The Beijing Hour
Evening Edition
Shane Bigham with you this Tuesday, July 15th, 2014.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on the programme this evening...
The BRICS summit in Brazil gets underway soon... Chinese president Xi Jinping is there...
Israel has accepted a ceasefire in Gaza proposed by Egypt but Hamas and its militant wing have not...
And for the third time, Iraq's parliament has convened to try and select new leadership...
In business, several Chinese state-owned-enterprises will see reforms in ownership and management...
In sports, the victorious German World Cup squad is greeted back home by 10s of thousands of fans..
In entertainment, a Chinese actress lands a role in her first ever horror movie...
Weather
Beijing will be cloudy tonight with a low of 24 degrees Celsius. It will be cloudy tomorrow with a high of 32 degrees.
Meanwhile Shanghai will have some rain tonight, with a low of 23, tomorrow cloudy, with a high of 22.
Chongqing will be overcast tonight, 22 degrees the low, tomorrow overcast with a high of 29.
Also in Fenghuang county in central China's Hunan Province, local authorities have issued the highest-level warning for heavy rain today.
More than 120 thousand locals and tourists have been evacuated since Monday night as record downpours hit the county.
Fenghuang is a tourist destination renowned for its ancient town.
Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia
Islamabad, slight rain with a high of 39.
Kabul, sunny, 31.
Over in Australia
Sydney, overcast, high of 19.
Canberra, slight rain,9.
Brisbane, sunny, 22.
And finally, Perth will be sunny with a high of 16.
Top News
BRICS summit to kick off in Brazil
The sixth summit for BRICS countries is set to convene later on today in Brazil.
The two-day event will gather leaders from China, Brazil, Russia, India, and South Africa.
They will also meet leaders of the Union of South American Nations during the summit.
Inclusive and sustainable economic growth is the theme of the summit this year.
The bloc is also expected to announce the establishment of a development bank and a contingency reserve to deal with liquidity shortage.
Ahead of the start of the summit, a series of diplomatic events are taking place among leaders of the member countries.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has already sat down with leaders from Russia, India and South Africa.
In meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Xi Jinping says China welcomes India in joining the proposed Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank as a founding member.
He also urges early negotiated solution to border issues with India.
Modi has told Xi Jinping that his administration is looking forward to an impending state visit by the Chinese President to India in the near future.
Xi Jinping also pledged to strengthen ties with Russia and South Africa while meeting with leaders of the two countries.
Brazil, Russia vow to boost commerce
Leaders from Brazil and Russia have announced their intention to double their bilateral trade to 10 billion US dollars next year.
This is part of new agreements signed by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of the forthcoming BRICS summit.
The agreement covers areas such as education, energy, military and defense cooperation.
Meanwhile, preparations are now underway for the BRICS summit, with security used for the now-concluded World Cup being shifted to cover the leaders of the developing world.
"We can see that there is more security in place now, but we don't know if it is just because of the World Cup, if it is going to go back to normal now or if it will stay like this."
Around 100-thousand public security officers and 50-thousand soldiers were activated to ensure security during the World Cup.
Brazilian President rebut "Broken BRICS" argument
Anchor:
With economic issues expected to top the agenda of the BRICS summit in Brazil, economists say the bloc still remains a dynamic economy as a whole, and has great potential for inter-bloc trade.
CRI's CAO Yuwei has more.
Reporter:
Many Western observers have recently come to question the bloc's unity and vitality after the recent economic headwinds the five nations have faced.
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has rebutted the argument of a broken BRICS.
She says the temporary difficulty developing countries are facing is a result of the global economic crisis.
"In the past months, there was an ideology among some western media that the developing countries can not play an important role in the world economy any more. I believe it is a wrong assessment. Since 2008, many developed countries were effected with an economic downturn, and the developing countries started to feel the impact in some 3 or 4 years later."
The BRICS countries collectively represent almost 42 percent of world population, a quarter of global income, and 17 percent of world trade.
Despite slowing growth among the emerging economies, experts say the group remains a driving force on a global scale.
Cui Li, managing director of China Macro Research at Goldman Sachs.
"As the biggest emerging markets, they will still be quite important. The last few years, the BRICS still contributed close to half of global growth. So that is a lot in terms of how much these countries are contributing, right? So they're very important entities."
BRICS countries now account for 21 percent of global economic output and have contributed more than 50 percent of world economic growth in the past decade.
Dr. Chen Mo, research fellow at Emerging Markets Institute of Beijing Normal University, Says there is still a lot of room for trade cooperation among BRICS countries to grow.
"There is potential for further development everywhere. I can name it. For example, the Siberia part of Russia is rich in minerals, rich in land that can be farmed. Countries like Brazil and China can provide both manpower and technology to do it. And while India is lacking infrastructure in power, in rail roads, in education, other countries can certainly help."
Official figures show that trade within the BRICS group surged over 3-billion US dollars by early 2013 and may reach 500 (billion) US dollars by 2015.
For CRI, I'm Cao Yuwei.
HK chief secretary reports on constitutional development
Anchor:
Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying has submitted a report to the National People's Congress Standing Committee on possible revisions to how the region's chief executive and local legislature will be elected in the future.
CRI's Hong Kong correspondent Li Jing has the story.
Report:
While the report does not directly rule out the option of allowing the general electorate to nominate Chief Executive Candidates, it stresses that the power of nomination is only vested in a nominating committee and that such power of nomination must not be undermined or bypassed.
The report also points out that the community generally agrees that the future leader must love the country and love Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying says the local government had considered handing in the report to Beijing at a later date to allow for more public discussion.
"With more time, we may narrow the disputes and reach a common agreement, but there are many follow-up works to be done. For example, we need to make legislation for the new electoral methods if we will introduce universal suffrage in the 2017 election. We know it takes time for that, with many important details."
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress is expected to make an initial decision on the SAR's reform path late next month.
The report summarizes the views of the people of Hong Kong regarding electoral reform collected through a five-month public consultation exercise.
Separately, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam briefed legislators on the results of a government public consultation on the 2017 Chief Executive and 2016 Legislative Council polls.
Lam acknowledges the hope of some people for civil nomination, and says the local government will reflect these views to Beijing.
"The HK Government respects the public expressing their opinions via peaceful, rational and lawful channels, in particular their aspiration for universal suffrage for the CE election and their determination to uphold freedom, democracy, the rule of law and other core values. The Government has listened to all the views expressed by the community and would truthfully reflect them to the Central Authorities."
Carrie Lam also says the submission of the report marks the first step in the political reform in Hong Kong. After the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress has made a decision, the Hong Kong Government will launch another round of public consultation around the end of the year to collect views on specific proposals on universal suffrage for the Chief Executive election in 2017.
For CRI, this is Li Jing in Hong Kong.
Hamas rejects Egyptian cease-fire proposal
Palestinian group Hamas has rejected an Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire with Israel.
The announcement comes moments after the Israeli Cabinet accepted the plan.
Hamas says they reject any truce that does not meet the demands of the resistance movement.
Sami Abu Zuhri is the Hamas Spokesman.
"We in the Hamas movement did not receive information from any of the other sides regarding the aggression in Gaza - we only heard about these proposals in the media. These suggestions have no value because they were not proposed to the movement and nobody discussed it with the movement before. To end the fighting, before reaching the conditions of the resistance, we refuse it."
Earlier, the group said it welcomed Egypt's efforts but will not accept the ceasefire without conditions.
Khaled al-Batch, a senior leader of the group, says what is needed is to agree to the demands of the Palestinians, including ending the siege of their territories and opening the border crossing.
But the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas welcomes the cease-fire plan, calling on all parties to commit so as to preserve Palestinian blood.
Israel has warmed Hamas that it will intensify its week-long offensive on Gaza militants if Hamas rejects the plan.
So far, at least 192 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli air strikes launched eight days ago.
The UN estimates that 80 percent of these are civilians.
In Israel, at least 10 people have been injured by rockets fired from Gaza.
Chinese Special Envoy on the Middle East Issues Wu Sike is due to visit Palestine and Israel starting from today.
US Secretary of State John Kerry is also due to discuss the situation in Cairo.
Questions for Egyptian ceasefire proposal
For more on this, earlier we spoke with Li Guofu, Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the China Institute of International Studies.
Back anchor:
Li Guofu, Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the China Institute of International Studies.
Iraqi parliament convenes to choose new leaders
Iraqi lawmakers have convened their third meeting, in an effort to choose new leaders to form a new government.
207 lawmakers out of 328 members of parliament were at the meeting.
They are scheduled to choose a new speaker and two deputy speakers later in the session.
The meeting was postponed twice from July 1 due to political differences to fill the vacant speakership.
According to the Iraqi constitution, a new president should be chosen within the next 30 days after the election of the speaker.
Following that, the new head of state will have half of month to ask the bloc with the most lawmakers to nominate a prime minister, who will be responsible for forming a new government.
With the country's ever deepening security crisis, a new unity government is now considered vital for Iraq to counter the Sunni insurgency, which is threatening to split the country apart.
Alongside the parliament meeting, security forces are launching a fresh offensive against militants in the city of Tikrit.
Located some 170 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, Tikrit is the hometown of former president Saddam Hussein.
It was seized by militants early in June.
Libyan govt pledges to try militia commanders
The Libyan government has called for rival militia groups fighting over Tripoli's international airport to stop immediately or face prosecution.
The airport serves as the main hub for several Libyan carriers.
Civil aviation authorities have announced a three-day closure of the airport after the attack.
Government spokesman Ahmed Lamine
"Ninety percent of aircraft have been severely damaged with repairs requiring months and hundreds of millions of dinars to repair. The control tower, fuel tanks, and trucks have been completely destroyed along with a number of civil aircraft belonging to national security. The airport customs building has also been destroyed along with the aircraft repairs building."
The fighting in Tripoli follows months of clashes in the eastern city of Benghazi.
It is reported that at least six people have been killed and 25 wounded in Benghazi in fighting between security forces and rival militias since late Sunday.
Misrata city airport has been also closed, and Benghazi airport has been shut down since May.
That leaves only two small airports in the south and a land route to Tunisia as the country's only gateways to the outside world.
Biz Reports
First off, let's have a quick look at the stock numbers across Asia.
Joining me in the studio, CRI's Cao Yuwei.
Reporter:
Most Asian stock markets closed on a higher note on Tuesday.
Chinese stocks posted modest gains as the city of Shanghai is expected to host the headquarters of the BRICS nations support bank.
At market close, the benchmark Shanghai Composite index added 0.2 percent.
The Shenzhen Component Index moved up 0.4 percent.
And Hong Kong's Hang Seng index surged half a percent.
Japan's Nikkei rose 0.6 percent, bolstered by better-than-expected U.S. corporate earnings reports.
South Korea's Kospi jumped just under 1 percent as the local currency weakened sharply to the U.S. dollar.
Singapore's Straits Times index ended flat.
And lastly Australia's ASX slipped 0.1 percent.
China names 6 SOEs for mixed-ownership reforms
Central authorities here have named six big state-owned enterprises to spearhead reforms of ownership and management.
The companies are State Development and Investment Corporation, China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation, China National Building Materials Group, China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group, Xinxing Cathay International Group and China National Pharmaceutical Group.
State-owned oil giants Sinopec and CNOOC were not listed, countering earlier expectations.
Among the six, four will experiment with mixed-ownership schemes while the other two will trial a board of directors system.
Shanghai Set to Host Support Bank for BRICS Nations
Anchor:
The city of Shanghai is set to become the headquarters of a development bank being launched by the BRICS nations.
Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are expected to sign off on the new institution later today, along with an emergency reserves fund.
The decision to have Shanghai as the headquarters has won strong backing from Russia.
The proposed bank will pool an initial 50 billion US dollars, with each country contributing an equal amount.
The BRICS will also set up a 100 billion contingency reserves fund that could help any of its members if they are hit by an exodus of foreign capital.
For more on Shanghai being tipped as the host city for the BRICS bank, I spoke earlier with He Ping, Associate Professor at Tsinghua School of Economics and Management.
Back to anchor: He Ping Associate Professor at Tsinghua School of Economics and Management.
Back Anchor:
He Ping, Associate Professor at Tsinghua School of Economics and Management.
MoC Welcomes WTO Ruling against US in Trade Spat with China
The Ministry of Commerce has welcomed a World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling that found the United States violated global trade rules when it imposed tariffs on products from China.
The ministry urged the US to respect the ruling, rectify its abuse of trade remedy measures and ensure an environment of fair competition for Chinese companies.
The WTO ruling covers multiple countervailing measures imposed by the US on Chinese steel and solar panels back in 2012.
The targeted Chinese products have an annual export value of more than 7.2 billion US dollars.
The US has the right to appeal the ruling.
Fiscal Spending Jumps for the Second Straight Month
Government spending in China jumped around 25 percent year-on-year for the second straight month in June.
Fiscal expenditure totaled 1.6 trillion yuan or just under 270 billion US dollars last month, after the Ministry of Finance told local governments to spend more to bolster the economy.
For the first four months, government spending rose only 9.6 percent year on year before jumping to 24 percent in May.
The Ministry of Finance says most of this budget went to public housing, rural-urban community projects and transportation.
China's FDI inflows recover in June
Official figures show that foreign direct investment into the Chinese mainland rebounded last month, edging up 0.2 percent to 14.4 billion US dollars.
Meanwhile, FDI for the the first half of this year has totaled 63.3 billion US dollars.
That is up 2.2 percent from the same period last year.
China CNR wins order to supply trains for Rio 2016
China CNR, one of the country's top train manufacturers, has secured a deal to supply 10 electric trains to Brazil.
The four-carriage train can take 1,300 passengers and travel at up to 100 kilometers per hour.
The trains will be used on the line between the 2016 Olympic Village and the Copacabana center in Rio de Janeiro.
China CNR has previously won orders for 34 subway trains for Rio de Janeiro.
China Construction Bank Set up NZ Subsidiary
China Construction Bank has set up a subsidiary in New Zealand.
The new operation will be fully owned by CCB and will change its name to China Construction Bank New Zealand.
The bank, CCB NZ, has named former New Zealand Prime Minister Jenny Shipley as head of its board of directors.
John Shewan, former chairman of PricewaterhouseCooper is also on the board.
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China became the first Chinese bank to register a subsidiary in New Zealand in November last year.
Japan's central bank downgrades GDP growth forecast for 2014
The Bank of Japan has lowered its forecast for the country's GDP growth rate for this year from 1.1 to 1.0 percent.
The central bank blames the cut on weak household spending and a sales tax hike.
The central bank meanwhile decided to maintain the bank's ultra-loose monetary policy aimed at achieving a 2 percent inflation goal.
Headline News
BRICS summit to kick off in Brazil
The sixth summit for BRICS countries is set to convene later on today in Brazil.
The two-day event will gather leaders from China, Brazil, Russia, India, and South Africa.
They will also meet leaders of the Union of South American Nations during the summit.
Inclusive and sustainable economic growth is the theme of the summit this year.
The bloc is also expected to announce the establishment of a development bank and a contingency reserve to deal with liquidity shortage.
NPC to decide on HK election methods
China's top legislature has received a report from Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying on possible revisions to how the region's chief executive and local legislature will be elected in the future.
Under the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress has final say on whether to revise the election methods of Hong Kong's chief executive in 2017 and its Legislative Council in 2016.
The report from Leung is based on the results of a public consultation by the Hong Kong government from Dec. 4 last year to May 3.
The NPC Standing Committee says decisions on the upcoming elections will be made according to the law.
Hamas rejects Egyptian cease-fire proposal
Palestinian group Hamas has rejected an Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire with Israel.
The announcement comes moments after the Israeli Cabinet accepted the plan.
Hamas says they reject any truce that does not meet the demands of the resistance movement.
Israel has warmed Hamas that it will intensify its week-long offensive on Gaza militants if Hamas rejects the plan.
Vietnamese fishing vessels found in Chinese waters
Two Vietnamese fishing vessels have been intercepted in Chinese waters off the coast of Hainan Province.
The Chinese coastguard has confirmed that one vessel was spotted in waters near Sanya City on June 25th and the other was found in the same area on July 3rd.
One of the boats has been confiscated, along with all fishing tools and the harvests on each boat.
The two boats had a combined crew of 13 people. The Chinese coastguard deported all of them today. One of the vessels has been returned to Vietnam.
One injured in NW China airport explosion
One person has been slightly injured in an explosion that rocked a parking lot of Caojiapu Airport of Xining, capital of northwest China's Qinghai Province on Tuesday afternoon.
The airport authorities say the victim is a cleaner, who has been sent to hospital.
The operation of the airport is normal now. No flights or passengers have been affected.
The authorities have declined to comment on if the explosion was a terrorist attack.
Moscow metro train derails, killing at least four
AT least 16 people have been confirmed dead and near a hundred were injured as a metro train derailed in Moscow during the morning rush hour on Tuesday.
The capital's health department says 24 people are in serious condition .
The train derailed during an emergency breaking in an underground tunnel in western Moscow between those stations.
Newspaper Picks
Global Times (China)
Brics summit of emerging nations to explore bank plan
It's likely that an agreement on the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) and the New Development Bank (NDB) will be reached, which means the two financial institutions will be officially established.
The article considers these as landmark events in the global financial sector since the CRA and the NDB have an initial capital of $100 billion and $50 billion each.
Although the scale cannot compete with that of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, it still means that emerging economies will have their own financial institutions.
It highlights this is a strategic starting point to diversify financing among developing countries.
Although the five countries have different political systems and unresolved territorial dispute, the paper still give a high comment on their dedication in their economic and social development.
With western opinion show an uneasy feeling over the possible competition, it says in the paper the trend of growth and prosperity of the non-Western world, they should learn to be open-minded to embrace the diversity of the world.
The Moscow Times (Russia)
Faced With Western Freeze-Out, BRICS Bank is a Coup for Russia
The paper says for Russia, the creation of the development bank and a reserve currency fund is a political coup.
The article continue to say just as the West freezes Russia out of its own economic system as punishment for its politics in Ukraine, Russia is tying itself into the financial superstructure of the next generation of economic heavyweights: India, Brazil, China and South Africa.
The World Bank and the IMF have come under criticism from the rapidly developing BRICS, who together account for 20 percent of global GDP and 40 percent of the world's population.
According to the paper, if the framework agreements due to be signed at the BRICS summit, are ratified at home, the new bank and the reserve fund could come just in time for the BRICS countries.
U.S. tightening of the dollar supply starting last year has caused a wave of crises in developing nations as the cash inflows of the past decade begin to reverse themselves.
Sunday Times (South Africa)
Brics to create Development Bank, 'mini-IMF'
The paper sees the new development bank and the reserve fund as "counterweights to Western-led financial institutions".
The article highlights the summit as a mark that the first face-to-face meeting between India's new Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jiping.
For Russian President Vladimir Putin, the trip gives him a chance to hammer home his calls for a "multipolar" world amid tensions with the West over the Ukraine crisis.
Russia has been excluded from the G8 group of industrialized powers as punishment for its annexation of Crimea and perceived meddling in Ukraine.
The summit comes as the economies of some BRICS countries are cooling down.
The article cites experts' idea that the creation of the bank will give a backbone to the BRICS, which is not a formal international organization.
The paper continues to cite that the bank is "key to foster growth for the BRICS countries".
--
India Today(India)
New cooperation may help to relieve old disputes
The paper gives a high comment on the new development bank.
It says this bank will give all the BRICS countries more growth opportunities economically and financially.
Many have concerns over the competition brought by this move, especially people from the western world.
The article emphasizes the positive side of the new type of cooperation among the BRICS countries.
The paper also said the group will stick to its principles of assisting member states rather than creating trouble for them.
Unlike the nations of the G7 group led by the US or the G20, some of whom only pick fights with other countries during summits, the BRICS summit is a platform full of positive momentum.
The paper continues to say the cooperation is a possible solution to some traditional issues, such as territorial disputes between India and China.
Special Reports
Illegal Online Gambling
Anchor:
"What is your bet today" and "who will be the winner today" became popular greetings among certain football fans in China during the recently-completed World Cup in Brazil.
CRI's Chloe Lyme tells us many fans of the game became gambling fans, thanks to online betting and internet lottery schemes, despite the fact that online gambling on soccer is illegal in China.
Anchor:
Besides the heated World Cup matches, another section getting popular in China are gambling websites.
The Ministry of Public Security says during the World Cup period, some 108 suspects have been arrested for illegal gambling nationwide.
A Beijing resident tells his experience in betting online.
"it's just betting online. There are different kinds of lotteries and odds, and you can choose your favorates according to all the information. I haven't bought a lot and it's just for fun. I invested 1000yuan for about 10 matches and lost 300 yuan during the World cup period."
However, many online betters are not aware that the online lottery is the only legal form of soccer gambling so far in China.
Besides that, all the other internet gambling tools are illegal.
Yang Zenghui, a lawyer with the YueCheng Law Firm in Beijing, further explains.
"According to current laws in China, the soccer lottery is issued and organized by the government, and there are relevant supervising procedures. Soccer lottery is legal because the fund it's generating goes to charity. But other online bettings are actually gambling, which is illegal in our law."
Yang says setting up and running online football pools can lead to sentencing of to up to ten years in jail.
He adds that gamblers are not protected by relevant laws and regulations, even if they are left broke.
"Firstly, the debtor and creditor relationship formed through gambling activities are illegal. For example, the loan between dealers and gamblers is not protected by the law. Secondly, if someone is convicted of gambling, he will have to bare legal responsibilities. According to relative laws, taking part in gambling activities could be detained for up to 10 days and fined for 3000 yuan at most. "
Beijing police have seized around 9.6 million U.S. dollars linked to illegal betting during the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
The Municipal Public Security Bureau says 47 people were arrested in eight cases.
Infamous Internet celebrity Guo Meimei was among those arrested when police busted a gambling ring this week.
Guo became known in 2011 as she claimed on social media that she managed an organization under the Red Cross Society of China and openly flaunted her wealth and extravagant lifestyle.
The scandal dealt a major hit to the reputation of the Red Cross Society of China.
For CRI, I'm Chloe Lyme
Sports
Alberto Contador crashes out of Tour de France stage 10
In Cycling
Alberto Contador has crashed out in stage 10 of the Tour de France.
The two time former winner is just the latest of many big names to crash out in the tours 101st edition.
The defending champion Chris Froome dropped out after several accidents left him battered and bruised in stage five.
The persistent rain both in the in England and then in France have made the already action-packed opening stages even more treacherous.
Managing to handle the difficult conditions best is the Italian rider Vincenzo Nibali who has once again regained the leader's yellow jersey.
The Giant-Shimano rider broke away 3km from the finish line for his second stage win meaning he now has an overall lead of two minutes 23 seconds.
Turkish Orken wins 9th stage of Tour of Qinghai Lake
Sticking with road cycling,
Turkish rider Ahmet Orken has finished first in stage nine of the Tour of Qinghai Lake.
The Torku Sekerspor rider won the grueling 118 kilometre stage which includes three sprints.
The green jersey for the best sprinter went to Mykhaylo Kononenko of KLS, toppling Ilya Davidenok from Continental Team Astana (AS2) who has been holding the jersey for four consecutive stages.
Ilya Davidenok still owned the yellow and blue jerseys that represent the overall leader and best Asian rider.
MLB All Star Game
Tomorrow morning at 8, right after the morning edition of the Beijing Hour wraps up, Major League Baseball's 85th annual All Star Game begins.
The Summer Classic is more than just a showcase of MLB's best talents. The Game between the National League and the American League has consequences for the playoffs this fall.
The winning league earns home field advantage during the World Series, baseball's best-of-seven championship. Historically, the team with the higher winning percentage automatically had the home advantage.
Earlier today, the annual Home Run Derby was held. Oakland Athletics outfielder Yeonis Cespedes won the event for the second consecutive year.
He is the first player to win the title in back-to-back years since Ken Griffey Jr. in 1998 and 1999.
Jamaican Athletes Powell and Simpson drug ban reduced
In Athletics,
Jamaican Sprinters Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson have had their doping bans reduced from 18 months to SIX.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport decided to reduce their bans following an appeal by the athletes.
They put forward that the offense committed was minor because they tested positive due to contaminated food.
With six months of ineligibility already served, both Powell, the former 100m World record holder, and Simpson, the 2008 Beijing Olympics 100 meter silver medalist, will be able to return to competition immediately.
Mo Farah still unsure about Commonwealth games
There are now serious doubts whether Mo Farah will be fit to compete in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow later this month.
The 5,000 and 10,000 metre gold medalist at London 2012 pulled out of the weekend's diamond league competition, and said he is still unsure whether he'll be fit by the start of the games on July 27.
The 31-year-old Somalian born British Athlete was recently hospitalized with abdominal pains and has missed a lot of training in the buildup.
The Commonwealth Games take place every four years Glasgow 2014 will see 71 Commonwealth Nations sending teams and delegates.
First Black Female Olympic Gold Medalist Dies Alice Coachman Davis Age 90
Alice Coachman Davis, the first black female athlete to win an Olympic gold medal, has died at the age of 90.
The US high jumper won gold at the 1948 London Olympic Games with an American and Olympic record of 1.68 meters, according to USA Track and Field.
She speculated that she could have won even more gold medals earlier during her peak years but the Olympic games were called off in 1940 and 1944 due to the Second World War.
Davis was introduced to the USA Track and Field Hall of fame in 1975, and was to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 2004.
CAA president warns of African nations submitting over-age athletes to Nanjing youth Olympics
The president of the Confederation of African Athletes has said he's concerned about many nations on the continent submitting over aged competitors ahead of the Youth Olympics.
Colonel Hamad Kalkaba Malbourn said it beats the logic of organizing youth events if some nations submit senior athletes to gain an edge.
He said he had seen some competitors at the recent Africa Youth Games who were clearly over-age and said the practice is discouraging.
Malbourn called on national Olympic committees and governments to stamp out the practice.
The Youth Olympics are for competitors with a maximum age of 17-years-old. This year they are taking place in the Chinese city of Nanjing in August.
Entertainment
Chinese Pay-TV firm launches 80 mln USD investment in Kenya
Chinese Pay-TV firm StarTimes have announced they are investing 80 million US dollars into Kenya.
The digital company will use the money to set up an African headquarters and dubbing centre for film and broadcast TV in Kernya.
Cabinet Secretary for sport, arts and culture in Kenya, Hassan Wario, said the government remains committed to progressively easing the way of doing business in the country, attracting increased foreign direct investment and subsequently improving the lives of Kenyans.
According to the Group's president Pang Xingxing, since establishing operations in Kenya, they have found an operating environment that has facilitated the growth of the business.
The Kenyan subscribers have equally shown an insatiable appetite for affordable digital television service.
The base will see the setup of six units including a StarTimes African Headquarter, StarTimes Kenya offices, a Film and Television Dubbing Center, StarTimes Broadcast Station, Digital TV research and development centre as well as a Training Center, all in Karen, Nairobi.
The completion date for the StarTimes' African headquarters is expected at the end of 2015.
Jiang Yiyan stars in first horror movie
Chinese actress Jiang Yiyan has starred in her first ever horror movie.
The 31 year old actress said the new movie Bunshinsaba 3 has made her a new fan of thrillers.
South Korean director of the film, Ahn Byeong-ki said because horror films are new to Jiang, her true feelings could be expressed through her acting, enabling the intense feeling of fear to be more natural.
Jiang Yiyan gained fame for her role's in Nanjing! Nanjing!, Deadly Deadly Delicious and Bullet Vanishes.
The actress has long been recognized for her adorably sweet character in film roles.
Bunshinsaba was released in China in July, 2012.
The film grossed almost 10 million US dollars in the first seven days.
Since the film's release, Ahn Byeong-ki became the first South Korean director to set up his own workshop in China.
Bunshinsaba II, which was released last year, was again a box office hit earning around 13 million US dollars.
Californian Politicians call for Fox News host to resign
Californian politicians have called for Fox News host Bob Beckal to resign over his recent racial slur about Chinese people.
California State Senator Ted Lieu's call came after Beckal said during a broadcast on Fox News' program "The Five", that "Chinese are the single biggest threat to the national security of the US", just one of the comments made by Beckal.
Lieu said that Beckel's comment was the second time he had made ill-considered remarks about Chinese people.
The TV host has since apologized for making the comment, saying that he was sorry he had apparently offended some people," but that he was not sorry about the remarks he had made about China.
Judy Chu, a Democratic U.S. representative from California said she was deeply offended, and Beckal should go immediately.
Fox News had nothing further to add beyond Beckal's comments.
Doctor Who Footage Leaked Online
(Doctor Who)
Rough footage from the new Doctor Who series has leaked online, six weeks prior to broadcast.
The incomplete BBC material featuring the latest Time Lord, Peter Capaldi, was in black and white, missing special effects and was heavily watermarked.
BBC Worldwide said the breach was caused by a BBC Office in the US and urged fans not to use the material.
This is a huge blow to the new Doctor Who series, the news comes just a week after a set of scripts for the program marked 'private and confidential' was also leaked online.
BBC Worldwide said the breach was "part of an ongoing investigation into leaked unfinished Doctor Who materials".
The first episode of the new series will be screened on BBC One on 23rd of August.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes beats Transformers in US Box Office
New movie "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" has beaten the Transformers in the US box office.
(Apes)
In its opening weekend the Apes epic took 73 million US dollars, topping the chart which saw Transformers: Age of Extinction slip to second with just 16.5 million dollars.
Set 10 years after 2011's Rise of the Planet of the Apes, the sequel follows the battle for dominance between humans and intelligent apes.
Directed by Cloverfield's Matt Reeves, the film stars Andy Serkis who famously played Gollum in Lord of the Rings, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell and Jason Clarke.
The film opened more strongly than its predecessor, which took just over 54 million US dollars during its opening weekend.
A second sequel to be directed by Reeves is already in the works to further extend the franchise which first began with 1968's Planet of the Apes.
"The Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" opens in Hong Kong on the 17th July.
That's it for this edition of the Beijing Hour - a quick recap of headlines before we go:
The BRICS summit in Brazil gets underway soon... Chinese president Xi Jinping is there...
Israel has accepted a ceasefire in Gaza proposed by Egypt but Hamas and its militant wing have not...
And for the third time, Iraq's parliament has convened to try and select new leadership...
In business, several Chinese state-owned-enterprises will see reforms in ownership and management...
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. |