Welcome to the Beijing Hour; we are coming to you live from the Chinese capital.

Coming up on the programme this evening:

The Chinese government is calling on authorities in Myanmar to protect Chinese citizens amid heavy fighting in the northeast of the country.

A manhunt is underway for a 3rd suspect involved in an attack on Chinese border guards in Guangxi.

A new round of negotiations are being planned following the failure of the latest round of Iranian nuclear talks in Geneva.

In business..... a massive sell-off seeing the biggest one-day drop on the mainland markets in some 6-years.

In sports... the queen of Chinese tennis poised to deliver an heir-apparent.

In entertainment.... China's star-studded Huading Awards have been held in Macau.

But first, a check on what's happening weather wise...

 

 

Weather

 

 

Beijing will be cloudy tonight, with a low of minus 5. It will continue to be cloudy tomorrow, with a high of 6 degrees.　

Meanwhile Shanghai will be cloudy tonight, with a low of 4, tomorrow will be overcast, with a high of 11.

Chongqing will be overcast tonight, 8 degrees the lowest, tomorrow will be cloudy with a high of 15.

Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia

Islamabad will have scattered clouds tomorrow with a high of 23.

Kabul, sleet, 5.

Over in Australia

Sydney, showers, highs of 26.

Canberra, rainy, 26.

Brisbane, thundershowers, 29.

Finally, Perth will be sunny with a high of 37.

 

 

Top News

 

 

China urges Myanmar to protect Chinese nationals (followed by q&a)

 

The Chinese government is calling on authorities in Myanmar to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals in that country amid reports that hundreds of Chinese nationals have become trapped by heavy fighting in northern Myanmar.

A number of Chinese citizens have also been detained by authorities in Myanmar.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei.

"China has required Myanmar to effectively protect the safety and legitimate rights of Chinese nationals. The Myanmar side says it attaches importance to China's concerns and treat the detained Chinese nationals well. The Chinese embassy in Myanmar has sent personnel to visit those people and provide necessary assistance to them."

Hundreds of Chinese citizens do cross-border business in Myanmar, which borders the province of Yunnan.

Heavy fighting erupted in northern Myanmar on Thursday after Kachin rebels ambushed a convoy carrying a regional minister.

Tang Xianying is a correspondent of Guangming Daily of China in Myanmar.

"The Myanmar government is conducting peace negotiations with rebel forces and had been hoping to sign a nationwide ceasefire on February 12th. But the renewed conflict in Kachin has cast a shadow over the prospect of the national reconciliation process."

The Katchin rebels, one of a large number of armed minorities in Myanmar, took up arms in 1961.

For more on the situation in Myanmar, we spoke earlier with Song Qing-run, an expert in Southeast Asian affairs with the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

 

 

China FM urges Japan not to complicate China-India border issue

 

The Chinese government is calling on the Japanese government to keep out of border issues between China and India.

The call comes following comments from Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, who is being quoted saying a disputed area along the border with Tibet is Indian territory.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hong Lei.

"China's stance on the disputed area on the eastern part of the China-India border is consistent and clear. Currently, China and India are seeking solution on the border issue through the special representative mechanism, which is to be considered as fair and acceptable by both sides. So as it is very sensitiveness to both China and India, we hope Japan will be understandable on this and respect China and India's hard work on solving border disputes, as well as being deliberate in both speech and action."

The disputed region of "Arunachal Pradesh" is located along India's eastern border with Tibet.

The two sides have been negotiating through special representatives since 2003.

 

 

Two Uygurs killed in Guangxi while trying to enter Vietnam

 

A manhunt is underway in South China for a suspect wanted in connection with an attack on Chinese guards last night on the border with Vietnam.

Authorities shot and killed two of three people, Uyghur's from Xinjiang, who attacked the border guards after being stopped trying to cross the border illegally.

Officials say the group are terror suspects who had been hoping to find safe refuge outside of China.

Chinese authorities have been leading a crackdown since May on people trying to help smuggle terror suspects out of the country.

Gao Zhaoyi is with the Public Security Bureau in Xinjiang.

"Smugglers cajole people into this by telling them how happy they and their family will be after crossing the border. But in most cases, their lives become desperate, as they don't have money and personal safety. This means young people are sacrificed to 'jihadists'. In cases like this, often times the old, women and children are abandoned."

Mehmetti al-Shem is one of those who left China with the hope of joining a 'jihad'.

"In the beginning, I thought we would be living in pretty good conditions. However, things were extremely bad. We did not have access to drinking water and could only eat dry naan bread for two months. I really regret making the decision, and I even thought of going to war in Syria, and ending my life there."

Al-Shem was repatriated to China after being arrested in Pakistan.

Since launching the campaign in May, Chinese authorities have arrested 350 alleged human smugglers.

 

 

Europol head: Stoppnig Terror Attacks Much More Difficult than Before

 

The European Union's foreign policy chief is calling for a broad alliance, including Muslim countries, in the fight against extremists.

Federica Mogherini has issued the call at a summit in Brussels.

The meetings in Belgium have been held in the wake of the Paris terror attacks and subsequent raids targeting terror suspects in Belgium, France and Germany.

Meanwhile, the head of Pan-European police agency Europol has gone on-record admitting that stopping attacks by extremists has become "much more difficult" in a post-9/11 world.

Rob Wainwright says they estimate anywhere from 25-hundred to 5-thousand Europeans who have become radicalized.

He says they have a very limited command and control structure, and are becoming increasingly sophisticated.

"That's the real challenge that the police face now, not just dealing with the scale of the problem and the numbers of people involved but the way in which it's much looser than we've seen before. It's not the same as in the days of 9/11 when we had an identifiable command and control structure. It's something much more difficult now, moving rather insidiously in our communities and across the Internet in particular. It's a real challenge for police right now."

The Paris attacks covered a span of three days, and involved three individuals who al-Qaeda claims it trained and sponsored.

 

 

North Korea reasserts its proposal in the U.S-N Korea talk in Singapore

 

North Korea is calling on the US to discontinue its joint military drills with South Korea.

The call comes as talks between US and North Korean representatives take place in Singapore.

The bilateral meetings are the latest attempt by Washington to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea has long-insisted the joint military drills are a prelude to war.

The US and South Korea both insist the drills are strictly defensive in nature.

 

 

South Korean president instructs leaders to create conditions for dialogue with DPRK

 

South Korean President Park Geun-hye has instructed officials to make efforts to create conditions for a dialogue with the North.

The instruction came during the joint annual reports to Park by four ministries in charge of unification, defense and foreign affairs.

Park called on officials to "make efforts to come up with conditions under which the North can respond" to Seoul's offer to hold a dialogue in January.

The president said in her New Year's press conference that she is open to summit with North Korean top leader Kim Jong Un.

 

 

Iran Nuclear Talks will Open Again Next Month

 

Iran and the P5+1 grouping have announced plans for a new round of nuclear talks after making limited progress in negotiations in Geneva over the weekend.

The talks come just weeks before a March deadline for a political agreement.

A comprehensive agreement is supposed to be worked out by the end of June.

Wang Qun is China's lead negotiator at the talks.

"The current round of negotiations is very serious, very pragmatic and in depth, with existing consensus expanded, and the next round of negotiations is anticipated to be held early next month."

Iranian chief negotiator Abbas Araqchi.

"It's too soon to say if we are able to make any progress or not, we are still trying to bridge the gaps between the two sides. We try our best and, as I have always said, as diplomats we are always hopeful."

Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany, have been working on finalizing a new nuclear deal for over a year since reaching an interim accord in November 2013.

The last deadline, which was missed, saw both sides extend negotiations into this year.

 

 

Poroshenko vows to retake east in a Kiev rally

 

Ukraine's president has taken part in a march in Kiev to commemorate those who lost their lives in a shelling incident last week in the Donetsk region.

Thousands have taken to the streets in the Ukrainian capital.

Petro Poroshenko is suggesting last week's shelling of a bus which left a dozen people dead is an act of terrorism.

"'Je Suis Charlie' means that I'm standing with victims attacked by terrorists. Today our huge caravan of dignity is full of patriots of Ukraine who are holding a paper with the sign 'I'm Volnovakha', 'Je Suis Volnovakha'. I have this badge."

Ukrainian authorities are pointing the finger at separatists in the region for being behind the shelling of the bus.

Rebel forces in control of the Donetsk region have denied responsibility, putting the blame on Kiev.

A shell hit a commuter bus at a check-point around 10-kilometers from Donetsk on Tuesday, killing 12 people, in what is being described as the bloodiest single incident in the fight in eastern Ukraine since the signing of a loosely-held ceasefire in September.

 

 

Preview of Obama's State of Union Address

 

Anchor:

Observers are suggesting US President Barack Obama's annual State of the Union address on Tuesday is going to contain a number of small initatives meant to help people's daily lives.

CRI Washington correspondent He Fei has more.

Reporter:

US President Barack Obama has pushed hard to implement his agenda even after the Republicans took control of Congress.

These include the hotly debated Presidential decree halting the deportation of illegal immigrants and reestablishing diplomatic relations with Cuba that has stalled for almost half a century.

However, the US media and political pundits all say that they are not expecting much from the President's upcoming State of Union address.

Allan Lichtman is a History Professor at the American University.

He says the annual Presidential address, despite all the fanfare, was a rather "boring" affair. He doesn't foresee any grand initiatives that might be announced in the upcoming address. But there are some smaller changes that could still have a large impact.

"He has certainly signaled he is going to push for a program to provide free two-year's of community college for high school graduates across the country."

This is among the three new proposals that President Obama has unveiled in the week leading up to his address. The other two focuses on strengthening cyber security and expanding broadband access and giving workers paid family leave.

But Congress has a tendency to sideline the policy proposals which the President unveils. This year, Obama faces an uphill battle to convince the congress led by Republicans to increase government spending to implement such policies.

Prof. Allan Lichtman again.

"I think that there are a couple of things that they could agree on, and I think I pointed some of those out. Cyber security – I mean, that's pretty non-controversial. Perhaps some kind of tax reform, but I'm much less optimistic about that. And perhaps the Trans-Pacific Partnership."

According to Lichtman, the State of the Union address is more of a ritual to pump up the spirits of the American people.

In addition to focusing on domestic challenges and the economy, Obama is also expected to touch upon the challenges abroad. This year, ISIS and Iran are expected to top his list of concerns.

For the first time Obama's first big post-speech interview will be broadcast online via YouTube and not via traditional media like established Newspapers or even a TV news channel.

For CRI, I'm He Fei in Washington.

 

 

China Nabs 49 Duty Criminals in Three Months

 

Chinese prosecutors say they've managed to round-up nearly 50 officials who fled China with government money during the final quarter of last year.

Xu Jinhui is the head of the top prosecuting body's anti-graft division.

"Since the operation started, Chinese authorities managed to arrest 49 suspects who fled to more than 17 countries and regions, including the US, UK and Canada in three months ending 2014."

Four of the suspects are accused of stealing more than 10-million yuan, or more than 1.5 million US dollars.

3 of them have been at large for more than 10-years.

One official with the National Tax Bureau has been repatriated with funds worth around 35 million yuan.

 

 

Biz Reports

 

 

Anchor:

First, let's have a look at the numbers across the Asian markets this Monday evening.

Joining me on the desk is Yu Yang.

Reporter:

A major downturn on the Chinese markets today, with both indices seeing their biggest single-day plunge in over 6-years.

Led by a major sell-off in brokerage firms and commercial banks, the Shanghai Composite Index finished down 7.7 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index lost 6.6 percent.

Brokerage shares were the day's biggest losers, with the nation's three largest firms losing their daily limit of 10 percent.

The massive sell-off comes ahead of the release of China's GDP growth figure for the fourth quarter, which many observers are suggesting could lead to another sell-off on the mainland markets.

The downturn in the Chinese banking stocks also resonated in Hong Kong, where the Hang Seng lost 1.6 percent.

Elsewhere in Asia,

The Japanese Nikkei rose nearly 1 percent as investors bet on more stimulus to be announced at the European Central Bank's policy meeting later this week.

South Korea's KOSPI added four-fifths of a percent.

And both Australia's ASX 200 and Singapore's Strait Times Index gained one-fifth of a percent.

 

 

Crackdown on margin trading dampens market sentiment

 

The sharp decline on the markets in China on Monday follows a late-Friday announcement of a crackdown by securities regulators.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission has suspended a dozen brokerages from opening new margin trading accounts for the next 3 months.

Among them, CITIC, Haitong and Guotai Securities have been banned for allowing traders to repay their credit after their contracts expired.

Margin trading is when brokerages float a line of credit to investors.

Observers are suggesting the move may be a signal that regulators are concerned about the significant rallies seen on the Chinese A-share market in the past couple of weeks.

 

 

Shanghai Stock Exchange Opens Probe into Train Makers' Insider Trading

 

An official investigation has been opened into allegations of insider trading among the executives of China's two largest train makers.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission is looking into reports that more than 20 senior executives of CNR and CSR, as well as some of their relatives, were involved in stock moves ahead of the October announcement of the two companies planned merger.

Officials with both companies have denied the allegations.

Shares of both CNR and CSR sky-rocketed after trading was re-opened at the end of the year.

 

 

China housing prices down at slower pace in December amid sales rebound

 

The continued drop in new homes prices here in China has slowed somewhat through December.

Latest figures from the National Bureau of Statistics show new home prices have dipped an average of 0.4 percent among the 70 cities monitored by the NBS.

The drop is slower than the 0.6-percent decline seen in November.

Shenzhen recorded a month-on-month increase of over 1 percent in new-home prices, the first city tracked by authorizes to post an increase in four months.

Still, prices have fallen in 65 of the 70 cities monitored.

Home prices in the cities of Hangzhou, Ningbo, Haikou, Wenzhou and Jinhua have retreated to price levels seen 5-years ago.

But at the same time, housing sales in the 70 cities hit the highest level seen in 2014, up by 9-percent on a monthly basis.

This was helped by recent policy relaxations including the interest rate cut in November.

 

 

Webank opens for trial period

 

Anchor:

Tencent's "WeBank" has officially opened for business.

The online bank is being limited to a few select customers for the time being to ensure its running properly.

WeBank has been set-up to serve individual customers and small and micro-sized businesses.

The Chinese banking sector has been traditionally reluctant to make loans to small businesses, as they try to maintain a low non-performing loan ratio.

For more on the establishment of WeBank, the Beijing Hour's Shane Bigham spoke earlier with Mike Bastin, Director of The China Business Centre based in London.

 

 

New FTZs will Debut on March 1st

 

It's been reported 3 new Free Trade Zones are going to be opened in China in March.

The Tianjin, Fujian and Guangdong Free Trade Zones have already been approved by the Chinese government.

Reports are suggesting the new FTZs will be unveiled at the same time the Shanghai FTZ expands to include Lujiazui Financial Street and two other high-tech parks in the city.

That move is going to increase the physical size of the Free Trade Zone four-fold.

The same report also says the new FTZ's in Tianjin, Fujian and Guangdong are also going to have the same negative list currently being used in the Shanghai FTZ.

Negative lists are areas that are not covered under the provisions of the Free Trade Zone.

It's considered more streamlined than a list of areas which can be involved in an FTZ.

 

 

State Grid Targets 40 billion yuan New Investment in 2015

 

Chinese power operator State Grid has announced that it's setting aside 42-billion yuan, or nearly 7 billion US dollars, for new investment this year.

This is up nearly 25-percent from the utility's spending increase from last year.

State Grid has plans to build 14 new power line projects.

The state-run power giant has also announced plans to extend three power lines to Kazakhstan, Russia and Pakistan this year.

This is part of the new Silk Road Initiative, and is part of State Grid's larger overseas ambitions.

The company has around 30-billion US dollars invested overseas.

 

 

Zurich Set to Become Next Yuan Clearance Hub in Europe

 

A new report is suggesting the Swiss city of Zurich is set to become the next RMB clearance hub in Europe.

The announcement is reportedly going to be made as part of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's time at the World Economic Forum meetings this week in Davos.

Li Keqiang is leading a large delegation of Chinese business leaders to this year's event.

Zurich is set to join a growing list of cities which will have RMB clearing centers, including Luxemburg, London and Paris, among others.

 

 

Russians Spend a Third Less in the UK in 2014

 

New analysis shows spending by Russian travellers in the UK has fallen 28-percent through last year.

Russia has fallen from the top-ten biggest-spending non-EU tourists in Britain.

Russians had been among the top five in spending before the Russian currency started to tumble.

This comes on the heels of analysis showing a 35-percent drop in the number of Russian tourists visiting the Chinese city of Sanya in Hainan through the first 10 months last year.

Russian tourists make up the largest group of foreigners visiting Hainan, which Russians consider the "Hawaii of Asia."

The Russian ruble has dipped over 40-percent against both the renminbi and the US dollar through the course of last year.

 

 

New direct flight links NW Chinese city and Bangkok

 

China Eastern has launched direct flights between Ningxia's capital, Yinchuan, and Bangkok.

The trip from northwestern China to the Thai capital takes just over 4-hours.

China Eastern is running the route 5-days a week.

 

 

Headline News

 

 

China urges Myanmar to protect Chinese nationals

 

The Chinese government is calling on authorities in Myanmar to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals in that country amid reports that hundreds of Chinese nationals have become trapped by heavy fighting in northern Myanmar.

A number of Chinese citizens have also been detained by authorities in Myanmar.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei says the Chinese embassy in Myanmar has sent personnel to visit those people and provide necessary assistance to them.

Hundreds of Chinese citizens do cross-border business in Myanmar, which borders the province of Yunnan.

Heavy fighting erupted in northern Myanmar on Thursday after Kachin rebels ambushed a convoy carrying a regional minister.

 

 

6 Killed in U.S. Drone Strike in NW Pakistan

 

At least 6 people have been killed in a fresh US drone strike in northwest Pakistan.

The strike has reportedly targeted a militant hideout.

It's unclear at this point who may have been the target.

This is the 3rd known US drone strike in Pakistan's tribal regions this year.

The Pakistani military has been engaged in a wide-spread crack-down on militants in the country's tribal regions since the summer.

Around 2-thousand people have been killed in the campaign.

 

 

Kerry to Attend Counter-IS Meeting in London

 

The US government has announced Secretary of State John Kerry is set to travel to London this week to take part in a foreign ministers' meeting connected to the battle against the Islamic State.

The US State Department says Kerry is set to arrive in the UK on Wednesday to consult with Britain and other coalition partners on how the battle against the militant group is going.

Around 20 foreign ministers from the coalition are scheduled to attend the session.

The Islamic State continues to hold large portions of eastern Syria and western Iraq.

 

 

Australia Foreshadows Diplomatic Action if Indonesia Executes Australian Citizens Convicted of Drug Smuggling

 

Australia's government is warning of a potential freeze in diplomatic ties with Indonesia if Jakarta goes ahead with the execution of two Australian citizens convicted of drug trafficking.

Brazil and the Netherlands have already recalled their ambassadors from Indonesia after two of their citizens were killed in a firing-squad for drugs offences over the weekend.

Indonesia has some of the strictest drug trafficking laws in the world.

Australia has been seeking clemency for two of the so-called Bali Nine, who were arrested in 2005 on charges of smuggling drugs into Australia via Bali.

Previous pleas for clemency have been rejected by Indonesian authorities.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo is also on-record saying his country's stand on drug offenses is appropriate.

 

 

Three Officials in Heilongjiang under investigation

 

Three officials in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province have been put under investigation for serious violations of law and party discipline.

The three are Yang Yanbin, vice mayor of Daqing City, Sun Yanbin, former Communist Party chief of Northeast Petroleum University and Fu Yancheng, former head of the Fuyuan county government.

China is continuing its intensive anti-graft campaign, targeting both high-ranking and minor officials.

 

 

Newspaper Picks

 

 

CHINA DAILY

Official blames smoked bacon for smog

While experts point to car emissions and city construction for causing foul air, a government official in southwest China's Dazhou city has laid the blame on people making smoked bacon.

The city of Dazhou in Sichuan province has endured heavy smog since the New Year began, with the PM 2.5 reading frequently exceeding healthy levels.

Rao Bing, deputy head of Dazhou Environment Protection Bureau, said earlier this month that one of the causes of the city's lingering smog is smoking bacon, a traditional method of preserving pork by local residents.

Eating preserved pork and sausages is a long-held tradition in Sichuan, and almost every household makes smoked bacon before the Chinese lunar New Year.

Local chengguan, or public civil servants, have started to raid and forcibly demolish meat-smoking sites.

--

AFP

Another player found dead at Internet café

A man has been found dead slumped in his seat at an Internet cafe in Taiwan's Kaohsiung city after a three-day gaming binge.

It was the second such case this year.

Doctors confirmed he had suffered cardiac failure, ruling it a "sudden death" from prolonged computer gaming.

It was not clear what the man was playing at the time of his death, with the report describing it only as "combat computer games."

On January 1, a 38-year-old man was found dead at an Internet cafe in New Taipei City after playing video games for five days straight.

Police said that in both cases other patrons appeared nonchalant about the deaths, continuing to play even when tables were cordoned off for investigators to gather evidence.

--

NEWS 24 (South Africa)

Zimbabwe to sell elephants

Zimbabwe's government says it must export elephants to raise funds for wildlife management.

According to the National Parks Service conservation, about 60 elephants will be sold for a price between 40-thousand and 60-thosuand US dollars each to China, France and the United Arab Emirates.

Conservationists say they are concerned by how the animals were rounded up, with calves separated from their mothers. They also questioned the conditions in which the animals are kept in Zimbabwe and abroad.

The Zimbabwean government has blamed poor profits in the tourism industry on an American ban on sport-hunted elephant trophies.

French representatives of Cites, the international body monitoring endangered species, and the Chinese embassy in Zimbabwe said they were unaware of the sale. Cites in the UAE says the country is expecting a family of seven elephants.

--

INDIAN EXPRESS

Alcohol not a good sleeping aid

A study has found that drinking before sleep results in an increase in frontal alpha power in the brain, a development which is associated with disturbed sleep.

For individuals who drink before sleeping, alcohol initially acts as a sedative – marked by the delta frequency electroencephalogram (EEG) activity of Slow Wave Sleep– but is later associated with sleep disruption.

For the study, the team recruited 24 participants, healthy 18- to 21-year-old social drinkers who had consumed less than seven standard drinks per week during the previous 30 days.

Each participant underwent two conditions: pre-sleep alcohol as well as a placebo followed by standard polysomnography (a multi-parametric test used in the study of sleep) with comprehensive EEG recordings.

Researchers say the take-home message here is that alcohol is not actually a particularly good sleep aid even though it may seem like it helps you get to sleep quicker.

 

 

Special Reports

 

 

WHO's Tobacco Control Video Competition

 

Anchor:

The World Health Organization's office in China is working to try to engage young people in its fight against tobacco through the use of digital video.

CRI's Zhou Jingnan has more.

Reporter:

This is from one of the entries submitted to the WHO China office's 2014 Tobacco Control Video Competition. From November to December last year, students from Peking University and Duke University submitted original videos, centering on the theme "Smoke free — a fashionable way to live your life".

Dr. Angela Pratt, head of the Tobacco Free Initiative at WHO's China office is happy with the students' creativity shown in the more-than two dozen videos.

"A lot of them have come up with things about smoking is not trendy, it's uncool, but lots of other quirky and creative ideas as well, (eg.) smoking means you won't be able to get a girlfriend, because the girls will find you unattractive if you smoke because your breath stinks."

The winning entry is an animated video called "Smoke free, barrier free". It depicts a bus stop where people around a smoker put on protective bubbles to avoid the smoke.

"And so he put out the cigarette, and then the bubble become a big cloud, and show a colorful world."

Zhang Hao from the winning team explains the message they try to convey.

"So we want to tell others, if everyone can quit smoke(ing), and environment will be better, and other people will be close to you."

In order to combat tobacco, the Chinese government has enacted a series of laws and regulations in the past few years, but the measures have often been dismissed as unenforceable. However, the Representative of the WHO in China, Dr. Bernhard Schwartlander, says China has been improving the effectiveness of its anti-smoking rules.

He highly appreciates the new law that bans smoking in public places.

"I think the new law is actually much better in particular not only as they are much more strict in describing which places would fall under these law, but also that they are much more clear (about) what happens if people don't adhere to that. A very specific example is that there have been regulations already that say that you shouldn't smoke in a restaurant, however there was no clarity at all whatsoever what happens if somebody actually breaches and does smoke in a restaurant, the new law, and that's a good example, is very clear in that the owner of the establishment, of the restaurant, is responsible for making sure that nobody smokes in his or her restaurant."

Apart from the ban on smoking in public places, China is also considering tough curbs on tobacco advertising.

For CRI, this is Zhou Jingnan.

 

 

Sports

 

 

 Asian Cup: 2015 Cup to set historical record

 

The 2015 AFC Asian Cup will be remembered as a record witness when it has posted the highest number of games without a draw at a major tournament.

Each of the group games, 20 by far, produced a winner, while only 18 consecutive matches finished with decisive results in the 1930 FIFA World Cup.

When the 1930 World Cup record was finally equalled after 80 years on last Saturday, China's 2-1 win over the DPR Korea and Uzbekistan's 3-1 defeat of Saudi Arabia on Sunday saw a new record of 20.

And in today's action:

Iran blanked the United Arab Emirates 1-0.

And it was Bahrain over Qatar, 2-1.

 

 

Tennis: Ana Ivonovic out of Aussie Open.

 

In tennis action:

Fifth-seeded Ana Ivanovic has fallen to Czech qualifier Lucie Hradecka in the first big upset of the Australian Open, and Ivanovic's worst result in a major since 2011.

The Serb blew a strong lead to lose 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 in front of her stunned supporters at Rod Laver Arena.

And in Men's action:

Rafael Nadal has bagged a 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 win over Russian veteran Mikhail Youzhny.

And Sixth-seeded Andy Murray, who has lost three Australian Open finals, began his quest for an elusive Australian title with a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 win over Indian qualifier Yuki Bhambri.

And from the first run of the Women's singles:

21st seed Peng Shuai from China, beat Tatjana Maria of Germany, 6-4, 7-5 into the second round. She was out in the first round last year in Melbourne due to a leg injury.

 

 

Chinese Tennis Legend Li Na expecting a child

 

Starting out with a heartwarming piece of off-court tennis news:

Retired Chinese tennis queen Li Na will soon play a whole new role in her life -- that of a mom.

The two-time Grand Slam winner announced Monday that she is expecting her first child. The announcement was met with thunderous cheers and applause from spectators in Rod Laver Arena where Li lifted the Australian Open title a year ago.

Li told the audience that her and husband Jiang Shan's first child is due this summer.

The 32-year-old retired during last year's China Open in October.

 

 

NBA: Utah falls to San Antonio 89-69 in season-low game.

 

It was a light schedule in the NBA today:

Tiago Splitter scored 14 points, Kawi Leonard had 12 points and nine rebounds and San Antonio never trailed while holding the Utah Jazz to a season-low scoring total in an 89-69 victory earlier today.

Tim Duncan added 11 points in 23 minutes for the Spurs, who have won three straight -- including two straight double-digit victories with Leonard back in the lineup.

And up in Toronto:

Tyreke Evans scored on a driving layup with 1.6 seconds left and the Pelicans beat the Raptors 95-93.

And down in Orlando:

Kevin Durant had 21 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and Oklahoma City ran past the Magic 127-99.

 

 

NFL: Superbowl 2015 set as Seattle bests Green Bay 28-22.

 

In NFL action:

Superbowl 2015 is now set. In the AFC, the New England Patriots clinched their spot with a merciless 45-7 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

And over in the NFC, The Seattle Seahawks have done it again. They beat Green Bay 28-22 earlier today to secure their spot for the second year in a row.

The game is set to be played on 1 February, at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendalde, Arizona.

 

 

Golf: Gary Stal beats Kaymer to take HSBC Champs

 

World number 357 Gary Stal of France won his first European Tour event, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, as overnight leader Martin Kaymer threw away a seemingly unbeatable lead.

Stal came from behind to finish on 269, one ahead of world number one Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland and two ahead of Germany's Kaymer.

Kaymer had dominated the event, leading by six shots overnight and extending it to ten until all started going wrong at sixth hole on the final round.

The German bogeyed the sixth, double-bogeyed the ninth and triple-bogeyed the 13th to go round in a three-over-par 75.

The 22-year-old Stal, with two victories in the second-stream Challenge Tour series to his name, went round in a seven-under 65, with seven birdies.

 

 

Golf: Jimmy Walker takes Sony Open

 

Jimmy Walker slammed the door on his competition and rebounded from last week's disappointment with a tournament-record nine-stroke victory in the Sony Open at the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu earlier today.

Walker, the tournament's defending champion, started the day with a two-stroke lead but strung together three consecutive birdies midway through the round and finished with a seven-under 63 and a total of 23-under par 257.

The previous mark for largest margin of win at the tournament was seven strokes.

Walker's victory comes a week after he blew a golden chance of capturing the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in neighboring Kapalua, where he led eventual winner Patrick Reed by four strokes with four holes to play before losing in a playoff.

 

 

Snooker Worlds to stay in Sheffield

 

The snooker World Championship will stay in Sheffield's Crucible Theater until 2017, World Snooker announced early today.

The tournament, the richest and most prestigious in snooker, was first staged at the Crucible in 1977, so 2017 will mark its 40th anniversary in Sheffield.

The event is worth over five million pounds to the city based on a combination of direct economic impact and extensive media profile in the UK, Europe and the Far East, with a total audience of 285 million viewers.

World Snooker said that Sheffield has fought off competition from several major international cities looking to host the event. But it failed to mention which cities had expressed interest to play host.

 

 

Entertainment

 

 

15th annual huading awards took place in Macau yesterday

 

The annual Huading awards took place in Macau yesterday.

Stars such as Leehom Wang, Charmaine Sheh, Donnie Yen and Raymond Lam attended the awards ceremony.

Yao Beina who died last Friday won the award for most liked singer. Her music teacher Ma Qiuhua collected the award on her family's behalf.

After being snubbed at the TVB Anniversary awards, Raymond Lam picked up an award for Best Chinese Actor in a TV series for his role in Line Walker. His Line Walker co-star Charmaine Sheh won her ninth Best Chinese TV Actress award.

International stars also in attendance included Naomi Watts and Chris Hemsworth.

Chris Hemsworth collected the award for Best Global Actor and Naomi Watts picked up the Best Global Actress in a motion picture.

The Huading awards are China's leading entertainment awards show recognizing the year's achievements in film, television, dance, theater and music.

Winners are selected through fan votes and receive the chance to appear at the awards ceremony.

The awards show was broadcast to over 800 million households across the country.

 

 

Wen Lan injures herself live on Dancing with the Stars

 

Wen Lan has injured herself live on TV during Chinese version of Dancing with the Stars.

The singer from Taiwan was performing the Quick Step with her partner Liu Xiao and was in the middle of a series of high speed rotations when she crashed into one of the TV cameras.

The audience and judges were unaware the star was injured as she carried on the dance without any faults. However, when the pair finished, the judges became aware that Wen Lan had a cut on the side of her face.

She was rushed to hospital for treatment and underwent a CT scan which showed no internal bleeding or fracture although she did have a large cut on the side of her face.

Wen Lan is well loved on the show due to her commitment and dance ability.

 

 

Sir Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellen not appearing in next X-Men film

 

Sir Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellen will not appear in the next X-men film.

Speaking on American chat show Larry King Now, Sir Patrick Stewart announced that both he and Sir Ian McKellen will not be appearing in the upcoming film Apocalypse.

The actor told Larry King that the film would focus on the earlier lives of all of the characters and therefore the pair would not be making an appearance.

Sir Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellen have played the roles of Professor X and Magneto in the series since 2000.

X-Men: Days of Future Past featured a time travel plot which allowed the original stars to take part alongside their younger counterparts from X-Men: First Class.

X-Men: Apocalypse will be directed by Bryan Singer and is due for release in 2016.

 

 

Scarlett Johansson to reprise avengers role for Captain America 3

 

Scarlett Johansson is to reprise her Avengers role for Captain America 3.

Directors Anthony and Joe Russo confirmed the news during an interview here in China.

"Captain America 3 is going to be called Captain America: Civil War and it's going to star Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson will be back, Winter Soldier will be back and Robert Downey Junior as Iron Man will also be joining us in the next film."

Johansson has previously appeared as Black Widow in Iron Man 2, The Avengers and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. She will also appear in the upcoming Avengers sequel Age of Ultron which will be released this year.

Civil War will feature Captain America facing off against Iron Man but it is unclear about Black Widow's role in the film's plot.

Captain America: Civil War will open in May next year.

 

 

Dolly Parton to work on tv movies inspired by her life

 

Country singer Dolly Parton is working on a new series of TV movies that will draw inspiration from her music, writings and life.

The musician has partnered with Robert Greenblatt, entertainment chairman of NBC on a number of two-hour films, all of which are said to be characterized by Parton's positive outlook on life.

The star said in a statement that she was excited to work with the NBC chairman and create something fun and inspirational with a family audience in mind.

Parton is no stranger to both the big screen and small screen having starred in feature films such as Steel Magnolias and 9 to 5 and many tv projects including a guest spot on her goddaughter Miley Cyrus' series Hannah Montanna.