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

Coming up on the program this evening...

President Xi and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreeing to more action on Asia-Europe connectivity....

China redirecting 250bln Yuan of public funds reclaimed due to inefficient use.....

And a Final deal on Iran's nuclear program coming within reach....

In Business.... Chinese shares showing a strong rebound today as central authorities roll out fresh measures to support the tumbling market....

In Sports.... Football's governing body FIFA expelling Chuck Blazer on corruption charges....

And in Entertainment.... "Tiny Times 4" Opening in Chinese Theatres...

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.

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topXi, Putin agree to more actions on Asia-Europe connectivityAnchor:

The leaders of China and Russia have reached a broad consensus on connecting China's Silk Road proposals and Russia's initiative on a Eurasian Economic Union.

President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have met in the Russian city of Ufa ahead of two international summits, agreeing that increased connectivity will boost bilateral economic cooperation.

More details from CRI's Qi Zhi.

Reporter:

President Xi Jinping is in the southwestern Russian city for the summits of the BRICS nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

He says he's happy to visit a new destination in Russia.

"Mr. President, my old friend. I am very happy to meet with you once again, as well as to see my other old friends. I indeed came to Ufa in a very good mood, because many colleagues asked me, where exactly is Ufa? This is my first ever trip to Ufa."This is the second meeting in two months between President Xi and Putin, who jointly attended celebrations in Moscow back in May marking the 70th anniversary of the European victory in WWII.

It was at that meeting the two leaders agreed to connect China's Silk Road Economic Belt initiative with Russia's aspiration under the Eurasian Economic Union framework.

The two sides are prioritizing cooperation in such areas as investment, finance, energy, aviation, space, high-speed railways and the development of Russia's Far East region.

At Wednesday's meeting, Xi Jinping said tangible results have already been achieved in some new cooperation fields.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry official says the two leaders reached a comprehensive consensus on this matter, including areas for cooperation and specific projects to align China and Russia's proposals of connectivity in Asia and Europe.

They have also agreed that all members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will be the "first platform" to implement projects under the broad connectivity plan.

For his part, Putin expressed confidence in the Russia-China cooperation in addressing global challenges.

"We realize the difficulties we have to face economically and in international politics. But by uniting efforts we, without any doubt, will overcome all the problems we have, we will solve them."He said the decision to align China's Silk Road proposals and Russia's initiative on a Eurasian Economic Union will surely instill strong momentum into bilateral economic cooperation.

On the overall China-Russia relationship, the two leaders have hailed their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, featuring closer exchanges in all sectors and positive cooperation in international affairs.

This year's BRICS summit is expected to see the launch of a multi-billion-dollar development bank to finance infrastructure projects among BRICS members.

At the SCO summit, a decision on starting the procedures for India and Pakistan to join the organization is going to be adopted.

For CRI, I'm Qi Zhi.

Silk Road Economic Belt Initiative and Eurasian Economic Union to be connectedAnchor:

One of the highlights of this year's BRICS and SCO Summit is the connectivity between the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative by China and the Eurasian Economic Union.

CRI's Xie Cheng has more.

Reporter:

President Xi Jinping suggests that the SCO should serve as an important platform to dovetail China's Silk Road Economic Belt initiative with Russia's aspiration under the Eurasian Economic Union framework.

Earlier in May, a relevant deal concerning connectivity was signed by the two sides.

Sergei Kanavsky, executive secretary of the SCO Business Council, says the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative is a multilevel, all-round cooperation plan bringing benefits to a great number of European and Asian countries.

"Those cooperation projects confirmed within the construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative are quite attractive to other members of the SCO in the region. One of them is the transport infrastructure linking up the Eurasian Transport Corridor which shows potential in cross-border transportation. Not only China but Kazakhstan, Russia and many other countries hope to develop mutual coordination under the initiative's framework."The two core missions of the SCO is maintaining regional peace and stability as well as enhancing economic development for member countries and regions.

Many experts believe that China's 'One Belt One Road' Initiative will endow the development of the SCO with new contents, and create vast prospects for promoting economic development.

Denis Tyurin, director of the SCO Business Club, says an agreement should be reached so as to settle the common goals.

"Currently, China and Russia have expressed clear political wills that they're willing to carry out close cooperation on strengthening regional integration. The economic experts will have to research several ways to implement the initiative under practices in different fields. Those include formulating a unified standard in the field of trade, simplifying examination and approval procedures in commodity circulation and service industries, as well as carrying out coordination in the financial field."He predicts that during the ongoing two international summits, relevant countries will reach more agreements on the issue.

For CRI, I'm Xie Cheng.

China to Redirect 250 Bln Yuan of Public Funds ReclaimedChina's cabinet, or the State Council has ordered the redirection of more than 250 million yuan, over 40 billion US dollars, of public funds reclaimed due to inefficient or illegal use.

The information was released during the State Council's weekly executive meeting on Wednesday.

Premier Li Keqiang presided over the meeting.

The fiscal appropriations will be used in projects that urgently need money.

Wang Jun is a senior official with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges.

"There's a great amount of stock capital which has not played its role. It's a common problem that the stock capital can't work in its efficiency, and be used to service entities."Local governments have been urged to speed up the construction of railways and major water conservancy projects and ensue their annual targets are met.

Special bonds and other market-oriented ways to raise capital will be used to support China's production capacity cooperation with other countries.

In addition, the cabinet has urged local governments to speed up construction of rural highways.

Wang Jun says the government is taking all kinds of measures to boost investment and consumption.

"The country is facing the increasing pressure of the economic downturn. The government takes all kinds of measures to boost investment and consumption. One major problem is how to make full use of fiscal resources with the accelerated pace of structural readjustment."The State Council has also decided the government will pay all interest from college student loans before the students graduate.

The term of lending agreements will also be extended to 20 years from 14 years.

Final deal on Iran's nuclear programme within reachRussia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says a final deal on Iran's nuclear programme is within reach at a news conference at the BRICS summit in the Russian city of Ufa.

He says he is ready to return to Vienna for talks between Tehran and six major world powers to work on the agreement.

The Russian foreign minister also outlined the basic principles of a possible deal.

"Safeguarding the right of Iran to peaceful development of its nuclear energy sector, including the right to enrichment of uranium, along with the clearing of all issues regarding the substance of the Iranian nuclear programme and also the lifting of all sanctions."Lavrov says lifting an arms embargo against Iran should be a priority after a permanent deal on Tehran's nuclear program has been reached.

"We are advocating for lifting the arms embargo as soon as possible (after the deal is reached). Even more so, as Iran - as we have all now seen - is a dedicated supporter of the fight against the Islamic State and of clearing the region and the rest of the world of this threat. Lifting of the arms embargo would help Iran to raise its military capabilities in the fight against terrorism."Lavrov also says that there is no strict deadline for a potential deal.

Western countries accuse Iran of seeking the capability to build nuclear weapons, while Tehran says its programme is peaceful.

A successful deal could be the biggest milestone in decades towards easing hostility between Iran and the United States.

Heat Wave Claims 1,250 Lives in South PakistanA heat wave has claimed 1,250 lives in Pakistan's southern province of Sind.

Abdul Rashid, director of Pakistan's Meteorological Department, says the recent heat wave is abnormal:

"A low pressure area had formed in the Arabian Sea, in Karachi's south, which then turned into a depression. It changed the wind pattern of Karachi. Usually, Karachi has south-westerly winds during such weather, resulting in cloudy weather in the morning and evening as well as some drizzle. That system was disrupted and we had north-easterly and north-westerly winds, which resulted in an increase in temperature."Therefore, it is hard for weather departments in the country to accurately predict the nature and extent of the recent heat wave.

Experts believe that poorly constructed slums are partly to blame for the high death toll.

In the port city of Karachi, which is also the capital of Sind province, more than 60 percent of the city's 20 million population live in densely populated slums.

Dr. Noman Ahmed from NED University's Department of Architecture & Planning explains that rooms are small with little or no ventilation, creating a suffocating atmosphere inside.

"There are now four, five and even six-storey structures where once only ground-storey structures were. And because these were constructed without any technical advice, they aren't provided with proper windows or ventilation, creating a suffocating environment, regardless of the absence of electricity. "The doctor says during heat waves, the overall movement of air stagnates and comes to a standstill. In such circumstances, those slum buildings turned into death traps for the elderly, sick and the disadvantaged.

UNHCR Calls for more Aids for Syrian Refugees as Number Tops Four MillionThe office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has announced that more than four million Syrian refugees have fled the civil war to surrounding regions.

UN refugee chief Antonio Guterres says this is the biggest refugee population from a single conflict in a generation.

The number of registered Syrian refugees has increased by one million over the past ten months.

Turkey, already hosting nearly two million Syrian refugees, is preparing a giant, new refugee camp to house over 50-thousand people as the conflict escalates in Aleppo.

Lebanon is currently sheltering over one million refugees which accounts for a quarter of its population.

Other Syrians have fled to neighbouring regions including Jordan, Iraq and Egypt.

The UNHCR has estimated more than five billion US dollars is needed this year to help the Syrian refugees and the vulnerable host communities in neighboring countries.

But the agency warned it so far has received less than a quarter of that amount.

It also warned that more and more Syrian refugees are engaging in "negative coping practices" as they become increasingly impoverished and desperate.

Greece Goes for a 3-year Aid ProgramGreece has made a fresh request for help from the European Stability Mechanism, to save the country from defaulting on its debt and from exiting the Eurozone.

European Council President Donald Tusk confirmed the information on Wednesday.

"This is really and truly the final wake up call for Greece but also for us, our last chance. I want to inform you that the last chance procedure has just started. President Dijsselbloem received while we are debating here, the formal Greek request for the ESM programme as we agreed yesterday. I hope that this is a good sign, a good omen for tomorrow. I hope. Thank you."He adds that Greece is rushing to detail a plan of economic reforms that creditors want to see by the end of today, a deadline set by European leaders.

Athens has promised to begin implementing tax and pension measures as early as Monday, the two issues that divided the Greek government and creditors over the past few months of protracted discussions.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says it was a fair deal for Greeks.

"The pre-requisite for this is on the one hand, reliable reforms and on the other a clear commitment for sufficient funding and necessary debt relief in order to have a viable solution and a definite exit from the crisis. This is our goal; this is what our efforts are all about. I believe that the overwhelming majority of the Greek people support us in this endeavor."With its banks closed, cash withdrawals rationed and the economy in free fall, Greece has never been closer to a state bankruptcy that would probably force it to leave the euro and print an alternative currency.

An emergency summit involving all 28 European Union members - not just the 19 eurozone countries - will take place on Sunday.

Tsipras says Greece will "file new concrete proposals, and credible reforms, for a fair and viable solution."Greece's Tourism Hit by Debt Crisisanchor:

Greece's debt crisis has hit the country's tourism industry hard. The impact on the industry may be limited for the time being, though, as the flare-up comes late into the season when most summer holidays to the country have already been booked.

CRI's Shen Ting has more.

reporter:

The Greek Tourism Confederation says it has seen a 30 percent drop in last-minute bookings, which typically account for one-fifth of bookings to the country.

But on the island of Santorini, one of Greece's most iconic tourist destinations, local businesses say the crisis has not yet dealt a major blow to tourism.

Lina is an employee of a local shop on the island.

"A lot of people come to visit Santorini, and it doesn't affect Santorini island so much, it's about 10 percent lower than it was expected to be."Yet some businesses on the island are beginning to feel the effects of the crisis.

Although tourists have been able to use credit cards, many business have been facing demands by suppliers to pay cash for goods.

Penelope Theodosopoulo, who runs a family restaurant, explains it is the suppliers who need cash.

"We are working with suppliers here, but our suppliers are working with suppliers in Athens, for example. The big ones, they need cash, and they say if you don't give me cash, I won't give you the products. So eventually, we won't have any products. I don't know how long, that will take."Despite their fears, business owners want to deliver a message of confidence for potential visitors.

And for some business owners like William Mandeilaras, even the threat of Greece succumbing to a state bankruptcy is not enough to dampen their confidence.

"In the short-term there will be problems, but for the long term I think there won't be any problems because people won't stop travelling and especially if we get a lower currency, it will have actually encourage tourists travel to Greece even more because their currency will be stronger than ours, they will be able to make more travels to Greece."Travel website Opodo.de says Greece flight bookings from Germany suddenly dropped off after June 26, when talks broke down between Greece and its euro zone creditors.

Between June 27 and July 6, daily flight bookings have been down most days by around 30-35 percent from the previous year, with one day showing a decrease of 68 percent.

The reduction in bookings seems particularly to affect German travellers. Flight website Skyscanner said earlier this week that interest from Britain and Spain had actually increased. Some European tourists are switching holiday plans to Greece from Tunisia following an attack on tourists there.

For CRI, I'm Shen Ting.

Baltimore sacks police chief after murder waveThe US city of Baltimore has fired its police chief after a rise in violence.

The city has seen a surge in homicides after riots erupted over the death of a black man in custody.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake says it is not an easy decision; however the police leadership has become a distraction from the fight against crime.

"Too many continue to die on our streets. Including three just last night and one last earlier today. Families are tired of feeling this pain and so am I. Recent events have placed an intense focus on our police leadership distracting many from what needs to be our main focus: the fight against crime."The city has witnessed 155 murders so far this year and 303 shootings.

That compares to 105 homicides and 163 shootings at this time last year.

Batts came to Baltimore in September 2012 with a mandate to modernize its police force.

However he has come under fire for his handling of the riots that erupted after the death of an African-American man, Freddie Gray, in police custody in April.

Six police officers were charged in connection with Gray's death.

It is America's worst outbreak of civil unrest since the August 2014 shooting of black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri by a white police officer.

Interview with Commissioner General of UNRWAAnchor:

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East or UNRWA is seeking closer cooperation with China to improve the situation for Palestinian refugees.

Pierre Kr?henbühl, the Commissioner General of the UN agency, visited Beijing this week to develop a better understanding of China's view on the Middle East and seek opinions from Chinese officials.

For more on his visit to Beijing, CRI's Tu Yun has an exclusive interview with Mr Kr?henbühl.

Back anchor:

That was Pierre Kr?henbühl, the Commissioner General of UNRWA, speaking with CRI's Tu Yun.

Steamed Potato Buns Emerges in Chinese MarketSteamed buns made of potato have emerged on the Chinese market following a national strategy to convert the potato into a staple of Chinese people's daily diet.

The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences has spent two years developing the steamed bun made of potato powder and wheat powder.

Three loafs of potato bread weighing 350 grams cost 4.2 yuan, two times higher than commonly found steamed buns.

One woman who came out to get a first taste of the buns said she wanted to try the buns due to their nutritious value.

"I saw the news on TV so I came here especially to buy some. It is expensive, I know. But I think it's more nutritious."The Ministry of Agriculture has said that the potato will soon become a staple after rice, wheat and corn, and 50 percent of the annual potato production will be consumed as staple food by 2020.

weatherBeijing will be cloudy tonight with a low of 23 degrees Celsius; still cloudy tomorrow with a high of 32.

Shanghai will be overcast tonight with a low of 24; tomorrow showers with a high of 29.

Chongqing will be cloudy tonight with a low of 23, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 35.

Lhasa has showers tonight with a low of 11, tomorrow cloudy with a high of 23.

Headline newsChinese president attends BRICS summit in Russia's UfaChinese President Xi Jinping has attended the 7th BRICS summit in the Russian city of Ufa.

It's third time for Xi to join the the annual summit of the emerging-market bloc.

Xi's counterparts of Brazil, Russia and South Africa, as well as Indian Prime Minister have also attended the summit.

The five leaders are expected to exchange views on enhancing cooperation among BRICS countries.

They will also hold talks with leaders from member countries and observer states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Eurasia Economic Union.

In addition, all member countries ratified the agreement to build the BRICS New Development Bank on Tuesday and deposited their share of the initial capital.

The bank is set to begin operating in January.

A Greek cabinet meeting to discuss detailed proposalsGreece is preparing to present its detailed proposals of reforms to international creditors to unlock a financial aid package.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras convened a cabinet meeting earlier to discuss the issue.

Tsipras said the detailed proposals would be delivered later on Thursday.

Euro zone leaders set Greece a Sunday deadline in order to push the country to come up with a reform plan.

Greek government spokesperson Gabriel Sakellaridis said he is confident the deal would be approved.

At the same time, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she would ask parliament in Berlin to authorise the opening of loan negotiations if the Greek measures have been approved.

Fabius and Iranian nuclear chief arrive for talksFrench Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi have arrived in Vienna for negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program.

The talks broke through their second deadline in a week on Tuesday.

This has raised new questions on the ability to cut off all Iranian pathways to nuclear weapons through diplomacy.

Further details of the talks will be released later.

Two killed, five injured as helicopter crashes in east ChinaTwo people have been killed and five others injured after a helicopter crash in Zhejiang.

The helicopter carrying seven people, crashed on Thursday morning at an airport in Jiande City, Zhejiang Province.

The Bell 407 aircraft belongs to the general aviation company of the State Grid.

The injured have been sent to a hospital nearby.

An investigation is underway.

Prisoner in Heilongjiang Sentenced over Fraud and BlackmailA prisoner, who cheated and blackmailed several women, has been sentenced to nearly 14 years in jail.

The People's Procuratorate in Heilongjiang filed a law suit against defendant Wang Dong who was accused of fraud and blackmail in March.

Wang is accused of making use of online chat while in prison to cheat money from two people, and also making use of a naked photo to blackmail a woman.

He pleaded guilty after questioning in court.

biz reportsTurning now to business news.

First a look at the numbers from across the Asian markets to close out this Thursday evening.

Our reporter Qian Shanming:

Reporter:

Chinese shares have shown a strong rebound today, as the central authorities continue to roll out fresh measures to support the tumbling market.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose up to 6 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index surged at least 4 percent, while the ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, climbed 3 percent.

In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index closed up over three and a half of a percent.

In the latest moves to steady the market, China will allow banks to extend mortgage loans that use share funds as collateral in the stock market.

Under the plan, banks could be able to discuss redefining mortgage terms of share-secured loans that are due or adjusting collateral with their clients.

China's central bank and stock regulators have also vowed measures to stabilize the market.

The People's Bank of China has injected 35 billion yuan or 5.7 billion U.S. dollars into the money market through open market operations.

This marked the fifth consecutive cash injection the central bank has carried out through regular reverse repurchase agreements (repo) since June 25.

The gains also follow another report that Chinese police visited the head office of China Securities Regulatory Commission on Thursday morning to investigate "malicious short selling," a sign of cracking down on operations that violated laws and regulations.

Experts believe a raft of monetary policies have begun to take effect.

Tang Yonggang, an analyst at Shenyin Wanguo Securities says the market shows signs of stabilizing as the regulator came to rescue small-caps, especially those on the ChiNext, which eased the liquidity crisis and gave investors a much-needed dose of confidence.

"Individual stocks on ChiNext reached their daily limits, which have greatly influenced market confidence. We can see this has rapidly provided incentives for growth enterprises in emerging industries. Judging from the mainboard, aerospace and military industry stocks took the lead to pick up, which has significantly helped boost the public's confidence in the market. "Other Asian markets saw a reprieve as China's market recovery strengthened.

Both Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's Kospi edged up over half a percent.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index closed down over half a percent.

Finally, Australia's ASX 200 edged up a fraction of a percent.

China's consumer price index edged up in JuneThe National Bureau of Statistics says China's consumer price index or CPI, a main gauge of inflation, edged up 1.4 percent year-on-year in June.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices in June have remained unchanged.

The rise of the index was attributed mainly to higher food prices, including vegetables and pork.

Pan Jiancheng, deputy director-general of China Economic Monitoring and Analysis Center, said stable agricultural production ensures the stability of the prices of farm produce, particularly food prices.

"On the other hand, continuous and modest rise of salary has pushed up service prices. So under the influence of these two factors, a modest rise of prices in the first half of this year can be viewed as a stable performance."The bureau also announced China's producer price index or PPI, which measures wholesale inflation, slid 4.8 percent year on year in June.

The reading also marked the 40th straight month of decline, a sign of prolonged weakness of demand.

Month on month, producer prices in June decreased 0.4 percent.

Experts attributed the dive mainly to price declines in oil refining, chemistry materials and products.

"The continuous drop in PPI has a great impact on the economy. Seen from the current situation, it seems that destocking has not come to an end and will continue to put downward pressure on PPI for some time to come."Weighed down by a housing market downturn, weak domestic and external demand, along with overcapacity, China's economy grew at its lowest rate in six years in the first quarter, expanding 7 percent.

Given the still weak strength in growth, experts also forecast an interest rate cut and more reductions in bank reserve requirement ratio in the third quarter.

For more on this CRI's Zhao Yang earlier spoke with Einar Tangen, Former Chairman of the State of Wisconsin's International Trade Council.

Back anchor:

That was CRI's Zhao Yang speaking with Einar Tangen, Former Chairman of the State of Wisconsin's International Trade Council.

China retains world's largest spot gold trading marketThe Shanghai Gold Exchange says China has retained its lead as the world's largest market for spot gold trading for the eighth year, as growing participation by offshore investors has fueled trade growth.

Trading of gold surged over 160 percent during the first half this year to over 17,000 tonnes, while that for silver jumped over 150 percent during the same period.

Trading of bullion totalled nearly 4,800 tonnes at an international board set up for offshore investors in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.

The World Gold Council estimates demand for bullion from China and India, the world's top two buyers, will stand between 900 to 1,000 tonnes this year.

China is also striving for a greater say in the pricing of gold.

The Shanghai Gold Exchange will establish gold fixing denominated by the Chinese currency renminbi by the end of this year in a bid to compete with London and the U.S. Comex over pricing of the precious metal.

China's trade groups to get freer reinChina's trade associations, which traditionally have a close relationship with the government, will be given more independence, but under stricter scrutiny.

According to a plan released by the State Council, all operational, financial and personnel affiliation between the government and trade associations will be severed.

From 2018, the government will stop sponsoring trade associations and instead contract their services as outside agents.

Those that are linked to government departments or public institutions will have to separate their staff, work and property.

It said when the plan is implemented, all trade associations will be considered non-profitable NGOs and subject to related rules.

State-owned phone firm pledges to fight graftChina Mobile, the country's largest wireless carrier, says it is asking its top executives and their families to sign letters promising to help the fight against corruption.

The company said it is dedicated to anti-corruption education.

Its executives have been taken on prison visits and to listen in on court cases, and there have been educational film showings.

Anti-corruption investigators pledged earlier this year to begin scrutinizing China Mobile and China Telecom after a probe into China Unicom Hong Kong ensnared several high-ranking executives.

SportsFIFA expels Chuck Blazer on corruption chargesFIFA has banned former executive committee member Chuck Blazer from football for life over alleged corruption charges.

FIFA came to the decision based on evidence from the American federal investigations.

Blazer had pleaded guilty to racketeering, fraud, money laundering and tax evasion.

The corruption scandals that also involve FIFA president Sepp Blatter plunged the world of football into crisis.

Authorities are investigating the bidding processes behind Russia and Qatar's World Cup Bids.

Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko believes there is no threat to the rights being stripped from them.

"I am absolutely sure that no change of leadership can change anything, it can only reinforce the preparation. Of course, when there are so many talks about FIFA, this influences the administration, slows down certain processes, that is true, that is always this way. So I can see no threats here now."Russia is due to hold the World Cup in 2018 while Qatar was announced as the hosts for the 2022 World Cup.

Real to sell Casillas; Barca announce candidates for presidencySome off-pitch football news from Spain,Real Madrid have agreed to a deal to sell goal keeper Iker Casillas to Porto.

The team will hold a farewell ceremony for Casillas on Friday.

Casillas is the most decorated player in the club's history, with five titles in La Liga, two in the Copa del Rey and three in the Champions League.

Barcelona have officially announced four candidates for the club's presidency.

Josep Bartomeu remains the favorite. He stepped down from the presidency last month in order to be re-elected.

His opponents for the post are Joan Laporta, Agusti Benedito and Antoni Freixa.

CONCACAF Gold Cup resultsMore football action, over in the United States,Two games in Group B concluded this morning at the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

All four teams start with one point in this group.

Costa Rica drew 2-all against Jamaica,And El Salvador and Canada played to a goalless draw.

Hao Wei to join Guangzhou EvergrandeChina's football association has agreed for coach Hao Wei to leave the women's football team and join Guangzhou Evergrande.

Hao had previously offered to resign after leading China into the quarter finals at the Women's World Cup.

The Chinese Super League club and Hao have conducted talks and mutually agreed on the collaboration.

He will fill the vacancy left by former coach Li Tie after Li stepped down from his position as the Chinese coach at Guangzhou Evergrande.

Hao will have no problem working with head coach Luiz Felipe Scolari as he speaks fluent Portuguese after living in Brazil for some time.

He will also be coaching the back-up team at Guangzhou Evergrande.

China's football association, Guangzhou Evergrande and Hao Wei himself are handling the paperwork needed for the transfer.

Zheng Jie to play at China OpenChina's Zheng Jie has quashed retirement rumors announcing that she will be playing at the upcoming China Open in September.

Ticket pre-sales for the China Open have already started at the Wimbledon tournament.

Zheng Jie was at the pre-sale and says she still has a deep passion for tennis.

"A lot of things are difficult to say. I don't have any strict rules for myself. I have loved tennis from when I first started playing so it's very difficult for me to say goodbye."Zheng said retirement is not an option at the moment and she will quit when her physical strength doesn't allow her to compete anymore.

Zheng had just ended her last Wimbledon journey. She and Chan Yung-jan from Taiwan were defeated in the first round of the women's doubles, and she was stopped in the second round of the mixed doubles along with her Finnish partner.

The China Open begins in Beijing at the end of September.

Wimbledon previewIn the Wimbledon,The semi-finals of the women's singles will begin shortly.

Top seed Serena Williams has set up a clash of the former Winbledon champions taking on Maria Sharapova.

The other semi-final match-up is between Spain's Garbine Muguruza and Agnieszka Radwanska from Poland.

Earlier in the men's singles,Richard Gasquet downed French Open champion Stan Wawrinka to reach the semi-finals.

And it was an easy pass for Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray.

Cycling recapIn cycling,Adria Mobil's Slovenian rider Primoz Roglic has won stage five of the Tour of Qinghai Lake.

Hossein Alizaden from Iran took the leader's yellow jersey. He was also awarded the blue jersey for the best Asian rider.

Marko Kump retained his green jersey for leading the points classification.

Francisco Colorado won the climber's polka-dot jersey.

Over in the Tour de France,The peloton is going from Abbeville to Le Havre in stage six.

The 191.5 kilometer stage features a fourth category climb that could spark a battle for the polka-dot jersey.

The ramp at the finish will suit the likes of Peter Sagan, Alejandro Valverde and John Degenkolb for a stage victory.

Jeremy Lin joins CharlotteIn basketball,Jeremy Lin has announced he will join the Charlotte Hornets for the forthcoming season.

He has reportedly signed a two-year contract for just over 4 million US dollars.

Lin opted to terminate his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers and become a free agent in order to find a team that could fit his style of play.

He averaged 11.2 points in 74 games last season for the Lakers and was sought after by such teams as Dallas, Houston and the Golden State Warriors.

Lin said he chose the Hornets because he believes they are a team that will allow him to play freely.

In other news from the transfer window,The New Orleans Pelicans have extended their contract with Anthony Davis.

They have agreed to a five-year deal worth 145 million US dollars (1.45亿), the highest in NBA history.

Results from UniversiadeIn action from Team China at the Universiade in Gwangju, South Korea,Diver Wang Ying has won the gold medal in the women's ten-meter platform.

Zhang Yingying and Wang Haoran took bronze in the women's 10-tousand meter and men's 50-meter rifle prone.

But China were defeated by hosts South Korea 3-0 in the team badminton final.

And China's women's football team were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Japan 3-1 in a penalty shootout.

Entertainment"Tiny Times 4" Opens in Chinese Theatres, Kai Ko's Scenes KeptThe last installment of the "Tiny Times" franchise – "Tiny Times 4" has opened in Chinese theatres.

Directed by Guo Jingming, the film stars Yang Mi, Amber Kuo, Xie Yilin and Bea Hayden.

Taiwan actor Kai Ko's scenes' have been kept in the movie but are mostly mid-shots and side-shots.

Kai Ko is currently black-listed by China's media watchdog due to a drug conviction last September.

The 'Tiny Times' series follows the stories of four friends in modern-day Shanghai as they become embroiled in problems with their relationships, work, and friendships.

The franchise was adapted from Guo's trilogy of books under the same title.

However the franchise has been harshly criticized since the first movie's premiere due to its materialistic value and its overall quality.

Actor Chen Xuedong has defended the franchise and his co-workers.

"I feel I'm kind of relieved now. It seems there will be no more people attacking us because of the Tiny Times films. But I'm also a little bit sad that the films have come to an end. In the past three years, we cared about each other no matter if it was about the movies or not. That's the relationship we developed during the process."Despite the bad ratings, the franchise has become a huge commercial success at the Chinese box office.

So far, the first three films in the series have made more than 1.3 billion yuan.

Chinese Film Fair Takes Place in QinhuangdaoThe 2015 Chinese Film Fair is set to take place in the northern seaside resort city Qinhuangdao, in Hebei province.

Highlight of the event is the award ceremony of the 10 best Chinese films in the past year from cross-straits markets, including "The Golden Era", "Dearest", "The Taking of Tiger Mountain" and "Coming Home".

This year's event will also feature an exhibition of anti-Japanese Aggression war films in Chinese.

The Chinese Film Fair runs till Saturday.

Icelandic Director Baltasar Kormakur's "Everest" to Open Venice Film FestivalIcelandic director Baltasar Kormakur's mountain climbing thriller "Everest" has been selected to open the upcoming Venice Film Festival in September.

Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, the film follows the multi-expedition assault on Mount Everest which left eight climbers dead in 1996.

The film was shot on the foothills of Everest in Nepal as well as the Alps in Italy.

This year's Venice Film Festival runs from September 2 to 12.

"Gravity" director Alfonso Cuaron will lead the main jury while the full lineup will be confirmed later on this month.

Taylor Swift's "1989" Becomes the Fastest-selling Album of the Last DecadeTaylor Swift's "1989" is unstoppable.

Stats from Nielsen Music show the album has sold more than 5 million copies in 36 weeks to become the fastest-selling album in the last decade.

The previous record holder was Usher's "Confessions" which reached the 5 million benchmark in just 19 weeks in 2004.

Swift's "1989" is now on track to out-perform Adele's "21" which has sold more than 11 million copies so far, according to Billboard.

The pop singer knows not only how to make music, but also how to keep her fans happy.

She recently donated 50-thousand US dollars to a fan of hers who was suffering from Leukemia.

The singer surprised her young fan Naomi after learning that she couldn't make it to the "1989" tour due to her treatment.

Super Junior to Celebrate 10th Anniversary with Special AlbumSouth Korean boy band Super Junior are going to release a special album titled 'Devil' to celebrate their 10th anniversary.

The album, featuring 10 different types of songs, will be released on July 16.

The group was formed in 2005 by South Korean entertainment giant SM Entertainment.

At one time, the group included Chinese national Han Geng who later quit the group in 2009 citing contract issues.

Super Junior has released a number of posters featuring its members on the group's official website.

The band will hold two concerts on Saturday and Sunday at the Olympic Park in Seoul.

weatherBeijing will be cloudy tonight with a low of 23 degrees Celsius; still cloudy tomorrow with a high of 32.

Shanghai will be overcast tonight with a low of 24; tomorrow showers with a high of 29.

Chongqing will be cloudy tonight with a low of 23, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 35.

Lhasa has showers tonight with a low of 11, tomorrow cloudy with a high of 23.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad, light rain tomorrow, 32.

Kabul, cloudy, 31.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, light rain with a high of 18.

Brisbane, also light rain with a high of 18.

Perth, light rain, 15.

And finally Auckland, New Zealand will be cloudy with a high of 11 degrees Celsius.

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

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

President Xi and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreeing to more actions on Asia-Europe connectivity....

China redirecting 250bln Yuan of public funds reclaimed due to inefficient use.....

And a Final deal on Iran's nuclear program coming within reach....

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, I'm Sophie Williams in Beijing hoping you'll join us for our next edition of the Beijing Hour to open a window to the world together...