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

Coming up on the program this evening...

There are 44 confirmed deaths in Tianjin following last night's explosions, as fires still burn near the blast zone...

local authorities in northwest China say they believe 64 workers at a mine site are still missing after a landslide...

and a truck bomb parked in a busy market in east Baghdad has killed at least 60 people...

In Business...a central bank official predicts strength in the long run for the Chinese currency...

In Sports...change at the top of the leaderboard in the Chinese Super League...

And in Entertainment...an animated movie set in war-torn Shanghai...

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

You can follow us on our weibo account at weibo.com/beijinghour.

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Top NewsMassive Tianjin blasts leave 44 dead, at least 21 missingThe massive blasts in the port city of Tianjin have claimed 44 lives, with another 21 missing.

Around 520 people were injured and 52 are in critical condition.

The pair of explosions took place late Wednesday night at the container terminal, which was said to be storing dangerous chemical materials.

The exact nature of the chemicals has not been revealed..

By Thursday afternoon, public security authorities said the fires were under "initial control."More than 1000 firefighters are still battling blazes, spraying dry powder and burying hot spots in sand.

Meanwhile authorities are closely monitoring the air quality in and around the city in fears of further damage from the toxic smoke.

Wen Wurui from the city's environmental protection bureau, says some chemical compounds have been identified in the air, such as toluene, which is widely used as an industrial feedstock and as a solvent.

"The samples collected at 5:30 am on Thursday showed the concentration of toluene were at 3.7 milligrams per cubic meter, which is 40 percent higher than the national standards. And the concentration of volatile organic compounds and major air pollutants were at 5.7 milligrams per cubic meter, also exceeding the Tianjin municipal standards which are at 2.0 milligrams per cubic meter."As of 11 a.m. today, all harmful gas indicators are said to have fallenl back to normal range.

At the same time the authorities have also assured that the air quality in neighboring Beijing will not be affected by the fire at the port.

Authorities say wind blowing from a southwest direction in Tianjin is expected to blow pollutants towards the Bohai Sea to its east.

Meanwhile the city's environmental protection authorities are also examine the water in the blast area.

"The drainage outlet to the sea has been closed and the environmental authority is conducting an investigation into water quality."The powerful blasts brought huge damage to the container terminal and its surrounding areas.

The China Earthquakes Center says the 2nd explosion was the equivalent of over 20-tons of TNT going off at once.

Buildings of a half-dozen other logistics companies were destroyed in the blasts, and more than 1-thousand new cars were left charred in a nearby car park.

Zhang Yong, director of the Binhai new area, says thousands of residents living nearby have been evacuated to safety.

"We have chosen 10 surrounding schools to place people. We have now placed 3,500 victims. We are expecting to place 6,000 people tonight. We have sent out living necessities, including drinking water and food. We have also given out 800 emergency beds and 1,600 blankets because most houses are now damaged by the blast and we have to provide people a safe place to stay. "Rail links connecting downtown Tianjin to the Binhai New Area were suspended after shock waves from the blast damaged one of the terminals.

The office building housing Chinese supercomputer Tianhe-1, one of the world's fastest supercomputers, suffered damage.

The supercomputer itself is undamaged, but was shut down as a precaution.

Authorities say the reason of the blast is still under investigation.

Chinese top leaders, including the President and Premier, have ordered an all-out effort to save the injured and minimize casualties in the Tianjin blast.

They have also urged for a thorough investigation and punishment for anyone responsible for any wrongdoing that may have contributed to the explosions.

Previous media reports say the owner of the warehouse is already in police detention.

Callin on the impact of Tianjin warehouse blast.

For more on this, CRI's Brian Kopczynski earlier spoke with Prof. Wang Hongwei, from the School of Public Administration at Renmin University.

That was Prof. Wang Hongwei, from the School of Public Administration at Renmin University, speaking with CRI's Brian KopczynskiOver 60 missing from NW China landslideRescue work is still underway to try to find more survivors from a massive landslide which has buried a mining operation in a rural part of Shaanxi in northwestern China.

Local authorities say they believe 64 people are still missing.

Rescuers have managed to dig 14 survivors out of the rubble.

The landslide hit shortly after midnight on Wednesday at a mining site in Shanyang county in Shaanxi, which is in the heart of the Qin Mountains near the border with Henan and Hebei.

A second landslide hit the same area today.

China, UK Agree to Deepen Co-op in Infrastructure, EnergyChinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond are co-chairing the China-Britain strategic dialogue in Beijing.

Yang and Hammond agree that both nations will continue to deepen cooperation in infrastructure, energy, finance and other areas, support more exchanges at local levels, and push bilateral ties to a new level.

Yang says China and Britain have garnered fruitful results from their recent high-level exchanges in areas of economy, trade, finance and culture, and the two nations have maintained effective dialogue and coordination in international affairs.

"China and the UK are countries with profound international influence in the international community. I hope our countries can work together to consistently expand our coordination and cooperation in global and regional affairs."The two also talked about the preparations for President Xi Jinping's upcoming visit to the UK.

Hammond says Britain will work with China to ensure a complete success of the visit. He also offers condolences for the massive blast occurred Wednesday night in Tianjin.

"I offer you our condolences for the disaster that occurred yesterday in Tianjin. I was in the city just a couple of hours before the explosions took place. I would like to congratulate the prompt response of the authorities in seeking to minimize the loss of life."President Xi is scheduled to pay a state visit to Britain in October this year at the invitation of Queen Elizabeth II.

British foreign secretary Philip Hammond is in Beijing for a series of meetings connected to security.

New fronts on UK-China global partnershipAnchor:

British Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond says he had "an excellent discussion" with Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and both sides are ready to push forward China-UK ties to the next level of global partnership.

Hammond made the remark at a press conference Thursday in Beijing.

Our reporter Liu Kun attends the press conference and files this report.

Reporter:

British Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond says the UK and China are now ready to move beyond their traditional trade and investment ties and the upcoming October visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping will be an opportunity to catalyze this new ambition.

"We are determined that we will use the opportunity of the state visit to take Britain and China's bilateral relationship to the next level and to set out our ambitions for a global partnership for the 21st century, to address security hotspot around the world, to enhance development in Africa and to lead the climate change debate."Specifically, Hammond says the UK and China are now looking for energy investment opportunities in Africa, which will not only benefit the two countries commercially, but also realize their joint commitment to African development.

"Britain and China already have an important energy relationship. But I think energy is the area where we are able to collaborate in third countries. This is really what we are trying to do in Africa: looking for opportunities at the same time deliver commercial benefit to Britain and China, but also contribute to development in Africa."Looking to the recent past, Hammond referred to the fight against the Ebola crisis in west Africa as a good example where the UK and China showed willingness and capability to cooperate to address global challenges.

"We've already had very positive experience working together in response to the Ebola crisis in West Africa where China provided a level of commitment and support to that project which is unprecedented and where Britain led the response in Sierra Leone. So we will look for additional opportunities where we could work together, learn from each other's strength and build effective mechanism to tackle many challenges including development challenges around the world."Citing British Prime Minster David Cameron, Hammond says he thinks the UK-China relationship is entering a "golden era."Adding on the plans for more political and international cooperations, Hammond also showed confidence in the growth of traditional trade and investment between the two countries. He says he expects Britain will surpass Germany and become China's No.1 trade partner in Europe as China's economy moves to the next phase with a greater focus on services.

This is Hammond's first trip to China since becoming British Foreign Secretary last year.

His trip saw him co-hosting the China-UK Strategic Dialogue with Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, delivering a speech at China's elite Peking University and visiting an Airbus Factory in Tianjin.

The two day visit is largely seen as a preparation for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the UK in this coming October.

For CRI, this is Liu Kun.

Former boss of China's major automaker FAW expelled from CPC, officeXu Jianyi, former chairman of major Chinese automaker FAW Group, has been expelled from the Communist Party of China and from public office.

The country's top anti-graft body announced on Thursday that Xu was in "serious breach of integrity and self-discipline rules" by accepting cash gifts.

He's also accused of embezzling state assets and of accepting bonuses related to housing purchases.

His case has been handed over to judicial authorities.

Battle in Shanghai Recalls on Its 78th AnniversaryToday marks the 78th anniversary of the Battle of Songhu, also known as the Battle of Shanghai.

In marking the occasion, a memorial hall reopened today in Shanghai, displaying nearly one thousand items and photos to the public for the very first time.

It is one of the bloodiest battles during China's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

The shooting death of a Japanese navy officer near Hongqiao Airport on August 13th, 1937, by members of the Chinese Peace Preservation Corps, triggered a three-month-long battle.

Japan sent in 300,000 reinforcements in September and October, and on the Chinese side more than 70 divisions were involved at one time or another in the battle.

Zhang Yun, is the director of the Shanghai Society for the History of the Communist Party of China.

"Various social groups were mobilized, and an unprecedented number of people were united, so it was a historic battle of national salvation fought jointly by the Shanghai people and the army at the Songhu front."The Chinese troops held their ground until November, when they pulled out to prevent further casualties.

Shanghai fell on Nov. 11.

Zhang Yun adds the outbreak of the Battle of Songhu lifted the curtain on Asia's main field of World War II.

"The Battle holds an important historical status; it enhanced the Chinese people's confidence in victory and their determination in fighting the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression."Both sides suffered huge casualty numbers during the Battle of Songhu. The Japanese had planned to seize Shanghai in three days but were demoralized by the protracted fighting.

Former Japanese PM visits colonial-era prison in SeoulA former Japanese Prime Minister says he believes Shinzo Abe's upcoming speech needs to include an apology.

Yukio Hatoyama, Shinzo Abe's predecessor, made the comment when he visited a colonial-era prison in South Korea.

The prison now is a museum.

Yukio Hatoyama's visit comes ahead of Abe's much-anticipated statement this week to mark the end of WWII.

"I think Shinzo Abe's speech must acknowledge Japan's colonial rule of South Korea, as well as the invasion of many countries including China. He should also be introspective and apologize to these countries. I sincerely hope Shinzo Abe can do this from the bottom of his heart."The former Japanese prison in Seoul is where hundreds of Korean soldiers and dissidents ended up being killed by Japanese authorities.

Japan formally annexed the Korean peninsula in 1910, and maintained control of it until the end of the War in 1945.

UN chief calls on Japan to reflect on historyUN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has issued a new call for Japan to reflect on its war history in order to move forward.

Ban Ki-moon says while the 70th anniversary of the war's end will serve as a somber occasion, it can also be used to encourage all countries in the region to move forward together.

His comments come ahead of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's commemoration speech marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Abe has suggested his upcoming statement will be future-oriented, suggesting it will show Japan has become a country completely different from what it was in the first half of the 20th century.

Leader of Myanmar's Ruling Party RemovedLeader of Myanmar's ruling party has reportedly been removed.

Party sources say that U Shwe Mann, chairman of the Union Solidarity and Development Party, was replaced by former party vice chairman U Htay Oo.

Myanmar's presidential spokesman says there was an incident Wednesday evening within the USDP and that an internal emergency meeting took place on Thursday morning.

The spokesman says the meeting was headed by Myanmar's president U Thein Sein.

The incident comes ahead a general election scheduled for Nov 8 in Myanmar.

Tensions have been brewing between the President and the removed chairman of the ruling party, who both expressed interest in leading the country.

Security measures have intensified near the ruling party's headquarters since Wednesday evening.

The USDP's General Secretary has also been removed from his post.

Greece to Vote on Third Bail-out Plan, PM OptimisticAnchor:

The Greek Prime Minister says he is optimistic that his country's third bailout plan in five years will be secured.

The comment comes ahead of a EU finance ministers' meeting due to be held in Brussels on Friday.

Meanwhile, an expert has said upcoming political changes in the country could counter its financial future.

CRI's Victor Ning has more.

Reporter:

Greece is rushing a draft bill on another EU bailout plan through its parliament.

A debate and a full vote are expected for Thursday ahead of a Eurozone finance ministers' meeting on Friday.

Alexis Tsipras, the Greek Prime Minister, said he expected the deal to be secured.

"Regardless of the obstacles that some are trying to put in our way, even now, I am positive and I remain positive that we will manage to come to an agreement and get a loan from the European Stability Mechanism that will put an end to the financial uncertainty."The bailout plan is worth 85 billion Euros, or more than 94 billion USD, over three years.

The agreement over the deal must be made in order for Greece to avoid a financial disaster.

The country needs at least 3 billion Euros to settle a debt with the European Central Bank and avoid a default by August 20.

The bailout loans come with conditions of deep austerity measures for Greece. Last month, Greece passed a second round of reforms in order to commence talks on the new bailout package.

Dr. Nikos Skoutaris is a constitutional expert and a European Union law lecturer at East Anglia University in the UK.

Expecting a snap election in Greece sometime this fall, he says the election process could impact the implementation of the reforms.

"Greece as an administration is a system that heavily relies on the actions of the ministers, right, so the ministers have a very hands-on approach in Greece. So if the ministers are more interested in actually earning an election, earning the vote, it goes without saying that they will be less active on actually pushing the reforms."Skoutaris further explains that the political process of elections could become a challenge to the reforms.

"Now having said that, one has to say that in order for those reforms, those very difficult reforms, to pass, we need a government that will have a majority, if not an overwhelming majority. So in a way, it's a vicious circle, elections will be a problem in the implementation of the reforms, but without elections, without a strong government, reforms cannot pass."Skoutaris says he expects the Greek parliament to pass the bill. The bailout plan is expected to give Greeks some relief, even if only temporary, after a year of financial turbulence.

For CRI, I am Victor Ning.

Bomb Explodes in Baghdad MarketA bomb attached to a truck exploded in a busy market in Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 60 and wounding 200.

The bomb struck one of the largest market in Sadr City, a district north-east to the capital.

The Shia-dominated city has been hit several times by the Sunni militant group Islamist State.

The Islamist State has claimed responsible for the attack.

UN-brokered Libya peace talks end without agreementTwo days of UN-brokered talks on Libya have ended in Geneva without any progress.

The talks aimed to seek agreement on a national unity government in the next three weeks.

Libya is divided between an elected parliament and government based in Tobruk and an Islamist militia-backed government in the capital Tripoli.

Members of the Tobruk government and regional leaders signed a peace deal last month.

UN Envoy Bernardino Leon has urged the Tripoli government to sign the unity accord.

Chief of UN Peacekeeping Mission in CAR Resigns Amid Sexual Abuse Allegations Against MissionUnited Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has accepted the resignation of the head of the UN peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic.

The resignation of Senegalese General Babacar Gaye comes amid allegations of sexual abuse and other misconduct against members of the mission.

Ban expressed strong emotions over these reports.

"As you know, more serious allegations have been raised about the conduct of United Nations (UN) troops in the Central African Republic. I cannot put into words how anguished, angered, and ashamed I am by recurrent reports over the years of sexual exploitation and abuse by UN forces."Ban said the indecent actions by a few have tarnished the heroic work of many. He said every case must be thoroughly investigated.

Ban also called on the victims of the abuse to come forward, promising to safeguard their security and dignity while handing these cases responsibly.

Cuba Music Looking to Spread into the U.S.

AnchorAs the US embassy in Cuba prepares to re-open for the first time in over half-a-century, Cuban musicians are hoping the diplomatic rapprochement will help them expand their sound into new markets.

CRI's Poornima Weerasekara has more.

Reporter:

From the bolero to the mambo and from the rumba to the salsa, Cuba has a rich heritage of musical talent looking to take advantage of the renewed ties between Cuba and the United States.

Since the 1962 U.S. Trade Embargo, musicians in Cuba have struggled in taking their music abroad.

Until the Bill Clinton presidency, it was not even possible to license Cuban music for American distribution.

But with change on the horizon, Cuban musicians like Israel Rojas, member of the Guantanamo pop group, Buena Fe, are hopeful for the opportunity to share their talent.

"For the musician's guild you can imagine that this is an enormous opportunity. This country has extraordinary musicians, fantastic, they have a cultural force. Also, they are not even known yet, legitimately, as a result of this policy of survival, the policy of denial of our musicians to bigger markets where music is distributed as a product. It's an opportunity,"This move has opened up a new chapter of engagement between the former Cold War foes with one of its next tasks being the dismantle of the former economic embargo.

Another Cuban Grammy nominee, singer Cucu Diamantes, says that a more flexible American response to Cuban musicians will mean more exposure for local artists.

"If all U.S. policies towards Cuba start to be more flexible I think that Cuban artists will have more exposure, for example in the Latin Grammies. We have a large musical platform in Cuba but we have little presence in the Grammies,"In 2004, five Cuban Grammy nominees, including the late Ibrahim Ferrer, were refused visas by the Bush administration.

Ferrer's group the Buena Vista Social Club went on to win the award in their category.

Now, amidst a warming of ties and Cuban Americans making up the third largest Hispanic group in the United States, orchestral director from the post-revolutionary Cuban musical group, Samuel Formell, says the U.S. is Cuba's most important music market.

Changes in Cuba have also made it easier for Cuban Americans to travel to Havana.

In 2012, Cuba reversed its blacklist on anti-Castro artists such as Gloria Estefan and Grammy-winning saxophonist Paquito d'RiveraFor CRI, I'm Poornima Weerasekara.

WeatherBeijing will have thunderstorm tonight with a low of 24, tomorrow will be rainy with a high of 33.

Shanghai will be cloudy tonight with a low of 25, tomorrow will still be cloudy, high of 32.

Chongqing will be overcast tonight with a low of 26, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 33.

Lhasa will have shower tonight with a low of 15, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 25.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad will have slight rain tomorrow with a high of 35.

Kabul, cloudy, 30.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, sunny, high of 17,Brisbane, sunny,19,Perth, cloudy, 22,And finally Auckland, New Zealand will be rainy with a high of 14 degrees Celsius.

Headline newsMassive Tianjin blasts leave 44 dead, at least 21 missingFires after massive warehouse blasts in north China's port city of Tianjin are now under initial control, with firefighters still battling blazes by spraying dry powder and burying areas in sand.

Forty-four people have been confirmed dead and at least 21 others remain missing after the explosions took place on Wednesday night.

The deaths include at least six firefighters killed on duty. 18 of their colleagues are still missing.

521 people have been hospitalized, including 52 who are critically injured.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang have urged all-out efforts to save the injured and minimize casualties in the blast.

China, UK Agree to Deepen Co-op in Infrastructure, EnergyChinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond have co-chaired the China-Britain strategic dialogue in Beijing.

Yang and Hammond agree that both nations will continue to deepen cooperation in infrastructure, energy, finance and other areas, support more exchanges at local levels, and push bilateral ties to a new level.

The two also talked about the preparations for President Xi Jinping's upcoming visit to the UK.

Hammond also offers condolences for the massive blast occurred Wednesday night in Tianjin.

France to expand search area for more MH370 debrisFrenc authorities said the search for more debris of the missing Malaysian Airline MH370 moves towards the southern zones of the of Reunion Island from today.

This comes after a major land and underwater search operation was launched six days ago without signigicant discovery.

Earlier this month, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak announced that a flaperon found off the Reunion Island last month was from the missing Malaysian aircraft.

Pakistan's top adviser to attend security talks in IndiaPakistan's top national security adviser, Sartaj Aziz, has confirmed that he will be visiting India later this month for security talks between the two countries.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi agreed last month at their meeting in the Russian city of Ufa that National Security Advisers of the two countries should meet to "discuss all issues connected to terrorism."India abruptly suspended high level diplomatic talks with Pakistan in August last year after the Pakistani envoy in New Delhi met Kashmiri leaders.

Sword-wielding man kills one, injures one in downtown BeijingBeijing police have confirmed the death of a Chinese woman who was killed by a sword-wielding man in downtown Beijing.

The man attacked two pedestrians, a Chinese woman and a French man, using a samurai sword just before noon today in Sanlitun, an upscale shopping district in the city.

The 25-year-old suspect surnamed Gao was apprehended at the scene and the case is under investigation.

Biz ReportsStocksAsian stocks mostly erased losses to rise on Thursday, after the People's Bank of China (PBoC) reiterated that there was no basis for continued currency depreciation.

People's Bank of China says the yuan's value has "returned to market levels" after days of sharp correction.

Following this news, Chinese stocks rallied during afternoon trading, with nearly 200 shares rising by the 10-percent daily limit.

At closing bell, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.8 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index gained 2.1 percent.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, added 2.4 percent.

Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng index rose 0.4 percent.

Elsewhere in Asia,Tokyo shares ended higher with its benchmark Nikkei index jumping about 1 percent.

Korea's KOSPI increased 0.4 percentSingapore's Straits Times Index added 1 percent.

Finally, Australia's ASX200 went up 0.1 percent.

RMB well set after forex adjustment: PBOCA central bank official says the Chinese currency should remain strong over the long run.

Zhang Xiaohui, assistant governor of the People's Bank of China, says the value of the yuan has gradually returned to market levels as the discrepancy between the central parity rate and the actual trading rate has been corrected after declines in the past few days.

Zhang says there used to be a 3-percent gap accumulated between the official rate and market expectations.

The central parity rate of the yuan dropped 1.1 percent, to 6.4 against the U.S. dollar, on Thursday, narrowing from losses recorded over the previous two days.

The currency's fall comes after the PBOC adjusted the exchange rate formation mechanism on Tuesday, a move designed to better reflect market development in the exchange rate of the yuan against the U.S. dollar.

Ma Jun, Chief economist at the research bureau of the People's Bank of China, believes China's economic fundamentals can support a stable RMB.

"The effect of our macro control measures has shown positive signs: the investment on infrastructure is accelerating, property sales are increasing… all these indicate that our economy is stabilizing and picking up. The growth is much stronger than some other economic entities that faces a higher pressure on devaluation."Another senior official, Yi Gang, dismissed media reports that Chinese authorities had demanded a 10-percent depreciation in the yuan by the end of the year in hopes of rescuing the country's slipping exports, describing such reports as "completely baseless."Yi added the value of Yuan is determined by the market. The bank cannot intervene with this, but focuses more on improving the exchange rate formation mechanism.

China urges reform of government-linked trade associationsChina has called for a pilot program to give more independence to trade associations.

According to a circular jointly issued by the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) and the National Development and Reform Commission, all operational, financial and personnel affiliations between the government and trade associations should be severed.

Trade associations traditionally have had close relations with the government. Some are run by retired government officials, who act more like semi-government regulators rather than organizers and leaders of industry.

The pilot program will start in the latter half of this year and expand to more trade associations in the following two years.

Gold demand plunges to 6-year low as Asian buyers retreatCNBC reports global gold demand slumped to a six-year low in the second quarter.

The report attributes the slump to consumers in China and India continuing to pull back on purchases of gold jewelry, coins, and bars.

World Gold Council's latest report shows overall demand totaled 915 tonnes, a 12 percent decline from the same period last year.

In China, slowing economic growth and severe fluctuations in the domestic stock market soured appetites.

Meanwhile, in India demand was impeded by unfavorable weather conditions – which hit rural incomes – as well as a dearth of auspicious days for marriages in the third quarter.

Xiaomi releases new Redmi note, MIUI 7China's top smartphone maker Xiaomi has announced a new Redmi Note smartphone, an improved operating system for its smart devices, and a new super mini router.

The new redmi 2 promises users improved video quality. It can act as a remote control for televisions and air-conditioning and has a specialized night screen.

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun.

" We also support the night screen. If at night, you adjust the brightness to the lowest setting it will still be very bright. We have adjusted the brightness setting so when you read at night, it will not hurt your eyes."The new operating system includes several new features including reduced battery consumption, specialized themes and a new baby and pet album feature.

Lei says it uses face recognition to store all pet pictures and baby pictures into specialized albums that can be viewed on multiple devices by family members.

"After we took a lot of pictures we realized it was really difficult to share these photos with relatives. We use face recognition to find all the photos of your babies and put them into the baby album so your family can see. You can also set the album to your lock screen so you can see the baby pictures every time you use your phone."Xiaomi's new operating system is available to download for free from Friday, August 14th. The Redmi note 2 will be available from August 16th at a starting price of 799 yuan.

Xiaomi's new super mini home router, which boasts adequate capabilities despite being smaller than its competitors, will also be available from August 16th for 79 yuan.

Lenovo sees 51% fall in profit, to slash 5% global jobsPersonal computer and smartphone maker Lenovo group posted a 51 percent drop year on year in net profit in the financial quarter ending June 30.

The group's revenue increased by 3 percent to nearly 11 billion US dollar, its net profit fell to 102 million US dollars.

To reduce costs and improve profitability, the company announced that it will cut 5 percent of its non-manufacturing jobs or 3,200 jobs globally.

Personal computers are the core business of Lenovo.

Its smartphone business faces major restructuring after acquiring Motorola from Google.

American Express and CITIC Bank launch credit card for travelers to U.S.

American Express and China CITIC Bank have launched the CITIC American Express Platinum Card for business people, tourists and overseas students traveling to the United States.

The card offers a range of exclusive benefits and services to customers, including free foreign exchange transactions and bumper reward points on overseas spending.

In addition, card members will have access to China CITIC Bank's U.S. visa application service and American Express' exclusive international education service.

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, more than 1.8 million Chinese tourists visited the country last year.

The department forecasts the figure will triple in 2021.

Migang.com rolls out increased P2P lending security for customersA Chinese peer to peer lending company and an insurance firm have formed a strategic partnership to provide online security for customers.

Investors purchasing wealth management products on Migang.com will have their policies underwritten by Tianan Property Insurance.

Risk control has been a challenge for the P2P sector.

P2P is the practice of lending money between individuals through an internet platform, without going through traditional financial institutions such as banks.

The transaction volume of the Chinese P2P sector is expected to be between 800 billion yuan and 1 trillion yuan this year.

SportsBadminton resultsBeginning with the latest action from the badminton world championships,World number one Chen Long took out his Thai opponent in straight sets to progress into the quarter-finals. It is Chen's eighth consecutive win at the world championships.

It only took Lin Dan 37 minutes to send off his Danish challenger in straight sets.

In women's singles,Olympic champion Li Xuerui crashed out of action after suffering a three-sets defeat against her opponent from India.

Wang Yihan is through with a three-sets win against Bae Yeon Ju from South Korea.

In mixed doubles,Top seeds Zhang Nan/Zhao Yunlei defeated a German pair; second seeds Xu Chen/Ma Jin downed their Taiwan opponents; and Lu Kai/Huang Yaqiong are out.

CSL recapIn football,After 22 matches on the season for each team, there has been change atop the leader board in the Chinese Super League.

Defending champion Guangzhou Evergrande shot to the top and now enjoys a one-point lead after Ricardo Goulart's last minute winner helped them to a 1-0 win over Jiangsu Shuntian.

Shanghai SIPG conceded the lead after a 2-2 draw against Henan Jianye.

Beijing Guo'an leap-frogged Shandong Luneng with a much-needed 3-1 home win.

Piao Cheng notched a goal for Guo'an in the game.

"This game is very important. We are desperate for a victory. We also want the three points as the top four team are so close at the standings. So only by winning every game shall we have a chance to be the Super League Champions."Guo'an coach Gregorio Manzano dedicated the victory to former coach Hong Yuanshuo who passed away two weeks ago.

Guo'an is tied with Luneng at 43 points but is currently third on goal differential.

The latest games brought the top four teams within four points of each other with eight rounds remaining in the Chinese Super League.

Suarez, Messi, Ronaldo shortlisted for UEFA best player awardMore football news,Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been shortlisted for UEFA's best player in Europe award.

Messi won the inaugural award four years ago. Ronaldo is the current holder. Suarez is the new nominee.

Messi is this year's favorite after he led Barcelona to a triple crown last season and helped Argentina to the Copa America final.

The winner will be announced in Monaco later this month during the draw for the UEFA Champions League.

Basketball: China women's team beat US; NBA releases full schedule for new seasonIn basketball,China's women's team has had a landslide 80-42 victory over the United States at the China-US basketball challenge.

Huang Jingsi scored a team high of 20 points, with eight rebounds and one steal. Coach Tom Maher says Huang is good attacking, but can do better in consistency and defense.

The two teams will have another game tomorrow.

Over in the NBA,The complete game schedule for the regular season has been announced.

The Chicago Bulls host the Cleveland Cavaliers in the opening game on October 28, Beijing time.

Reigning champions Golden State Warriors will receive their winners' rings before hosting the New Orleans Pelicans on the first day.

Fans will be treated to five showdowns on Christmas Eve, which include a Los Angeles derby between the Lakers and the Clippers.

The regular season finishes in April next year.

Tennis: Rogers Cup recapIn tennis,Seventh seed Rafael Nadal dominated his match against Sergiy Stakhovsky to win 7-6, 6-3 at the Rogers Cup.

Nadal only had one bad game on his way to make the third round of the tournament.

Not easy conditions today, you know, a lot of wind, a player who doesn't want to play a lot of points from the baseline and just tried to play the points shorter -- going to the net, playing with a slice -- so it was not an easy opponent to start. And, uh, happy the way I managed the match. As I said, only that game, 5-4 with my serve, the rest was very positive."In other action,Andy Murray made it through with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Tommy Robredo.

Other names in the third round, Kei Nishikori, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Nick Kyrgios and John Isner.

Several seeds fell including Tomas Berdych, Marin Cilic, Gilles Simon.

French Open champion Stan Wawrinka retired with a back injury.

On the women's side,Victoria Azarenka booked her place in the third round with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Petra Kvitova.

And Belinda Bencic knocked out Caroline Wozniacki.

McIlroy, Spieth preview PGA ChampionshipIn golf,Rory McIlroy is at Whistling Straits preparing for his defense of the PGA Championship title.

The world number one's expectation levels are "the same" despite this being his first tournament after an ankle injury.

"I've been practicing for over three weeks getting my game ready, getting my game sharp. I feel like I'm playing well. Hitting it well on the range. I've taken that onto the course in practice rounds and from there it's being able to take it from there into tournament play with a card in your hand. But I expect to play well. I don't see any reason why I can't bring the sort of form that I've shown in practice rounds and on the range to the tee on Thursday afternoon."Meanwhile, Jordan Spieth welcomes McIlroy's return and is looking forward to having a good time on the course.

"I was excited and what an incredible rehab that was to get back so soon and to get to a hundred percent. Because I know he wouldn't play unless he was, especially on this golf course. It's a tough course to walk. So, I'm excited. I'm excited to just share a couple days with Rory and Zach as well."The trio of Spieth, McIlroy and Zach Johnson have grabbed all the titles in the last five majors. They tee off together early Friday morning, Beijing time.

Entertainment"The Mystery of The Necklace: A Jewish Girl In Shanghai" Releases TrailerChinese animation "The Mystery of The Necklace: A Jewish Girl In Shanghai" has released a trailer.

As the sequel to the 2010 animation "A Jewish Girl In Shanghai", the film revolves around a girl called Rina and the Chinese family that helps her in Shanghai as they safeguard their properties.

It is produced for the 70th anniversary of the World anti-fascist war.

Set in the Japanese-occupied Shanghai during the Second World War, the 2010 animation told the story of a Chinese family as it protects Rina and her brother Mishalli, two Jewish refugees, from the Nazis.

It has been heralded as the first animated Chinese film to address the Holocaust. It was also described as "China's first homegrown Jewish film".

The sequel is set to hit theaters on August 28.

Adolescent romance film "Our Times" hopes to repeat box office success of its predecessorRomance film "Our Times" has hit theaters in Taiwan.

Dubbed the female version of "You Are the Apple of My Eye," the 2011 Taiwan blockbuster that took Asia by storm, "Our Times" is hoping to duplicate the success of its predecessor.

"You Are the Apple of My Eye" was told from the viewpoint of a male protagonist.

"Our Time" is done through the eyes of a young woman, looking back on a bittersweet first love from high school.

Director Frankie Chen says there's a reason that movie fans enjoy revisiting their youth on the big screen:

"I think youth is short and it's mixed with bittersweet emotions. That's why it's called youth. During that time, you were very focused on your life and you had a lot of time. I put the emotions that you once felt in your heart, magnified them and put them into the film. I think it's something that everyone will be able relate to."The film is set to hit theaters nationwide on Saturday.

Guo Jingming's First Novel "Ice Fantasy" to Become a TV SeriesThe launch ceremony of the novel-turned-TV series "Ice Fantasy" has been held in Beijing.

The series is based on Guo Jingming's 2002 fantasy novel of the same name.

It tells the rise and fall the ice and fire families on a fictional continent.

The novel sold over 5 million copies and was reprinted 48 times in 12 years.

The TV series stars Feng Shaofeng, Song Qian and Ma Tianyu.

The show's production has hired the special effects teams from The Lords of Rings and The Hobbit.

Guo Jingming will be in charge of the show's art direction.

The director of the successful Tiny Time franchise is now working on his next movie "CRITICAL", also based on his own novel.

Classic Shows of Johnny Carson to ReturnFor the first time in decades, the world will be able to fall asleep to the familiar tones of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" every night.

Tribune Broadcasting's Antenna TV has acquired the broadcast rights to the library of the show and will air reruns of it in late night starting from Jan. 1.

The late-night TV landscape is about to get even more competitive as the reruns will air opposite shows on other networks by hosts like Conan O'Brian, Trevor Noah, Jimmy Fallon and Steven Colbert, to name a few.

The reruns will encompass Carson's 30-year "Tonight Show" career from 1962 to 1992.

Carson died in 2005 at the age of 79.

weatherBeijing will have thunderstorm tonight with a low of 24, tomorrow will be rainy with a high of 33.

Shanghai will be cloudy tonight with a low of 25, tomorrow will still be cloudy, high of 32.

Chongqing will be overcast tonight with a low of 26, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 33.

Lhasa will have shower tonight with a low of 15, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 25.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad will have slight rain tomorrow with a high of 35.

Kabul, cloudy, 30.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, sunny, high of 17,Brisbane, sunny,19,Perth, cloudy, 22,And finally Auckland, New Zealand will be rainy with a high of 14 degrees Celsius.

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

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

There are 44 confirmed deaths in Tianjin following last night's explosions, as fires still burn near the blast zone...

local authorities in northwest China say they believe 65 workers at a mine site are still missing after a landslide...

and a truck bomb parked in a busy market in east Baghdad has killed at least 60 people...

In Business...a central bank official predicts strength in the long run for the Chinese currency...

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, I'm 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...