Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese Capital.

Coming up on our program this morning...

Chinese President Xi Jinping has honored World War II veterans as part of his current state visit to Belarus.

A number of bilateral agreements are expected to be signed this week as part of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to China.

Nepalese authorities are attempting to speed up their relief efforts in the quake zone amid concerns about the impending monsoon season.

In Business.... retail fuel prices are once-again on the rise here in China.

In Sports.... the NFL comes down hard on Tom Brady for "deflategate."In entertainment... Fan Bingbing once-again tops the money list for Chinese celebrities.

All of that coming up in the next hour.

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Top NewsXi meets Belarusian WWII veterans; attends trade forumChinese President Xi Jinping has met with a number of Belarusian World War II veterans as part of his current state visit to Belarus.

The Chinese leader, along with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, have awarded each veteran a medal to recognize their contributions to the victory in World War II at a museum in Minsk.

"When the new exhibition hall of the museum was opened in July 2014, President Lukashenko said the Belarusian people will never tolerate any attempts to tamper with the history of World War Two and whitewash the history of aggression. I fully agree with that. We are ready to work with the Belarusian people and all other nations in the world to safeguard the outcome of WWII as well as fairness and justice in the world."11 of the 15 men honored were involved in China's fight against the Japanese in northeast China.

At the same time, Xi Jinping and Lukashenko have also attended a China-Belarus economic and trade cooperation forum.

Chinese officials representing 8 different provinces are attending the event.

Xi Jinping says local-level cooperation between the two sides will be important for economic growth.

"Relevant authorities and local governments from both sides should dovetail their policies, explore new modes of cooperation and map out new projects, thus developing local-level economic and trade cooperation into a new growth engine for China-Belarus cooperation."For his part, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko says his country holds the key to China's continued growth in Europe.

"Belarus has created favorable conditions for Chinese investors. They will have a bright future in the European and Asian markets. To be frank, Chinese companies can still access the Eurasian Economic Union without the help of Belarus. But to better do this, they need support of Belarus. I truly believe Chinese companies will have more access to the European market with our help."Xi Jinping's time in Belarus is the last stop on his current 3-nation tour.

He has also made stops in Kazakhstan and Russia.

Modi's China Visit to Set a New Milestone in Sino-Indian Relationship: AmbassadorAnchorIndia's ambassador to China is suggesting several economic and investment projects are going to be signed as part of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's forthcoming visit to China later on this week.

CRI's Huang Shan reports.

ReporterIndia's ambassador to China, Ashok K. Kantha, says that the Indian Prime Minister's Chinese visit will further enhance economic ties between the world's two largest developing countries.

"This time we can expect sound results. China is likely to intensify its investment in India. Meanwhile, India hopes to extend cooperation with China on economics, trade and investment. The two countries are expected to reach more than ten specific cooperation projects, and sign at least 20 economic and trade cooperation agreements. Our cooperation has been expanded from only taking place between the two capitals to include more regions and various levels. I believe Prime Minister Modi's visit will be a new milestone in the development of the Sino-India relationship."Among various cooperation platforms, the Indian Ambassador mentions that the China-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank would provide necessary financial support for the development of member countries, including India.

"The AIIB is an intergovernmental multilateral development institution in Asia. We hope the AIIB can fully respect and draw on member countries' successful experiences, and play its due role. We hold a positive attitude in regards to it."At the present stage, the cooperation between China and India is full of opportunities.

The number of China's outbound tourists to India climbed to nearly 200 thousand in 2014.

Kantha says India has made the visa application procedure simpler to attract more chinese tourists"We have already simplified procedures for visa application, including tourist visa and business visa. Currently, we can ensure that the visa processing time is within two workdays. Prime Minister Modi welcomes more Chinese people to visit India. He says that direct exchange between people is positive to the development of the Sino-India relationship."The Indian Prime Minister's three-day visit to China will begin on Thursday.

In order to have closer interaction with Chinese people, Modi opened an account on Sina Weibo earlier this month.

Ambassador Kantha gives more details on how the official account has been operated on the Chinese twitter-like platform.

"The microblog's content is written by the Prime Minister himself. We helped him to translate the words and then published them. The prime Minister has taken the importance of social media into consideration. Through this means, he hopes to have direct communication with Chinese people, thus enhancing friendship between the two countries."Modi is the first Indian political leader to open an account at the Chinese microblog, and now has some 45-thousand followers.

For CRI, I'm Huang Shan.

Half-Chinese Indian woman come to China searching for half-sister after eight decadesAnchorAn Indian woman and her husband are now in China trying to locate her long-lost half-sister from her father's first marriage.

The elder-sister remained behind in Shanghai during the 1930s.

CRI's Niu Honglin has the story.

Reporter62-year-old Jennifer An says it's her father's wish to reunite with Roesai An.

She's the only surviving family member of her father's first marriage, which was broken up by the Japanese invasion of China.

Jennifer's husband Balaji says he and his wife made a promise to one-another when they got married to fulfill his father-in-law's wish.

"His last wish was to see his daughter, to get in touch with his daughter and meet up with his daughter, which he couldn't do. He couldn't fulfill his last wish. So that was also one reason when we got married, I said you see that was your father's last wish. Let me start. I will do it. Someday we will go to China and we will make an effort and see whether we can find the lady."The father, An Chi Pong, was a Chinese Marine Engineer.

During the war, the ship he was on ran into trouble while on a port-of-call in the then-Indian city of Bombay, now Mumbai.

As it was during the height of the war, An Chi Pong ended up settling in India, eventually moving to the city of Madras, now Chennai, and married a local.

An Chi Pong and his wife eventually had four children, including Jennifer.

But due to the travel restrictions at the time, it was virtually impossible for An Chi Pong and his family to return back to China, though Jennifer says this was always one of her father's desires.

An Chi Pong continued to hold Chinese citizenship until his death in 1982.

Jennifer says the family lived among the Chinese community in Madras, which gave her father an opportunity to make inquiries about his surviving daughter in Shanghai, who if still alive, will be in her 80s.

"He says he is keeping in touch with people who come in asking about her but it was difficult. He was also very busy. He was running a Chinese restaurant in Madras. And Monday is the holiday. On Mondays, he will be organizing all the Chinese people in Madras like burials and marriages because nobody knew English properly. So he was a busy man."Given that some 8-decades had passed since An Chi Pong left China, clues about Roesai's whereabouts were hard to come by.

But then, An Chi Pong received a letter through the Chinese embassy in New Delhi back in the early 1980's, saying that Roesai had been located.

Unfortunately, he died just 3-weeks later without being able to contact his long-lost daughter.

But now, with today's record-keeping, Balaji says he and his wife have high hopes they'll be able to find Roesai.

"Everyone is given an ID card. So I'm sure there must be some ID card because without that the Chinese embassy in Delhi could not have traced her, could not have sent letter to her. I'm not going start from 1944, I'm starting from 1982. And we will make all preparations."Before travelling to China, Balaji even wrote a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi just ahead of his visit to China, seeking his help to track down his father-in-law's lost daughter.

The couple will leave Beijing for Shanghai on Thursday, and hope to make use of the local police stations, post offices and other connections to try to re-connect with their long-lost relative.

For CRI, I am Niu Honglin.

Nepal aims to end quake relief ahead of monsoon seasonAuthorities in Nepal are pressing to try to step up their relief efforts from last month's massive earthquake, as the monsoon season is about to begin.

More than 220-thousand people remain homeless.

Nepalese Major General Binoj Basnyat says food and shelter remains the top priority.

"We would like things to be settled down before the monsoons, which means naturally, shelter, which means tents, naturally, food to support them. And as we enter in the re-construction phase or rehabilitation phase then there are other things that will be required, which is quite natural for us to predict. So I am sure the government will come out with all the things that need to be done."The United Nations estimates some 3-million people are going to require better access to tents, water, food and medicine over the next 3-months.

The Nepalese government has put together a 2-year plan to rebuild the country's shattered public buildings, schools and infrastructure.

Phase one of the reconstruction is likely to cost around 2-billion US dollars.

Nepalese authorities have set aside 200-million US dollars.

For the rest, it's appealing for donations from foreign countries, aid agencies and the Nepalese people themselves.

The Chinese government has been in discussions with the Nepalese government about providing long-term assistance.

Earthquake deals hard blow to Nepal's tourismNepalese authorities are expressing both concern and hope about one of the country's major economic drivers: tourism.

It's estimated the country is going to lose hundreds of millions of dollars this year in tourism revenues.

Ang Tshering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, says the situation is serious, particularly for mountain communities hardest hit by the disaster.

"The houses are rebuilt with mud and stone. Ninety-five percent of the houses are either totally collapsed or partially collapsed, and it is no more possible to stay in such houses. So the impact is huge."To try to counter this, Tulasi Prasad Gautam, director general of Nepal Tourism Department, is appealing to people who have already been to Nepal to return.

"You can come and enjoy and you'll have a different experience than you had in the past. Because you will be a part of the disaster affected people, and you are going to help aid the people in Nepal, they are badly affected."The services sector in Nepal makes up around 45-percent of the country's GDP.

Many in the service sector in Nepal are employed, in part, through tourism.

"Decades" of Repairs Required for Nepal's Biggest Tourist SitesAnchorThe numerous temples and historic sites destroyed in last month's massive earthquake in Nepal represents a dramatic loss of culture in the country, which authorities are warning may take decades to rebuild.

CRI's Tu Yun has more.

ReporterPiles of bricks, wooden beams, and other debris are littered throughout Patan Durbar Square in Nepal's capital, Kathmandu.

"I am deeply hurt. I can't put it into words. I feel really, really bad. I don't know how I will heal.""I feel like this is now a graveyard. This is where we played, where we grew up. Seeing all these temples destroyed I feel so depressed. I just can't describe it."At least 14 historic buildings have been destroyed or severely damaged in the quake, including 12 on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

The iconic 9-storey Dharahara tower, a major tourist attraction in Kathmandu which was nearly 200 years old, has been reduced to just its base.

The country's oldest Swayambhunath temple, which was built 2,500 years ago, was also damaged.

The United Nation's cultural agency, UNESCO, is describing the scale of damage caused by the earthquake as "very rare" among any natural disaster in modern history.

This could be a deadly blow to the country's tourism industry, which accounts for around 8-percent of Nepal's GDP.

Ye Liang, a Chinese Buddhist teacher based in Kathmandu, suggests rebuilding the main structures within a year or two.

"If we can draw enough manpower to reconstruct the main buildings of the destroyed historical sites in one or two years, it will not impose much impact on Nepal's tourism. Later, we can rebuilt other buildings gradually."Wang Bing with the Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture says the reconstruction work still faces a lot of difficulties.

"Nepal of course will put relief work and humanitarian aid on the top agenda. They have to settle down residents who lost their homes in the quake and repair damaged infrastructure. Only after that, they can spare hand to embark on cultural sites reconstruction."Cultural officials in Nepal agree the reconstruction work will be challenging, with very high costs and a lack of technology and technical manpower.

However, UNESCO Representative to Nepal Christian Manhart is quite optimistic as they have architectural features like sculptures, carved wooden beams, cornerstones, which can be reused.

"We have detailed photographs, we have architectural plans and drawings, we have measurements, so this will be a very good basis for future reconstruction but of course it will be extremely costly and the government of Nepal and UNESCO we are counting very much on the international solidarity to help with this enormous task."The cultural agency is currently preparing to field an international expert mission to undertake an in-depth damage assessment and then advise and provide support to the Nepalese authorities and local communities on the protection and conservation of the damage.

It is said the assessment will take two or three months.

An earthquake estimated at an 8.0 hit the country in 1935, causing significant damage to many of Nepal's major temples.

It has taken almost 80 years to rebuild the main structures of the temples destroyed in that quake.

For CRI, I'm Tu Yun.

China-Russia joint naval drill launched in Russian port cityA Chinese-Russian joint naval drill has kicked off in the Russian Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk.

The training exercises are set to take place in the Mediterranean.

Alexander Fedotenkov, Russia's Deputy Naval Commander, says this is the latest in a series of drills the Chinese and Russian Navies have taken part in.

"The navy of People's Liberation Army and the Federal Navy of Russia have been in friendly relations with each other for many years. The two navies have completed complex tasks together. The case in point is the successful completion of transporting Syria chemical weapons in Mediterranean regions. The main purpose of Joint actions is to establish effective methods to combat maritime seaborne."Chinese military observer Liang Fang says the naval exercises in the Mediterranean represent the next step forward in the naval relationship between China and Russia.

"The maritime cooperation between two countries is enjoying deeper development. For example, in 2012, there were only joint escort exercises. In 2013 there was joint defense operation through electronic communication channels. Only through a high level of mutual strategic trust can all these kinds of drills be conducted."Dong Jun, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Chinese Navy, says the exercises will run until May 21st.

A total of 9 ships from both sides are taking part.

Sustainable Development of Canteen Services to SeniorsAnchorBusinesses involved in a new scheme to help Beijing's senior citizens say they're starting to feel a financial squeeze because of growing cost pressures.

CRI's Li Ningjing explains.

ReporterThe New Guangdian 302 Canteen, which is attached to the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film & Television in Beijing's Xicheng District, is a participant of the Seniors' Dining Table plan. Like other participating canteens and restaurants, the canteen offers seniors a variety of hot meals at a much cheaper price.

While queuing for her lunch at one of the food windows at the canteen, a Granny explained how The Seniors' Dining Table plan has made her and her husband's life much easier.

"This service saves us a lot of trouble. There're only the two of us at home. Two dishes will be enough. But for that, we have to do a lot of washing and cooking. Too troublesome for us."While this Gran couldn't be happier that the plan has solved her daily meal issue, at the back office, the one who runs the business is ruffling his hair over the sustainability of the plan.

Gu Xiaojie is the director of the New Guangdian 302 Canteen.

"Inflation has driven up the price for raw materials. Workers' wages and insurance are also rising, so are water and electricity fees. Our profit from this plan is marginal. Yet should we raise our meal prices, the seniors won't be able to afford. If it remains this way, I'm worried about how long we can carry on."The New Guangdian 302 Canteen is not the only participant restaurant trying to make the plan a good deal for both sides. Zhang Dai, manager of the Dongxinglou Restaurant in Dongcheng District, another participant of the Seniors' Dining Table Plan, is also worrying about the same thing.

"For a main course, the cost is around 6-7 yuan. With two side dishes, the cost amounts to ten yuan. It'll be 12 yuan if we add in the staple food. The remaining 3 yuan is barely able to cover water and electricity fees and workers' wages. So we are running at a loss. We have to cover this part of loss with revenues from our regular restaurant business".

Back in 2010, a Seniors' Dining Table Plan experimented by Tiantongyuan community in Changping District closed down just after a three-months trial run because of losses.

The reality for this plan is, on the one hand, there's a huge market demand for such services, on the other hand, the plan is challenged by a small profit margin or even fianancial loss.

Zheng Zhigang is a researcher from the Senior Population Research Center of Peking Universtiy. He analyzed the current situation of businesses catering to seniors' needs.

"China's service industry that caters to the needs of senior people is still in its primary stage. We lack large scale business operations. So the price couldn't go up. As a result, such businesses are typically operating at a high cost and a small margin of profits."Zheng Zhigang believes the government can still use more leverages such as financial support, price subsidy, and tax reduction and tax breaks, as well as venue leasing to support the senior care industry.

For CRI, I'm Li Ningjing.

Road Safety Urged for Chinese Children before International Children's DayAnchorA new report compiled by China's Ministry of Public Security and the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention is suggesting more needs to be done to protect children in vehicles.

CRI's Luo Bin has more.

ReporterThe report is the first of its kind in China, and is focused on child road safety.

It cites hospital sources as saying that in 2013, children who travel by car make up most road traffic injuries; also, most of their injuries took place on head and legs.

Road traffic injuries undoubtedly place an immense burden on the country's healthcare systems.

Liang Xiaofeng, deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, explains the role of his center in building injury prevention plans.

"The center I currently work with has been dedicated to gathering the information on road traffic injuries involving school-age children. The center has already established a mechanism that collects information from hospitals and schools, respectively, to monitor the related injuries. Through our supervision, the center has set priorities in the prevention of road traffic accidents involving children. We have conducted a number of comprehensive programs advocating the safety for a child-pedestrian or a passenger. And these programs have mainly obtained support from international organs."Statistics in the inaugural report show that, in 2013, children between the ages of 15 and 17 made up the largest number of traffic deaths in China. There was greater number of male children who were hospitalized in China due to traffic accidents than their female peers in the same year.

The report was released at a high-profile seminar on child road safety, hosted by the Chinese government with support from UNICEF.

Liang says that government funding is urgently needed to create better research and policies to enhance road safety for children in China.

"Our center is proposing a new research program, which would expand the scale of monitoring child road injuries nationwide. So I urge the Ministry of Finance to support this program, and I also think we should rely more on our own domestic efforts than international organizations, which are decreasing their aid gradually."According to the London-based FIA Foundation for the Automobile & Society Research, every year, at least one million children around the world have to either suspend or halt their school year after injuries sustained in traffic accidents.

For CRI, I'm Luo Bin.

WeatherBeijing will be sunny today with a high of 29 degrees Celsius.

Overnight temperatures should drop down to 11.

Shanghai will be sunny with a high of 27 and a low of 13.

In Chongqing, it will be cloudy during the daytime with a high of 28 and lows of 19.

Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia,Kathmandu, Scattered Thunderstorms, 28.

Islamabad will see showers with a high of 31.

Kabul will have showers with a high of 20.

Over to North America,New York will be cloudy with a high of 32 degrees.

Washington, cloudy with a high of 33 degrees.

Honolulu, partly cloudy, 27.

Toronto will be cloudy with a high of 17 degrees.

Finally, on to South America,Buenos Aires will be sunny with a high of 21.

And Rio de Janeiro will be cloudy with a high of 26 degrees Celsius.

Headline newsChina, S.Korea, Japan to hold talks on trilateral FTA in SeoulA new round of negotiations among China, South Korea and Japan connected to a trilateral free trade agreement are set to take place in Seoul later on today.

The 7th round of negotiations is slated to run until Wednesday.

The three countries are due to discuss a wide range of issues, including goods, services, investment, customs, intellectual property rights and e-commerce.

Drug users exceed 14 mln in ChinaNew stats suggest the number of drug users in China currently sits at around 14-million.

The number of registered drug users came in at close to 3-million as of the end of last year.

Registered drug users are those who have sought medical treatment or have run into legal problems through drug use.

Chinese authorities have acknowledged their anti-drug campaign is being overshadowed by both increasing numbers of drug users and stronger, more addictive drugs.

China provides 300 000 USD to flood-hit MadagascarThe Chinese government is earmarking 300-thousand US dollars to help cyclone victims in Madagascar.

The country has been innondated with both heavy rains and cyclones since the start of the year, leaving dozens dead and more than 30-thousand homeless.

Chinese authorities operating in Madagascar have already been providing essential food-stuffs to the victims.

The government of Madagascar has only received around 400-thousand dollars worth of aid money since February.

Human factor "may have caused" Joyair accidentInitial investigations are suggesting human error is one of the main reasons why a Chinese flight overshot a runway while attempting to land in Fuzhou.

Investigators say they've found no evidence linking the incident to mechanical failures on the aircraft, a China-built Modern Ark 60.

The Joyair flight overran the runway at the main airport in Fujian's capital on Sunday, leaving 5 people slightly injured.

Kerry to visit China, South KoreaUS Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to make a stop here in China this coming weekend ahead of the latest round of Strategic and Economic talks between the two countries.

The US State Department says Chinese President Xi Jinping's planned state visit to the US this coming fall will also be on Kerry's agenda.

The latest round of Strategic and Economic Dialogue is set to be held in the U.S. in June.

Chiense President Xi Jinping is due to travel to the US in SeptemberAfter his time in Beijing, John Kerry is also due to make a stop in Seoul.

Biz reportsAnchorFirst, a quick check on the closing numbers across North America and Europe.

Our reporter Niu Honglin.

ReporterU.S. stocks ended lower after a volatile trading session on Monday, giving back some of the gains from Friday's post-jobs rally.

With no major economic data or earnings reports out on Monday, investors basically took a breather, with trade volumes among the lowest so far this year.

At the close,The Dow Jones edged down 0.5 percent.

The S&P 500 also down half a percent.

The Nasdaq decreased 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile in Europe,European markets also declined, with concerns about Greece still lingering.

Greece's bailout talks with its Euroepan lenders continued Monday in Brussels, with little progress being reported.

As a result, Greece's Athex Composite index shed nearly 3-percent.

U.K. stocks also declined on Monday, pulling back after last week's post general-election rally.

At close,The UK's FTSE 100 down 0.2 percent.

Germany's DAX lost 0.3 percent.

and France's CAC 40 fell 1 percent.

China raises retail oil priceThe retail price fuel is on the rise here in China.

Prices at the pumps are increasing by 0.19-yuan per litre of regular gasoline as of today.

Diesel prices are increasing by 0.21-yuan.

This is the fifth price hike of the year.

The increase follows the recent rise in international oil prices, which has been brought on by geo-political tensions in the Middle East and a weakening US dollar.

China, Belarus renew a currency swap agreementChina's central bank has renewed a currency swap agreement with Belarus's Central Bank worth 7-billion yuan.

It's a 3-year extension of the original agreement, which was initially signed back in 2009.

The new deal can be extended if both sides agree.

Currency swap agreements allow companies doing business in one-another's country to settle accounts in the local currency, avoiding the use of 3rd party currencies, such as the US dollar.

China now has currency swap agreements with more than 20 countries and regions.

China auto sales contracted sharply in AprilAnchor:

The Chinese auto market has seen an overall downturn in April, with sales down some 11-percent month-on-month to 2 million units.

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers is reporting sales volumes are down 0.5-percent year-on-year through April.

However, the downturn through last month appears to be an aberration, as passenger vehicle sales through the first 4-months of the year are up by some 8-percent compared to last year.

The sale of SUV's are up almost 50-percent so far this year.

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

Talking points:

1, Why did the general sales and production contract so sharply in April, while SUV sales expand 50% percent? Is it government policy to blame or the slowdown of the market itself?

2, A parallel import scheme was launched earlier this year, but the 11 dealers in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone did not do so well under the new scheme. Consumers are also expressing strong doubts with their after-sale services. What is your take on that?

3, What are the factors that lead to the expansion of sales in passenger cars especially in SUV in China?

Back anchor:

Gao Shang, analyst with Guantong Futures.

Smartphone shipment contracts in China: IDCA new report published by U.S consultancy International Data Corp appears to show a slowdown in the Chinese smartphone market for the first time in 6-years.

The IDC report shows nearly 100-million smartphones were sold in China through the first quarter of this year, down over 4 percent year-on-year.

Among all smartphone vendors, Apple still tops the Chinese market, holding around 15-percent of the overall market share in the first quarter.

IDC suggests strong Apple sales in China so far this year are being driven by consumer preference for the bigger screens on the iphone 6 and 6 plus.

The same report also shows Samsung sales declined by some 50-percent through the first quarter, dropping Samsung into 4th place in the Chinese market.

New Chinese policy expected to encourage health insurance purchaseChinese tax payers are soon going to be eligible for rebates of some 24-hundred yuan if they purchase personal health insurance.

This is part of a new plan being put forward by the State Council, China's cabinet, to encourage competition among commercial insurers.

Andrew Scott, general manager of Ping An Health Insurance, says the new plan will be beneficial, provided health care costs can be reined in.

"Once consumers are interested though, the further challenge is as a specialist health insurer for us to manage the cost of care that's provided to those consumers and particularly to work with public hospitals to manage that cost of care."Chinese consumers have been gravitating toward private insurance.

Last year, health insurance premiums collected in China grew by over 40-percent year-on-year.

However, most people in China are still only covered under the state Social Insurance program.

Greek government starts transfer 750 m euros to IMFGreek government has begun the transfer of some 800-million US dollars in debt interest it owes to the International Monetary Fund.

The transfer comes just hours before the repayment was due.

This comes as the finance ministers from 19 countries in the eurozone meet in Brussels in a bid to negotiate the final bailout plan for Greece.

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis says they have no plans at this point to launch a referendum on the bailout.

"A referendum is always available to the government and the President of the Republic in order to elicit the support of the Greek people when it comes to pivotal decisions that need to be made. There is no commitment to use it. It is a tool which is available to the Greek government. At the moment it's not something that is on the radar screen as far as we are concerned."Greece and its European creditors have been trying to agree on a list of reforms to secure a new round of financing worth around 8-billion US dollars.

Tmall teams up with 9 multinational retailersAlibaba's high-end retail site Tmall is teaming up with 9 new multinational retailers.

US-based Costco, New Zealand's Countdown and South Korea's Lottemart are among the new retailers being added to Tmall.

In announcing the agreement, the companies say their prices in China are going to be consistent with their other global outlets.

Tmall launched its international section in October.

Over 5-thousand overseas brands are represented on Tmall.

SportsAmerican Football: NFL Suspends Tom Brady 4 Games Over "Deflategate"In American Football news:

The National Football League slapped New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady with a four-game suspension on Tuesday for his alleged part in the team deflating footballs during their AFC Championship back in January.

The penalties follow the release of a report by attorney Ted Wells, which concluded that New England "probably" deflated footballs below league standards to make them easier to catch during their AFC Championship win over the Indianapolis Colts.

The report also claims that Brady "was at least generally aware" of the deflations.

The Patriots will also be fined one-million U.S. dollars and lose their 2016 first-round draft pick and their fourth-round pick for 2017.

NBA Playoff PreviewIn hoops action from the National Basketball Association playoffs:

Going on right now--The Atlanta Hawks are in Washington to face the Wizards.

(UPDATE)The Wizards lead the series 2-1.

And at 9:30 a.m., Beijing time:

Golden State are in Memphis for game four against the Grizzlies.

Memphis has surprised everyone and pulled ahead of the Warriors to lead 2-1; all eyes are on Golden State to see if they can rally back, after finishing the regular season at the top of the league.

Barcelona and Bayern Prepare to Face Off in Champions League, EPL and La Liga RecapIn football action:

From the English Premiere League:

Swansea notch a 1-0 upset win over third-place Arsenal.

Substitute Bafetimbi Gomis made a header that was blocked just after it crossed the Arsenal goal line.

Over in La Liga:

Rayo Vallecano downed Getafe 2-0.

In upcoming action:

Liga leaders Barcelona will face Bundesliga winners Bayern Munich for leg 2 of their UEFA Champions League semi-final.

Barca took game one 3-0, but coach Luis Enrique isn't taking Bayern lightly for their second meeting:

"I mean, you look like you are right in the final, but it depends on how many goals everybody scores. If we take the lead that would of course be very good for us. Yes, but in the final Bayern has the ability to score goals. We know that. And through their way that they play they can always cause problems. We know that. They did cause us problems in Barcelona. We have to be very concentrated when we are on that pitch to win this game. You know the common goal that we have."The two teams hit the pitch in Germany early Wednesday morning, Beijing time.

Tennis: Italian Open RecapIn Tennis action at the Italian Open:

Over in men's action-All three men's seeds playing in the Italian Open in Rome on Monday (May 11) won through to the second round.

Last year's semi-finalist, Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria beat Poland's Jerzy Janowicz 6-3, 7-6(4).

Frenchman Gilles Simon, had a slightly harder time on Monday, taking 2 hours 21 minutes to defeat Jack Sock of the USA 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-3.

American John Isner fared better, beating Portugal's Joao Sousa 7-5, 6-3. Isner is the 16th seed and next faces Argentina's Leonardo Mayer.

In women's action in Italy:

Ninth-seeded German Angelique Kerber finished off France's Alize Cornet in straight sets;Swiss Timea Bacsinszky downed eleventh-seed Karolina Pliskova 6-4, 6-0;No. 14 Venus Williams was in fine form during her straight-set win over Czech Katerina Siniakova.

Thirteenth-seed Italian Sara Errani delighted her home crowd with a straight-set win over Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova.

And fifteenth seeded American Madison Keys beat compatriot Madiosn Brengle 6-2, 6-4;Former No. 1 Lee Chong Wei Leads Malaysia 3-2 Over India at Sudirman CupFormer world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei defeated world No. 4 Srikanth Kidambi of India 21-16, 21-15 at the Sudirman Cup on Monday, but the Malaysian said has yet to reach his best form.

While Lee's victory gave Malaysia a narrow 3-2 win over India and first-place in Group D, the shuttler says he feels he's only "at 70 percent" after returning to competition from an eight-month ban for doping.

The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) selected Lee to take compatriot Chong Wei Feng's place to play in this year's World Championship despite a low world ranking of 46.

Lee says he nor Feng had any say in the matter, but he is excited to play what the 32-year-old expects will be his last Sudirman Cup.

EntertainmentFan Bingbing tops Forbes 100 ListChinese actress Fan Bingbing has topped Forbes magazine's annual ranking of celebrities in China for the third consecutive year.

Fan ranked No. 1 on the '2015 Forbes China Celebrity 100 List' with an annual income of over $20 million.

She was followed by singer Jay Chou, who earned just over $16 million in the past year and actor Nicholas Tse, who took nearly $13 million.

Two major indicators were used to determine the commercial value of each celebrity, income and exposure.

Fan has been dubbed the TV queen, starring in the popular drama "The Empress of China" and other hit shows.

Actors Jackie Chan, Huang Xiaoming, Sun Li, Zhao Wei, and Andy Lau ranked fourth through eighth due to a booming Chinese film market, which is already the second largest in the world.

'The Assassin' acquired by Well Go for North AmericaWell Go USA Entertainment has acquired all North American rights to Taiwan director Hou Hsiao-hsien's martial arts epic "The Assassin."The movie which has been in the works for close to a decade, is currently playing in competition at the Cannes Film Festival.

Starring Shu Qi and Chang Chen, the story is set in 9th century China. Nie Yinniang, the 10-year-old daughter of a decorated general, is abducted by a nun who trains her in martial arts.

She is transformed into an assassin, charged with eliminating cruel and corrupt government officials.

"The Assassin" will make its world premiere at the festival on May 21.

"Game of Thrones" most pirated showHBO's "Game of Thrones" latest episode has broken an all-time piracy record.

In less than 12 hours since airing on TV, the hit show had been downloaded more than 2.2 million times worldwide.

The first pirated copies of the popular fantasy epic showed up on file-sharing sites shortly after it aired in the U.S. at 9 p.m. on Sunday.

The millions of individual Internet addresses tracked by piracy-tracking firm Excipio were recorded as of 10 a.m. on Monday.

Season 5 of "Game of Thrones" fell victim to an early leak of episodes 1-4 ripped from a pre-release screener nearly a full day before the April 12 premiere.

So the popularity of episode five indicates pirates from the earlier leak turned out en masse to grab the latest segment.

The top five countries for piracy of the latest episode are the U.S. Australia, Brazil, India and the U.K.

Rock and Roll auction held in New YorkMore than 850 items from the history of rock and roll will be put up for auction at the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square, New York, this weekend.

The biggest item up for grabs is a bus that Elvis Presley gave to his friend JD Sumner in 1976. The bus includes sleeping quarters, a bathroom, TVs, and chandeliers, it's expected to fetch between 100 and 200 thousand U.S. dollars.

Darren Julien of Julien's Auctions says two items he expects will receive the highest bids belonged to George Harrison and Michael Jackson.

"One of the best pieces we have is George Harrison's Maton guitar that he played at the Cavern Club in the early 60s. It's really a great piece. It's our cover lot on the catalogue. We estimate it $400,000 to $600,000. We also have a lot of really great items of Michael Jackson. We have his glove that he wore in the 'HIStory' teaser video in 1994 in Budapest. We estimate it at $30,000 to $50,000, but all of Michael Jackson's gloves we've sold for all the way up to $400,000."Also on sale will be Michael Jackson's jacket he wore to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony for the Jackson Five in 1997.

The auction also includes memorabilia from Madonna, Eric Clapton and Lady Gaga.

American Idol to end in 2016Hit U.S. TV show "American Idol" is finally coming to an end.

Organisers have revealed that January 2016 will mark the start of the fifteenth and final season.

Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr. and Keith Urban will return as judges, along with host Ryan Seacrest.

While searching for the final "Idol," the last season will also serve as a "celebratory event," paying tribute to fourteen seasons of contestants, winners and fans.

"American Idol," created by Simon Fuller, first debuted in 2002 with original judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson.

Throughout its fourteen seasons, other judges have included Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Steven Tyler and Ellen DeGeneres.

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

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

Chinese President Xi Jinping has honored World War II veterans as part of his current state visit to Belarus.

A number of bilateral agreements are expected to be signed this week as part of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to China.

Nepalese authorities are attempting to speed up their relief efforts in the quake zone amid concerns about the impending monsoon season.

In Business.... retail fuel prices are once-again on the rise here in China.

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.