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

Coming up on our program this morning...

The Chinese government voices its strong opposition to the latest defense white paper published by Japan...

Chinese President Xi Jinping has discussed the Iran nuclear issue and his upcoming visit to the United States with President Obama over telephoneVote counting has begun in Burundi's disputed presidential election...

In Business...strong third quarter results fail to excite Apple's investors...

In Sports...La Liga gets its first Chinese player...

In entertainment...Taylor Swift leads the field with nine nominations at the upcoming MTV Video Music Awards...

Top NewsJapan Defense White Paper Stirs up Tensions: FMAnchorChina has voiced its firm opposition to Japan's annual defense white paper, saying it deliberately plays up the so-called "China military threat."More details from CRI's Qi Zhi.

ReporterThe Japanese cabinet on Tuesday approved the defense white paper for 2015, in which it launched multiple accusations against China.

The paper was approved after a previous draft was rejected for not taking a strong enough line on China.

Jiang Feng, chief editor of the Tokyo-based Japan New-Generation Overseas Chinese Newspaper, explains the differences.

"The Japanese government specifically mentioned that it had repeatedly protested against China's activities in the East China Sea and asked China to stop such activities. In this year's defense white paper, Japan is no longer stating the facts concerning the East China Sea issue, it's actually issuing a warning to China."The white paper says Japan faces an increasingly severe security environment, highlighting China's supposed military build-up, and activities by China in the East China Sea and South China Sea.

It also criticizes China's increased military spending, saying it is now 41 times higher than what it was in fiscal 1989.

In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang has criticized Japan for ignoring facts and making irresponsible remarks on China's normal military growth and maritime activities.

He says the white paper deliberately plays up the "China threat" and stirs up tensions.

On China's maritime activities, Lu Kang stresses that they are fully within China's sovereignty and beyond reproach.

He has also accused Japan of deliberately intervening in the South China Sea issue and playing up regional tensions.

Meanwhile, China's Defense Ministry has also expressed strong dissatisfaction over Japan's new defense report.

The Ministry stresses that modernizing national defense and the country's armed forces is China's legitimate right as a sovereign state.

Jiang Feng says he believes playing up the China military threat will not deter the development of China's armed forces.

"Japan's annual defense white paper tends to portray the changes in China's military, which actually reflect the achievements in China's military development, achievements that Japan find it hard to accept. However, China will surely not abandon its efforts to build up the military simply because it's hard for Japan to accept."In the annual defense white paper, Japan has also renewed its claim to a pair of disputed islets that are called as Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan.

The South Korean Foreign Ministry has denounced the paper and summoned a Japanese diplomat stationed in Seoul to file a protest.

Ministry spokesman Noh Kwang-il is urging Japan to respect history.

"The Japanese government adding an absurd assertion again in its 2015 Defense White Paper released today is an act denying past Japanese imperialism invading the Korean Peninsula. Such action is no better than notification to the international community that Japan is still not correctly understanding its own history, even though we have reached the 70th anniversary of the ceasefire."Analysts believe that by playing up perceived threats, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's administration provides excuses for formulating a more aggressive new national defense policy, by remolding its Self-Defense Forces and for amending its post-war pacifist constitution.

For CRI, I'm Qi Zhi.

Obama says China plays important role in Iranian nuclear talksChinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama have exchanged views via telephone on the recent Iran nuclear agreement.

Xi Jinping has pledged that China would continue its constructive cooperation with all the parties involved, ensuring the implementation of the nuclear deal and the UN Security Council resolution.

For his part, Obama says China has played a significant role during the Iranian nuclear talks.

In addition, Obama has expressed that he is looking forward to Xi Jinping's visit to the US in September.

He has promised that the two sides will engage in close consultation to make sure the visit is fruitful.

China, New Zealand vow to further promote strategic relationsChinese President Xi Jinping has met with New Zealand Governor-General Jerry Mateparae here in Beijing, with both leaders pledging to further promote ties between the two countries.

Xi Jinping has urged the two sides to expand cooperation in areas such as agriculture, animal husbandry, food safety, biological medicine and new energy.

He also pledged to work with all parties, including New Zealand, to make the China-proposed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank a reciprocal, professional and efficient investment and financing platform.

For his part, Mateparae said New Zealand and China can strengthen cooperation on global issues including climate change.

Mateparae is on a state visit to China at the invitation of President Xi.

New Zealand Farmers Expects Stronger Bilateral RelationshipAnchor As New Zealand's Governor General Sir Jerry Mateparae is visiting China, the South Pacific nation's farmers hope a tightened trading relationship with China can enable them to get through the tough times, amid the continuing fall of global dairy prices.

CRI's Huang Shan has more.

ReporterPhilip Bell's family has farmed for 150 years, and he predicts New Zealand's farmers may have to endure hard times, as global prices for milk powder have dropped to a six-year low.

Part of the problem is a slowdown in China's dairy consumption, which has seen New Zealand's exports to China drop by 45 percent since the peak in 2013.

Bell highlights the significant role of the Chinese market for New Zealand's dairy industry.

"The Chinese market is very, very important to us. It's the biggest dairy market in the world, it's where we're selling the biggest proportion of our produce."However, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, New Zealand's biggest bank, indicates that increased wealth in nations like China will boost future demand for food from New Zealand.

Managing Director Graham Turley with ANZ predicts the industry's fortunes will eventually turn around.

"The demand for protein as a result of that gives us confidence that the dairy industry and other protein industries in New Zealand have got a bright future in the long term."He also points out that China has been encouraging more foreign investment to promote industries and optimize development.

One of China's big three infant formula companies, Yashili, has already invested in a 220 million U.S.-dollar processing factory south of Auckland.

Meanwhile, China Construction Bank has established offices in New Zealand.

The executive general manager of CCB New Zealand, Lloyd Cartwright, says the falling Zealand dollar makes the country attractive to foreign investors.

"It's falling, so it's providing a cheaper entry point for capital into New Zealand, and I think that might actually have a bigger impact than actual falling dairy prices."Though the dairy industry may face a tough time, other parts of the New Zealand economy are accelerating due to the strong relationship with China.

The number of Chinese students coming to the country has increased by 12 percent last year, and tourists from China have soared by nearly 30 percent.

According to surveys released by the Chinese Tourism Academy, New Zealand is ranked as the number one destination.

For CRI, I'm Huang Shan.

New BRICS development bank launched in ShanghaiAnchorThe New Development Bank, backed by the five BRICS countries, has officially opened in Shanghai.

As CRI's Niu Honglin reports, the main purpose of the bank is to finance infrastructure projects in developing countries.

ReporterThe opening comes after a BRICS summit held in the Russian city of Ufa earlier this month, where leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa talked about some final details of the multilateral lender.

Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei says the bank will gradually open up to include more developing nations and supplement the existing international financial system.

"As a multilateral development bank initiated and established by the emerging markets, the NDB will focus more on the needs of developing countries, respect their national conditions and better represent developing countries' ideas."The BRICS Bank headquartered in Shanghai has a capital base of 50 billion US dollars and the number is expected to be doubled in the coming years.

The money will be mainly used to cope with increasing demand of new infrastructure in developing countries and emerging economies, which sometimes have difficulties securing financing from other international lenders that are controlled by the world's developed economies.

The NDB will also work closely with the Beijing based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which has a similar mandate.

The bank's new president K.V. Kamath, a former executive with one of the largest private banks in India, says the BRICS bank has decided to set up a "hotline" with the AIIB to strengthen cooperation between the two lenders.

"We have decided to set up a hotline between ourselves so that we can talk to each other to make sure that we have a common mind and a common approach because we believe that new institutions coming together with a completely different approach, will truly lead to the development of not only the "BRICS" countries, but in a longer run, the entire development world."The BRICS countries have also agreed to set up a 100-billion Dollar reserve fund to help members in the event of a liquidity crunch.

China has pledged 41 billion US Dollars to this fund, giving it the largest share of voting rights at 39.5 percent.

Brazil, India and Russia will each contribute 18 billion US Dollars, while South Africa has promised 5 billion dollars.

The BRICS nations represent 42 percent of the world's population and account for over 30 percent of the world's GDP.

For CRI I'm Niu Honglin.

Postgraduate Poisoner Confesses in LettersA postgraduate student who was sentenced to death for homicide admitted in letters to his father that he killed his roommate by poisoning.

According to the two handwritten letters recently obtained by thepaper.cn, Lin Senhao, a former medical student at Fudan University, told his father that he had poisoned his roommate Huang Yang.

Prosecutors claimed Lin dropped toxic compounds in a water dispenser in their dorm room. Huang died 15 days after drinking the water.

Lin claimed during his trial the poisoning was just an April Fool's Day prank.

He was sentenced to death at Shanghai No 2 Intermediate People's Court on Feburary 18, 2014.

In December, Shanghai Municipal Higher People's Court rejected an appeal and upheld the death sentence for Lin Senhao.

Lin and his family are now waiting for a review of the death penalty by the Supreme People's Court.

Defaulters Banned from Taking High-speed TrainsStarting today, people in China who fail to fulfill court orders will be barred from taking high-speed trains, as the Supreme People's Court has extended penalty restrictions against those people.

The SPC announced two judicial interpretations on Tuesday, as a part of a nation-wide crackdown on defaulters launched in November 2014.

Liu Guixiang, an SPC official, explains the latest move to punish people for violating court orders.

"The most prominent change is not only banning violators from spending on luxury services but also preventing them from spending on anything not necessary to sustain normal life or businesses. For instance, we previously banned them from sleeper-cars on trains. As high-speed trains have become popular, we extended penalty restrictions to high-speed trains."Liu Guixiang says corporations are also affected by the new rules.

"When a corporation fails to obey a court order, its legal representatives, chief executives, and those directly responsible for fulfilling the obligations of the courts will be subject to the same restrictions as individuals."According to the SPC, if people default on emergency money, including child-rearing fees, medical fees or workers' salaries, to an extent that it can be regarded as a criminal offense, they will receive heavy penalties.

Ice-sports become popular in BeijingAnchorWith Beijing waiting to see if its bid for the 2022 Winter Games has been successful, more Chinese people are becoming interested in winter sports.

CRI's Yuyang has more.

ReporterWhen the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games took place, it was clear that China had been the perfect hosts for the Summer games. Take a look around the city and across the country now and you can still see the legacy of the games – young people playing basketball in the park, children taking swimming lessons and of course the Birds Nest and Water Cube.

As Beijing seeks to become the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympics, it's hoped that the Olympic legacy can continue into the winter sports world.

The interest in winter sports is already seeing an increase.

Mrs. Liang is a parent who enrolled her daughter in ice skating classes at Beijing's Capital Gymnasium.

"I think skating is not just a skill, it's fun and a workout for your body. Unlike the time when I was a kid, now we have good facilities and coaches. My child loves it as well. So she picked up skating while enjoying it. When she grows up, it would be a relaxing activity when she feels tired after work or study."Mrs. Liang is not the only parent who has enrolled her child in a winter sport. The only concern is that ice-sports are still currently underdeveloped in China. The country is lacking highly-qualified coaches to meet the demand.

Even in Beijing, a megacity with 20 million residents, there are only 20 or so indoor ice rinks open throughout the year. That's why Fan Jun, the owner of a skating club is hoping Beijing will win the bid for the Winter Olympic Games in 2022.

"Should Beijing succeed, there's no doubt that ice-sports would be greatly propelled in Beijing or even across whole China. To build and maintain an ice rink is costly. The Olympics would promote the facilities in the first place, it will surely foster the market and make these sports known and accepted by people as well."It's thought that winning the bid could bring ice-sports to an estimated 300 million people across China.

The winning host city bid is set to be announced on July 31. Beijing and Almaty, Kazakstan are the two candidate cities for hosting the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

For CRI. I'm Yuyang.

Guangzhou to develop to an international portAnchorAs China's new maritime Silk Road is taking shape, Guangzhou is aiming to transform itself into an international shipment center.

As CRI's Guo Yan reports, the city is trying to upgrade many aspects of its infrastructure to meet global demands.

ReporterFor 2000 years, Guangzhou has functioned as a shipment hub due to its geographic merits. It's widely recognized as a bond between Chinese commodities and its culture, and East Asian and Persian Gulf countries.

In accordance with the construction of the 21st century Maritime Silk Road, and to meet international trade demand four main harbours in Guangzhou have been put under expansion plans.

Seven shipping routes have been opened this year for Nansha Port, one of the four main harbours.

Song Xiaoming is the vice manager of the project.

"The newly opened seven shipment routes are designed for the Road and Belt Initiative. In actuality, the Nansha Port performs better with lanes to Africa, boasting 19 shipment routes. "Statistics show that by the end of May the four harbours had 147 shipping lines. 59 of them are bound for Europe, America, East Asia, Africa, Middle East and Australia.

Chen Siyong, director of the Guangzhou Shipping Exchange, says the city has potential to become a major shipment hub.

"Guangzhou has comprehensive facilities. It ranks in the top 5 nationally and top 6 internationally in terms of throughput. Every year, 50 million tons of cargo is shipped from Guangzhou ports."But Chen adds that there is still a lot of work to do to improve the city's "software" as a harbor.

Currently, the city is trying to establish a shipping price index, a shipping financial investment platform and a shipping billing platform.

Song Xiaoming believes the efforts will make Guangzhou different from other major harbors like London and Singapore.

"For London and New York, the sheer amount of cargo isn't large. New York has five million tons of cargo shipments whereas London has 2 million. But because of a great number of shipment transactions and irregular contract shipping, the business volume is considerable. That makes it a higher level of shipment center. For Hongkong and Singapore, the amount of transacted cargo is large, so these harbours are "transaction type." I think that what makes Nansha Port different from them is that Nansha is the crux mainland as well as of the international market. It also serves the pan Pearl River Delta too."According to a plan of Guangzhou Harbour Bureau, by 2030, the city will be an international harbour with fully functioning shipment service system; on that is modern, efficient, and environmentally-friendly.

For CRI, I'm Guo Yan.

Counting begins in Burundi's presidential electionVote counting begins now as Burundi's disputed presidential election has ended amid unrest over President Pierre Nkurunziza's bid for a third term.

Three people were killed on Monday night including two police officers in the capital Bujumbura.

As some of the opposition parties have boycotted the election, Nkurunziza is believed to be the favorite to win.

The electoral commission said opposition names were still on the ballots and any votes for them would be counted.

Electoral commission chief Pierre Claver Ndayicariye says provisional results could be announced in two days.

"We will be able to announce the provisional results within two days because tomorrow on 22 of July we will deploy a team of staff which will collect the envelopes in which we have the minutes of the results for each polling station."Western donors and African states have been worried about tensions in a region with a history of ethnic conflict and urged Burundi to postpone the poll.

The United States and Europe have halted some aid to Burundi, one of the world's poorest nations.

Funerals Held of Victims of Suruc BombingA mass funeral was held for the victims of a bomb attack in the Turkish town of Suruc.

32 were killed during the attack.

Families and friends of the victims cried and shouted as the coffins were laid out.

Hundreds of mourners shouted slogans against the IS militants who are believed responsible for the bombing.

"We will not give up, whatever happens. We will defend peace and brotherhood.""This is a specifically aimed attack against the unity of the people.""I really can't believe this. I thought when I saw his mother I would believe it, but I feel as if he will be here soon. I can't believe it, he was against violence."The victims were a group of young people who were gathering to discuss travel to the nearby Syrian town of Kobane, which has experienced repeated assaults by IS militants.

Earlier Turkey's prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the suspect has been identified.

"A suspect has been identified. We are checking for any domestic or international links. As I said yesterday, we believe the link between ISIS and the suicide bomb attack is clear. I can't say any more until the investigation has concluded. We hope for a result from the investigation as soon as possible."Davutoglu says cabinet ministers will meet later today to assess the need for additional security measures at the border.

 Deal reached between Ukraine and milliants in Donesk to withdraw heavy weaponsA preliminary agreement has been reached between Ukraine and the militants in Donetsk region to extend a pull-back of weapons in east Ukraine.

This comes after the failure of the ceasefire agreement reached in February.

Denis Pushilin with the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic says he hopes Kiev will uphold the agreement.

"We are confident that our initiative on arms withdrawal from the contact line influenced this, contributed to the intensification of this process. We hope this document will be signed soon. And there is serious understanding in terms of the economic group.""The militants in Donetsk say they will pull back heavy weapons from the villages near the town of Debaltseve.

The latest agreement was reached under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

The OSCE, which is monitoring the ceasefire, has said neither side has fully withdrawn heavy artillery from the frontline as required by the peace deal.

More than 6,500 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in eastern Ukraine in April last year.

Climate degradation requires mobilization of all: HollandeFrench President Francois Hollande is urging global mobilization to seek a "restrictive" agreement at an upcoming UN Climate Change Conference.

He made the call in Paris at the "Call of consciences for the climate" meeting, attended by politicians, religious leaders, and activists from around the world.

Hollande stressed that the climate issue is linked to everyone living on Earth.

"There will be women and men from every continent, who have every conviction and religion possible on the planet, and who are coming together to send a single message: an agreement should be made in Paris at the climate conference. It's not an issue for heads of state and governments, this is an issue for all the residents of the world."The UN says current national plans for curbing greenhouse gas emissions will not be enough to limit warming to a U.N. goal of 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times.

That means a need for flexibility to ratchet up ambitions in an accord meant to limit greenhouse gases.

Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan told the conference that strong leadership is key to reaching an agreement this time around.

"Let us develop a global conscience based on the well-being of our planet that transcends national boundaries or group and self interests. Every nation and every individual working together must strive to defeat the threat of global warming. We can succeed, but it would require sustained and determined leadership."To date, 47 out of 195 countries to participate in the international climate meeting have submitted plans for curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

The list includes the 28 member countries in the European bloc, China, the United States and Russia.

The UN Climate Change Conference will be held in Paris from November 30 to December 11.

WeatherBeijing will see thundershowers with a high of 29 degrees Celsius.

Overnight temperatures should drop down to 21.

Shanghai will have showers with a high of 30 and a low of 26.

In Chongqing, it will see heavy rain during the daytime with a high of 31 and lows of 26.

Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia,Kathmandu, slight rain, 29.

Islamabad will see slight rain with a high of 34.

Kabul will be cloudy with a high of 32.

Over to North America,New York will be cloudy with a high of 31 degrees.

Washington, cloudy with a high of 32 degrees.

Honolulu, cloudy, 28.

Toronto will be cloudy with a high of 24 degrees.

Finally, on to South America,Buenos Aires will be cloudy with a high of 13.

And Rio de Janeiro will see slight rain with a high of 21 degrees Celsius.

Headline newsJapan Defense White Paper Stirs up Tensions: FMChina has voiced its firm opposition to Japan's newly-released defense white paper, saying it deliberately plays up the so-called "China military threat."The white paper says Japan faces an increasingly severe security environment, highlighting China's supposed military build-up, and activities by China in the East China Sea and South China Sea.

It also criticizes China's increased military spending.

In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry says Japan is making irresponsible remarks on China's normal military growth and maritime activities.

China's Defense Ministry has also expressed strong dissatisfaction, stressing that modernizing national defense is China's legitimate right as a sovereign state.

Obama says China plays important role in Iranian nuclear talksChinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama have exchanged views via telephone on the recent Iran nuclear agreement.

Xi Jinping has pledged that China would continue its constructive cooperation with all the parties involved, ensuring the implementation of the nuclear deal and the UN Security Council resolution.

For his part, Obama says China has played a significant role at the Iran nuclear talks.

In addition, Obama says he is looking forward to Xi Jinping's visit to the US in September.

He has promised that the two sides will engage in close consultation to make sure the visit is fruitful.

2 confirmed dead in NE China coal mine floodRescuers are trying to find 13 workers trapped underground after a coal mine in northeast China was flooded.

Two miners have already been confirmed dead.

The mine in Hegang city in Heilongjiang province was flooded Monday afternoon.

Al-Qaida key figure killed in U.S. airstrike: DODThe Pentagon has confirmed the killing of a senior Al Qaeda leader in a US airstrike in Syria earlier this month.

Muhsin al-Fadhli was the leader of the Khorasan Group, a network of veteran al-Qaida operatives who are tasked with plotting external attacks against the United States and its allies.

The Pentagon says Al-Fadhli was among the few trusted al-Qaida leaders who received advance notification of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The strike on July 8 was the second attempt to kill Al-Fadhli.

3 Spanish journalists kidnapped in SyriaThree Spanish journalists missing in Syria are feared to have been kidnapped, according to Spanish media.

The three men, all freelance reporters, were working in the northeastern city of Aleppo.

They entered Syria through Turkey ealier this month before contact with them was lost.

The Spanish Foreign Ministry says it is "aware of the situation" and is "working on it."The so-called Islamic State controls areas in the north and east of Aleppo province, which has seen daily fighting between Syrian government forces and rebel militants.

Biz reportsLatest Stock Number from North America and EuropeAnchorFirst, a quick check on the market numbers, our reporter Min Rui.

ReporterU.S. stocks ended lower amid lackluster quarterly results Tuesday, as investors were looking for excuses to lock in gains after the Nasdaq's three-session record run.

The Dow Jones shed 1 percent.

The S&P 500 lost 0.4 percent.

The Nasdaq was down 0.2 percent.

In the absence of major U.S. economic data, Wall Street mainly focused on the second-quarter earnings season which got into full swing with Apple after the closing bell.

Overall Apple sales and profits were strong, however, its shares, tumbled 8 percent in after-hours trading. We'll have more on that in a minute.

In other markets, oil prices climbed as a weaker greenback provided support for the dollar-priced crude.

Gold futures fell to near 5-year-low.

Over in Eurpoe, markets reversed the previous gains as commodity prices and company results put pressure on shares.

The British benchmark FTSE 100 dropped 0.3 percent.

France's CAC 40 shed 0.7 percent.

Germany's DAX was down over one percent.

Apple Reports Record Third Quarter ResultsApple has announced slightly better-than-expected financial results for the third quarter.

Overall, sales and profits were strong.

Apple posted quarterly revenue of 49.6 billion U.S. dollars and a quarterly net profit of 10.7 billion dollars, or 1.85 dollars per diluted share.

The growth was fueled by record third quarter sales of iPhones and Macs, all-time record revenue from services, and the successful launch of its Apple Watch.

International sales accounted for 64 percent of the quarter's revenue.

CEO Tim Cook says they had an amazing quarter, with 47.5 million iPhones sold, up nearly 60 percent from a year ago.

Meanwhile, Apple also sold 11 million iPads and 4.8 million Mac computers.

The number of Apple Watches it sold remains a mystery.

Few clues were given about how well the Watch sells, with the company only saying the numbers exceeded the company's own nonpublic expectations.

Despite the strong quarterly results, Apple shares tumbled 8 percent in during after-hours trading.

Toshiba Execs Resign Over $1.2 Billion Accounting ScandalToshiba's chief executive has resigned, taking responsibility for doctored books that inflated profits at the Japanese technology manufacturer by 1.2 billion US dollars over several years.

Seven other executives resigned along with the president.

The Tokyo-based company said on Tuesday it will correct earnings based on the results of an independent investigation of its books stretching back about six years.

Toshiba's outgoing president Hisao Tanaka and vice chairman Norio Sasaki -- also a former president -- were the most senior executives to step down.

The 42-year old Tanaka admitted to damaging the Toshiba brand during a briefing in which he and other company leaders all bowed in apology.

"I see this as a major tarnishing of our brand. This caused the biggest damage to our brand in our 140 years' history."According to the investigation, the accounting irregularities were "skillfully" hidden from outside observers.

No charges have been filed against Toshiba or its executives in the case.

Masashi Muromachi will take over as interim president, and Toshiba will announce a new management team in mid-August.

China's RMB Exchange Rate Reform Ten Years onAnchorIt's been ten years since China's central bank carried out reforms in the renminbi exchange rate.

On July 21, 2005, the central bank announced the adoption of a managed floating exchange rate regime, based on market supply and demand, under which the exchange rate of the RMB would be managed in relation to a basket of currencies.

Over the decade, the yuan has appreciated 34 percent since the 8.3 per U. S. dollar peg ended.

The Chinese currency has also risen to become the world's second most-used currency for trade finance.

Meanwhile, China has also taken many measures to push for the yuan's globalization.

The moves includes currency swaps with more than 30 countries and regions, setting up yuan clearing banks in foreign cities, and allowing direct trading between yuan and other major currencies in the inter-bank foreign exchange market.

For more on renminbi exchange rate reform, CRI's Spencer Musick earlier spoke with Liu Baocheng, Professor at the University of International Business and Economics.

Back anchorThat was Liu Baocheng, Professor at University of International Business and Economics, speaking with CRI's Spencer Musick.

China's Export to Pick up in H2: MoCChina's Ministry of Commerce says the country's exports are expected to increase in the second half of this year.

This comes at the backdrop that the country's export in the first half of this year went up just one percent from the previous year.

Ministry spokesperson Shen Danyang says although the number is low, China's export performance is still stronger than most major economies.

"The growth rate doesn't seem high, but we think it is very valuable. If we make a horizontal comparison, our export performance is the strongest among all global major economies in terms of both scale and growth rate, as shown by the latest statistics released by the WTO that China's export growth is the best among developed countries, major economies, and BRICS countries."Also at the news conference, the ministry reported that foreign direct investment in the Chinese mainland rose 0.7 percent year on year last month to about 14.5 billion U.S. dollars.

The growth slowed sharply from a 7.8-percent rise in May.

In the first half of the year, FDI, which excludes investment in the financial sector, stood at some 68.4 billion U.S. dollars, up 8.3 percent from the same period last year.

China's top coal miners report declining outputChina's largest coal miner Shenhua Energy reported that its coal output declined 10 percent year on year in the first half of 2015.

China Coal Energy, the second-largest coal producer, said its output slumped 22 percent to in the first half.

Meanwhile, coal sales by both companies slipped sharply.

Shenhua Energy said the drop in sales was caused by weaker demand, the impact of government measures to reduce pollution and other reasons.

Coal accounts for about 66 percent of China's primary energy consumption, 35 percentage points higher than the world average.

The country's coal output fell in 2014 for the first time this century as a result of slowing economic growth, and government efforts to reduce air pollution and increased investment in renewable energy.

SportsZhang Chengdong joins La Liga's VallecanoZhang Chengdong will become the first Chinese footballer to join La Liga.

Beijing Guo'an has officially announced Zhang's move to Rayo Vallecano.

Zhang will be playing for the Madrid-based team for a year on loan.

the 26-year-old had previously played for the Super Liga in Portugal and the Second Bundesliga in Germany. But he says this time it will be different.

"This is a football league of higher standards. La Liga is one of the best leagues in the world. It is a challenge for me. I am in a different situation than I was six years ago. Back then I was forced to play abroad. It was my only choice because I needed to prove myself before I can come back and play at home. After two years with Guo'an I can now join them with what I have learned."Zhang also said he chose Vallecano because the team had shown interest in him when he was in Portugal.

Beijing Guo'an held a quick farewell ceremony to see Zhang off after a training session yesterday.

Zhang was originally scheduled to fly to Spain to meet his new team but will now do that in Nanjing instead.

He will be expected to make his debut for Vallecano in a friendly against Royal Madrid in Nanjing next Wednesday.

Li Weifeng leaves Tianjin TedaVeteran backfielder Li Weifeng has prematurely terminated his contract with Tianjin Teda and left the team.

Li said goodbye to the team at training and will be leaving Tianjin for Shenzhen.

Li has not made up his mind about retiring and will announce his decision later.

Thirty-six-year-old Li was the first Chinese player to play for South Korea's K League and was the former captain of China's national team.

He sent China into the 2002 World Cup with a header that equalized the deciding qualifier against Indonesia.

Bayern Munich beats Inter Milan 1-0More football action from China,Bayern Munich defeated Inter Milan 1-0 in the second game of its pre-season China tour.

Mario Goetze scored the winner for the German Bundesliga champions at the 80th minute.

Coach Pep Guardiola says he'll have a full squad to choose from for the next game aginst Guangzhou Evergrande.

"We will play against Guangzhou Evergrande in two days. We must carefully select the start list for each match and see which player is good to play and which players have problems. Now we do need to have a good rest, have some good sleep for physical recovery. We will be facing the best team in China in the next match."Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini says his team played a good game but still has room to improve.

F1 says goodbye to Jules BianchiThe world of motorsports gathered in the southern French city of Nice for the funeral of Formula One driver Jules Bianchi.

Fellow drivers Sebastian Vettel and Felipe Massa were among the pallbearers for Bianchi.

Two-time World champion Lewis Hamilton, FIA president Jean Todt, and his son Nicholas who was the manager for Bianchi, were also in attendance.

Nicholas Todt remembers Bianchi as a nice person.

"He was natural and humble. You know that Formula 1 is a complicated vocation, in which you can lose touch with certain things. He stayed humble and was kind with everyone. His grace set him apart from others."Bianchi died over the weekend from head injuries sustained in the Japanese Grand Prix last October. He was 25.

He is the first Formula One driver to have died of injuries sustained during racing since Ayrton Senna in 1994.

Bianchi's number 17 Marussia car is being retired by the FIA in his honor.

A minute of silence will be observed to pay tribute to the driver, ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend.

Sky releases Chris Froome's dataTeam Sky has released race leader Chris Froome's data on the second rest day of the Tour de France in the hope of clearing doping suspicions against him.

At a news conference, Sky's performance analyst Tim Kerrison read the figures of Froome's power output, cadence and heart rate during stage 10, where he ditched his rivals and raised doubts.

Froome supports and trusts his team's decision.

"I'm not sure if numbers are going to fix everything, but certainly I feel as a team and for myself personally, we're definitely trying to be as open and transparent as possible. I think we've been asked more questions than any other team. I've been asked more questions than any other GC contender. And I'd like to think we're answering those questions."Sky manager Dave Brailsford hopes the release of the data will "put to bed" some of the wrong numbers aired by a French broadcaster.

EntertainmentTaylor Swift leads MTV Video Music Awards with nine nominationsTaylor Swift's star-studded "Bad Blood" music video is paying off: She's the top nominee at next month's MTV Video Music Awards.

Swift is nominated for nine Moonmen, including video of the year for "Bad Blood," starring Selena Gomez, Lena Dunham and more of the pop star's famous friends.

Kendrick Lamar, who is featured on "Bad Blood," is nominated for video of the year thanks to his own hit, "Alright."Other nominees for the top prize include Beyonce's "7/11," Ed Sheeran's "Thinking out Loud" and "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson.

Sheeran has six nominations, while Beyonce, Lamar and Ronson have five each.

The 2015 VMAs, hosted by Miley Cyrus, will air live Aug. 30 from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.

Blur to land in Hongkong for concertBritpop legends Blur will play their "Blur Live in Hong Kong" concert tonight, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The band is expected to play songs from their first studio album in twelve years, The Magic Whip, which was released in April.

The album was conceived over five days in Hong Kong after a cancelled Japan tour in 2013.

Blur will play several dates in Australia starting from July 25.

Song of Tiny Times Series Arouses ControversyAlong with the box office success of the domestic romance "Tiny Times 4", its theme song "Time Boils the Rain" has also showed overwhelming oomph among fans of the series.

With the lyrics written by writer-turned-film director Guo Jingming, the song's melody was composed by Liu Dajiang.

However, critics in the music industry have recently pointed out the theme song is suspected of plagiarism.

They argued "Time Boils the Rain" is similar to a song released in Singapore by singer Joi Chua, in his 2006 album Waiting For A Sunny Day.

Guo Jingming says he is only responsible for the lyrics.

The recent controversy which arose from this Tiny Times Series theme song has also grabbed public attention back to music copyright infringement issues.

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

Recapping our top stories this morning...

The Chinese government voices its strong opposition to the latest defense white paper published by Japan...

The Chinese President and New Zealand's governor general have vowed to promote stronger ties, especially in areas like agriculture and energy...

Vote counting has begun in Burundi's disputed presidential election...

In Business...strong third quarter results fail to excite Apple's investors...

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.