新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 08:00 2015/04/28（打印版）

Officials in Nepal are warning the death toll from Saturday's earthquake, which is already close to 4-thousand, is expected to continue to rise.

Chinese authorities have laid out a new long-term strategy for the Traditional Chinese Medicine sector.

World leaders are coming together in New York to discuss the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

In Business.... new stats show industrial production in Liaoning has contracted through the first quarter.

In Sports.... China's round-the-world sailing squad holding a slight lead in the current leg to the northeastern United States.

In entertainment... a major animation festival is set to get underway later on today in Hangzhou.

The Nepalese government now says the death toll from Saturday's earthquake is now close to 4-thousand.

The 72-hour so-called "golden window" to rescue possible survivors is now fading.

Damaged roads, broken communication lines and landslides, as well as a lack of earth-moving equipment in rural areas is making relief efforts that much more difficult.

More than 1.4-million people in Nepal have been displaced by the 7.8-magnitude quake and its subsequent aftershocks.

The Chinese government is set to dispatch another search and rescue team into Nepal later on today.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei says the crews will join the 55 other PLA members who arrived in Kathmandu yesterday.

"The Chinese military rescue team and medical team totaling 170 members will leave for Kathmandu in groups. The 186-ton relief supplies prepared by the Chinese government, including tents and blankets, will be delivered to Nepal by four planes."

For more on what's happening on the ground in the quake zone, CRI's Spencer Musick spoke earlier with Prakash Babu Paudel, a local journalist based in Kathmandu.

Prakash Babu Paudel, a local journalist based in Kathmandu, speaking to CRI's Spencer Musick.

Officials in Tibet are warning the death toll from this past weekend's earthquake in neighboring Nepal is likely to rise now that transportation and communication links in the region are being restored.

The city and region of Xigaze, Tibet's 2nd largest city, which is home to more than 700-thousand, has been dramatically impacted by this weekend's massive quake in Nepal.

The counties of Gyirong, Nyalam and Tingri have seen nearly 80-percent of the houses collapse.

But the focus of the relief efforts now is in the town of Zham, a border community linking Tibet in southwest China and Nepal.

This has led to a number of landslides in the town, which lies on the southern slopes of the Tibetan plateau.

Zham is in urgent need of tents, drinking water, food and medicine for the 35-hundred people displaced by the quake.

Emergency aid is being rushed into Tibet, with military helicopters dropping goods in Nyalam and Gyirong counties.

Yang Lei with the Chengdu Military Area Command in neighboring Sichuan says the topography of the region itself is also a major challenge.

"Our main challenge is the weather in this high-altitude region. We have to fly pass two key mountain passes, the Kunlun Pass and the Tanglha Pass -- both are at more than 5,000 meters above the sea level. The weather at these two passes is highly unpredictable, especially in the afternoon. We're also facing intermittent rain and snow these days in the northern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau."

Li Yigang with the National Earthquake Response Support Service says the rescue teams themselves also face particular challenges.

"First and foremost we have to face the lack of oxygen in the region, which will affect the rescuers' body condition and their work efficiency. Second, the highland areas are prone to geological disasters and we're already seeing key roads blocked, preventing the delivery of relief materials and personnel."

Despite the challenges, telecommunication in the quake-affected areas is being restored.

Meanwhile, a delegation of central government officials representing different departments has arrived in Tibet to help coordinate the disaster relief efforts.

Chinese authorities have announced the spring climbing season on the Chinese side of Mount Qomolangma, or Mount Everest, has been canceled in the wake of Saturday’s massive earthquake.

In making the announcement, authorities also say the roughly 400 mountaineers who were on Qomolangma at the time of the earthquake have managed to make it back to safe locations.

Saturday's massive earthquake triggered a series of avalanches on the world's highest mountain.

The tail section of the first seaplane developed in China AG600 has been delivered to its manufacturing base in Shaanxi.

Delivery of the AG600's tail section is the last component needed to finish the construction of the water bomber.

Huang Lingcai, chief designer of the plane, says the tail section of the aircraft will be their biggest challenge.

"As you can see from the tail section, the tail itself is a regular shape. However, the lower portion is bowl-shaped. Because amphibious aircraft have special structural requirements, they are much more difficult to design."

New long-term plans for the Traditional Chinese Medicine sector have been released by the Chinese government.

Li Hong with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology says technological advancements in the harvesting of TCM products is one of the priorities.

"The overuse of pesticides and fertilizers is very common in the artificially planting of Chinese medicine. This has led to a decrease of the quality and effectiveness of the herbs."

Wang Liming with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology says the plan should help fill the gaps in the market for TCM products.

"We plan to take five years to artificially plant another 100 kinds of wild herbs. By 2020, we hope to meet 90 percent of the market need."

The 5-year program laid-out by the central government also gives provincial-level governments more control over the development of TCM farms.

The US and Japanese governments have laid-out new plans for increased defence cooperation.

This includes plans for increased cooperation in both regional and global areas.

The announcement comes following the first day of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's week-long visit to the United States.

His administration has reinterpreted the country's pacifist consitution to allow for the Japanese military to take part in military operations beyond the scope of self-defense.

Shinzo Abe is due to meet with US President Barack Obama later on this Tuesday.

A collection of activist groups from South Korea have sent off a joint letter to leading US politicians, asking US lawmakers to press Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to use his time in Washington this week to issue an apology for Japan's wartime aggression.

Four different groups from South Korea have issued the request to US vice-President Joe Biden, House Speaker John Boehner and Mark Lippert, the U.S. ambassador in South Korea.

Previous speeches by Japanese leaders to the US Congress have included apologies for the country's wartime past.

However, many observers are suggesting Abe is unlikely to address the issue in a significant way.

For more on what can be expected from Shinzo Abe's speech tomorrow, CRI's Tu Yun spoke earlier with Doctor Teng Jianqun, Director of Research with the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association.

That is Dr. Teng Jianqun, Director of Research with the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association, speaking with CRI's Tu Yun.

World leaders are gathering in New York to review and update the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

International Atomic Energy Agency chief Yukio Amano says one of the leading topics to be discussed will be North Korea.

"I remain seriously concerned about the nuclear programme of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). It is nearly six years since agency inspectors were asked to leave the DPRK."

Speaking to reporters ahead of the IAEA session, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif is calling on non-member states to join the NPT.

"We underlined the importance of universal adherence to the treaty, and call upon all non-parties to the treaty to accede to the treaty as non-nuclear weapons states and place all their nuclear facilities under IAEA fullscope safeguards."

The NPT conference, held every 5-years, is also expected to address the slow pace of disarmament by the US and Russia.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Li Baodong is China's main representative at the conference.

Indonesian authorities have confirmed the planned execution of a group of foreign nationals this week.

The Indonesian Attorney-General's office says the 9 foreigners currently on death-row have exhausted their legal options.

Word of the impending executions comes amid last-ditch attempts by the Australian government to have the lives of two of their nationals spared.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop is suggesting the ring leaders of the so-called "Bali Nine," Andrew Chan and Myruan Sukmaran, should not be executed while they appeal to Indonesia's Constitutional Court.

"There have been some allegations made in relation to the trial and I said that Australia, indeed the international community, would expect those legal processes to be concluded before any other action was taken."

Indonesia's Judicial Commission is investigating claims of corruption in the pair's original trial.

The two Australians were sentenced to death in 2006 for attempting to smuggle heroin out of Indonesia.

Hundreds of young people have faced off with police in the US city of Baltimore following the funeral for a young black man killed in police custody this past week.

Local authorities in Baltimore say they have been receiving "credible threats" to law enforcement.

Baltimore lawyer Billy Murphy Junior says the entire community of Baltimore needs to be united.

"The eyes of this country are all on us because they want to see whether we got the stuff to make this right. They want to know whether our leadership is up to the task, they want to know whether we going to act as one people instead of a community divided by the superficialities of race."

25-year old Freddie Gray died last week after being arrested by police in Baltimore.

A subsequent autopsy has determined his spine was nearly severed during his take-down.

The arresting officers involved are currently under suspension while the investigation into the case moves forward.

A record 103 new-energy vehicles are on display by both domestic and foreign auto manufacturers at this year's Shanghai Auto Show.

Shifting from the focus on the display of vehicle designs seen in previous years, in this year's Shanghai Auto Show, so-called green auto cars become a priority.

Zheng Gang, general manager of BJEV, a Beijing-based auto maker, says the company is in cooperation with an Italian auto manufacturer to design a world-leading new-energy car, which is expected to hit the market by the end of this year.

"This electric car is completely newly designed, rather than a modification from traditional cars. Currently, only two mass-produced car models in the world are made with this technology. One is BMW's I3 and the other is Tesla's model S. So this car will bring the Chinese domestic brands into the world top ranking of the new-energy vehicle producers."

The plug-in hybrid vehicles sector is also one of the highlights in the Shanghai auto show.

World major automakers including Audi, BMW and Volvo all displayed the plug-in hybrid vehicles in the show.

Industry insiders say they have seen huge potential in the new-energy car sector, but add that nurturing a mature market still takes joint efforts from producers, government and the society.

Wang Hao, the US automaker Tesla's north region sales manager, says the company's future in China needs support from government policies and the general public.

"We hope that everyone can join us to understand that new-energy vehicles are development direction in the future. We also hope that the whole society can pay attention to this industry and the Chinese government can provide support in this regard. Then this sector will have a faster and healthier development in the future."

Observers say the Chinese government's huge subsidies for the purchase of new-energy vehicles has shown the country's determination to develop this green sector.

As one of the seven strategic emerging industries promoted by the government, with the advancement of technological innovation and more incentive policies, the development of China's new-energy vehicles is expected to go on the fast track in the coming years.

The ten-day Shanghai Auto Show, which will conclude on Wednesday, has attracted more than 2,000 domestic and international exhibitors.

A new pilot project has been launched here in Beijing to offer subsidized meals to the elderly in the capital.

At the Beijing Chess Institutes' canteen, a staff has ladled out the lunch for an old lady. It's a two-dish combo consisting of fish braised in brown sauce and stewed Tofu served with rice. The lunch costs her approximately 15 yuan, or 2.5 US dollars, way cheaper than in a regular restaurant.

This is part of an initiative called Senior's Dining Table launched by the Beijing local government. The diners are seniors from the Beijing Evergreen Community in Dongcheng District.

"I like the different kinds of fish and meat dishes they serve here. Tastes better than what we cook at home."

"It's good value-for-money. Much cheaper than what we buy at restaurants. And hygienic and safe too."

"This canteen belongs to a government institution. The food safety and hygiene issues have all been taken care of. And it's cheap and affordable for us."

The canteen opens at 11 am every day to senior citizens of the community. They can choose from a healthy menu which comprises of six meat, fish and vegetable dishes served with free soup. Desert options are also available.

Li Mingche from the Civil Affairs Bureau of Stadium Road Community Center explained how they came up with this program.

"Our community is not a business district, so we have very few catering businesses around here. There isn't even a bus stop close by. So it's not that easy for seniors to go out to dine. Our community has over 7,000 senior citizens over the age of 60. Their demand for food catering is an imminent issue."

Taking into consideration of such factors, Evergreen community opted to cooperate with canteens belonging to government institutions close to the community, and open the doors of these canteens to senior citizens in the community.

To solve senior citizen's food issue, many districts in Beijing are trying out their own methods. Some choose to sign contracts with individual restaurants so that seniors will enjoy discounts at those restaurants. Other districts sign deals with restaurants so that they can deliver food to the doors of seniors of specific communities on order.

As this service caters to seniors, special attention is given to the preparation of the food.

In Dongxinglou, a restaurant participating in the plan in Dongcheng District, a chef surnamed Wang introduces the dish he prepared for the seniors.

"I prepared this red stewed chicken leg. For this dish, we usually put less salt and cooking oil, and we also cook it longer so that they are suitable for the seniors."

Food served at the Beijing Chess Institutes' canteen is a quarter percent cheaper than normal price.

Hu Yanlong, head of the China Chess Institute Canteen explains how they managed to cut down on food prices so that seniors can enjoy cheaper food.

"We send our own truck to buy fresh vegetable and meat from Xinfadi wholesale market. This way we get the wholesale price which is much cheaper. For frozen food such as fish and shrimps, we buy them directly from a frozen food storage house in Southwest Beijing."

Cheaper price, guaranteed food quality and hygiene standard, the Seniors' Dining Table initiative is heartily welcomed by seniors as it has made their lives much easier. However, low profit, a lack of venue and standardization are still hurdles containing the popularization of such senior care initiative.

How to find a balance between profitability of participating businesses and meeting seniors' needs to make the service sustainable, is a question that the service's investors still have to answer.

This year's China International Cartoon and Animation Festival is set to get underway later today in the city of Hangzhou.

Around 600 animators from more than 70 countries are scheduled to take part in the event.

For more on the expectations for this year's event, we spoke earlier with Andrew Jones, senior editor at gbtimes, CRI's affiliate in Finland, who is covering the event in Hangzhou.

Andrew Jones, senior editor at CRI affiliate gbtimes, covering this year's China International Cartoon and Animation Festival in Hangzhou.

In Chongqing, it will be sunny during the daytime with a high of 31 and lows of 21.

The Nepalese government says the death toll from Saturday's earthquake is now close to 4-thousand.

The 72-hour so-called "golden window" to rescue possible survivors is now fading.

Damaged roads, broken communication lines and landslides, as well as a lack of earth-moving equipment in rural areas is making relief efforts that much more difficult.

More than 1.4-million people in Nepal have been displaced by the massive quake and its subsequent aftershocks.

The Chinese government is set to dispatch another search and rescue team into Nepal later on today.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson says the crews will join the 55 other PLA members who arrived in Kathmandu yesterday.

The death toll in southwest China's Tibet from Saturday's earthquake in neighboring Nepal has risen to 25.

The counties of Gyirong, Nyalam and Tingri were most affected, which have seen nearly 80 percent of the houses collapse.

In the cut-off border town of Zham, food stocks will likely only last three days.

Chinese airlines are expected to help ferry an additional 500 people out of Nepal today.

China Eastern, China Southern and Air China have been running flights in and out of the country since Sunday, shuttling more than 16-hundred Chinese nationals out of the earthquake zone.

China's Civil Aviation Administration is requesting Chinese airlines prepare more flights to deliver humanitarian aid.

The United Nations is setting aside 15-million U.S. dollars for humanitarian assistance to quake-hit Nepal.

This comes on the heels of the United States pledging 10-million US dollars in relief.

Eight workers are missing following an explosion at a coal mine in Sichuan yesterday afternoon.

Authorities say the explosion took place at the mine in the city of Leshan while it was undergoing a safety overhaul.

The governor of the US state of Maryland has declared a state of emergency following a violent gathering in Baltimore.

This comes after hundreds of young people faced off with police following the funeral for a young black man killed in police custody this past week.

25-year old Freddie Gray died last week after being arrested by police in Baltimore.

U.S. markets finished lower on Monday, with the Nasdaq Composite Index snapping a five-day winning streak, as investors await the results of the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which begins later on this Tuesday.

The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee is expected to provide an updated policy statement on when interest rates may be increased.

At the same time, Markit's flash PMI for the US service sector slipped to 57.8 in April.

In the after hours trading, shares of Apple have jumped 1.8 percent after the company reported record revenues and a record net profit of 18 billion US dollars through the quarter ending December 27th.

Boosted by suggestions the Greek government is likely to find a solution to its debt issue, major European indices all posted significant gains on Monday.

New stats out of Liaoning show the province saw a decline in industrial production through the first quarter.

The National Bureau of Statistics is reporting the manufacturing sector in Liaoning contracted just under 6-percent through the first three months.

The other northeastern Chinese province, Jilin, did record industrial growth of 4.6-percent through the first 3-months of the year.

April's official purchasing manager's index report by the National Bureau of Statistics is due out on Friday.

The company has pulled in just under 1-billion US dollars during the first 3-months of the year.

PetroChina is attributing this to the sharp downturn in global oil prices, on top of weak domestic demand.

In putting out its quarterly results, PetroChina also says its been able to slash its operating costs by just under 4-percent through the first quarter.

Authorities in Shanghai have expanded its reach to include Lujiazui and two other districts.

The two other districts are the Jinqiao manufacturing zone and the Zhangjiang high-tech zone.

Close to 74-thousand additional companies are included in the expanded FTA area.

This follows on the heels of the expansion of the Free Trade Zone initiative in Tianjin, Guangdong and Fujian earlier this month.

The latest Hurun wealth report is suggesting a growing number of wealth investors on the mainland are looking toward the foreign real estate sector.

A survey of China's high-net individuals shows 2 out of 5 are looking at purchasing homes outside China.

Nearly 70-percent of those who bought houses outside China are looking to live in the houses themselves.

The rest are considering an overseas home purchase as an investment opportunity.

The Hurun report suggests the average investment in an overseas property is around one-million US dollars.

For more on this, we're joined on the line by Gao Shang, analyst with Guantong Futures.

1, Is the buying a house abroad an all-safe bet? Is there any risk in this to the investors?

2, Some of the foreign countries are blaming rich Chinese for pushing up local home prices, those on the Jeju Island in South Korea for example. As the Chinese buyers seek good properties overseas, is it fair for the locals, would it generate some negative sentiment against the Chinese people in general?

3, America and Australia are now two of the favorite investment destinations for Chinese people. With more students going to study in these countries, parents are trying to provide them with better accommodation. Some even sold their house in China so that they can afford a house aboard. What is your take on that?

The Ministry of Finance has announced to end the country's export duties on rare earth starting May 1st.

Analysts estimate the move will reduce the price of rare earth products coming out of China by 20 to 25-percent.

Rare earth exports from China last year grew by some 27-percent from a year earlier.

Rare earths are minerals used in the manufacturing of components mostly used in the technology and defense industries.

The Chinese government is currently trying to consolidate small mines and smelting firms in the rare earth sector.

Bank of Beijing is reporting its net profits through the first-quarter are up 10-percent year on year to 820 million US dollars.

The profit margin is down somewhat from the 16-percent year-on-year rise through the whole of last year.

Bank of Beijing's financial report has also revealed its non-performing loan ratio currently sits at 0.93 percent as of the end of March.

This is the lowest among Chinese listed banks that have already disclosed their financial results for the first quarter.

Bank of Beijing handles the national housing fund for people living in the capital.

The housing fund is a compulsory saving program which requires both employers and employees to contribute money on a monthly basis.

State-owned China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation has secured multi-billion-dollar railway construction deal in Nigeria.

At the same time, China Railway Construction has also secured a contract to build a 1.9-billion US dollar residential housing project in Zimbabwe.

Air Koryo, North Korea's state-run air carrier, has begun twice-weekly flights between Shanghai and Pyongyang.

Tours of North Korea will include visits to both Pyongyang and the Panmujom Peace Village along the border with South Korea.

Under previous agreements, flights only ran between Pyongyang and Shangahi in July, August and September.

New stats now suggest China has surpassed France to sit number-2 in the world when it comes to land used for wine cultivation.

Figures from the International Organization of Vine and Wine show China has just under 800-thousand hectares of land devoted to the wine industry.

The analysis does show France remains the biggest producer of wine in the world.

Chinese fleet Dongfeng Race Team, under skipper Charles Caudrelier of France, held a lead of just 4.4 nautical miles in the Volvo Ocean Race on Monday heading for Newport, Rhode Island.

Dongfeng's mast broke on the previous leg to Brazil of what is the 12th edition of the event.

MAPFRE was in second place on Monday and Team Brunel third a further 3.7 nm back.

The all-female Team SCA and overall race leaders Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing under British skipper Ian Walker were respectively 15.2nm and 19.7nm behind Dongfeng.

Last of the six boats was Team Alvimedica, heading for its home port in Newport, but the crew was still in contention, being only 22.7nautical miles behind the Chinese yacht with at least another week of racing to go.

Alvimedica navigator Will Oxley of Australia says someone has to make a bold move.

"This race is so close and everyone is so terrified to make a move that there's moments when you have to try and be bold and that won't always pay off, but it's the only way in a race like this now, unless you've got superior boat speed, that you can get, get ahead."　

The fleet is expected to reach Newport between May 6-8 after between 17-19 days of sailing from Brazil.

On the court right now in game 4 of their series, it's the Atlanta Hawks and the Brooklyn Nets.

Atlanta is leading the series 2 games to 1 over Brooklyn, but the Nets are coming off a win in their latest game against the Hawks. Atlanta allowed Brooklyn 18 unanswered points in the second half, which gave the Nets the win. Another lackluster performance in the clutch will make this a tight race for the Hawks.

Chicago face Milwaukee for game 5 of their series. The Bulls are one win away from making it into the next round, but allowed the Bucks to survive in game for, where they gave up a season-high 28 turnovers to lose it 92-90. Both teams have been promising to step up the intensity ahead of tonight’s game.

The Grizzlies are 3-0 over the Trailblazers in the series and one win away from the franchise's first playoff sweep. But Memphis will hit game 4 without point guard Mike Conley, who went down in game 3 from an elbow to the eye delivered by Portland's CJ McCollum. Conley has also been dealing with a foot injury throughout the series.

Top-ranked Lydia Ko won the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic in San Francisco for the second straight year on Sunday, beating American Morgan Pressel in a playoff.

Pressel started the day one shot off the pace and quickly moved to the top of the leaderboard, but defending champ Lydia Ko was hot on the American's heels.

Ko sank another birdie putt at the 18th for a 2-under-par 70 to draw level with Pressel and force a playoff.

Ko and Pressel both set up birdie chances at the second playoff hole; Pressel missed her putt, while Ko found the centre of the cup to win.

"This week I hit the ball really well and it definitely makes this course a lot easier and last year I wasn't hitting the ball good. So, I don't know, the fans were awesome this week and it's always great to come back to a tournament where you're feeling the love."

The win gives Ko her second-straight Swinging Skirts title and her seventh win on the LPGA Tour.

Valencia are back in Champions League contention after their 4-0 dismantling of relegation-threatened Granada.

The Detroit Redwings and the Tampa Bay Lightnight are battling right now in game 6 of their series:

The D leads 3 games to 2 and sit just a win away from advancing to the next round.

ANd just hitting the ice for game seven of their series, it's the New York Islanders and the Washington Capitals.

The last time the Caps and Islanders hit the ice for game 7 in the post-season was in 1987 and the match went down in hockey history as one of the NHL's greatest playoff battles. Dubbed the "Easter Epic," the Caps and Islanders battled long into the night before the Islanders took it 3-2 in the fourth overtime, thanks to a goal from Pat LaFontaine.

China's first rock youth movie "rock hero" has released a poster and trailer ahead of its upcoming premiere next Month.

The film centers on the love story of a gifted rock star and a pop diva and is full of heartbreak and betrayal.

The film director Tan Huaceng says the story draws from the real life story of Chinese rock legend Dou Wei and his roller-coaster affair with Faye Wong.

Dou Wei was a famous rock singer back to the 1990s. He was among the Top 3 Artists of Magic Stone Records together with Heyong and Zhangchu.

Chinese and Iranian film makers have reached an agreement on Monday to co-produce a martial arts (Kung Fu) film on the sidelines of the 33rd Fajr International Film Festival.

The film tells the story of an Iranian Kung Fu fan, who underwent much hardship to become a Kung Fu master and then embarked upon a pilgrimage to the Shaolin Temple, the birthplace of Kung Fu in central China's Henan province.

The film will be shot in both Iran and China with actors and crew from both countries.

The Fajr International Film Festival is an annual event sponsored by the Iranian government to mark the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

The "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" star Michelle Yeoh is "safely home" after she was stuck in Nepal during the deadly earthquake on Saturday.

Yeoh was visiting Nepal to attend the inaugural Asia Pacific Sport Regional Congress with her partner Jean Todt.

After being stranded at the airport for a few hours, they were able to catch a flight and return home to Paris.

The 52 year old actress also vowed to do her best to help Nepal to rebuild after the devastating earthquake.

The 36-year-old star from "The Vampire Diaries" Ian Somerhalder and 26-year-old Nikki Reed, who appeared in the "Twilight" films as vampire Rosalie, tied the knot on Sunday in California.

Paparazzi photos of the Sunday wedding surfaced on Twitter early Monday morning, and showed the bride and groom in matching white attire.

The couple has plenty in common, from a love of animals to their joint online venture, Thrive Market, that helps low income families have access to affordable healthy food.

The 42nd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards were given out on Sunday, honoring excellence in daytime television programming.

"General Hospital" and "The Young and the Restless" were the top winners at the awards with three trophies each. "Days of Our Lives" clinched the award for the best drama series

Anthony Geary won his eighth Emmy for his "General Hospital" role, while fellow series star Maura West was named best lead drama actress.

Freddie Smith was honored as best young actor in a drama for his role as Sonny in "Days of Our Lives."

Other winners included Amelia Heinle, best supporting actress in a drama series for "The Young and the Beautiful," and Chad Duell, best supporting actor for "General Hospital."

Officials in Nepal are warning the death toll from Saturday's earthquake, which is already close to 4-thousand, is expected to continue to rise.

Chinese authorities have laid out a new long-term strategy for the Traditional Chinese Medicine sector.

World leaders are coming together in New York to discuss the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

In Business.... new stats show industrial production in Liaoning has contracted through the first quarter.

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, this is Paul James Beijing hoping you'll join us for our next edition of the Beijing Hour to open a window to the world together.

新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 08:00 2015/04/28（在线收听）