新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2015/04/28（打印版）

Rescue work continuing in the aftermath of Nepal's devastating earthquake, which has killed over 4500 people...

Chinese authorities saying they will pay close attention to the new defense guidelines outlined by Japan and the United States...

In Business: China's securities regulator urging caution on the part of investors in the wake of yesterday's SOE merger rumors...

In Sports...expectations running high for Chinese table tennis players at the championships now underway in Suzhou...

All of that coming up in just a moment, but first, just a reminder there are several ways to reach out to us here on the Beijing Hour.

You can follow us on our weibo account at weibo.com/beijinghour, or email us directly at [email protected]. You can also visit english.cri.cn for the latest news and information from China Radio International.

The Nepalese government now says the death toll from Saturday's earthquake has exceeded 45-hundered.

Damaged roads, broken communication lines and landslides, as well as a lack of earth-moving equipment in rural areas have made relief efforts difficult.

Local authorities and international aid teams have intensified rescue operations. More than 1.4-million people in Nepal have been moved to safer places.

CEO of the International Humanitarian City, Shaima Al Zarooni, mentions the challenges faced by rescue teams.

"Our major challenge is actually reaching Kathmandu due to the fact that there are aftershocks and the airport was not open unless again yesterday and therefore there are some flight congestions over there. Arrival of humanitarian trained staff on the ground is another challenge for passenger flights are not operating so there are some logistical challenges but we hope that we are overcoming them by this first aircraft."

In order to save more lives after the 72-hour golden window, China's Medical Aid Expert Li Zonghao suggests that it is better to combine engineering rescue and medical rescue during operations.

"To rescue victims from rubble is a difficult job. After being buried under debris for hours, people may suffer from crush syndrome, water shortage, and a decline in body function. If we can put engineering and medical rescue into action at the same time, it can save time and save lives. After engineers evaluate the safety standard of rescue scenes, medical teams can immediately initiate treatment for victims."

Besides rescue problems, the capital Kathmandu is also undergoing a scarcity of water and some places have even experiencing blackouts in the past 50 hours.

The Local government confirms that it has begun to distribute relief materials to the public in open spaces. But more relief materials including tents, dry food, mattresses, medicine, and other essentials are still needed.

The international community has spared no efforts to help Nepal in the aftermath of the disaster.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei, says China will send aid personnel and materials to earthquake-hit regions.

"China is set to dispatch about 170 people to Nepal for rescue and medical operations. The Chinese government will also deliver 186 tons of relief supplies to quake-stricken region, including tents and blankets."

China has already sent three aid teams to Nepal, and the first batch of relief goods has already arrived in Kathmandu.

For the latest situation in Kathmandu, I earlier spoke with Prakash Babu Paudel, Chairman of Capital FM 92.4, Kathmandu, Nepal

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei says China is paying close attention to the new defense guidelines laid out by the U.S. and Japan for increased defense cooperation.

"We are asking relevant countries to act in a cautious way, and play a constructive role in safeguarding regional peace and stability."

Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani argues it is not something that is directed to a situation in a particular country or region

"It is also a guideline of the Japan-US defense cooperation and indicates a general outline and the political direction. Therefore, it is not something that is directed to a situation in a particular country or region, but it agrees that Japan and U.S. engage in their cooperation in relation to maritime security in all phases, in accordance to the new guideline."

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

For more on this, CRI's Liu Kun earlier spoke to Shen Dingli, Associate Dean of Institute of International studies at Fudan University.

That is Shen Dingli, Associate Dean of Institute of International studies, Fudan University, speaking with CRI's Liu Kun.

A former prisoner of war says he will never forgive Japan for the country's World War II-era crimes.

94-year-old Harold Bergbower, was a private with US Air Force, when he was captured on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao and sent to the Davao penal colony.

"Hell on earth. Our rice bowl that we got from them was full of bugs, worms, all kinds of animals and dirt, and after dark, no light in the house, in the barracks, so you eat it there, you don't know what you're eating."

Bergbower spent two years doing hard labour, scooping ore into open furnaces at a steel mill in the city of Toyama.

The unveiling ceremony the expanded Shanghai Free Trade Zone's has been held in the city's Pudong New Area, where the FTZ is located.

3 new districts have all been incorporated into the FTZ, including the city's commercial and financial center.

The Shanghai Free Trade Zone has expanded to include the Lujiazui financial hub, Jinqiao manufacturing zone and Zhangjiang high-tech base, enlarging the zone to 120 square kilometers.

The three zones will serve as a national financial and trade zone, a national economic and technology development zone, and a state-level indigenous innovation demonstration zone.

The Shanghai FTZ Administrative Committee will also establish its office in the Pudong New Area, and 5 sub-committees responsible will also be built.

Sun Jiwei, vice director of the Committee, explains how they will retain the FTZ's reform advantages.

"We'll formulate a plan on government transformation, come up with several reform measures and release two lists on our official website. The lists will continue to be upgraded to improve and enhance transparency."

The power list and accountability list are both being promoted in Pudong New Area, including all laws, rules, reform documents, responsibilities and a great number of supervision measures and service guides.

Sun adds that they'll also strengthen the chain reaction between the building of 'four centers.' These include financial, economic, trade and shipping centers, and a sci-tech innovation center.

They will also drive the construction of the 'One Belt, One Road' initiative and the development of the Yangtze River economic belt.

Wu Jun, deputy director of Shanghai Financial Service Office, says that enterprises should register for a Free Trade account in the FTZ if they want to raise funds abroad.

"By March, 17 commercial banks and one gold exchange had registered for a supervision and management system, more than 12 thousand accounts have already been opened. Last week, foreign currency functions have been available on the Free Trade account, meaning that the free trade service on integration of domestic and foreign currency is now available in the FTZ."

The expanded zone will become a multi-functional group with capabilities such as finance, manufacturing, innovation and trade, bringing more and more benefits for its enterprises.

The expansion comes on the heels of the launch of three new Free Trade Zones in Tianjin, Guangdong and Fujian.

The 11th China International Cartoon and Animation Festival kicks off today in the eastern city of Hangzhou.

Through cooperation with major online business companies including Alibaba, the festival has developed a smartphone app to offer business information for booth exhibitors.

Animation fans can also use the app to purchase tickets and order animation souvenirs simply by scanning a QR code.

Leading animation producer Dream Factory will hold meetings with exhibitors to select animation works and talents.

PropellerTV from the UK will also attend business sessions at the festival to seek partners and cooperation opportunities.

Nearly 14 billion transactions of animation products and more than 280 program cooperation agreements were reached during last year's festival.

The festival has been held annually in Hangzhou since 2004 and is the largest of its kind in China.

For more on the event, I spoke earlier with Andrew Jones, senior editor at gbtimes, CRI's partner radio station in Finland, who is covering the event in Hangzhou.

The governor of the US state of Maryland has declared a state of emergency and activated the Maryland National Guard to help with the violence and rioting in the State's largest city of Baltimore.

Baltimore mayor Stepanie Rawlings-Blake announced weeklong, daily curfew to start on Tuesday from 10 pm to 5 am local time.

"People have the right to protest and express their frustration, but Baltimore City families deserve peace and safety in their communities and these acts of violence and destruction of property cannot and will not be tolerated."

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

"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."

The call for the guard comes after rioters set cars and buildings on fire, looted businesses and threw bricks at police officers.

The riots started after the funeral for Freddie Gray, who died of a mysterious injury while in police custody.

Emergency officials have been trying to restore calm in the affected parts of the city of more than 620-thousand people.

Asian diplomats have stressed that North Korea should live up to the requirements in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Fumio Kishida, Japan's foreign minister, says North Korea's continued development of nuclear weapons and missile programs poses a serious threat to international peace and security.

"China as a staunch advocate for the nuclear disarmament process stands for the complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons and has faithfully fulfilled its nuclear disarmament obligations under the treaty. China firmly upholds the nuclear non-proliferation regime."

Fumio Kishida says Japan welcomes the political understanding recently reached on key parameters on the Iranian nuclear issue.

Shin Dong-ik, South Korea's Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs, echoed that remark.

"My delegation highly appreciates the efforts made by the Permanent 5 members of UN Security Council plus Germany, and Iran and looks forward to the creation of the modern case of successful diplomacy to achieve non-proliferation with a final agreement this June."

The diplomats addressed the nuclear issues during the UN nuclear non-proliferation conference in New York.

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

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.

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.

Nepal's Prime Minister Sushil Koirala has said the death toll in the massive quake could jump to 10,000.

Over 4,500 people are already confirmed dead and over 8,000 others injured, while hundreds are still missing across the Himalayan country.

Nepal is seeking more and speedier international aid to provide immediate assistance to the quake victims and to rebuild the economy in the long term.

The global information company IHS says the earthquake could cost Nepal 5 billion U.S. dollars in terms of long-term reconstruction.

Seven workers are dead and one person is 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.

A court in eastern Shandong Province has begun hearing a suspected wrongful execution case involving rape and murder convictions.

21-year-old Nie Shubin was executed in 1995 after he was convicted of raping and murdering a woman in Hebei Province.

In 2013, the Hebei court, which approved Nie's death penalty in 1995, overruled his claim. The decision raised public questions about judicial impartiality.

In December, the Supreme People's Court asked Shandong Higher People's Court to review the case.

The unveiling ceremony the expanded Shanghai Free Trade Zone's has been held in the city's Pudong New Area, where the FTZ is located.

3 new districts have all been incorporated into the FTZ, including the city's commercial and financial center.

They include the Lujiazui financial hub, Jinqiao manufacturing zone and Zhangjiang high-tech base, enlarging the zone to 120 square kilometers.

The three zones will serve as a national financial and trade zone, a national economic and technology development zone, and a state-level indigenous innovation demonstration zone.

A South Korean appeals court has found the captain of the ferry that sank last year killing 304 people guilty of homicide.

Video footage of the crew abandoning the Sewol after instructing the passengers, mostly teenagers, to remain in their cabins had caused outrage and calls for harsh punishment across the country.

Turning now to our business news, but first let's have a look at the numbers from the Asian markets on this Tuesday evening.

Chinese shares fell on Tuesday, following losses on Wall Street with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index losing more than one percent a day after a seven-year high.

PetroChina, Asia's biggest company by market value, slid 5.3 percent after posting its lowest quarterly profit on record.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, tumbled 5.2 percent after Wang Tianpu, the No. 2 official at Asia's largest oil refiner, was named in a corruption probe.

China's securities regulator has once again cautioned investors after Monday's massive stock market rally on rumors that a massive SOEs merger plan was imminent.

Authorities say that investors swarming into the Chinese stock market shows a great deal of confidence.

It also warns investors to be cautious regarding rumors and illegal trading which could disrupt market order.

According to global information company IHS, the earthquake could cost Nepal 5 billion U.S. dollars in terms of long-term reconstruction.

Nepal is considered to be one of the poorest countries in Asia with an annual per capita GDP of only 1,000 USD per person.

Many families in Nepal are living in poverty and relying on agriculture and increasingly on tourism to make ends meet.

Agriculture is the economy's biggest sector, employing over 70 percent of the population and contributing one third of its total GDP.

The latest Hurun wealth report is suggesting a growing number of wealthy 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 Hurun report suggests the average investment in an overseas property is around one-million US dollars.

For more on this, the Beijing Hour's Paul James spoke earlier with Gao Shang, analyst with Guantong futures.

China now has the second-largest wine-growing area in the world after Spain, pushing France into third place.

According to figures from the International Organization of Vine and Wine, China has some 800 thousand hectares of land devoted to wine grape growing compared with 1.02 million hectares for Spain.

The US is the biggest consumer, quaffing some 31,000 hectoliters, or 13 percent of the global intake.

China has rapidly emerged as a major player in viniculture, accounting for 11 percent of the worldwide territory given over to vineyards last year.

As outbound tourism in China grows, Global Home Shopping Channel is teaming up with China Youth Travel Service to sell package tours on its television network.

A new program named Global Travelers is going to be aired in May, selling two package tours to foreign destinations.

"We are promoting two outbound package tours, to Hawaii and the Maldives. The price we offer can't be beat by other companies, and we provide very good services. Currently, outbound tourism is growing rapidly, so with the relatively mature market, we will have more economic package tours for consumers."

Global Home shopping Channel, the only state-owned televised shopping channel in China, focuses on sales information for high-end items.

Owned by China Radio International, the Channel can be viewed in most cities in China with some 2 million active members.

Apple has beat Wall Street's revenue and profit forecasts as it sold more iPhones in China than in the United States for the first time ever.

Apple's quarterly iPhone sales in China in the first quarter of this year, soared, increasing its revenue in the country 71 percent to 16.8 billion dollars.

Chief Executive Tim Cook said that China's expanding middle class is fuelling iPhone sales in the country.

Meanwhile, Apple also announced an expansion of its 2-year-old effort to give investors a bigger share of the company's profits.

The company will raise its quarterly dividend by 11 percent, and in total the program will return 200 billion US dollars to investors by the end of March 2017.

The world's top ping pong players are competing in the World Championships in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou.

It is China against the world in men's singles, as the top four seeds are playing in front of their home crowd.

Ma Long, Xu Xin, Zhang Jike and Fan Zhendong are expected to take up all four spots in the semifinals.

Players who pose potential challenges to these elites include Japan's Jun Mizutani, Germany's Timo Boll and Chinese Taipei's Chuang Chih-Yuan.

The two are dominant in the sport and have shared the titles in all recent big occasions such as the Olympic Games and the World Cup.

Mixed doubles pair Yan An/Wu Yang, and Xu Xin/Yang Haeun of South Korea are all through to the next round.

Guizhou announced on their verified Weibo account that Zhu left on amicable terms with the club.

Guizhou are currently the second from bottom in the Chinese Super League after 7 games and are in danger of degradation.

The Chinese men's team turned the table against Cuba and beat them 3-1 at the chess World Team Championship in Armenia.

On other boards, Wei Yi and Yu Yangyi were at disadvantages but refused to concede. Both fought back with white pieces and secured the win for China.

China's women's team beat the US 3.5-0.5 in the latest round. They are at 3rd place after Georgia and Russia.

The Brooklyn Nets have claimed a 120-115 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks and tied the play-off series 2-2.

It didn't came as a surprise for their rivals, as Atlanta center Al Horford said Williams "was the difference."

"He's had a lot of adversity with the injuries and with the negativity around his name. For him to come out showed a lot of character, to put on a performance like that especially when we need it, because without that performance I don't know that we get out of here with a win, but I'll take it and I'm excited about it and I'm excited about how the team rallied around him as well. And that's what this is about, and I thought it was a huge, huge step in unity for our ball club."

The Portland Trail Blazers also avoided early elimination by beating the Memphis Grizzlies 99-92.

The UEFA Champions League trophy has arrived in the German capital of Berlin, the host city of the final.

German Football Federation president Wolfgang Niersbach delivered the trophy in an official ceremony at Berlin's city hall.

Berlin mayor Michael Mueller didn't hold back his support, when talking about who would eventually hoist the trophy.

"I don't have to be all that neutral. Of course I support Bayern. Sure, I would be happy if the Germans played in the final and all other games will definitely be high calibre, exciting games. But I support Bayern."

Dortmund are ready to take on newly-crowned Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in the German Cup semifinals.

Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp said the game would be just as tense as the final. But his team have always been difficult opponents.

"This is a very important game for different reasons. It's a hurdle we need to get through in order reach, actually, the final. And as we all know, that's not only hard enough, because football is fundamentally tough, but also because Bayern Munich, of course, are an exceptional team. That's everything together. If I took the time to quickly compare all the games, I don't think I was more tense than ahead of this game."

They will be playing without two key players, which will make winning against an almost invincible Bayern even more difficult.

Goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller will be absent due to a sprained muscle. The start of Ilkay Gundogan also remain doubtful as he is still recovering from a throat problem.

Dortmund lost last season's final to Bayern after beating them in the 2012 edition. They have also lost both league games to Bayern this term.

Ronnie O'Sullivan has wasted little time in securing the last frame he needed to reach the World Championship quarter-finals.

O'Sullivan and Matthew Stevens resumed their match from 12-4. Stevens won the 17th frame, but O'Sullivan took the winning frame with a 77 run.

Action movie Fast and Furious 7 has officially become the highest grossing film in China raking in two billion yuan or around 320 million US dollars in just 15 days.

The previous record was Transformers: Age of Extinction which amassed 1.98 billion yuan in China.

According to Deadline Entertainment News, Furious 7 is also the first film ever screened in China to pass the two billion yuan mark.

Despite the fact that the film's release date in China was one week later than the United States, this is the second time that a Hollywood blockbuster has earned more money in China than in the US. The precedent again was Transformers: Age of Extinction.

Furious 7 could reach a total of 2.3 billion yuan in box office sales, which is a huge milestone in China.

It has been reported that Furious 8, the next installment of the franchise due for release in 2017, may include scenes filmed in Hong Kong.

A Long Live Celebration show will be staged as part of festivities to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum in Beijing.

Many rarely or never seen before national treasures will be displayed and 'Riverside Scene during the Tomb-sweeping festival' by Zhang Zeduan, capturing daily life during the Song Dynasty, about 750 years to 1050 years ago, will again be on view after three years of restoration work.

Palace Museum director Shan Jixiang says five new areas of the Forbidden City will open to accommodate exhibitions. These will increase the percentage of display areas within the grounds from 52 percent to 65 percent. The number of items on display will rise from 10,000 to around 15,000.

Some interiors have been converted into modern galleries, while the exteriors preserve the original style. Other interiors have been restored to their former decoration and furnishings of dynastic times.

US actor and singer Jamie Foxx is set to sing 'The Star Spangled Banner' this Saturday at the fight of the century between boxers Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas.

The choice seems logical with Foxx billed to star as Mike Tyson in his upcoming biopic. He also co-starred alongside Will Smith in 2001 film Ali based on the life of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. According to entertainment website TMZ, the star jumped at the chance to be a part of the boxing showdown.

Jamie Foxx isn't the only celebrity who seems to be excited about the upcoming fight. Reality TV star Khloe Kardashian posted a video on her instagram account talking about the fight along with other stars: super model Adriana Lima and rap singer Sean Combs.

American entertianment channel VH1 had been working on bringing the series back, ten years after the original run ended on MTV.

Sharon Osbourne, wife of well-known muscian Ozzy Osbourne, revealed last year that the show would be returning for about eight episodes, which would serve as a catchup on the family's lives.

However, VH1's executive Vice President of original programming and production Susan Levison has told the Hollywood Reporter that the revival is no longer happening. She wished the family her best wishes.

Earlier this month, it emerged that Jack Osbourne was taking several companies he partially owns to court, claiming they were demanding payment for the episodes of the new series.

The family of British singer Amy Winehouse has criticized a documentary about her life. The singer, who died in 2011 is the subject of Amy, which will be shown at this year's Cannes film festival.

Winehouse's family have distanced themselves from the film, claiming that it is misleading. However the film makers have said that they approached it with total objectivity, and that it told the findings from around 100 interviews with people who knew the five-time Grammy award winning star.

Shanghai will have thundershowers tonight with a low of 20, it will have slight rain tomorrow with a high of 26.

Chongqing will be cloudy tonight, 20 degrees the lowest, tomorrow it will continue to be cloudy with a high of 33.

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, this is Spencer Musick in 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 20:00 2015/04/28（在线收听）