Welcome to the Beijing Hour, live from the Chinese capital...

Coming up on the program this evening...

The Chinese president has arrived in Moscow on a visit that includes attending tomorrow's victory parade, marking 70 years since the end of World War II in Europe...

The Conservative party in the UK appears to have won a slim majority in the country's general election held yesterday...

And Chinese medical teams and relief supplies continue to do their work in quake-stricken Nepal...

In Business: China's foreign trade data continues to show weakness...

In Sports: Chicago sweeps Minnesota out of the NHL playoffs...

In Entertainment: a new 3-D Doraemon movie is about to hit mainland movie theatres...

TopChinese president Xi is in Moscow for Great Patriotic War Victory celebrationChinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Russia for a state visit.

During his stay in Moscow, the president will also attend the Victory Day parade on Red Square and lay flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Those events will take place tomorrow.

Xi will also talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

They are expected to ink a joint statement on strengthening the China-Russia strategic partnership.

Meanwhile, the two sides are ready to discuss the linking of China's Silk Road Economic Belt initiative with Russia's related idea for a trade and infrastructure network across Eurasia.

After Russia, President Xi will make a two-day visit to Belarus.

Chinese president's signed article draws attention in RussiaBefore arriving in Russia, President Xi Jinping published an article in the state-run newspaper Russian Gazette on Thursday, drawing much attention from Russian academia.

Igor Denisov, a high-level researcher from Moscow State Institute of International Relations, applauded President Xi's opinion.

"What strikes me the most in the article by President Xi is that zero-sum is not the development path of human society, which means that there shouldn't be winners and losers. Both Russia and China hope to build fair international relations, which means that we should consider the interests of all countries,"In the article, the Chinese President also stressed it's "peace not war, cooperation not confrontation, and win-win not zero-sum" that are driving peace, progress and development of human society.

Xi Jinping urged all nations to adopt win-win strategies as a basic policy orientation in dealing with international affairs.

China- Kazkhstan RelationsBefore leaving for Russia, President Xi Jinping concluded his trip in Kazakhstan. The two countries are now expecting expand cooperation on energy, infrastructure construction, and security issues. For more on this, our Paul James spoke earlier with Zhenis Kembayev, Professor of Law, School of Law, KIMEP University in Kazakhstan. Kembayev first talked about relations between China and Kazakhstan.

Chinese Soldiers Ready for V-Day ParadeAnchor:

Russia's Victory Day Parade in Moscow is to be staged on Saturday.

More than 100 Chinese honor guards are ready to stride across Red Square, among over 16,000 multinational troops.

Tu Yun has more.

Reporter:

The preparations are in full swing for the parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.

Troops from many countries will march across Red Square to be reviewed by heads of state including Chinese President Xi Jinping.

It is to be the biggest parade of its kind in modern Russia, and marks the first time China will have participated.

102 honor guards from three services of the Chinese military arrived in Moscow late last month and will march in newly designed uniforms.

"This is the first time that I've gone abroad and I'm proud of being a participant in such an event. In our spare time here, many soldiers from other practicing countries came to us for photos. Peace really makes us soldiers feel good."Li Bentao, commander of China's honor guard, says it's a great opportunity for Chinese soldiers to show respect to Russian veterans and for the country to show its determination in defending the hard-won victory.

Over the past days, to quickly sync up with the local time and get acclimated to local conditions, the Chinese soldiers woke up at 3 o'clock every morning and departed for training at four.

But commander Li admits there are still some difficulties, such as the potholes in the brick ground at Red Square as well as the way Chinese soldiers stride.

"The average stride length for Russian soldiers is 80 centimeters, while our standard is 75 centimeters per stride and 116 steps per minute. So it's a little difficult to keep pace with the Russian troops. Russian soldiers really look very vigorous during a parade, but we will try to be more synchronized."The Chinese soldiers will be the first among the 10 foreign troops to appear in the square, while flag-bearer Zhang Honejie will lead the Chinese legion.

"I feel very proud of carrying the national flag. As a Chinese national, it's a glory. As a soldier, it's a mission. I'm confident that I can carry the flag very steadily in this parade."So far, three rehearsals have been held. The Chinese troops impressed locals not only with their marching, but also the song they sang as they paraded.

The Russian folk song Katyusha was composed back in the late 1930s, becoming popular among Russian troops in the Great Patriotic War.

Zhang Hongjie says they made quite an effort to practice this.

"We had to remember the lyrics by homophonic translation. We spent a whole night learning the song and the whole following week improving our singing. When we sang it out during rehearsals, locals on the roadside applauded us and echoed us. The atmosphere was so impressive and our singing seemed to sound better at that time."The Chinese soldiers are racing with time to tune themselves up for the festivities.

The parade will also involve 200 military vehicles and 150 aircraft.

The state-of-the-art Russian tank, the T-14 Armata, will be a highlight of the commemoration.

For CRI, I'm Tu Yun.

Israel Marks 70 Years since End of WWIIAnchor:

A state ceremony has been held in Israel to mark Victory in Europe Day, 70-years since the end of World War II.

CRI's Chloe Lyme has more.

Reporter:

The some 6-thousand in attendance, including WWII veterans and Holocaust survivors, have taken part in the ceremony to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of the war.

Once a year, the veterans wear suit jackets and uniforms dripping with medals.

91-year-old Baruch Shub was a guerrilla fighter who would dynamite German trains as part of an underground organization before he joined the Russian army to continue fighting against the Nazis.

"We are celebrating now the day of victory, because that's for us a very big day, although most of us are Jews, when we came out from the armies, we found out the Germans killed our children, our wives. So on one hand, you are happy because the war ended and we won, and on the other hand, you had nobody to rely on, all alone in the world."Speaking at the ceremony, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the lessons learned from the days of the Holocaust are still relevant today.

"We must be capable, prepared and able to defend ourselves by ourselves against any threat. That is the lesson of 70 years since the victory over Nazism."An estimated 6-million Jews were killed by the Nazis during the Second World War.

Many of those who weren't rounded up for extermination often joined the Allied armies.

90-year-old Efraim-Fiodor Papernyi is a veteran of the Red Army.

"Half a million Jews fought against the Nazis in the Red Army, and 200,000 of them not returned. During the whole war 1.5 million Jewish fighters were on the front. They were fighting very bravely."Papernyi has set up a museum in the Israeli city of Ashdod, displaying the history of the Jews who fought with the Red Army against the Nazis.

Konstantin Karno is his assistant.

"He wants to tell the stories of what happened during the war, so no more wars like this will happen again."And while veterans dominated the event, many young people were also in attendance.

"I hope it will never happen again. We should learn not be racist against anybody. We should be good people. We should help people in need in hard times.""We should love each other as who they are, not from their color or where are they from."Officials in Israel have been making concerted efforts to educate the country's youth about the Holocaust and the war against the Nazis, as not many of the surviving generation from World War II are left to recount the past.

For CRI, I'm Chloe Lyme.

Poland commemorates 70th anniversary of end of World War IIPoland has also commemorated the 70th anniversary of the allied victory over Nazi Germany with a ceremony at the site where the first shots of World War II were fired.

European leaders, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko were among the attendees at the ceremony held at the foot of the Westerplatte monument.

Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski began his speech at the ceremony with a salute to all soldiers and victims of World War II.

"In this place I wish to salute all those who fought against the Nazi aggression. All soldiers of the anti-Hitler coalition who contributed to the victory in May 1945. I also wish to commemorate all victims of this terrible war irrespective of what side of the war barricade they died on."The Battle of Westerplatte began on September 1, 1939.

It was the first battle in the Invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and marked the start of the Second World War in Europe.

The same commemorative activities to mark the Victory Day also took place the same day in France and the UK.

Conservative Party Wins Majority in UK General ElectionAnchor:

The latest results from the 2015 UK general election show the Conservative Party has won a majority of the seats in the country's Parliament.

But despite the failure of last year's referendum on independence, the Scottish National Party has swept 56 out of 59 seats in Scotland.

CRI's UK correspondent Duan Xuelian has more.

Reporter:

"We are saying that the Conservatives are the largest party."When BBC released its exit polls two hours after voting closed on Thursday night, not all people were convinced the Conservatives had won. However, as the night unfolded, the prediction proved to be accurate.

The Conservatives have won enough seats to form the slimmest of majorities. This is David Cameron, looking to another fives years as UK Prime Minister.

"I want my party, and I hope a government I would like to lead to reclaim a mantle that we should never have lost — the mantle of one nation, one United Kingdom."His main opponent, Ed Miliband, may have to resign as Labour proved no match for the Conservatives, winning nearly 100 fewer seats.

"This has clearly been a very disappointing and difficult night for the Labour Party, now I want to say to all the dedicated and decent colleagues in Scotland who have lost their seats that I'm deeply sorry."The Scottish National Party, lead by Nicola Sturgeon, saw an historic victory in the election, winning 56 out of 59 seats in Scotland.

"The tectonic plates of Scottish politics shifted yesterday. It is a historic result, I often overuse phrase but this time it is not even meeting what happened yesterday. There is an appetite for change in Scotland, a strong appetite for Scotland's voice to be heard much much more clearly in Westminster as it was heard before. "With SNP cementing its position as the third largest party in Parliament, the former number-three Liberal Democrats collapsed, winning barely 10 seats.

For CRI, I'm Duan Xuelian in LondonSino-British relations to remain unaffected by UK election outcome says expertsAnchor:

China is watching the outcome of the UK elections closely, mainly because it could affect the UK's decision to stay in the EU. China has long considered the UK as its main gateway to the EU and a possible exit could affect China's ties with Europe. Other than that, experts say the current election will not drastically affect Britain's relations with China.

CRI's Poornima Weerasekara has moreReporter:

David Cameron and his Conservative Party is looking to return to power with a slender majority in the House of Commons after a heated battle at the ballot box.

But, British economist Nicholas Barr from the London School of Economics says the results of this election will not significantly change the current dynamics of China's links with the UK.

"I think UK relations with China are good. I think all our parties want to see the relationship grow and flourish. I don't see any real difference between the two major parties in their attitude towards China."But the relationship between Britain's Conservative-led government and China has been something of a roller-coaster ride, especially under Prime Minister David Cameron.

Beijing strongly protested when Cameron met with the Dalai Lama in 2012. The relationship between the two countries hit another block during the "occupy central" movement in Hong Kong last year.

But Downing Street has been conducting an all-out charm offensive in recent years, trying to attract Chinese investment to a country still grappling with austerity-related cuts.

The UK was one of the first members of the G8 group to become a founding member of the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, despite heated opposition from the US.

For London, the change of direction was driven by economic pragmatism.

The UK is now China's second largest trade partner in the EU and a main source of China's inbound investment.

Last year, the trade volume between the two countries reached 80 billion US Dollars. This figure is expected to reach 100 billion US dollars this year despite the structural readjustments to the Chinese Economy.

Last year the UK also simplified the visa system to attract more Chinese tourists.

But according to Professor Barr the critical issue that can have a far reaching impact on the Sino-British relationship is the question of the UK's membership in the European Union. And the outcome of the election has a direct bearing on this.

"From China's point of view the interesting think is Britain's relationship with the EU. I think Britain's relationship with China isn't interesting because the election hasn't any effect on that. Its good and it will stay good whatever the election outcome."Chinese investors have long seen the UK as a launch pad to the huge 500-million- market in the European union.

But Cameron has promised to hold a referendum on whether to stay in the EU if he returns to power.

Professor Iain Begg, also from the London School of Economics says an exit from the EU could reduce the UK's importance to China.

"It was political tactics. He was faced by a new party called the UK Independence Party, which wanted to leave the European Union and also the right wing of his own party, the Conservative Party very often opposes the European Union."The Anti-EU group, the UK independence party has only won 2 seats and therefore is unlikely to become a king-maker in any new coalition. But, Chinese investors will continue to closely watch the political developments in the UK as it unfolds in the following weeks.

For CRI I'm Poornima WeerasekaraRelief work continues in NepalAnchor:

Medical and repair work continues nearly two weeks after a devastating earthquake struck Nepal.

The country is now focusing on recovery and rehabilitation.

Our reporter Guo Yan has the details.

Reporter:

Medical teams and relief goods continue to be sent to quake-stricken areas, as search-and-rescue teams from 34 countries leave Nepal.

Wang Ping is the head of the International rescue team of the Red Cross Society of China.

Wang says local residents injured in the quakes need help, and his team has started medical services in areas around Katmandu that were severely damaged.

"From Labour Day, May 1st, we started to visit and offer medical services in areas that suffered much devastation from the massive quake. The medical team has aided over 700 wounded persons."Wang adds that local residents have shown their kindness and strong will in the aftermath of the disaster.

"My deepest feeling is through the rescue work the friendship between China and Nepal has grown deeper. Also, I think Nepalese people are very kind, optimistic and strong-minded."More non-governmental organizations will go to Nepal with relief goods.

Cai Peng, head of an NGO in Beijing, says the first priority in participating in the relief work is "offer help...""At present I'm preparing relief goods in Lhasa and I'll bring them to Katmandu tomorrow. And more will be transported to the city in several days. I'll also bring some cash. I will visit some places to see what help do they need. The aid work should be consistent. We have made a plan before joining in the relief efforts. Our principle is never mess up."The United Nations said 8 million people were affected by the quake. And at least 2 million need tents, water, food and medicines over the next three months.

For CRI, I'm Guo Yan.

Australian Students Invited by Xi Start China TripAnchor:

The students from Scotch Oakburn college in Tasmania who were invited by Chinese president Xi Jinping will visit China this month. They will spend one week in Beijing and Tianjin to have a close look at Chinese culture.

Our correspondent Wang Xiao has the details.

Reporter:

More than 20 6th grade students will visit, accompanied by their teachers and parents. Chloe is one of the students.

"I'm really excited, and a little bit nervous. And we are all grateful."Each of these students has a personal connection with President Xi. The story dates back to one year ago. The students came up with an idea to send a letter to president Xi and Madam Peng, inviting them to visit Tasmania. Each Child wrote a letter to President Xi, introducing the unique wildlife, spectacular scenery, and delicious food of Tasmania.

Shortly afterwards, the students got a response from the President. President Xi visited Tasmania and met the students during his state visit to Australia, and invited the children to visit China.

A boy named Theo says all of them remember that day and they always talk about it.

"It's a memory that I will remember forever. They were so friendly, and they really wanted to meet us."The students are looking forward to their trip to China. Chloe says there will be a lot of things to see and experience.

"We are going to Beijing Zoo, our sister school, the great wall, and we are going to take the fastest train in the world."The students want to make new friends in China. They have even prepared gifts and practiced songs to sing to their Chinese mates.

Theo says it's good the two nations are friendly, and he says he wants to study in China one day.

"The China Australia relationship is more stronger. We can send our students to study in China and they can study here. I want to study in Beijing."Mr. Xu Xiao, the Counselor for Education of the Chinese Embassy in Australia, visited the school before the students' departure. He brought maps of China as gifts to the children. And he says they will have a close look at Chinese culture during their visit.

"This trip together with your future study of Chinese language and culture, will help you to better know China. I hope that all of you can make your own contribution to a better China-Australia relationship."The principal of Scotch Oakburn, Andy Muller, says the invitation of President Xi is significant, and the trip will help the children prepare for the future.

"The invitation from President Xi is incredibly significant. In terms of the students, this is going to help develop their enthusiasm for learning about China, Chinese language and culture. It will help them to be better prepared for their future."For CRI, I'm Wang Xiao from Launceston.

Sino-US Media Roundtable to Boost Mutual Understanding and CooperationA Sino-US media roundtable has been held in Atlanta to find ways to enhance understanding and bilateral cooperation between the two countries.

More than 40 delegates of major media outlets and research institutions of China and the US have attended the meeting, with an aim to reach consensus on major issues concerning sustainable global development.

The deputy director of the State Council Information Office, Cui Yuying, calls for a deeper collaboration between the two countries' media outlets.

The vice president of Aspen Institute, Charlie Firestone, says China and the US, being the world's two largest economies, have the responsibility to make joint responses to international affairs.

Firestone also highlights that though many Americans respect China's significant economic achievement, some confusion still needs to be clarified due to different historical backgrounds and political systems.

Li Ping, a deputy editor in chief of China Radio International, suggests the US media should report more on the similarities between the two countries.

Along with the round table, Chinese media delegates are set to carry out a series of exchange activities with US media.

WeatherBeijing will be overcast tonight with a low of 11, same skies tomorrow with a high of 16.

Shanghai has rain in the forecast with a low of 17, followed by overcast conditions and a high of 22.

Chongqing will be cloudy with a low of 19. Continuing cloudiness on Saturday with a high of 30.

Elsewhere in Asia,Kathmandu will see thundershowers with a high of 27,Islamabad, cloudy, 43,Kabul, cloudy, 26.

In Australia,Sydney will be sunny, a high of 21,Brisbane, sunny, 26,Perth will be sunny with a high of 23 degrees Celsius.

Headline NewsChinese president Xi is in Moscow for Great Patriotic War Victory celebrationChinese President Xi Jinping is now in Moscow.

During his stay in Moscow, the president will also attend the Victory Day parade on Red Square and lay flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Xi will also talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

They are expected to ink a joint statement on strengthening the China-Russia strategic partnership.

After Russia, President Xi will make a two-day visit to Belarus.

Britain's Conservatives remain largest party in parliamentBritish Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party remains the largest party in the House of Commons after the general election held yesterday.

According to results from individual constituencies, Conservatives have secured 315 seats out of 630 seats.

20 more seats are expected to be declared soon.

The BBC forecasts the Conservatives to win 328 seats, enough to form a slender majority in the Commons.

China's quake-relief armed police restore cross-border highway with NepalThe road-repair and rescue team of China's armed police forces has restored a cross-border highway linking Nepal with China.

Almost 200 Chinese personnel have been working on the repair effort since Sunday.

The Chinese team has repaired more than 30 kilometers of severely damaged sections of Araniko Highway.

The highway connects with China National Highway 318 to Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region.

The team is expected to keep working along the highway for several days on a maintenance mission.

4 dead, 4 missing in west China's sudden mudflowAt least 4 people have been confirmed dead, 9 injured, and 4 others are missing after a mudflow hit mountainous Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province.

Along with heavy rain, the storm system that lead to the slide also brought hail. The stones fell for about half an hour.

In all, the storm has damaged about 8300 homes.

The mudflow happened last night. Local authorities say rescuers are still searching for survivors.

Ambassadors among 6 killed in North Pakistan's helicopter crash landingNorway's ambassador to Pakistan and his counterpart from the Philippines are among six people killed in a helicopter crash in northern Pakistan. 11 others were injured.

The helicopter had been carrying 11 foreigners and six Pakistanis.

Both pilots died, as did the wives of the Malaysian and Indonesian ambassadors.

Ambassadors from Poland and the Netherlands are among the injured.

The cause of the accident is unknown. Local officials say the chopper had been landing at a school around 11 in the morning local time.

U.S. Senate to begin debate on fast-track trade legislation next weekThe US Senate is going to begin debate next week on fast-track trade legislation.

It is key for concluding the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations.

A top senate Republican has introduced a closure motion scheduled for next Tuesday to proceed to the fast-track legislation.

This would allow the upper chamber to formally begin its floor debate.

US trading partners say passage of the bill will give them more confidence in their trade relationships with the US.

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

Join me on the desk is CRI's Luo Wen.

Reporter:

Chinese stocks rallied after a three-day losing streak with a key index tracking listed startup companies rising considerably.

Shares of more than 200 listed firms soared by the 10-percent daily limit.

Internet, investment in innovative projects, and smart homes led the rise.

Beijing Baofeng Technology Company shares jumped 10 percent on the day.

Iflytek shares surged 9.8 percent.

Small cap and growth companies were also robust on the day.

This followed Premier Li Keqiang visit yesterday to Beijing's Zhongguancun, a technology hub dubbed as China's Silicon Valley, where he met with entrepreneurs and promised more favorable policies for start-ups.

We will have more on the Premier's visit in just a minute.

At close,The Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.3 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index climbed 2.6 percent.

In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng index added 1.1 percent.

Elsewhere in Asia,Japanese stocks ended higher as global bond selling took a breather.

The benchmark Nikkei edged up nearly half of a percent.

South Korea's Kospi dipped 0.3 percent.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index leapt 0.6 percent.

And finally Australia's ASX 200 trimmed 0.2 percent.

China's Foreign Trade Weakens with Narrowing Export DeclineOfficial data shows China's foreign trade continued to weaken in April but with narrowing declines in exports.

Last month's foreign trade volume dropped by nearly eleven percent year on year to around 1.9 trillion yuan or some 320 billion U.S. dollars from a year earlier.

This follows a 13.5-percent decrease in March and an 11.3-percent increase in February.

Exports dropped 6.2 percent from a year earlier to about 1 trillion yuan.

The decline narrowed 8.4 percentage points from a month earlier, indicating the external environment is improving.

Imports shrank by 16.1 percent to about 873 billion yuan.

Huang Songping, spokesman of China's General Administration of Customs, says further changes need to be made to the growth model of the country's foreign trade.

"China's export volume remains uncertain for the second quarter. Under the circumstances, we need to further change the growth model of foreign trade through structural improvement and strive to be more quality-driven and profit-oriented, so as to optimize both export and import."From January to April, foreign trade decreased by 7.3 percent over the previous year, with exports rising 1.8 percent and imports dropping by 17 percent.

The trade surplus soared by 85.2 percent to about 210 billion yuan last month.

The surplus in the first four months expanded 3.4 times to some 965 billion yuan.

Premier Li Cheers Start-ups at China's Silicon ValleyChinese premier Li Keqiang is promising the government is going to provide more favorable policies to support entrepreneurship and innovation.

On his visit to Zhongguancun - a technology hub in Beijing dubbed China's Silicon Valley - Li Keqiang told a group of entrepreneurs business start-ups and innovation are China's basis for sustainable growth.

"People like you know what society needs. It is every individual in society that knows the needs of the society, the needs of the masses."Although China's broader economy is slowing down, the government has come up with a series of support policies for start-up businesses.

The government has created a 40-billion-yuan venture capital fund to help innovative firms in their early stages, especially in emerging industries.

Last week, the State Council offered tax breaks to innovative startups and secured loans of up to 100-thousand yuan or 16-thousand U.S. dollars for small firms.

It has also promised to use fiscal revenues to help cover the interest.

Analysts have predicted that the government funding will attract private investors to bet on start-ups, with hundreds of billions of yuan likely to come flooding in.

IMF Lowers China's Growth Forecast to 6.8%The International Monetary Fund has predicted China's economic growth will ease to 6.8 percent this year and to 6.3 percent next year.

The projection for this year is lower than the organization's previous projection of 7.1 percent made in January.

The numbers are included in IMF's latest "Asia and Pacific Outlook" report.

The report attributes the decline to the correction in property and related sectors that continues to drag on investment.

The report also notes that although China's growth has eased "faster than expected," the country is on track for more sustainable expansion.

IMF Senior Resident Representative for China Alfred Schipke says he is quite positive about China's economic prospects based on the current indicators.

"If you look at some other indicators such as wage growth, for instance nominal wage growth, it's still holding up relatively well. So in terms of aggregate demand, I think we are not that concerned. As I pointed out earlier, if you look at retail sales, which is another high frequency data to look at consumption demand, it's also holding up relatively well."IMF adds that China is faced with the challenge to find new, sustainable engines of growth while managing weakness generated under previous policies.

Last month, the World Bank Group projected China's economic growth to ease to around 7 percent in 2015 and 2016.

The Asian Development Bank in March forecast growth may cool to 7.2 percent this year and 7 percent in 2016.

China to Raise Cigarette Consumption TaxChina's Ministry of Finance announced today that the wholesale tax rate for cigarettes will be raised to 11 percent from 5 percent starting from Sunday.

As the world's largest tobacco maker and consumer, China has more than 300 million smokers, almost the size of the U.S. population.

Another 740 million people are exposed to second-hand smoke each year.

Official data shows some 1.3 million Chinese people die from smoking-related diseases annually.

To curb the number of smokers, China released a draft regulation on tobacco control in late 2014 that will ban all forms of tobacco advertising, sponsorship and promotion of tobacco products.

Morgan Stanley Downgrades MSCI ChinaMorgan Stanley has downgraded the MSCI China index to equal-weight, from overweight.

This is the first downgrade in seven and a half years.

The MSCI China index captures large and mid-cap Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong.

The bank explains the downgrade by saying that "Chinese shares' recent rallies have led to a deterioration in absolute and relative valuations and a technically overbought situation."Data shows that the MSCI China Index Fund has leapt 44 percent since November last year.

China to Develop Broadband Network NationwideChina's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has issued a guideline which maps out continued efforts to expand the broadband network and increase Internet speed and coverage.

Over 600-thousand new 4G network base stations will be built to give access to more townships and villages.

More than 40 million households will have access to fiber-optic broadband Internet.

Over 200 million mobile phone holders will become 4G network users by the end of this year.

Stats show that there are now 162 million 4G network users in China.

The government unveiled the "Broadband China" strategy in 2013, with the aim of offering broadband speeds of 4 megabytes per second (Mbps) to those in rural areas and 20 Mbps in urban areas by 2020.

SportsChicago Beat Minnesota 4-3 to Take Their Semi-final Series 4-0In NHL Playoffs,The Chicago Blackhawks advanced to the Western Conference finals with a 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night to complete a 4-0 sweep of the semi-final series.

Patrick Kane scored and provided an assist for the Blackhawks.

It marks the third straight year that Chicago has eliminated Minnesota from the playoffs.

It is also the first sweep by the Blackhawks since the Western Conference finals in 2010 against San Jose.

They improved to 30-0, including 5-0 in this postseason, when leading after two periods.

The Chicago Blackhawks will play for the Western Conference championship for the fifth time in the last seven years.

In other action,Montreal rallied past Tampa Bay 6-2.

In other NHL news,The Dallas Stars confirmed Tuesday that NHL scoring champion Jamie Benn had a second hip surgery in less than a week.

Benn had skated with pain in both hips throughout this season.

Reports say Benn will likely return to the ice in August and should be ready for the start of the regular season.

The 25-year-old had 35 goals and 52 assists for the Stars, who missed the playoffs for the sixth time in seven seasons.

Jimmy Butler Is Named NBA's Most Improved PlayerJimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls was named the NBA's Most Improved Player on Thursday after making his first All-Star team and averaging a career-high in scoring.

The Chicago guard says he will continue to improve and try to help his team win.

"I don't think I'd be standing here and now I am standing here and it's an incredible achievement but more than anything I just want to continue to improve because I think there's so much that I can get better at and I just want to help my team win. I just want to get another trophy and I want to win that championship."In his fourth season, Butler went from averaging 13.1 points per game to 20 points per game. His shooting improved from 39.7 percent to 46.2 percent, and his rebounding and assists increased as well.

25-year-old Butler received 92 of 129 first-place votes and 535 total points from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters to win this award.

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors was second and Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz finished third.

Football: Weekend PreviewIn football,First, in the Chinese Super League,On Saturday,Leaders Shanghai SIPG will meet City Rivals Shanghai Shenhua.

No. 2 Guangzhou Evergrande will battle lowly Shanghai Shenxin.

Then, on SundayThird-place Beijing Guo'an will face Changchun Yatai.

Guanggzhou R&F takes on Jiangsu Sainty.

In the Premiere League this weekend:

While Chelsea has already taken the league title, it's still a close battle for runner-up.

Manchester City is looking to maintain its hold on second-place when they meet QPR.

But they have to contend with Arsenal, who are even with Man City on points and face Swansea on Monday.

Manchester United will meet Crystal Palace.

And Liverpool will meet leaders Chelsea.

Over in La Liga:

A threatened strike over TV rights could halt action in the Primera Division if an agreement is not reached by May 16.

But until then, the race for the league's numero uno position continues;Leaders Barcelona will face Real Sociedad on Saturday.

Hot on Barca's heals in second place is Real Madrid, which meets Valencia on the pitch the same day.

Walter Montillo May Leave Shandong Luneng Next JanuaryIn off-court football news,Chile sports media reported that Walter Montillo may leave Shandong Luneng in January next year and return to Universidad de Chile FC.

Montillo scored 3 goals for Shandong Luneng in his 8 appearances this season.

The 31-year-old has missed several matches after he was injured in a game against Guangzhou R&F last month.

Montillo played for Universidad de Chile FC between 2008 and 2010.

Kuznetsova Outlasts Safarova to Reach SemisIn tennis,Svetlana Kuznetsova reached the semi-finals in the Madrid Open on Thursday with a 5-7, 7-6, 7-6 victory over Lucie Safarova.

It took the 29-year-old more than 3 hours to win that epic match.

"I don't know, I was just trying my best, trying to be always consistent in the game. I was really tired in the first set but then I could pass this and I really was aggressive and playing good, fighting a lot and that's what got me the victory."The world number 29 will next take on fellow Russian Maria Sharapova.

On the men's side of things,Second seed Andy Murray comfortably beat wild card Marcel Granollers 6-2, 6-0.

It was Murray's second match of the day, as his second-round match had been delayed.

The 2008 champion will face fifth seed Milos Raonic in the quarters.

In other action,Seventh seed David Ferrer took out fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.

It was the pair's 20th meeting, with Ferrer improving to 13-7 in their head-to-head record.

Ferrer will next face Japan's Kei Nishikori for a place in the last four.

Tibetan's First Professional Basketball Team EstablishedChina's National Basketball League (NBL) announced the full list of players of Lhasa Jingtu on Thursday.

It is Tibet's first-ever professional basketball team.

Most of the 14 players on the team have experience in the CBA, China's top basketball league, or the NBL, the second-tier league.

Lhasa Jingtu will host NBL rivals at a stadium built at an altitude of more than 3,600 meters.

Lhasa's home games may also be played in Lhasa Cultural and Sports Center which hosted a game between Beijing and Bayi last year.

Liu Tie will coach the team. Liu served as head coach of Foshan in the CBA last season.

EntertainmentFaye Wong to complete an unfinished song of Teresa Teng to commemorate Deng's anniversaryToday marks the 20th anniversary of the death of singer Teresa Teng from Taiwan.

Hong Kong pop singer Faye Wong has completed a song left unfinished by Teng.

The song was released at this afternoon.

The song named "Qingpingdiao" is adapted from a work by famous ancient Chinese poet Li Bai, and the song will be partly sung by Teresa Teng.

Faye Wong completed the latter half.

The music video for the song has been released also.

Wong says all the revenue from the song will be donated to charity groups.

Teresa Teng was a popular and influential pop singer in China, best known for her folk songs and romantic ballads.

She recorded many memorable songs, including "I Only Care About You" and "The Moon Represents My Heart".

She died from a severe respiratory attack in 1995 at the age of 42 in Chiengmai, Thailand.

"Stand by Me Doraemon" 3-D movie to premiere in Mainland in MayThe 3-D movie "Stand by Me Doraemon" is set to premiere on the Chinese mainland on May 28th.

A trailer has been released.

The plot combines several short stories into a new one - from the first time Doraemon came to Nobita's house to Doraemon bidding farewell to Nobita.

CCTV host Liu Chunyan will dub the character of Doraemon. She has also dubbed the popular cartoon image in its TV series.

The film is based on the Doraemon manga series, directed by Takashi Yamazaki and Ryūichi Yagi.

The film was a big commercial success in Japan. It ranked number 1 on the box office charts for 5 consecutive weeks, with a box office total of nearly 8.4 billion Yen.

The Mad Max: Fury Road has premiered in Los Angeles.

The original Mad Max, Mel Gibson, made a surprise visit to the new movie's L.A. premiere.

Cast members Zoe Kravitz and Nicholas Hoult were shocked and thrilled by Gibson's visit.

"Dude I've never met him before so I just turned around and I was like 'oh my God. OG Max is here.' Really cool, it's pretty cool."George Miller, director the film, joined Fury Road costars Charlize Theron, Tom Hardy and Nicholas Hoult on the red carpet.

Theron, the Oscar-winning actress, joins the franchise as the fierce desert warrior Furiosa.

In order to look the part, Theron shaved her head for the role.

"We got to a place where we realized, George and I realized that was what we had to do and he was really great about giving me space to kind of find this character for myself and not force everything on me and so there was a lot of room for me to breathe and to learn. I just thought yeah I should shave my head for this," she explained.

"Mad Max: Fury Road" crashes into U.S. theaters on May 15.

Gibson played the title character in three movies - "Mad Max" in 1979, "Mad Max 2" in 1981 and "Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome" in 1985 - all directed by Australian filmmaker George Miller.

"Modern Family" star gets a star on Hollywood Walk of FameColumbian-born actress Sofia Vergara has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Leron Gubler, president of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, says the day belongs to her.

"We hereby declare this Sofia Vergara day in Hollywood!"Vergara told the crowd she didn't have anything to say "but thank you.""I have to calm myself because my English is not going to be very good this time. It is unbelievable for me to be standing here today with all of you. I don't have anything to say but thank you and the first, the first thanks I have to give is to 'Modern Family,' to Steve Levitan, Chris Lloyd, all my cast, all the writers. If they had not invented Gloria Pritchett I wouldn't be here."Vergara is well known for starring in the ABC series Modern Family as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, for which she has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards.

WeatherBeijing will be overcast tonight with a low of 11, same skies tomorrow with a high of 16.

Shanghai has rain in the forecast with a low of 17, followed by overcast conditions and a high of 22.

Chongqing will be cloudy with a low of 19. Continuing cloudiness on Saturday with a high of 30.

Elsewhere in Asia,Kathmandu will see thundershowers with a high of 27,Islamabad, cloudy, 43,Kabul, cloudy, 26.

In Australia,Sydney will be sunny, a high of 21,Brisbane, sunny, 26,Perth will be sunny with a high of 23 degrees Celsius.

That’s it for this edition of the Beijing Hour...

A quick look at the headlines before we go...

The Chinese president has arrived in Moscow on a visit that includes attending tomorrow's victory parade, marking 70 years since the end of World War II in Europe...

The Conservative party in the UK appears to have won a slim majority in the country's general election held yesterday...

And Chinese medical teams and relief supplies continue to do their work in quake-stricken Nepal...

In Business: China's foreign trade data continues to show weakness...

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