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

Coming up on our program this morning...

Chinese President Xi Jinping has led a new reform working group meeting.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has met with Iran's foreign minister.

A new UN official has been appointed to probe chemical weapons attacks in Syria.

In Business... a pair of senior CITIC officials under investigation.

In Sports.... Ding Junhui into the last 16 at the Shanghai Masters snooker tournament.

In entertainment.... Chinese Director Zhang Yimou wins a major lawsuit.

Top NewsXi urges to open economy wider to worldChinese President Xi Jinping has gone on-record saying China's economy must open wider to the outside world.

He's made the comments at a meeting of the government's Leading Group for Deepening Overall Reform.

The group has adopted a series of guidelines covering subjects including a negative list approach to regulating market access, encouraging state-owned enterprises to take in more private capital and granting permanent residence permits to foreigners.

Xi Jinping says promoting opening up while pushing forward reforms will add new impetus and vitality and provide new room for economic growth.

Chinese premier calls for concerted efforts to implement Iran nuclear dealChinese Premier Li Keqiang has met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif here in Beijing.

As part of the talks, the two have discussed the implementation of the new Iranian nuclear agreement.

They've also discussed the furthering of the strategic partnership.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi says the talks have included Iran's participation in the Chinese-backed Silk Road proposal.

"China and Iran agreed that bilateral mutual-beneficial cooperation has a good foundation and is complementary, China's 'One Belt and One Road' Initiative could be connected with Iran's developing strategy. China and Iran should cooperate in not only traditional fields such as energy and infrastructure, but also in new fields like international energy capacity cooperation."For his part, Mohammed Javad Zarif says the Iranian side will be looking for more Chinese investment in Iran.

"China and Iran could implement more strategic cooperation, leading to a very bright future. The market in Iran has great potential and needs. I believe enterprises from around the world including China will have more space for development. I look forward to the prospects for future bilateral cooperation."China is one of a number of countries which is looking to capitalize on the relaxation of sanctions against Iran following the ratification of the new nuclear agreement inked earlier this year.

China urges DPRK to do more for peninsula's peaceThe Chinese government is calling on North Korea to do more to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei has made the call following suggestions the DPRK is planning a new rocket launch.

"As a sovereign country, North Korea has the right to peacefully utilize outer space. But this right has been restricted by the United Nations Security Council's relevant resolutions. The resolutions should be practically implemented. We hope that the relevant sides act cautiously, and not refer to any actions that would lead to tensions on the peninsula and in the region."Pyongyang says it's in the final stage of developing new satellites for earth observation, which will be ready for the 70th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Korean Workers Party.

That anniversary falls on October 10th.

At the same time, North Korea has announced that its main nuclear complex is operating and working to improve the "quality and quantity" of its weapons.

This comes ahead of the 10th anniversary of a joint statement issued by the countries involved in the so-called 6-party talks.

The denuclearization talks involving China, Russia, the United States, Japan and the two Koreas have been shelved for years.

However, a conference to commemorate the statement connected to those talks is set to be held this coming weekend.

China wants increased UN Security Council role for developing countriesThe UN General Assembly has adopted a new set of negotiating texts for potential reforms to the UN Security Council.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei says the Chinese side would like to see an increase in representation on the 15-member rotating body among developing countries.

"China supports the Security Council to carry out reforms, and hopes the Security Council can better fulfill the responsibilities endowed by the UN Charters. Meanwhile, we hope it can strengthen the representation of the developing countries, especially African countries. The reform of the Security Council concerns the interest of its member countries and UN's future.

However, the current round of talks to try to push forward Security Council changes has been put aside for the time being.

Liu Jieyi is China's Permanent Representative to the UN.

"The intergovernmental negotiation mechanism of this General Assembly session only held one interactive dialogue and didn't start the negotiations between governments. Facts state obviously that the interactive dialogue didn't play a constructive role and what's more, it exacerbates the divergences among member states."Talks to potentially change the structure of the UN Security Council have been on-going since 2009.

Hangzhou Leads in China's Taxi ReformAnchorAuthorities in Zhejiang's capital, Hangzhou, are taking steps to keep taxi drivers on the road.

CRI's Qi Zhi explains.

ReporterWith taxi-hailing apps becoming increasingly popular, cab drivers in Hangzhou say they're finding themselves less-busy than they used to be.

"In the past, there used to be several passengers waiting along the side of the road. But now we have to drive several kilometers without finding a passenger. The situation is even worse at night."New stats suggest a local taxi driver in Hangzhou is carrying 5 fewer passengers a day compared to last year.

This is cutting their daily incomes by around 100-yuan.

There are currently about 10-thousand taxis in service in Hangzhou.

However, it's been suggested as many as half of the veteran taxi drivers have quit in recent years because of the declining profits.

Franchise fees are also another major concern among drivers.

Taxi drivers in Hangzhou have to pay around 8-thousand yuan a month to be registered with one of the taxi firms in the city.

To deal with this, municipal authorities in Hangzhou have brought in new legislation this week to cut the taxes on the management fees.

It should mean drivers will have to pay around 400 yuan less every month.

The money already collected this year are due to be refunded.

Around 100-million yuan will be going back to the local drivers in Hangzhou.

Under the new changes, several state-owned taxi companies are also going to be established in the city.

Zhang Xiaodong, deputy director of the city's Traffic Management Bureau, says they believe the state-run taxi firms will help level-out the playing field.

"It should help reduce operational costs for taxi companies, as well as increase drivers' incomes and iron out problems stemming from disputes over taxi ownership and management rights."The emergence of taxi-hailing apps has created a new level of competition among taxi drivers, leading to fewer profits.

This has led to protests in several cities in China.

For CRI, I'm Qi Zhi.

Tourist Sites Warned off Illegal Price HikeAnchorNew calls are being put out to prevent price hikes at tourist sites ahead of the forthcoming National Day travel peak.

CRI's Yu Yang reports.

ReporterA recent report from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences is suggesting the average prices at the top level scenic spots in China average over 110-yuan per ticket.

This is more than most pay in other countries around the world.

"It's really expensive. Public opinions should be solicited before price hikes and only with a nod from the public, could a rise be adopted.""I can hardly afford a tour. I will go nowhere if the ticket prices are too high for me to afford."Massive price hikes at scenic spots in China are on the verge this year.

This is because of a decision by the National Development and Reform Commission 8 years ago to limit price increases to every 3-years.

The last increase for most tourist spots was 2012.

Popular attractions, including the villages of Wuzhen in Zhejiang, Maijishan Grottoes in Gansu and the Silver Cave in Guangxi are said to be planning to increase their ticket prices by as much as 60-percent in the next few months.

Word of this is drawing ire from tourism officials.

Dai Bin with the China Tourism Academy says profiteering shouldn't be allowed at government-backed tourist sites.

"Earnings from ticket sales at tourist sites that feature natural scenery or cultural heritage should only be used to cover maintenance and operational costs. Operators of these sites should not profit through selling tickets since these are public assets."A number of scams have also been uncovered ahead of the forthcoming holiday.

At the Shanhaiguan Pass on the Great Wall in Hebei, visitors have been paying 90 yuan for ticket, which is 30 yuan higher than a normal one.

It's been discovered staff there have been forcing people to buy the supplementary ticket, which is only meant to covers a visit to a theatre built in the area.

Han Li with the National Development and Reform Commission is one of those who took part in the investigation.

"Our investigation has found it was collusion between the site's operator and a local travel agency that runs the theatre. The site can earn an extra 5 yuan from selling each ticket."A nationwide campaign has been launched by the National Tourism Administration to regulate ticket prices at tourist attractions.

Punishments will be doled out for those found to be involved in fraud, unreasonable price adjustments or poor management.

For CRI, I'm Yu Yang.

Xi's Visit to Strengthen Major-power ties with U.S.: ExpertsAnchorIt's being suggested cyber security and investment are set to top Chinese President Xi Jinping's agenda as part of his forthcoming visit to the US later this month.

CRI's Luo Wen reports.

ReporterChinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the United States is set to be his first state visit to the country since taking office in 2013.

Da Wei, director of US Research with the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, says trust-building is going to be key.

"The visit will help tell the US who President Xi Jinping is, as well as what kind of leader he is. It will also help answer questions about where is China going. The president has already sent out answers to these questions at both the Sunnylands meeting in California and the Yingtai talks in Beijing. But this time, the visit will also send a message to the American business community, the think tanks and the American people. It will tell them about China's reforms and development."Although the China-US relationship has been seeing steady improvement, challenges such as the South China Sea and cyber security still remain key sticking points.

Ruan Zongze, formerly with the Chinese embassy in the US, and now with the China Institute of International Studies, says he believes these issues are something the two sides can overcome.

"Cyber security is a common concern for China and the US. Both can work together to make changes to help one-another when it comes to cyber security. The two sides can also work to make their shared views applicable to other countries and non-state actors as well. So the best way to approach this issue is through talking, and not through sanctions."Ruan Zongze also says he believes Xi Jinping's time in the US will be an opportunity to push forward talks on the Bilateral Investment Treaty, which started seven years ago.

"China and the U.S. have held twenty rounds of BIT talks so far. Both sides will continue with the negotiations. We don't think the talks will be concluded soon. But at least we can expect further progress during the President's time in the US."Xi Jinping and Barack Obama sat down with one-another in June of 2013, with both leaders saying they want to create a relationship which will avoid confrontation.

Professor Robert Keobane with Princeton University says he believes the momentum from the previous talks should carry over into this round of discussions.

"I think it will be very productive. They are two very serious leaders who both have huge interests in cooperating with each other as well as the discord we talked about. They know they have to work out differences of interests as well as commonalities. Neither of them is inclined toward making radical statements that make things worse. So I expect it will be a very productive visit."Beyond cyber security and economics, the two are also expected to discuss military relations, counter-terrorism and climate change.

For CRI, I'm Luo Wen.

Chinese investment surges in Silicon ValleyAnchorChina's so-called "Silicon Valley" is looking toward its name-sake in the United States as an investment opportunity.

CRI's Luo Bin explains.

ReporterZhongguancun, a high-tech hub in Beijing, is posed to open an innovation center in Silicon Valley.

It's an 24-million U.S. dollar investment.

Luo Wei is the CEO of the overseas subsidiary of the Zhongguancun Development Group.

"For those who start businesses overseas, they will feel like entering Zhongguancun when they come here."Qihoo 360 is one of the firms backing the new innovation center.

Cao Shu with Qihoo says they've already managed to attract 10 new start-ups to take part in the new center.

"Through investment and development, we can establish connections with talented people in Silicon Valley. It is like an indirect way of recruitment."Wu Jun is with zPark Capital.

It's a venture-capital firm which focuses mostly on start-ups.

He says one of the companies they're investing in at the new innovation center is a drone manufacturing company based in San Francisco.

"Drones are largely manufactured in China. The drone maker Skycatch has recognized this, as well as the connection of our company with China and our background. This is why we're investing"GGV Capital is a venture capital firm based in both Silicon Valley and China.

Jeff Richards with GGV says investing in both Chinese and US companies makes sense.

"Our strategy for 15 years has been to invest in both markets. We believe the markets are closely intertwined. So we believe that flow of capital from the U.S. to China and from China to the U.S. probably increases over the next five to 10 years."Wu Jun with zPark Capital says they believe investment in the US will benefit China in the long-term.

"For any manufacturing country, when its manufacturing output and capacity improve and its wealth accumulates, it will develop a gap with the rest of the world in which the more the country can produce, the less the rest of the world can afford to buy. It will then be the outflow of capital to let the development of the entire global economy drive the country's economy to grow faster."Zhongguancun is one of the areas of China still holding firm when it comes to revenue growth.

The region generated over 1.5 trillion yuan in the first half of this year.

For CRI, I'm Luo Bin.

Putin defends military support for SyriaRussian President Vladimir Putin is throwing his full-throated support behind his country's military assistance to the Syrian government.

Speaking at a security summit in Tajikistan, Putin says it's impossible to defeat the Islamic State without cooperating with Damascus.

"I would like to say that we are supporting the government of Syria in the fight against terrorist aggression, are offering and will continue to offer it necessary military-technical assistance and will continue to do so, and we call on other countries to join us."At the same time, Putin is also shrugging off allegations Moscow's support for Assad has sparked a further outflow of refugees.

"First of all I would like to note that people are fleeing Syria primarily to escape fighting that has been fueled from outside with supplies of weapons and hardware, they are fleeing to escape terrorist atrocities. Without Russia's support for Syria the situation in the country would have been worse than in Libya, and the flow of refugees would have been even bigger."Putin is set to address the situation in Syria when he speaks to the UN General Assembly later this month.

UN to probe chemical weapon attacks in SyriaA senior U.N. disarmament official has been has been appointed to investigate who's responsible for chemical weapon attacks in Syria.

Virginia Gamba of Argentina is currently the deputy U.N. High Representative for Disarmament Affairs.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, says Gamba will lead a three-member panel in the investigation.

"Ms. Gamba will bring to the JIM more than thirty years of experience and professional leadership on disarmament. In particular she has displayed outstanding leadership in various international initiatives to promote the disarmament agenda, and provided key support to two earlier missions related to chemical weapons in the Syria lead by Professor Sellstr?m and by Sigrid Kaag respectively."Previous UN investigations have found that chlorine and sarin gas have been repeatedly used as weapons in Syria.

Both the Syria's government and rebels denied responsibility.

Automakers to unveil 210 new models at Frankfurt Auto showAnchorThose attending this week's Frankfurt auto show say they remain hopeful about a potential resurgence in the European auto market, despite the current slowdown in the Chinese economy.

CRI's Poornima Weerasekara has moreReporterThe organisers of this year's International Motor Show promises 210 world premieres and an "amazing display of innovations" from 1,100 exhibitors from 39 countries.

Among the new models on display is Renault's Megane 4 and Opel's Astra 5Rolls Royce will unveiled its latest model the Rolls Royce Dawn.

Rolls Royce CEO Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes says demand is strong despite worries of an economic slowdown in the Middle East and China.

"The Rolls Royce Dawn which is the first truly four seater, drop head, convertible we have ever done. It is also the most sociable Rolls Royce on earth. Clearly for the self-driver, and to get all your friends in and enjoy the ride on the Cote d'Azur, on the Croisette (main road in Cannes), or going down the Pacific Coast Highway. So that is what this car is meant to be, to really spoil your senses and really to enjoy your life."The biennial event, which alternates with the Paris auto show, is being held in Frankfurt's gigantic trade fair exhibition hall, a space the size of 33 football pitches.

After several years of crisis, the automobile industry finally has something to smile about as demand has picked up again in Europe.

New registrations in Europe have increased by 8.2 percent in the first six months of this year.

There is also positive growth in North America, with demand reaching record highs.

By contrast, emerging economies like Brazil and Russia have been hit by recession.

Automakers are also weary of the economic slowdown in China.

China, where years of double-digit growth turned it into the world's biggest automobile market, is only projected to grow by three percent this year.

But Mark Vaughn, Editor of Autoweek says the luxury car industry could bounce back. Is quite resilient in the face of these global shocks.

"There will always be a luxury car market. Sometimes, if there is a downturn in the economy, yes that effects a certain percentage of the luxury car market. But there is always a percentage of the luxury market that remains unaffected. Rolls Royce came out with a beautiful drop head edition here and the guys that buy that car are not effected by the stock market in China. They are not effected by anything except what they chose to be effected by. Those guys are doing fine and Rolls Royce will sell as many of those cars as they can make."Experts say China will continue to dominate the world's auto market, although Europe is now emerging from its trough.

Volkswagen, which is set to overtake Toyota as the world's biggest carmaker this year, generates 36 percent of its sales in China. It is just ahead of its US rival General Motors that relies on China for over one third of its profits.

After two of being open only to professionals and a preview for the media The Frankfurt Motor Show will open to the public on September 17th. The show runs through till September 27.

For CRI I'm Poornima WeerasekaraToo Much Social Media Could Be Bad for Your Health: ReportAnchorA new report is suggesting the use of social media sites, particularly at night, can lead to depression, anxiety, and poor sleep.

CRI's Wang Mengzhen has more.

ReporterThe British Psychological Society has raised concerns that the late nights spent maintaining social media profiles could be detrimental to people's health.

Students at Blackburn College express their views on socializing online.

"Most people use social media nowadays so it's very easy to become too invested in having to keep updating or liking pictures, responding to people online.""Many people post pictures of themselves which can quite easily knock people's confidence.""Seeing posts of people and their life and comparing your life to other people's lives and maybe it's not as exciting or not as successful and it might put yourself down."Dr. Heather Cleland Woods, researcher at the University of Glasgow, says that social media use may increase people's anxiety and depression.

"We saw that overall social media use was related top someone's anxiety, their depression. They want to be online 24-7 and as that need increased we also saw that that had an impact on their sleep quality."Blackburn College is trying to encourage students to use social media responsibly.

College principal Tracy Stuart says they are trying to develop self-regulation skills in young people.

"What we try to do here is develop some self-regulation skills in the young people so they understand when to turn off, when to turn on, when to make sure they've got other commitments, other parts of their lives so that their whole world doesn't become a virtual world."A study by the University of Glasgow finds that Facebook has almost 1.5 billion users and Twitter has 288 million. It's estimated that 90 percent of adolescents are on social media.

For CRI, I'm Wang Mengzhen.

WeatherBeijing will be sunny with a high of 27 degrees Celsius.

Overnight temperatures should drop down to 16.

Shanghai will see slight rain with a high of 26 and a low of 20.

In Chongqing, it will be cloudy during the daytime with a high of 28 and lows of 23.

Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia,Islamabad will be sunny with a high of 35.

Kabul will see slight rain with a high of 24.

Over to North America,New York will be overcast with a high of 28 degrees.

Washington, cloudy with a high of 30 degrees.

Honolulu, slight rain, 28.

Toronto will be cloudy with a high of 26 degrees.

Finally, on to South America,Buenos Aires will be cloudy with a high of 17.

And Rio de Janeiro will be sunny with a high of 30 degrees Celsius.

Headline newsXi urges to open economy wider to worldChinese President Xi Jinping says China's economy must open wider to the outside world.

He made the comments at a meeting of the government's Leading Group for Deepening Overall Reform.

The group has adopted a series of guidelines covering subjects including a negative list approach to regulating market access, encouraging state-owned enterprises to take in more private capital and granting permanent residence permits to foreigners.

Xi Jinping says promoting opening up while pushing forward reforms will add new impetus and vitality and provide new room for economic growth.

Chinese premier calls for concerted efforts to implement Iran nuclear dealChinese Premier Li Keqiang has met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif here in Beijing.

As part of the talks, Li Keqiang called for concerted efforts to implement the nuclear deal reached between Iran and world powers in July.

They've also discussed the furthering of the China-Iran relationship.

Zarif has also met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

The two ministers mainly talked about Iran's participation in the China-proposed Silk Road initiative and Chinese investment in Iran.

Chinese vice premier eyes further technology cooperation with BelgiumChinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong is pressing for more technology and innovation cooperation with Belgium.

She's made the suggestion while visiting the Flemish Institute for Technological Research in Belgium.

It's an institution dedicated to sustainable energy, health, materials management and land use.

Liu Yandong says the Chinese side wants to collaborate in areas such as remote sensing, energy efficiency, environmental protection and new materials.

Her stop in Belgium is part of her current tour of Europe.

China's Red Cross Distribute $100,000 Flood Relief Fund to DPRKThe Chinese Red Cross has offered 100-thousand US dollars to North Korea to help cope with the aftermath of the recent flooding in the country.

Heavy rains brought by Typhoon Goni in August have triggered landslides and severe flooding, leaving at least 40 people dead.

It's also forced around 11-thousand people from their homes and damaged more than 5-thousand residential buildings.

The flooding comes on the heels of some of one of the worst droughts on-record in North Korea earlier this year.

East China rape, murder review prolonged againA court in Shandong has extended for a second time the review of a rape and murder case in which a young man was executed 20 years ago, only to have another man confess to the crime years later.

The review of the case of Nie Shubin, which had been scheduled to end on Tuesday, has been extended for three months.

Nie was 21 when he was convicted and executed for the rape and murder of a woman in Hebei's capital, Shijiazhuang.

However, in 2005, Wang Shujin said he was responsible for the crime.

Review of the case began in December 2014 and was first extended in June.

Biz ReportsAnchorTurning onto business news. First, a quick look at the closing numbers across North America and Europe as well as a recap on the Chinese market.

ReporterU.S. markets rebounded on Tuesday, as investors bet on the fact a batch of soft economic reports could give the Federal Reserve an excuse to postpone an interest rate increase at its two-day policy meeting, which gets underway today.

At the closing bell,Dow Jones surged 1.4 percent.

S&P 500 added 1.3 percent.

The Nasdaq advanced 1.1 percent.

Meanwhile, oil prices bounced Tuesday as traders decided to invest after the recent sharp decline in prices.

The U.S. dollar also climbed against most major currencies on Tuesday ahead of the Federal Reserve policy meeting.

In Europe, markets there also increased on Tuesday.

At the closing bell,The UK's FTSE 100 rose 0.9 percent.

Germany's DAX increased 0.6 percent.

France's CAC 40 soared 1.1 percent.

Finally in China,Markets here saw another significant sell-off.

The Shanghai Composite Index shed 3.5 percent, while the Shenzhen Component Index lost 5 percent.

China securities executives under probe for insider tradingSeveral senior executives from CITIC Securities are being investigated for alleged insider trading and leaking inside information.

Those under investigation include CITIC's general manager in charge of operations and the vice-Manager of CITIC's information technology center.

CITIC Securities is one of China's leading investment banks.

Over 500 TMT companies awaiting IPO in A share marketsOver 500 technology, media and telecommunication firms in China are now said to be in the pipeline for Initial Public Offerings on the mainland market.

Gao Jianbin with Price Waterhouse Coopers says many of them plan to stay focused on China, despite the current halt to new IPO's.

"The Chinese TMT companies are continuing to look at two main capital markets, one in the US, the other on the A-share market. In terms of number, A-shares will probably be much bigger. TMT companies normally incur a loss at the beginning, but are fast growing. Right now, I think, the listing criteria in the A share market is getting more relaxed and also there are some proposed regulations."IPO's have been shut down in China amid the volitility in the markets.

Heated Discussions on Energy Saving and Green Economy during Summer DavosAnchorDownward pressure on the Chinese economy through the economic transition has led to growing calls for a redevelopment of economic thinking, including putting more emphasis on saving energy.

CRI's Wang Mengzhen has more on what industry observers and entrepreneurs talked about on that front at the just-concluded Summer Davos Forum in Dalian.

======================ReporterCRI's Wang Mengzhen talking with industry observers and entrepreneurs at this year's Summer Davos in Dalian.

China to build nuclear reactor in UKA new deal for the creation of a Chinese-backed nuclear power plant in southeast England is set to be signed next month.

British Prime Minister David Cameron is due to sign the agreement as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping's trip to the UK.

The nuclear reactor is expected to help power a million British households when finished.

Oil firm tightens measures to kick out graftChina National Petroleum Corporation has announced a series of cutbacks.

The Beijing-based company is going to shut down its offices in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Wuhan by the end of this year.

It also plans to sell most of its hotel assets by 2017.

CNPC also plans to cut the number of overseas offices it holds.

The action is a response to the current anti-graft campaign.

CNPC and its listed unit, PetroChina, have been among the worst-hit.

Chairman Wang Yilin is promising tighter supervision of its executives.

Airbus factory to add 300 jobs in TianjinIt's been announced the new Airbus factory in Tianjin will create nearly 300 jobs in the port city.

Airbus' A330 completion and delivery center is set to be operational in late 2017.

10 percent of the employees at the current A320 aircraft final assembly line will be shifted to the new facility.

The A330 center will be focused on cabin interiors.

Amazon founder unveils new space plansAmazon founder Jeff Bezos has unveiled new plans for his space startup Blue Origin.

He says the plans include launching from Cape Canaveral, Florida, later this decade.

Bezos' plans include the construction of a rocket manufacturing plant and launch site in Florida.

The Amazon founder is hoping to keep up with fellow tech billionaire Elon Musk, who runs Space X.

Launch pad 36 in Cape Canaveral was the site of 145 rocket launches by NASA before being shuttered.

Bezos says he wants to bring it back to life.

"The site saw its last launch in 2005 and the pad has stood silent for more than 10 years. Too long. We can't wait to fix that."Bezos plans to invest more than 200-million dollars to build a rocket manufacturing facility adjacent to NASA's Kennedy Space Center.

China's power use returns to growthChina's electricity consumption has returned to positive territory in August, suggesting a slight improvement in economic activity.

Official stats suggest power consumption rose 1.9 percent year on year, reaching over 510 billion kilowatt hours.

This is up from 1.3-percent decline in July and 1.8-percent increase in June.

Among all sectors, power use by service sectors jumped 7.5 percent, while the usage in primary industries went up 2.3 percent.

Before the decrease in July, electricity use remained mild growth from April to June.

Industry observers believe seasonal factors and lukewarm industrial activity led to the drop in July.

SportsChina's Ding Junhui into Last 16 at Shanghai MastersIn snooker,Chinese player Fang Xiongman has been knocked out of the Shanghai Masters, going down to defending champion Stuart Bingham 5-1.

"I began to love snooker when I was a child. I enjoy playing snooker. I think I can play it well in the future."China's snooker ace Ding Junhui is through in Shanghai, going through on a 5-1 win over Alan McManus.

In other action,England's Judd Trump is through over Robert Milkins.

He's set to battle compatriot Matthew Selt this evening.

Michael Holt is through after downing Stephen Maguire.

Guangzhou Evergrande into AFC Champions LeagueSemifinalsIn football,Guangzhou Evergrande has advanced to semifinals of the AFC Champions League by 4-2 on aggregate after drawing with Kashiwa Reysol 1-1 in the second leg of their quarterfinals.

Midfielder Zou Zheng.

"It is a tough win. They come here in the hope of cutting their two goal deficit to live their hope in the tournament. But we are well prepared for the tough game. For me, it's exciting to play the AFC quarterfinal game."Guangzhou Evergrande will next face the winner of Gamba Osaka and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors for a place in the final.

The match will take place tonight at 6 pm, Beijing time.

------------In Europe,Juventus has come from behind to beat Manchester City 2-1 in their opening Champions League match earlier this morning.

In other action,Manchester United went down to PSV 2-1.

And it's Wolfsburg downing CSKA Moscow 1-0.

------------Tommorrow,Chelsea will host Maccabi Tel Aviv in their UEFA Champions League Group G opener.

Chelsea goalkeeper Asmir Begovic on whether Chelsea can still win the Premier League title.

"I think we're going to take it step by step. I think there's still a long way to go. A lot of things can happen, especially in the Premier League being the most competitive league in the world. So, many things can happen. We're going to take it step by step. First and foremost, we have a big game tomorrow. We want to get our Champions League campaign started on the right note, and that's with three points."　　　The Premier League champions have lost three of their opening five games.

They are also languishing in 17th spot in the domestic competition.

---------------Elsewhere,Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger and club captain Mikel Arteta will take on Dinamo Zagreb.　Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger on Wednesday's opponents.

"Dinamo Zagreb, they dominate Croatian football. What we have to do, we have to focus on our performance and think that to beat them, we have to play at our best and without speculating on any weak link in a team who have not lost a game in 11 months."The Gunners will be without Aaron Ramsey, who is being rested, and Per Mertesacker, who has not fully recovered from a virus.

Jack Wilshere, Danny Welbeck and Tomas Rosicky are unavailable through injury.

China's Zhejiang beats DPR Korea club at Asian Women's Club Volleyball ChampionshipIn volleyball,Zhejiang remains undefeated at the Asian Women's Club Championships, downing 4-25 from North Korea 3-0 at the event in Vietnam.

Zhejiang remains first in Pool B, which also has clubs from Japan, North Korea, the Philippines and Iran.

The winner of the tournament will represent Asia at next year's FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship.

He Zi, Shi Tingmao Share Gold Medal at National Diving ChampionshipsIn diving,World Championship silver medalist He Zi of China has shared the gold medal with her teammate Shi Tingmao in the 3-meter springboard at the National Diving Championships.

"After the world championships, I became aware of my shortcomings. So I hope I can make good progress during the rest of the year."With the victory, both of them get a ticket to next year's Diving World Cup in Rio.

In women's synchronized 3-metre springboard,It's Wu Chunting and her teammate Xu Zewei claiming the title.

Chinese National Golf Team Match Is to Kick offIn golf,The 5th National Golf Team Match is set to kick off later today in the City of Rongcheng in Shandong.

Golf teams from 19 provinces and regions are competing.

Lin Xiyu and Feng Simin, who play on the LPGA Tour, as well as last year's Jiulongshan Open champion Jin Cheng are taking part.

The tournament runs through this weekend.

---------------In Europe,The Solheim Cup is set to get underway on Friday in Germany.

The US team is led by seven-time major champion Juli Inkster.

"It's amazing how the time has flown by. You know, you feel like you've been preparing for it for a year and a half and then we had the kick-off a year ago but it still seems like so long away. But here we are, my team is very anxious to get out on the golf course and get going."The Solheim Cup is the women's version of the Ryder Cup, pitting the US against Europe.

The American side has lost the last two Solheim Cups.

They haven't won in Europe since 2007.

EntertainmentZhang Yimou wins 15 mln yuan lawsuit and may finally get paid for movie directed in 2009Award winning Chinese Director Zhang Yimou has won a 15 million yuan lawsuit against Hong Kong based New Pictures Film Company.

Now he can finally get paid for a movie which he directed for the production house way back in 2009.

The Chaoyang District People's Court in Beijing ordered New Pictures to pay Zhang 15 million yuan or some 2.4 million U.S. dollars for directing the film, "A Simple Noodle Story."The director says the production company had agreed to equally share revenues minus promotional costs of the film, but he had never received any money.

New Pictures could not offer any evidence of payment either. But the company says it plans to appeal the court's decision.

Zhang and New Pictures ended their decade-long relationship in 2012.

Taylor Swift Dominates MTV EMAs NominationsTaylor Swift looks set to continue her domination of award ceremonies after being nominated in nine categories for the MTV Europe Music Awards.

The American singer received three nods for her hit single "Bad Blood".

Justin Bieber follows closely with six nominations, boosted by the global success of his chart-topping track "What Do You Mean?"Ed Sheeran has been named in four categories, including best UK and Ireland act, best male, best live act and best world stage.

Having announced their plans for a hiatus after their fifth album, One Direction are up for three prizes, for best UK and Ireland act, best pop and biggest fans.

The four-piece will face Swift, Bieber, 5 Seconds of Summer and Ariana Grande in the battle for the best pop act.

The 2015 MTV EMAs will take place in Milan on 25 October.

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Disney release first trailer for The Jungle Book remakeDisney has released its first trailer for The Jungle Book remake.

The company has come a long way from its '60s rendition of sweet little Mowgli and his gaggle of jungle friends.

In this first trailer Mowgli spends most of his time running for his life.

The trailer begins with Scarlett Johansson, who voices a conniving cobra named Kaa, crooning to Mowgli about his origins.

Her voiceover continues through shots of Mowgli riding Baloo the bear, backing away from a herd of elephants, and running from the tiger Shere Khan and the orangutan King Louie, respectively.

The movie, directed by Jon Favreau for Disney, also features the voices of Idris Elba, Bill Murray, and Ben Kingsley.

The movie is a CG and live-action hybrid—the jungle animals and environment were all computer-generated and fused with Sethi's performance.

The film is set to hit theaters in April, 2016.

Facebook is finally creating a 'Dislike' button to help users express "empathy"Users have asked whether Facebook would make a "Dislike" button for years, and for years Facebook has said that it wouldn't.

But now the social media giant has finally decided to introduce a 'Dislike' button - but it won't be designed to foster negativity.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced at a Facebook townhall that the new option will be geared towards allowing users to express "empathy".

Zuckerberg said that the social network didn't immediately design the button because it didn't want to turn into something like Reddit, with a system of upvoting and downvoting.

He added that the company realized Facebook users didn't necessarily want to downvote each other, they just wanted to have another option to "Liking".

The new option is expected to be rolled out soon.

Justin Timberlake to Star Opposite Anna Kendrick in DreamWorks Animation's Musical 'Trolls'

Justin Timberlake is planning to return to the big screen.

The singer turned actor has signed on to voice the lead character in DreamWorks Animation's musical comedy "Trolls."The singer-actor will star as Branch, a hardcore survivalist who hides his tender side.

Timberlake will voice the Scandinavian troll opposite Pitch Perfect star Anna Kendrick, who will play the part of Princess Poppy.

Timberlake, a nine-time Grammy and four-time Emmy Award winner, is also a busy film actor, with such credits as The Social Network, Runner Runner and Inside Llewyn Davis.

20th Century Fox will release the film on Nov. 4, 2016.

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

Recapping our top stories this morning...

Chinese President Xi Jinping has led a new reform working group meeting.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has met with Iran's foreign minister.

A new UN official has been appointed to probe chemical weapons attacks in Syria.

In Business... a pair of senior CITIC officials under investigation.

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, this is Paul James in Beijing hoping you'll join us for our next edition of the Beijing Hour to open a window to the world together.