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

Coming up on the program this evening...

Specialists have ruled out the possibility of nerve gas in and around the blast site in Tianjin...

The Chinese embassy in Thailand has initiated an emergency response after a deadly bomb attack at a shrine...

French investigators have finished examining a wing part found on Reunion Island...

In Business...global investors focus on RMB assets in China...

In Sports...the International Association of Athletics Federations chooses a new president...

And in Entertainment...an historical war film is to be screened on the same day as Beijing's military parade...

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.

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Top NewsNo Nerve Gas after Tianjin Blasts: ExpertSpecialists have ruled out the possibility that nerve gas has been released at the explosion site in Tianjin.

Some Chinese media have reported nerve gas was detected in the port city.

However, Wang Yongan, a research fellow with the Academy of Military Medical Sciences says the production of such gases requires complex processes.

He says "the chemicals found at the site and the conditions wouldn't allow generation of nerve gas."Earlier, Tianjin's environmental watchdog said no cyanide has been detected in rain samples collected 7 kilometers from the blast site, which is a populated area.

None of the 18 air quality monitoring stations in the surrounding area reported excessive cyanide on Tuesday.

Compensation to be assessed for residents near Blast Site in TianjinAnchor: Two residential areas barely more than a half a kilometer from the blast zone in Tianjin have been hugely affected by the explosions that happened on Tuesday of last week.

The local government has now begun to arrange brief visits for residents, allowing them to return to those damaged homes and collect their belongings.

Damage estimates are still being calculated but a compensation plan is being developed.

CRI's Xyee has more.

Wang Lihong lived in the neighbourhood called Harbor City, one of the residential areas nearest to the blast site. He returned home for the first time on Tuesday afternoon, one week following the devastating explosions.

Everything is ruined. There are no doors or windows inside the apartment and the floor is covered in broken glass.

"I did't bring anything with me when the blast happened. The apartment I paid over 2 millon yuan for (310,000 U.S dollars )is now in pieces. I could afford this apartment only after almost a lifetime of working. No one can accept this cruel reality. But now I have to take my belongings and think how to deal with this situation later. "There have been several burglaries since the explosions but the Armed Police have now strengthened patrols in the area.

Wang says all the cash she left at home was still there.

Environmental concerns have also been a concern for those who live in the area. Some people have reported finding what looks like chemical powder in the neighbourhood.

Bao Jingling is reminding people they should not handle chemicals by themselves.

"According to our knowledge, there are still some unexploded chemicals left near the buildings, blown inside by the blast. So people should not touch or sprinkle water on those powders. They have to be collected by experts. Once they are determined to be hazardous substances, they have to be sent to the Hazardous Waste Center."Right now, the most important thing for all the residents is compensation for the damages done to their property.

Zhang Yong, the district director of Binhai New Area, says they need a comprehensive compensation plan since the damage and loss made to each household vary hugely.

"First, the government will organize qualified intermediary agencies to assess the safety level of the buildings. Second, every decision made by government should be accorded by the assessment made by the public appraisal firm. Transparent, fair and just are our three principles to protect people's interests. "Fitch Ratings, one of the three nationally recognized American institutions says insurance losses from the explosions could be in a range between 6.4 billion to 9.6 billion yuan (1 billion to 1.5 billion U.S dollars.)For CRI, I'm Xyee.

China begins emergency response after Bangkok blastThe Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Chinese embassy in Thailand have begun an emergency response after an explosion hit downtown Bangkok Monday night and killed at least 20 people, including seven Chinese.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying says the embassy has maintained contact with the Thai government.

Chinese travel agencies are also taking action to check whether there are tourists or travel groups injured or affected by the blast.

Chen Caiyin with Ctrip says at present around 7,300 tourists registered on their website are now in Thailand. As of August 18th, all of them are safe.

"As far as we know, no tourists were killed or injured in the blast, nor have we received any reports that our tourists are affected by the blast. The schedule of tour groups is not affected. We have informed our guests to keep away from the blast site, avoid going to crowded sites and stay with the tour group."Hua Chunying also says all government departments involved have planned their response to the incident, including making arrangements for victims and their families, treating the injured, and carrying out official communication with the Thai government.

The Thai government has announced it's planning to provide close to 85-hundred US dollars in compensation to the families of those killed in the explosion.

It will also give about 28-hundred US dollars to the survivors to cover their medical expenses.

Bangkok's Erawan Shrine Opens Two Days After BlastAnchor:

Two days after a deadly explosion, the Erawan shrine in Bangkok reopened to the public today. A bomb killed 22 and injured more than 120 at the shrine onMonday. CRI's Victor Ning has more.

Reporter:

Many locals came to pray and pay respects to the victims of the blast.

"So many bad things happen in this intersection but I believe Erawan shrine will protect everybody to get through this."Others praised the government response in the aftermath of the blast.

"I think the government and the police have done very well last night, they protected us and we feel safe, I just want to feel like life is back to normal."Thai authorities have released security video footage that showed a man in a yellow shirt leaving a backpack inside the Erawan shrine.

While no one has claimed responsibilities for the attack, Thai police chief Somyot Poompanmuang believes more than 1 individual was involved in the act.

"There are many possibilities. I believe it is unlikely that this attack would be carried out by one person. It is likely that many people are involved and had some sort of backing."The Thai government said the attack was aimed at wrecking the country's economy, which heavily relies on tourism.

A second explosion happened on Tuesday. A small explosive was thrown from a bridge towards a river pier. No one was hurt in the incident. A government spokesperson said there may be patterns between the two separate attacks but no direct link has been established just yet.

On Wednesday, Thailand's junta, or the National Council for Peace and Order, said a sense of normalcy had returned to Bangkok.

Winthai Suvaree, spokesman for the junta, says heightened security has been placed at main tourist areas in the city.

"Authorities have maintained check points and dispatched a team of military and police officers in various areas to provide security for Thais. Most importantly, authorities have increased security in tourist areas for foreigners, especially Chinese nationals."Among the victims of Monday's blast, 6 were Chinese. Visitors from the UK, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore were also among those killed.

The blast came at a sensitive time for Thailand, which has been riven for a decade by a sometimes-violent struggle for power between political factions in Bangkok.

For CRI, I'm Victor Ning.

China Dismisses Reports of Abe's China Visit in SeptemberChina's Foreign Ministry claims that it "has not heard of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's September visit to China", dismissing Japanese media reports that said Abe will visit next month.

A front-page story in Japan's leading newspaper Mainichi Shimbun on Tuesday said that "Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is set to visit China on Sept 3 to meet with President Xi Jinping".

The newspaper also said Abe may arrive in the afternoon to avoid the parade in the morning, and "the two governments are finalizing consultations over the summit meeting."Newly published document exposes Japan's WWII sex slavery in NanjingA 70-year-old petition about a real estate dispute in the city of Nanjing has provided a glimpse into the sex slave trade during Japan's World War II invasion of China.

Photos of home owner Huang Huifeng's hand-written petition and the government investigation report are published on the website of China's State Archives Administration.

Some of the videos and archives document women forced into prostitution by the Japanese.

The petition was submitted in 1945, a few months after Japan's surrender and the end of WWII.

Huang accused Japanese national Hideyoshi Nobuyoshi of seizing his house in 1937, when he and his family fled Nanjing after the war broke out, and refusing to move out when they returned a few months later.

Although Nobuyoshi agreed to pay rent, he stopped making payments in July 1938.

The Nanjing government's investigation confirmed that Huang's house had been used as a "comfort station," a military brothel where women were forced into prostitution.

It is estimated that 200,000 women were forced into sexual servitude by Japanese troops during WWII.

Several countries confirm to send Honor Guard at China's V-day ParadeBelarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Kyrgyzstan have confirmed attendance at the victory day parade on September 3 in Beijing.

The Belarussian military says the 85 soldiers attending the parade will spend several days practicing movements for the parade.

Honor guards from Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia have already arrived in Beijing for preparation.

Beijing is to hold a parade on the third to commemorate the 70th anniversary of victory in the war of resistance against Japanese aggression.

Navies Ready for China-Russia DrillsAnchor:

A large-scale naval exercise involving the Chinese and Russian navies is set to get underway tomorrow.

CRI's Luo Wen reports.

Reporter:

The drills are scheduled to last for 9 days.

They'll be taking place in the waters off the east coast of Russia.

Simulations of anti-submarine warfare, air defense and joint beach landings are set to take place.

The drills come around a decade after China and Russia's militaries did a similar beach landing exercise in the coastal Chinese city of Qingdao.

Chinese Naval observer Yin Zhuo says the drills are not easy to coordinate.

"Landing operations are hard to organize. They consist of complicated procedures and require precise coordination between landing forces and fire support units under a unified command."This year's drills will represent the first time the Chinese military has sent warships from all of its three fleets for an exercise with a foreign country.

Yin Zhuo says the exercises will give the Chinese side a good chance to learn.

"It's a good opportunity for all the ships in the three fleets to work with their Russian counterparts. They can learn and improve themselves. At the same time, it will also give them a chance to familiarize themselves with the Sea of Japan, where they may end up sailing more frequently in the future, given its position."This is the second time this year the Chinese and Russian navies have taken part in joint operations.

Both sides teamed up for joint naval exercises in the Mediterranean in May.

Seven Chinese warships will arrive at the Russian port of Vladivostok on Thursday, along with six helicopters, five fixed-wing aircraft, 21 units of amphibious equipment and 200 marines.

The Russian side will send 16 surface ships, two submarines, 12 naval aircraft, nine amphibious vehicles and 200 marines.

For CRI, I'm Luo Wen.

China's annual export growth outlook hopeful: OfficialChina's exports plunged 8.9 percent in July, the biggest drop in four months.

Shen Danyang, spokesman of the Ministry of Commerce, says exports are likely to stay in positive territory this year, though negative growth cannot be ruled out for a few months.

"The figure of the same period in the second half last year was relatively higher. Considering last year's figure and abnormal growth in some months, the possibility of exports seeing negative growth in some months cannot be ruled out. But despite all this, we are still hopeful to see overall export growth for the whole year".

China's exports fell 0.9 percent year on year in the first seven months of the year.

China's imports slumped by 14.6 percent in the first seven months, when foreign trade dropped 7.3 percent.

The target for trade growth for 2015 is around 6 percent.

IMF official says China's transitions lead to slower but better growthThe International Monetary Fund has predicted a 6.8-percent growth rate for this year, in its annual Article IV Consultation Staff Report for China.

The IMF number is slightly lower than the Chinese government's stated goal 7 percent.

Markus Rodlauer, IMF mission chief for China, stressed that China's economic development is safer and more sustainable despite slowing rates, and rules out the possibility of hard landing in the short term.

"To move away from that unsustainable growth is a difficult adjustment process, which will slow down growth. So that is the cost of change, which is difficult, is difficult all over the world, adjustment, but it has to happen and we are quite comfortable the way it happening, because it's happening in a control and moderate way."The People's Bank of China adjusted the exchange rate formation system to close the gap between a lower central parity rate and market expectations.

Rodlauer called the move praiseworthy as it allows a greater role for market forces in China's currency.

"Those are important steps that move, for example, the exchanges system to close to a market-determined exchange and we hope that this new system will allow exchange rate to be a little bit more flexible, move around according to the market pressures. Let's not forget that the China's currency has appreciated by almost 15 percent in real terms over the past year, so against that, the three percent is really not a very large move."The Central Bank announced the adjustment on Aug 11 to improve its central parity system to better reflect market development in the exchange rate between the Chinese yuan against the U.S. dollar.

Department chief of China's environmental protection ministry under probeA department head of China's Ministry of Environmental Protection, or MEP, is under investigation for suspected serious violations of discipline and laws.

The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China said on its website that the official is Xiong Yuehui, head of MEP's Department of Science, Technology and Standards.

Investigation on MH370 flaperon finished with no details released: JACCFrench investigators have completed the examination on the wing flap found on Reunion Island but details of the findings or conclusions of that effort have not been released.

The investigation update came from the Australian Joint Agency Coordination Center which has been leading the search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

The Agency has released a report saying "the French authorities will, in consultation with Malaysia, report on progress in due course."The wing part, known as a flaperon, was found on the island in the Indian Ocean last month.

The Agency says the Australian government has proposed holding a meeting with officials from Malaysia and China in Canberra early next month to discuss further operations.

The flight disappeared in early March of last year. More than half of the passengers on the flight were Chinese. Thousands of square kilometers of ocean have been searched but the plane's final whereabouts remain a mystery.

DNA Tests to Root Out Poison OutbreaksAnchor:

American scientists are developing DNA kits to detect bacteria that causes food poisoning.

CRI's Yu Yang reports.

Reporter:

Food-borne illnesses are often costly and potentially deadly. No retailers are immune.

A pilot program is being rolled out across ten US states, aiming to tackle poisoning outbreaks by decoding the DNA of harmful bacteria.

Robert Tauxe, head of the pilot 'genome sequencing' program, believes a success is looming.

"With this new test, the DNA sequencing, we are finding three times as many outbreaks as we found before and we're finding them when they're smaller, an average size of four, almost half the size that they were before."Tauxe says the final aim is to stop contamination before it spreads to a large group of people.

"Testing foods and testing the environments in food production facilities which our colleagues at FDA (Food and Drug Administration) are doing, means we can tie up these outbreaks with more precision than ever. So we're finding more, and we're finding them when they're smaller and stopping them."Initial testing for contamination has focused on listeria, the third-leading cause of death from food poisoning in the US.

Tauxe says it's just the start.

"Right now it is just listeria, a rare but serious germ, and in the future we'll begin doing it for e coli, which is somewhat more common, and within two years we plan to do it for salmonella, which is very common."It's estimated about 50 million Americans get sick every year from food poisoning and about three thousand die.

As it's used more widely, genome sequencing is becoming faster and cheaper.

Tauxe hopes, with the help of genome sequencing, they can eventually intervene before an outbreak can take hold.

Genome sequencing also promises to reveal drug resistance more quickly, allowing researchers to calculate how virulent a virus or bacteria is by how it spreads from one person to another through tiny genetic changes which act like footprints.

For CRI, I'm Yu YangClinton Grilled Over Private Server, Trump Leading Republican PollHillary Clinton has again been grilled by reporters about her use of a private email server while she was US Secretary of State. Clinton, while campaigning in Nevada, admitted that using a private email server "did not turn out to be convenient at all." However, she stressed what she did was legal.

"But that does not change the facts and no matter what anybody tries to say the facts are stubborn. What I did was legally permitted, number one, first and foremost, okay? Number two - I turned over, out of an abundance of an attempt to be helpful, over anything that I thought was even vaguely related. In fact, they've already concluded more than 1,200 of the emails I gave them have nothing to do with the work."Clinton handed over her private server to the FBI last week. She used the server to send, receive and store emails during her four years as the US Secretary of State.

Clinton dodged questions about whether she tried to wipe the entire server prior to handing it over.

Clinton is leading the race for the Democratic presidential nomination by a wide margin.

Meanwhile, a CNN/ORC poll says Donald Trump has become the top candidate for the Republic nomination. The survey said 24 registered Republican voters supported Trump. Behind him is former Florida governor Jeb Bush with a 13% following. Support rates for all other candidates are in the single digits.

Over 70 nuclear nonproliferation experts announce support for Iran agreementMore than 70 leading nuclear nonproliferation experts have issued a statement, showing their support for the full implementation of the Iran nuclear agreement which aims to guarantee the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear program.

Signers of the statement include former senior U.S. nonproliferation officials, former director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency Hans Blix, former nuclear negotiators and leading specialists from all around the world.

The statement outlined that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) "is a strong, long-term, and verifiable agreement that will be a net-plus for international nuclear nonproliferation efforts."U.S. cruise giant Carnival to launch trips to CubaU.S. cruise giant Carnival Corporation is preparing to set sail for Cuba thanks to the thaw in relations between the United States and Cuba.

The announcement follows the U.S. government's recent moves to restore diplomatic ties with Cuba and loosen rules for U.S. travel to the island nation.

The Miami-based company says that it expects to launch trips to Cuba as early as next May, contingent on approval by Cuban authorities.

Under the 50-year-old U.S. embargo against Cuba, U.S. citizens are still banned from visiting the island as leisure tourists.

Tara Russell with Carnival says cruise trips to the island country will be thus limited to those who fall under one of 12 approved categories, such as visiting family or engaging in religious or educational programs.

"Our travelers will be involved with eight hours a day of cultural and educational exchange. So we will be working with small business owners. We will be working with local food service providers. We will be working with artists, and those who run small retail shops."Nearly half a million U.S. people visited Cuba last year, and the number of visits was up 36 percent so far this year.

Stats from the cruise industry show there are almost two million U.S. people hoping to visit Cuba, particularly the younger generations.

Mexico Burns Illegal DrugsMexico has burned more than 70 tonnes of illegal drugs.

The burn took place in the northern border city of Tijuana, and officials say the total market value of the destroyed substances topped 120 million USD.

Mexico's Attorney General Arely Gomez was at the site, joined by several military leaders. Gomez says the burnt drugs included marijuana, cocaine and meth.

"With just today's burning we have stopped approximately 63 million marijuana doses, nearly 2.5 million (doses) of cocaine and 174,000 (doses of) methamphetamines. The total cost of this quantity of drugs surpasses 2 billion pesos."Eight other states in Mexico also held similar events. Local media say a total of 136 tonnes of drugs have been incinerated.

Officials at Wednesday's event said Mexico's current administration had seized or destroyed more than 2,500 tonnes of illegal drugs.

Boston Bomber Tsarnaeve Seeking New Trial at New LocationThe defense team of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaeve has appealed his conviction and requested a new trial at a new location.

Tsarnaeve, the younger of two brothers whose plot killed 3 and injured 264 at the 2013 Boston Marathon, was given a death sentence in May.

Lawyers for the 22-year old are arguing the jurors who handed him the death penalty could not be impartial, given the intense media coverage and strong public outrage in Boston after the bombing.

WeatherBeijing will be overcast tonight with a low of 20, tomorrow will be cloudy with a high of 33.

Shanghai will be cloudy tonight with a low of 26, tomorrow will have thunderstorm, high of 33.

Chongqing will have shower tonight with a low of 20, overcast tomorrow with a high of 27.

Lhasa will be rainy tonight with a low of 9, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 23.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad will have slight rain tomorrow with a high of 33.

Kabul, cloudy, 32.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, cloudy, high of 19,Brisbane, cloudy,20,Perth, rainy, 17,And finally Auckland, New Zealand will have slight rain with a high of 13 degrees Celsius.

Headline newsNo Nerve Gas after Tianjin Blasts: ExpertNo Nerve Gas after Tianjin Blasts: ExpertSpecialists have ruled out the possibility that nerve gas has been released at the explosion site in Tianjin.

Some Chinese media have reported nerve gas was detected in the port city.

However, Wang Yongan, a research fellow with the Academy of Military Medical Sciences says the production of such gases requires complex processes.

He says "the chemicals found at the site and the conditions wouldn't allow generation of nerve gas."Earlier, Tianjin's environmental watchdog said no cyanide has been detected in rain samples collected 7 kilometers from the blast site, which is a populated area.

None of the 18 air quality monitoring stations in the surrounding area reported excessive cyanide on Tuesday.

Hunt for Thai bombing suspect locked on man with backpackPolice in Bangkok are now hunting for a man who left a backpack at the scene of a deadly bombing, minutes before the explosion.

In video footage, a man wearing a yellow T-shirt walked into Erawan Shrine with a backpack, later leaving it under a bench.

He walked out of the shrine without the backpack. Three minutes later, the explosion took place.

Twenty people were killed and more than 100 others injured in the explosion at about 7 p.m. local time on Monday.

Over 70 nuclear nonproliferation experts announce support for Iran agreementMore than 70 leading nuclear nonproliferation experts have issued a statement, showing their support for the full implementation of the Iran nuclear agreement which aims to guarantee the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear program.

Signers of the statement include former senior U.S. nonproliferation officials, former director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency Hans Blix, former nuclear negotiators and leading specialists from all around the world.

The statement outlined that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) "is a strong, long-term, and verifiable agreement that will be a net-plus for international nuclear nonproliferation efforts."Shanghai official under probeDai Haibo, former deputy secretary general of the Shanghai municipal government, is under investigation for taking bribes.

Prosecutors announced today that Dai is now under "compulsory measures," which may include issuing a warrant to compel a suspect to appear, bail pending trial, and residential surveillance.

The 53-year-old also served as executive deputy director of the administrative committee of the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone between September 2013 and September of last year.

First US college basketball team visits CubaCoastal Carolina has become the first American college team to tour Cuba since the United States eased relations with the island country.

Cliff Ellis, coach of Coastal Carolina, said on Tuesday they discovered a warm, welcoming group of people eager to show their support for their American neighbors.

After the games with the Cuban team, Coastal Carolina coaches taught the game to their Havana counterparts and the visiting players held basketball clinics for children.

Biz ReportsStocksAsian stock markets were mostly lower as investors were rattled by volatile Chinese stocks and concerns about growth in the world's second-largest economy.

However, Chinese shares regained territory on Wednesday with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 1.2 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index gained 2.2 percent.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, rose 2.7 percent.

Shares in Hong Kong fell for a fourth straight trading day on Wednesday, as airlines led the declines.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed down 1.3 percent.

Elsewhere in Asia,Tokyo shares ended sharply lower following poor performances of other stocks markets.

The Nikkei Stock Average tumbled 1.6%.

South Korea's KOSPI dropped 0.9%.

Singapore's Straights Times chopped 0.3%.

And finally, Australia's ASX200 ended 1.5% lower.

PBOC offers MLF to financial institutionsChina's central bank has offered new medium-term lending facility (MLF) loans to 14 financial institutions on Wednesday.

The 110 billion yuan, or 17 billion US dollars loan is believed to ensure reasonably adequate liquidity in the banking system.

The yield for the six-month loan stands at 3.35%.

On Tuesday, the central bank injected 120 billion yuan into the money markets through seven-day reverse bond repurchase agreements. It was the largest injection since the week of Feb. 9.

Securitization in China helps link global investors to RMB assets: S&PA new report shows global investors are focusing more on renminbi assets in China, primarily to diversify asset allocation and seek higher returns.

The report is from Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.

It says ongoing improvements in self-governance and information transparency in the securitization market are likely to support the development of China's capital market.

The agency's analyst says a number of infrastructure enhancements in China's securitization market has raised issuance efficiency and promoted market self-governance.

China's housing marketAnchor:

New figures show the housing market in China is starting to edge back up on a month-by-month basis.

Of the 70 cities in the monthly survey by the National Bureau of Statistics, 31 have seen a price increase from June to July.

However, the year-on-year survey shows 67 of the same cities have seen new home prices decline, with Beijing, Shenzhen and Shanghai being the only cities that have seen average new home price increases.

Meanwhile, for existing homes, 18 cities saw month-on-month price declines last month.

39 cities in the survey saw increases.

For more on China's housing market, CRI's Paul James earlier spoke to Professor Liu Baocheng from the University of International Business and Economics.

Professor Liu Baocheng from the University of International Business and Economics.

Modern Ark 700 Launched in Xi'anChina launched a new turboprop civilian aircraft on Tuesday in Northwest China's Xi'an city.

The Modern Ark 700 was designed by the Aviation Industry Corporation of China.

Dong Jianhong, Modern Ark 700's chief designer, explains the specialty of this plane.

"The MA 700's cabin space is the largest among turboprop regional airliners, including the space between seats and rows, the space for standing and the space for luggage. The whole plane has comprehensive safeguards,"The company has signed orders for 185 of the aircraft with clients including Okay Airways and Joy Air.

The MA 700 is expected to be ready for its maiden flight in 2017 and to come into service in 2019.

China imposes anti-dumping measures on Japanese, U.S. fiber preformsChina will impose anti-dumping measures on optical fiber preforms imported from Japan and the US.

The Ministry of Commerce has ruled that the two countries' dumping activities were damaging the interests of Chinese optical fiber producers.

The tariffs will range from 8 percent to nearly 42 percent for domestic importers of fiber optics from the two countries.

The ruling excludes products with a diameter smaller than 60 millimeters.

An optical fiber preform is a piece of glass used to make optical fiber.

Tencent invests $50M in 'Canadian WeChat'

China's Tencent invested 50 million US dollars in a Canadian mobile messaging company.

Based in Waterloo, Ontario, Kik Interactive's chat platform is popular with US teens.

Kik currently has 240 million users.

Kik faces stiff competition in mobile chat, with Snapchat targeting the same teenage audience and Facebook's Messenger and WhatsApp products claiming far more users.

Tencent is China's biggest social network and online entertainment company.

Tencent's WeChat has 600 million active users.

UnionPay spreads wings in ThailandUnionPay International and the Thai Bankers Association have signed an agreement to make UnionPay the standard chip card for local banks.

UnionPay is the Chinese card payment system.

The agreement means UnionPay cards can now be used in nearly all automated teller machines and almost 70 percent of merchants across Thailand, including large department stores, airports and duty-free shops.

Banks in Thailand are required to issue all debit cards and some credit cards with chips by 2016.

Thailand is the first foreign country to adopt UnionPay as its standard chip card.

SportsSebastian Coe elected IAAF president; Chinese official elected council memberBritain's Sebastian Coe has been elected president of the International Association of Athletics Federations at a congress here in Beijing.

The former Olympic 15-hundred meter champion will replace Lamine Diack for a four-year term, starting from after the world championships at the end of this month.

Coe is "flattered and honored" to have been elected.

"I'm never going to be afraid to say that, never ashamed of saying it. Track and field is the number one sport and I'm absolutely delighted to be the president of the number one sport and I will do everything in my human capabilities to make sure that our sport maintains the values, maintains the strong legacies and the very, very firm foundations that president Diack has left me with"Coe takes over at a time when the IAAF is battling a doping crisis. The 58-year-old said under his leadership the sport would move towards setting up its own anti-doping agency.

The IAAF congress has also elected Du Zhaocai, head of the Chinese athletics association, as a council member.

IAAF officials gathered in Beijing for the world championships scheduled to open on Saturday.

CFA Cup previewIn football,Defending champion Shandong Luneng takes on Henan Jianye, starting shortly, for a place in the semi-finals of the Chinese Football Association Cup.

In other action,Xinjiang Tianshan Leopard plays Jiangsu Shuntian. Xinjiang has eliminated Guangzhou Evergrande and Tianjin Teda in the tournament.

China League team Beijing Beikong hosts Guizhou Renhe. Beikong is a powerful force to be reckoned with, having previously beaten city rival Beijing Guo'an.

And there will be a Shanghai derby between Shenhua and SIPG.

China announces shortlist for World Cup qualifiersMeanwhile, the Chinese Football Association has announced the shortlist for the World Cup qualifiers.

Players from the top three teams in the Chinese Super League make up the pillar of the line-up.

The 23-strong squad, headed by coach Alain Perrin, includes eight players from Guangzhou Evergrande.

Zhang Linpeng and Yu Hanchao are back from injuries. And Zheng Long is being selected for the first time.

The list calls up three players each from Shanghai SIPG and Shandong Luneng.

Zhang Chengdong, who just joined La Liga's Vallecano, will be summoned back from Spain to play for his national team.

China has already had a 6-0 victory over Bhutan in the World Cup qualifiers. The national team will face Hong Kong, the Maldives and Qatar in the following months.

Champions League play-off recapElsewhere in football,All home teams had victories in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off.

Memphis Depay's double helped Manchester United sink Club Brugge 3-1;Sporting Portugal edged Moscow 2-1;And it was 1-0 wins for each of Lazio, Astana, and Borisov.

The return leg is set for a week later.

Nicaragua seeks extradition of former FIFA officialfootball news,Nicaragua is seeking the extradition of former FIFA official Julio Rocha, charged with money laundering and embezzlement.

Former development officer Rocha was among the 14 officials arrested by the United States on graft charges at a FIFA congress in Zurich in May.

Rocha has agreed to be extradited from Switzerland to his home country to face justice.

It is now up to US authorities to decide whether they will give Nicaragua priority in the extradition.

Tennis: Cincinnati Open updateIn tennis,Roger Federer started the defense of his Cincinnati Open title with an easy 6-4, 6-4 victory over Roberto Bautista.

Along with Federer, Tomas Berdych, Grigor Dimitrov and Marin Cilic each earned a spot in the next round.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Nick Kyrgios are out.

Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal will begin their first action early tomorrow morning.

Djokovic is looking for that elusive Cincinnati title after coming up short in the Rogers Cup final last week.

"Well, it's a tournament I never won in my career, but as you said, reached four times the finals, so gives me enough reason to believe that I can go that, you know, extra step and this year, hopefully, make it. I did play some very good tennis here in the past. I also didn't have. . . some years were not as great, especially the last two years. But, again, I think this year has been one of the best years of my tennis career where I've won two grand slams, won over 50 matches so far midway through the season, so feeling great on the court. Confident. Hopefully, I will be able to use that this week."On the women's side,Belinda Bencic, fresh off her Rogers Cup win, beat higher ranked Angelique Kerber in straight sets.

Agnieszka Radwanska was handed a three-sets defeat by a qualifier.

Oscar Pistorius to be released on paroleOscar Pistorius is to be freed from jail.

The former Olympic and Paralympic athlete is due to be released on parole on Friday, after serving 10 months of a five-year term.

The release is in line with South African sentencing guidelines, which stipulates the parole can only be granted on conditions that the offender has served at least one-sixth of the full term.

Pistorius was convicted last year in the killing of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

He shot and killed Steenkamp on Valentine's day in 2013, claiming he thought a burglar was in his house.

South African prosecutors have filed an appeal against the release and are asking to have his custodial term extended.

If convicted of intentional homicide, Pistorius could face up to 15 years in jail.

A hearing for that is scheduled for November.

Basketball resultsVery quickly in basketball,China suffered a 90-85 loss against Serbian club Mega Vizura at a European summer camp.

That makes its three wins and six losses for China in the sessions.

The team is coming back to prepare for the Asian Championship set for late September.

In other action,It was a 79-73 win for China's Olympic team over Lithuania at the four-nation basketball challenge.

EntertainmentChinese WWII film "The Cairo Declaration" to be ScreenedChinese historical film-"The Cairo Declaration" will be screened on September 3, the day of Beijing's military parade.

The film depicts the milestone event during World War II and shows the life of Chinese people during the war, as well as their contribution to the anti-Fascist war.

Over 150 actors and actresses from China, the US, Britain, Germany, Russia, Italy and Japan are involved in the production.

Posters of the film previously released have caused controversy.

One shows China's late Chairman Mao Zedong. It was put alongside two other posters showing American President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill respectively.

Many accuse the posters of distorting history as Mao didn't participate in the Cairo Conference.

The film director says the use of posters by the promotion team is "improper", but the film itself is serious.

Hong Kong film-'Wild City' premieres as part of the Summer International Film FestivalAction film "Wild City" has had its Hong Kong premier at the Summer International Film Festival.

Actor Louis Koo, Shawn Yue, Joseph Chang and director Ringo Lam attend the event.

The film follows the story of an ex-cop who is targeted by triads trying to fight his way out with his brother.

It is a part of the City Trilogy along with director Ringo Lam's older films, "City on Fire," and "Full Alert.""Wild City" had its initial premieres at the Taipei Film Festival on July 10 and on Chinese mainland on July 30.

It will be screened in Hong Kong theaters starting tomorrow.

Chinese Billionaire's Son Signs K-pop BandWang Sicong, son of Dalian Wanda Group chairman-Wang Jianlin, has signed South Korea girl group-T-ara.

He has also established an agent company-called ""Xiang Jiao Ji Hua" in Chinese, which translates as "Banana Plan".

Wang Sicong has confirmed he is stepping into the showbiz circle and will hold a press conference in the coming days on the news.

He says he plans to sign more bands and stars.

As the only son of the head of China's largest real estate developer, Wang has made headlines with his flamboyant microblogging, often featuring sarcasm and criticism of Chinese celebrities.

This January, Wang Sicong invited many celebrities to his 27th birthday party.

The Korean girl band, T-ara, staged a private concert for him at the party.

Ed Sheeran leads Spotify's top young artists listBritish singer Ed Sheeran has topped Spotify's list of the top 25 most influential artists under the age of 25.

The 24-year-old singer also has Spotify's most streamed song ever in 2014 with his ballad-"Thinking out Loud," streamed 450 million times.

(bjh/soundbites 0819 thinking out loud)In the list released by the music streaming service, Ariana Grande, Sam Smith, Miley Cyrus and One Direction rounded out the top five young artists.

The list is based on total streams, No. 1 hits, volume and growth of streams over the past year and Spotify's viral chart.

Taylor Swift was not on the list as she decided to remove her hits from the streaming service in last November, arguing artists were not being fairly rewarded for their music.

Batgirl of the 1960s Yvonne Craig dies at 78Yvonne Craig, the actress best known for playing Batgirl in the iconic 1960s ABC TV series Batman has died.

She was 78.

Her families say the actress died of breast cancer.

Craig joined Batman for its third and final season in 1967 as librarian Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham City Police Commissioner Gordon, who secretly moonlight as Batgirl.

Craig also played Martha, the green Orion Slave Girl who wanted to kill Captain Kirk, in the third season of Star Trek.

And she starred in two movies opposite Elvis Presley - It Happened at the World's Fair and Kissin' Cousins.

Most recently, she provided the voice of Grandma in the 2009 Nickelodeon cartoon series Olivia.

And she served as executive producer for the documentary feature BIRTH.

WeatherBeijing will be overcast tonight with a low of 20, tomorrow will be cloudy with a high of 33.

Shanghai will be cloudy tonight with a low of 26, tomorrow will have thunderstorm, high of 33.

Chongqing will have shower tonight with a low of 20, overcast tomorrow with a high of 27.

Lhasa will be rainy tonight with a low of 9, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 23.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad will have slight rain tomorrow with a high of 33.

Kabul, cloudy, 32.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney, cloudy, high of 19,Brisbane, cloudy,20,Perth, rainy, 17,And finally Auckland, New Zealand will have slight rain with a high of 13 degrees Celsius.

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

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

Specialists have ruled out the possibility of nerve gas in and around the blast site in Tianjin...

The Chinese embassy in Thailand has initiated an emergency response after a deadly bomb attack at a shrine...

French investigators have finished examining a wing part found on Reunion Island...

In Business...global investors focus on RMB assets in China...

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...