavier punishment if they break the law.
"Firstly, we need to ensure the new environment laws are not just slogans, but actually enforced. Secondly, we need to strengthen the punishments for polluters, including daily punishments. Daily punishments are an efficient way in solving problems in dealing with companies which don't fix their mistakes. Thirdly, we need a dual punishment scheme, where it's not just companies that face fines, but individuals as well."
Another issue is the options available for the public to bring in private environmental suits.
Under the old rules, there were only a couple of options available for public suits.
Under the new draft, organizations registered in prefecture-level cities will be eligible to litigate on behalf of the public.
Ma Jun, director at the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, says a lot of comments about the draft have been offered for lawmakers to consider.
"Previously, the threshold for public litigation was very high. During the process of revising the law, public opinions have been solicited twice. Now the threshold has been relaxed to the prefecture-level.
Ma Jun suggests the laws and regulations surrounding environmental protection should help when it comes to monitoring companies.
China's Environmental Protection Law has not been revised since it took effect in 1989.
It is rare in China for a law or amendment to go through three readings and not be passed.
As such, observers suggest this shows the importance of the draft when it comes to sustainable development here in China.
For CRI, I'm Xie Zhao.
Biz Reports
U.S. stocks extended last week's gains in light volume with European markets closed for the Easter holiday and little in the way of economic data or corporate earnings.
The rally on the US market came on the lowest trading volume of the year, however, as investors awaited a raft of corporate earnings reports due out this week.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose a quarter of a percent. The S&P 500 gained two fifths of a percent and the Nasdaq added more than half a percent.
Among the market's biggest gainers were companies rocked by the recent selloff in high-growth sectors. Shares of Facebook surged nearly 4 percent, while Twitter gained two and a half percent. The Nasdaq Biotechnology index tacked on over 2%.
In corporate news, Halliburton added three and a third of a percent after the oilfield services company reported earnings that beat expectations and gave a strong profit outlook.
Ford Motor Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally is said to likely retire before the end of the year, and Chief Operating Officer Mark Fields is set to replace him.
Meanwhile, Canada's S&P/TSX barely changed.
Netflix U.S. streaming business grows, shares jump
American online video service provider Netflix has reported a higher-than-expected profit for the quarter that ended in March, boosted by the addition of over 2 million new customers to its movie and TV streaming service in its home country.
Net income for the quarter surpassed 50 million US dollars, an increase from 3 million dollars from a year earlier.
Earnings-per-share came in at 86 cents, topping the average forecast of 83 cents.
The internet video streaming firm also announced a potential "one or two dollar increase" in monthly rates for new members later this year.
Shares in the firm soared more than 6% in afterhours trading.
At the end of March, Netflix reported nearly 36 million U.S. streaming subscribers.
In international markets, its customer base exceeded 12 and a half million, a gain of nearly 2 million during the quarter.
It's estimated that 'House of Cards' helped Netflix add 4 million new subscribers.
Nokia to Close Sale of Handset Business to Microsoft on Friday
Nokia and Microsoft expect to formally conclude the transfer of Nokia's phone business this Friday, putting an end to months of wrangling with regulators across the globe.
The 5.4 billion euro deal, announced last September, was originally slated to conclude by the end of March this year.
It was delayed as the companies sought regulatory clearances from several Asian countries.
Under the revised deal, Microsoft will no longer acquire Nokia's Korean manufacturing plant.
Instead, it will take on 21 people working in China that had been part of Nokia's chief technology office, the rest of which is sticking with Nokia.
Microsoft will also manage Nokia.com and Nokia's social media presence for up to a year following the deal's close.
But it's still unclear if Nokia's handset factory in India will be included in deal.
China's free trade zone regulations set, ready for video game console sales
Regulations for China's free trade zone in Shanghai are now officially in place, opening the area for the sale and trade of video game consoles.
The 14-year-old ban on console sales in China was lifted last September, when the country announced it would set up the FTZ in Shanghai.
Since then, the government has been working to set up rules for how the trading zone will be governed and operated.
Foreign companies like Sony and Nintendo can now operate in this zone, along with any domestic Chinese game development companies.
Foreign firms can now produce and sell their hardware within the country, but only within an established free trade zone.
China allows gold imports via Beijing, sources say, amid reserves buying talk
Anchor:
Media reports suggest that gold imports are now coming directly to Beijing, making the capital the third Chinese market after Shenzhen and Shanghai where direct imports of gold bullion are permitted.
But the authorities here do not release any trade data on gold.
The main information on Chinese bullion markets comes from the monthly release of export data from Hong Kong, where official data indicates the city has supplied more than 50-billion US dollars worth of gold to the mainland.
Along with the nearly 12-hundred tons of gold imported from Hong Kong last year, the Chinese mainland produces over 400 tons.
For more on this move, we're joined live now by Gao Shang, Analyst with GuanTong Futures.
Questions:
1 Why are direct imports in Beijing being encouraged now?
2 Why so secretive about gold purchases?)
3 How will the PBOC leverage its gold reserve? Is gold a better foreign reserve investment than US government bonds?
Anchor:
Gao Shang, analyst with GuanTong Futures.
Chinese rare earth miner's profits nosedive
Leading rare-earth miner China Minmetals Rare Earth has posted a drastic decline in net profits in the first quarter due to low rare earth prices.
The company made 1.6 million yuan, or 260,000 U.S. dollars, in net profits from the start of January to the end of March, down by 94 percent year on year.
The miner's business revenue also declined by almost 100 percent to 3.3 million yuan in the first three months.
The financial results come after a 20-percent decline in net profits and a nearly 60-percent drop in business revenue in 2013.
Along with weakened profitability, the company's rare earth stockpiles surged by nearly 170 percent last year.
The company's shares dumped almost 3 percent in Monday's trading.
Hitachi to deliver world's fastest elevators for 530-meter skyscraper in China
Japanese elevator maker Hitachi is to deliver two units of the world's fastest elevator to a Chinese skyscraper set to open in 2016.
The elevators, to be installed in the Guangzhou CTF Finance Center, have a speed of 1,200 meters per minute.
It's reportedly able to travel the 440 meters between the first and the 95th floors in about 43 seconds.
Headline News
Bodies of two Chinese passengers found in sunken ferry
The death toll in the South Korean ferry sinking accident has surged to 87, as more bodies were pulled from the wrecked ship on Monday.
That includes the remains of two Chinese nationals.
The Chinese embassy in South Korea has confirmed that the two Chinese nationals were on the list of missing passengers.
Earlier, the embassy said four Chinese, including two men and two women aboard the ill-fated ship, were missing.
215 people are still missing.
The search operation will continue as tidal currents are forecast to slow down till Thursday.
There were 476 passengers and crew aboard the ship when it sank on Wednesday, including 325 highschool students.
The ferry was heading for the holiday island of Jeju.
Navy plane continues search for missing Malaysian plane
At least one aviation expert seems to believe that it could be some time before the mystery of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 is solved.
Over the weekend, Malaysian authorities suggested they may be getting closer to pinpointing where the wreckage of the plane is.
But aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas suggests the authorities should not back down in their search. He says the underwater search will not be easy.
So far, no trace of the Malaysia Airlines passenger jet has been found despite nearly two months of searching on the surface and two weeks of searching underwater.
Two dozen ships and planes continue to look for the missing plane.
Meanwhile, authorities warn that the search may be affected as a tropical cyclone moves south over the ocean.
Top UN officials warn against Syrian presidential elections
Top United Nations officials are warning that Syria's newly announced presidential election may undermine efforts to achieve a political solution to the country's three-year-old civil war.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Syria mediator Lakhdar Brahimi issued the warning after Syria announced a presidential election would be held on June 3.
The Syrian parliament on Monday opened the registration for presidential candidates in its upcoming election.
This will be the first multi-candidate election since the adoption of the current constitution.
President Bashar al-Assad has not publicly said he will run, but is widely expected to win another seven-year term.
9 killed, 37 wounded in Iraq's car bombs
Nine people have been killed and 37 others wounded in four car-bombs attacks in Iraq.
The explosions took place on Monday in the capital Baghdad's eastern, northern and central areas.
The latest surge of violence came less than 10 days ahead of landmark parliamentary elections on April 30.
It'll be the first such election in the country since the withdrawal of U.S. troops in late 2011.
6 killed as gunmen attack police vehicle in NW Pakistan
At least six people have been killed, including five police officers, after unknown gunmen opened fire on a police vehicle in northwest Pakistan's Peshawar City.
Local media has reported that at least four other people have been injured.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.
Police cordoned off the area and kicked off search operation.
Newspaper Picks
CHINA DAILY
Headline
Branch established for food safety risk communication
Summary
An expert committee under the State Council's Food Safety Committee has been set up to better guide decision-making for food safety improvement.
Authorities say it is very important to deliver the right message on food safety to the public.
GLOBALTIMES
Headline
China to tighten crackdown on illegal fund-raising
Summary
A senior legal official says China will intensify a crackdown on illegal fund-raising activities after an increase in such practices last year.
He says illegal fund-raising comes in different forms, such as by offering false wealth management products, valueless commemorative coins, stamps and currency notes, as well as the sale of sham stocks by self-claimed private banks to investors.
GUANGZHOU DAILY
Headline
Death toll rises to 21 from China coal mine flooding
Summary
Local authorities in Yunnan Province says the death toll from a coal mine flooding in Qujing City has risen to 21, with another miner still missing.
Narrow underground space and complicated layout of the mine have hampered search efforts.
SHANGHAI DAILY
Headline
Youngsters given easy access to libraries
Summary
Primary and secondary schools students in Shanghai can now use their electronic ID cards to borrow books from the city's public libraries.
Officials say youngsters are allowed to borrow up to 10 books at a time from any of the city's 237 public and community libraries.
BEIJING MORNING POST
Headline
Army seeks more college students
Summary
China has begun its 2014 army recruitment, focusing on signing up young people with a higher education background.
A ceremony has been held at Tsinghua University to encourage college students in Beijing to enlist.
More than 2,000 college students swarmed the camp to get information or to sign up.
SOUTH CHINA METROPOLITAN DAILY
Headline
Compensation upheld in transfusion AIDS case
Summary
A couple was diagnosed with AIDS after the wife received a transfusion at a hospital in Xiaoxian county, Anhui province.
The county court ordered the hospital to pay 300,000 yuan compensation to the couple in July 2012, but the hospital appealed.
Recently, the provincial high court dismissed that appeal and upheld the original judgment.
Special Reports
Beijing Autoshow: What is with these French cars?
Anchor:
The 2014 Beijing Autoshow is now underway in the Chinese capital. This year, many French brands are trying to tap the advantage as the country celebrates the 50th anniversary of China-French ties. For more details on this, here is our reporter Ding Lulu.
Reporter:
This is just a part of the hustle from the noisy Beijing Auto show, held at the China International Exhibition Center. In fact, more than 100 carmakers and 1134 vehicles from around the world are vying for attention.
Some automakers have brought some big-name celebrities with them to help draw attention, including the likes of David Beckham, Sophie Marceau, and South Korea's latest upstart celebrity Kim Soo-Hyun.
The latter's brief appearance, lasting barely a minute, was cut short, allegedly to avoid causing a stampede.
Carmakers are targeting younger buyers.
DS General Manager Arnaud Ribault.
"For DS 5LS in particular, we target young people, 30-35 years old, looking for new experience, and we call them, the T-generation. The T-generation is those who have taste, talented, the generation of touch, technology and transformers."
DS is a French brand and, because 2014 marks 50 years of diplomatic relations between France and China, the automaker has taken out some extra space at the Beijing Auto Show.
"Maybe you've seen at the main entrance of the motor show today, that we have a second booth. In fact it is a booth for the 50 anniversary between France and China. There we exhibit the original DS19, from General de Gaulle. He was the first president of western countries to establish relations with the republic of China. So I think DS is a good symbol of this time and a good symbol of our relation."
And DS is not the only French brand to take advantage of the anniversary.
Qu Gang speaks for Dongfeng Peugeot-Citro?n.
"As China and France celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations and cultural exchange, Dongfeng Peugeot-Citro?n is also doing its bit. We've signed an agreement with the French embassy to sponsor the 2014 Croisements Festival and a gala on science and technology exchanges."
And it seems the connection to French culture is waking up some stereotypes among potential buyers.
Ms. Liu is forty-ish and in the international courier service industry.
"I think French cars look noble and graceful, that's why I am here to have a look at them."
Another noticeable trend at this year's Beijing auto show is the surge of new SUV models.
It is only natural because middle and high-end SUV sales have maintained growth of nearly 28 percent in the previous quarter, compared to growth of automobiles in general at less than 15 percent.
For CRI and China.com, I'm Ding Lulu.
Sports
Ding Junhui knocked out by Michael Wasley in the first round of Crucible
In snooker,
World number four Ding Junhui has been knocked out by Englishman Michael Wasley in the first round of the World Championship at the Crucible.
Ding was leading Wasley 9-8 before the match was suspended due to long hours.
But when match resumed Wasley staged a comeback and took the next two frames in a row to win the best-of-19-frames game at 10-9.
Later today,
John Higgins will resume his match against Alan McManus in an all-Scottish match.
McManus took a 6-3 lead after the first nine frames.
Around the same time, Marco Fu of Hong Kong will take on Englishman Martin Gould in his first round match.
Also today, its Barry Hawkins going up against David Gilbert.
Judd Trump meets Tom Ford.
Ricky Walden faces Kyren Wilson while Northern Irishman Mark Allen plays England's Michael Holt.
Meb Keflezighi becomes the first American male runner to win the Boston Marathon
Meb Keflezighi has become the first American male athlete in three decades to win the Boston Marathon amid tightened security.
The win took place in an emotion-charged city which is still recovering from last year's fatal bomb-attack.
Keflezighi pulled ahead of a pack of elite African runners a little more than halfway into the race.
The 38-year-old then held off a late challenge by Kenya's Wilson Chebet to take the race at two hours, eight minutes, 37 seconds.
Chebet finished second and fellow Kenyan Frankline Chepkwony was third.
Among the women runners, Kenya's Rita Jeptoo notched her second consecutive win at the Boston marathon, clocking two hours, 18 minutes and 57 seconds.
Three people were killed and 264 were hurt when homemade bombs exploded at the crowded finish line at last year's race.
Manchester City beat West Brom 3-1 to move within six points of Liverpool
European football news,
First from the English Premier League,
Title hopefuls Manchester City are now within six points of leaders Liverpool following a 3-1 victory over West Brom.
Off the pitch, major British newspapers are now in chorus, suggesting Manchester United boss David Moyes will be sacked in a very short period of time.
The Sun and the Daily Mirror report that the United board will fire him, but that it is not known whether this will happen before this weekend's home game against Norwich.
United, currently in seventh place with four games remaining, is on track to record its lowest-ever points tally in the Premier League.
To European champions league action,
One semi-final match is coming up later tonight as Jose Mourinho's Chelsea squad travels to Spain facing current La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid.
The Portuguese coach praised the team's opponents.
"I just repeat what I told before, to reach a Champions League semifinal and to be fighting for the Spanish title you must be a very important team and we respect that."
Atlectico is in the last four of the Champions League for the first time in 40 years and is the last unbeaten team in the competition, having won eight and drawn two of their previous 10 matches.
Guangzhou Evergrande faces do-or-die in Asian Champions League
Over here in the Asian Champions league,
Title holders Guangzhou Evergrande are now faced with a make-or-break situation as they host J-league side Yokohama Marinos in the last round of their group matches.
Guangzhou has conceded their last two games in a row, slipping from the leaders position to tie with the other four teams in the group at seven points.
Marcello Lippi's side will have win this match in order to make it to the knock out stage.
The match kicks off at 7 pm Beijing time at Guangzhou Tianhe Stadium.
Meanwhile, another Chinese side Guizhou Ren he will play Australia's Western Sydney.
Bottom dwelling Guizhou has already lost the chance to move to the next round, a repeat of their debut at last season's tournament.
Oklahoma City look to extend lead to 2 in first round series of the playoffs
In basketball,
The NBA playoffs continue this morning with two games coming up soon.
Tipping-off at 8, Oklahoma City Thunder will be looking to take a 2-0 series lead over Memphis.
Also in the West, the LA Clippers are at home to Golden State, looking to even their series at 1-games apiece.
That game get into action at 10:30 Beijing time.
Yesterday, it was the Miami Heat snatching their play-off first round opener against Charlotte.
Washington off to a winning start, 102-93 over Chicago.
And Portland walked away with a 122-120 win against Houston.
Entertainment
'Coming Home' Unable to Compete at Cannes Makes Zhang Yimou Sorry for Gong Li and Chen Daoming
(Coming Home)
Chinese film director Zhang Yimou has said he is sorry for his lead actress and actor, Gong Li and Chen Daoming, after it emerged that his new film "coming Home" will be showing out of competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
The drama tells the story of a Chinese man who is forced into marriage and flees to America, but on his return home he is sent to a labour camp.
The Chinese film industry received a boost in Europe recently after "Black Coal Thin Ice" won the Golden and Silver Bear awards for Best Film and Best Actor at the Berlin Film Festival, but Zhang himself seemed unconcerned that it won't be competiting for the coveted Palm D'or.
"I used to participate in various film festivals. Therefore, filming for me is not to compete in film festivals. It's decided by several part whether the film would compete (for the Palme d'Or) at Cannes Film Festival. I can't decide it subjectively. But I feel a little bit sorry for actress Gong Li and actor Chen Daoming. They could have competed with any actress or actor."
Zhang, was joined by the film's stars for a press conference in Beijing on last night.
Asked about box office expectations, Zhang responded that he cared more about the quality of the film rather than the box office takings.
Coming Home forced marriage is to hit Chinese screens on May 16th.
Captain America tops box office for third week
(Winter Soldier)
Marvel's Captain America: The Winter Soldier has topped the North American Box Office Chart for a third week in a row.
The comic book action film starring Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson and Robert Redford took some 26 million US dollars beating the animation Rio 2 into second place.
Heaven is for Real, the film based on a true story about a boy who claims to have visited heaven was number three over the weekend.
Johnny Depp's new sci-fi thriller Transcendence faired poorly however in fourth place. After poor reviews the 100 million dollar movie took just 11 million this weekend at the box office.
Jack White releases 'fastest record'
(White music)
Former White Stripes front man Jack White has achieved what he called the world's fastest released record.
He performed his new single "Lazaretto," for a small crowd at his Third Man Records store in Nashville.
It was recorded direct to acetate. The master was then rushed over to United Record Pressing plant in Nashville, where copies were pressed and returned to the store just four hours later.
Hundreds of fans lined up for the limited edition 7" vinyl record.
Afterwards White admitted to being nervous:
"I woke up about 4 in the morning last night, "Wow, I think there's about 12 or 13 things that could really go wrong tomorrow and they are not going to look good. And the worst part about it is people aren't going to understand when a plate breaks at the plant, or when the stop bath or whatever, or the silver spray booth isn't working. No one is going to understand that. They are just going to say, 'You said we were going to do it.' I just thought how difficult it would be to explain it to people if we didn't pull it off. So thank god we did."
White, who is behind such bands as The White Stripes, The Dead Weather and The Raconteurs as well as working as a producer, released the new single as part of a new album which will be out in June.
That’s it for this edition of the Beijing Hour.
A quick recap of headlines before we go.
The bodies of two Chinese passengers have been recovered from the wreckage of a sunken ferry off of the coast of South Korea...
Japan's Prime Minister has made an offering at a controversial war shrine, angering many countries across southeast Asia including China...
and top UN officials are expressing concerns over plans by the Syrian government to hold elections in June...
In Business...Netflix shares surge on higher-than-expected earnings...
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.
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