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

Coming up on our program this morning...

A Belarusian writer taking the 2015 Nobel Prize for Literature...

China's commerce ministry expressing its openness to any trade agreements that strengthen the Asia-Pacific region...

And US House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy makes a surprise exit from the race for Speaker of the House...

In Business....China's two online-to-offline service providers merging...

In Sports.... China fall to Qatar in the World Cup Qualifiers...

And in Entertainment....China's national day box office breaking some big records...

Top NewsBelarus writer Alexievich wins 2015 Nobel Prize in LiteratureThe Swedish Academy has announced that the Nobel Prize in Literature for 2015 goes to Belarusian author Svetlana Alexievich.

Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy Sara Danius made the announcement.

Alexievich was born on May 31, 1948 in the Ukrainian town of Ivano-Frankivsk, the daughter of a Belarusian father and a Ukrainian mother. When her father had completed his military service, the family moved to Belarus, where both parents worked as teachers.

Alexievich worked as a teacher and as a journalist, and she studied journalism at the University of Minsk.

Danius recommended that people read her first book "War's Unwomenly Face" translated into English in 1988. It was about one million Soviet women in the red army who participated in the Second World War alongside male soldiers.

Alexievich's book Voices of Utopia and Voices from Chernobyl about nuclear proliferation were also recommended by Danius.

China opens to any mechanism good for Asia-Pacific: commerce ministerA senior official is stressing that China is open to any trade mechanism as long as it follows the rules of the World Trade Organization and supports the economic integration of the Asia-Pacific region.

Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng made the remarks in a recent interview concerning the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP.

Twelve Pacific rim countries sealed the TPP deal early Monday to create the largest free trade area of the world.

Gao Hucheng said China hopes the TPP pact and other free trade arrangements in the region can boost each other and contribute to Asia-Pacific's trade, investment and economic growth.

He added that China is willing to cooperate with the U.S. in formulating global trade regulations following the multilateral trading system.

China had sealed 14 free trade agreements with 22 countries and regions.

MOU between China, US Establishes Framework for Development CooperationSpokesperson for Chinese Ministry of Commerce Shen Danyang says a memorandum of understanding signed between China and the United States in September amounts to a framework for development cooperation to guide future collaborative efforts.

Shen says the MOU recognizes both nations' shared desire to end extreme poverty and advance global development.

"China and the U.S. signed the MOU as the United Nations laid out the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Both of us would like to be committed to ending extreme poverty and advancing global sustainable development to help other countries achieve common development goals."The spokesperson says the two sides also plan to expand existing cooperation on disaster response efforts by offering increased support to multilateral mechanisms.

The MOU was signed during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the U.S. last month.

China, U.S. to expand military tiesChief of General Staff of China's Armed Forces Fang Fenghui met with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Thursday in Beijing.

They pledged to jointly advance a new type of military relationship between the two countries.

Fang said that Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Barack Obama clarified the correct direction of the development of bilateral ties during their meeting in late September.

Fang said the two sides needed to make joint efforts to implement the consensus reached by the two leaders, which is based on mutual respect and win-win cooperation.

Blinken echoed that the United States and China have strengthened mutual trust in recent years. The U.S. is ready to work with China to advance collaboration and exchanges on areas including anti-piracy and peace-keeping.

China, Japan, S. Korea to hold new round of FTZ talksChina, Japan and South Korea are going to hold a new round of trilateral free trade zone negotiations in Japan in December.

A Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson made the announcement during a news conference on Thursday.

The latest round of talks were held in Beijing last month, covering issues of trade in goods and services, investment and the scope of the proposed FTZ.

Negotiations for the trilateral FTZ have been ongoing since 2012.

Combined gross domestic product and foreign trade volume of the three countries account for more than 20 percent of the world's total.

UK Works to Attract Chinese VisitorsThe United Kingdom has been working hard to attract more Chinese visitors.

Statistics from VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, shows that the country saw about a 20-percent increase in visitors from China at the beginning of the year.

The agency's director Patricia Yates says they're all competing for Chinese visitor because they see growth potential from the biggest outbound market in the world.

"For every 22 Chinese visitors that come here, another job is created in tourism. So high-spending Chinese visitors, we absolutely want them to grow. In all, the market is worth about half a billion pounds to Britain at the moment, we want to double that in the next four years. So that's a really ambitious growth target to come."In the meantime, Yates also mentions some disadvantages in UK tourism compared with some other countries.

"One of the things that we don't have, Britain is typically a very well-connected country, we're an island, we have to be, the route development isn't as good as China as we would like it to be. So I think getting more routes approved, getting those into regional airports, absolutely a focus for us in the next few years."Data from VisitBritain shows that the number of Chinese tourists to the UK grew to 185 thousand last year, with per capita consumption in the country standing at nearly 2700 pounds, or over 4100 U.S. dollars.

Political advisors discuss GM crops in ChinaA group of senior Chinese political advisors are calling for bettering the development of genetically modified crops in China.

Members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference discussed the issue at a bi-weekly consultation session on Thursday.

A statement issued after the session notes that China should research, promote and supervise GM crops for national interests and long-term development.

The statement also said that enterprises should play a more active role in applied research while the government should introduce tougher regulations, stricter law enforcement and third-party supervision institutes.

The political advisors also urged caution in promoting GM crops, taking the current level of public knowledge and acceptance into consideration.

Slight growth in tourists does not benefit retail sector in HKAnchorThis year's National Day holiday saw a slight increase in the number of tourist arrivals in Hong Kong, with retail sales still remaining sluggish across the city.

CRI's Hong Kong correspondent Li Jing has the story.

ReporterHong Kong's Secretary of Commerce and Economic Development, Gregory So, says total arrivals climbed 1.5 per cent year-on-year.

The number of mainland tourists increased by just 2.3-percent this year to around 1.1 million arrivals over the 7-day holiday on the mainland.

Gregory So says this seems to be a growing trend.

"The number seems to be steady, but there may be a change in visitors' consumption habit. The retail sector says their performance is not as good as it used to be. "In September alone, the number of mainland tourists dropped by 4.6 percent.

Visitors into Hong Kong from neighboring Shenzhen were down by some 20-percent last month.

Officials are suggesting one of the main reasons is the current restrictions on one visit per week from Shenzhen, which came into effect almost half a year ago.

The National Day holiday, or the "Golden week", is normally a bonanza for Hong Kong retailers, as it has traditionally seen millions of mainland tourists flood into the city.

However, Cantonese restaurant CEO Chan Po Wah says their business is down by some 20 to 30 percent this year.

"This year, we have fewer mainland customers. We used to prepare a lot to receive mainland tourists groups, for example, twenty groups from the mainland, and ten from South Korea, but now, the figure is the opposite. "Commerce Secretary Gregory So says there are a number of factors behind this.

"On the exchange front, other currencies have depreciated a lot against RMB and HK dollars, so tourists tend to spend less here. Another reason is that other regions and countries have loosened their visa policies to attract more mainland tourists. Thirdly, of course, the unpleasant protests against mainland tourists also make them less willing to visit Hong Kong. "The tourism in Hong Kong has slumped for the first time since 2009, with many hotels trying to lure visitors by cheaper prices.

At the same time, jewelry shops, pharmacies, and cosmetic stores are running almost empty in busy shopping areas, even during the holidays.

The travel industry in Hong Kong says its working promotional campaigns, as well as developing new attractions.

For CRI, this is Li Jing in Hong Kong.

VW and EPA Officials Testify Before US LawmakersAnchorThe US is continuing its investigations into how Volkswagen has managed to cheat in emissions tests since 2008.

Meanwhile, the company's US chief says he was not aware of the fraudulent software used in the scandal until very recently.

CRI's Victor Ning reports.

ReporterDirector of the Office of Transportation and Air Quality at the US Environmental Protection Agency Christopher Grundler on Thursday told a panel of US lawmakers that the German automaker's cheating measures had serious effects.

"By making and selling vehicles with defeat devices that allowed for higher levels of air emissions than were certified to the EPA, VW violated multiple important Clean Air Act provisions. These violations are very serious. Not only because the illegal defeat device results in excess emissions many times the allowable standard, but also because after the high emissions were discovered, VW concealed the facts from the EPA, the State of California, and from consumers."Grundler added that exposure to such high emissions could have serious health effects, such as increased asthma attacks and other respiratory illnesses.

Along with Director of the EPA's Office of Civil Enforcement Phillip Brooks, Grundler testified before the US House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

The two officials said they could not reveal new details about the EPA's ongoing probe of Volkswagen in fear of jeopardizing the investigations.

"We are in the midst of the ongoing investigation into VW's actions. We will be working closely with the U.S. Department of Justice throughout this investigation, and determinations regarding potential penalties and other remedies will be assessed as part of the investigation."Volkswagen has admitted to using illegal software to evade EPA emissions tests in nearly half a million diesel vehicles in the US. The practice has affected around 11 million cars manufactured by the company globally.

Also testifying before the House committee on Thursday was Volkswagen's US President and Chief Executive Michael Horn, who said he was not aware of the fraudulent software in question until very recently.

Horn: "While I was told about the EPA process, I was not then told, nor did I have any reason to suspect or to believe that our vehicles included such a device.

Congressman: "When did you first learn then that VW vehicles contained a defeat device?"Horn: "Around the September 3rd meeting. A couple of days before."Horn did say, however, that he was aware that his company's diesel cars did not meet US emissions standards in early 2014. He also added the use of the software was by decisions of individuals who worked at the company but not a corporate strategy.

Horn also said the company takes full responsibility for its actions and is cooperating with authorities as the case unfolds.

Meanwhile in Germany, authorities raided Volkswagen's headquarters as part of their investigation to see whether the company evaded emissions tests in Europe.

The scandal has wiped out about a third of the company's market value and forced out its long-time CEO Martin Winterkorn.

Commenting on the case on Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said her political party will not allow the scandal to discredit the entire motor industry because of the numbers of German jobs connected to it.

For CRI, I'm Victor Ning.

Financing important to combat climate change: French Finance MinisterFrench Finance Minister Michel Sapin says financing is important to combat climate change ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21, later this year.

Sapin made the remarks while attending the annual International Monetary Fund – World Bank meetings in Lima, Peru.

He said efforts must be made to reach the 2020 target of 100 billion US dollars per year to help poor countries combat climate change.

"It is necessary for the countries in the north, which have the ability, to commit in sufficient ways to allow for these actions. This is the great challenge for the days to come: to make progress. Thanks to the work of the OECD we know that now there are 62 billion US dollars. This means that every year the funds will allow developing countries to fight climate change. We need to reach 100 billion."The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Climate Policy Initiative jointly released a study earlier this week, aiming to provide the first clear snapshot of how far rich countries are from achieving the 2020 target.

The report will be discussed at a meeting of finance ministers in Lima on Friday, who are expected to use the findings to lay out a climate finance framework ahead of U.N. climate talks in Paris.

Sapin also said that carbon-tax could prove an effective means to encourage investment in green energy.

The COP 21 conference will run from November 30 to December 11 in Paris, France.

Syria Launches Large-scale Operation Against ISAnchorA large-scale military operation against the Islamic State terror group has been launched by Syrian Armed Forces.

CRI's Xie Cheng has more.

ReporterThe Chief of General Staff of the Syrian Arab Army Ali Abdullah Ayyoub made the announcement via video on Thursday.

"Today the Syrian Armed Forces began a large-scale attack on terrorist organizations, in order to liberate the regions that have come under the plague of terrorism."He says the government's army has regained the initiative in the fight against the terrorists, and the extremists' combat ability has been weakened due to the ongoing Russian airstrikes.

Thousands of extremists have fled under the Russian airstrikes while some rebel forces have also retreated from strongholds.

The Syrian Armed Forces have initiated small-scale ground attacks alongside the Russian air support and have regained control of four towns in the central Syrian province of Hamah.

In the meantime, the cruise missiles launched by Russian warships have hit the provinces of Raqqa and Aleppo in the north, where the IS group has strongholds, and also Idlib province in the northwest.

Mazen Bilal, a Syrian political analyst, stresses the importance of cooperation between Russian airstrikes and Syrian ground attacks.

"The cooperation between the Russian airstrike and Syrian ground attack is very important. The U.S. airstrikes only cut the supply line of the extremists, which is very different from now. Now the Russian air strikes have ground support."For her part, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a news conference in Moscow that coordination between Western countries and the Syrian Army is a necessity in fighting IS.

"We say that we flew there first at the request of the Syrian government. And what is most important, we coordinate our actions with the Syrian army that resists IS on the ground. This is a key point. And we say that the actions of the coalition are not effective in our view for this very reason, because it is not possible to fight IS from the air. One can fight IS only joining forces with those who fight on the ground. In Syria it is undoubtedly the Syrian army."She adds that Russia has no plans to bring in ground forces.

For CRI, I'm Xie Cheng.

Political Solution Is Fundamental Way to Solve Syria Issue: FM SpokespersonChina's Foreign Ministry is calling for dialogue and a political solution to the Syrian crisis.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the call for a peaceful settlement at a regular press briefing.

"Anti-terrorism is an urgent mission presently, and a political solution is the fundamental way to solve the Syrian issue. We call on relevant parties to seize the opportunity brought by an increasing wish for a political solution to the Syrian issue, and to actively consider holding the third Geneva conference on the issue."The Foreign Ministry spokesperson says it should be the Syrian people deciding the future of their country.

"With help from the international community and support of the United Nations Security Council, Syria's future should be decided by the Syrian people autonomously and voluntarily."Hua Chunying says the political transition process in Syria should involve all the conflicting parties, without setting premises or predicting results.

She also says an equal, inclusive and open political dialogue should be launched as soon as possible to reach a political settlement reflecting the concerns of each party.

Europe's Refugee Crisis Will Last for Years: JunckerEuropean Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker says Europe's refugee crisis is expected to last "for years".

"This refugee crisis will last a few years. I have no illusion that what we're experiencing now will soon belong to the past."Juncker made the comments following a visit to a migrant reception centre on Germany's border with Austria.

Europe is now struggling to cope with its biggest migrant influx since World War II.

But EU countries are split on how to tackle the challenge.

Germany for instance has opted to open its doors to those fleeing war, particularly Syrians, while Hungary has built fences to keep migrants out.

EU, Balkans, Mideast nations discuss on migrant crisisEuropean, Middle Eastern and Balkan leaders gathered in Luxembourg on Thursday to discuss the ongoing migrant crisis.

The high-level meeting is aimed to tackle issues with the Eastern Mediterranean - Western Balkans route that thousands of migrants have been taking to reach Western Europe.

The European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, said the ongoing crisis is a global situation that all EU members need to face.

"So, today we gather all the different relevant actors inside and outside the European Union. And also let me say all the different EU policies. Because together with me we have the Luxembourgian Presidency, the Interior and the Foreign Ministers together, but also the different Commissioners that have a competence on this."German Foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier agreed that no country in Europe can deal with this challenge alone.

House Majority Leader Drops out of Race for SpeakerAnchorKevin McCarthy, the Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, made a surprising announcement Thursday, giving up his bid for House Speaker. The abrupt decision left the Republicans in the House no clear path forward.

Here is our Washington chief correspondent Xiaohong with the story.

Reporter:

Kevin McCarthy, House Majority Leader explained his decision after stunning his colleagues at a close-door-conference to nominate the successor of House Speaker John Boehner.

"I don't want to go to the floor and win with 220 votes. I think the best thing for our Party right now is to have 247 votes on the floor."He was the clear favorite to fill in John Boehner's shoes. However, analysts believe he was stopped by strong resistance from the members of the House Freedom Caucus, a ground of hardline conservative Republicans.

He also made several misstatements about the role of the House Bengazi hearings that most analysts say hurt his bid to become Speaker.

The surprise left the Party in chaos as the vote for the nomination has been postponed. It's not clear at this stage whether or not the overall election on the House floor which is scheduled for Oct. 29th is also postponed. To date, none of the other two declared candidates is likely to win 218 votes, the minimum legal requirement, to become the next House Speaker.

McCarthy is calling for a fresh face to fill the role.

"And I think there had been something said for us to unite, we probably need a fresh face. I'll stay on as majority leader."Paul Ryan, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman, who is widely respected within the GOP conference, immediately turned down the idea that he should run for the House Speaker.

In a statement he said the best way he can serve the country and the GOP is to stay as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.

Lawmakers from both the House and the Senate are expected to vote on a couple of important issues, namely the debt ceiling next month and government funding in December.

Xiaohong, CRI, Washington DC.

UEFA executive backs suspended PlatiniUEFA's executive committee on Thursday expressed "full confidence" in Michel Platini after he was suspended by FIFA and said he planned to appeal.

The committee said it had no plans to announce a temporary leader following Platini's 90-day ban from international football activities after he was named in a Swiss criminal investigation.

In a statement, the committee said it is aware that the UEFA president will take all necessary steps to appeal the decision of the FIFA Ethics Committee to clear his name.

The committee called for "a very rapid final decision" in the case and expressed "full confidence" in the 60-year-old Frenchman.

Man who helped foil French train attack stabbedUS Airman 1st Class Spencer Stone, who helped subdue an attacker on a French train in August, was stabbed in the state of California and is in stable condition.

An Air Force spokesperson said details are sketchy but that Stone is being treated in a hospital in the Sacramento area.

The stabbing is being handled by local law enforcement officials, and the spokesperson had no details on the nature or exact location of the stabbing.

Stone, 23, and two of his childhood friends from Sacramento, Alek Skarlatos and Anthony Sadler, stopped a gunman on a Paris-bound passenger train in August, receiving worldwide accolades and gaining sudden celebrity.

WeatherBeijing will be sunny with a high of 20 degrees Celsius.

Overnight temperatures should drop down to 8.

Shanghai will be cloudy with a high of 23 and a low of 17.

In Chongqing, it will be overcast during the daytime with a high of 23 and lows of 19.

Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia,Islamabad will be sunny with a high of 33.

Kabul will be sunny with a high of 25.

Over to North America,New York will be rainy with a high of 19 degrees.

Washington, rainy with a high of 27 degrees.

Honolulu, rainy, 28.

Toronto will be rainy with a high of 17 degrees.

Finally, on to South America,Buenos Aires will be rainy with a high of 16.

And Rio de Janeiro will be cloudy with a high of 31 degrees Celsius.

Headline newsChina, U.S. to expand military tiesChief of General Staff of China's Armed Forces Fang Fenghui met with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Thursday in Beijing.

They pledged to jointly advance a new type of military relationship between the two countries.

Fang said that Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Barack Obama clarified the correct direction of the development of bilateral ties during their meeting in late September.

Fang said the two sides needed to make joint efforts to implement the consensus reached by the two leaders, which is based on mutual respect and win-win cooperation.

Blinken echoed that the United States and China have strengthened mutual trust in recent years. The U.S. is ready to work with China to advance collaboration and exchanges on areas including anti-piracy and peace-keeping.

Belarus writer Alexievich wins 2015 Nobel Prize in LiteratureThe Swedish Academy has announced that the Nobel Prize in Literature for 2015 goes to Belarusian author Svetlana Alexievich.

Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy Sara Danius made the announcement.

Alexievich was born on May 31, 1948 in the Ukrainian town of Ivano-Frankivsk, the daughter of a Belarusian father and a Ukrainian mother. When her father had completed his military service, the family moved to Belarus, where both parents worked as teachers.

Alexievich worked as a teacher and as a journalist, and she studied journalism at the University of Minsk.

Danius recommended that people read her first book "War's Unwomenly Face" translated into English in 1988. It was about one million Soviet women in the red army who participated in the Second World War alongside male soldiers.

No new Ebola reported for first whole week since March 2014: UNA UN spokesperson says there were no new Ebola cases reported for the week that ended on Sunday, making it the first complete week with zero new cases since March 2014.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has concluded in its latest report that no confirmed cases of Ebola virus disease were reported in the week to Oct. 4.

The deadly Ebola epidemic hit West Africa in 2014, with Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea being the three most affected countries.

According to the WHO, since the beginning of the outbreak there have been a total of 28,421 reported confirmed, probable, and suspected Ebola cases in the three countries up to Oct. 4, with 11,297 reported deaths.

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.

U.S. stocks reversed early losses to end higher on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average on a 5-day winning streak for the first time this year.

Meantime, in the week ending October 3rd, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims decreased 13-thousand from the previous week's revised level to around 260-thousand.

In other markets, a strong rebound in oil prices also provided some upward jolts to the stocks, which causes the energy sector jumped 1.9 percent on Thursday as the greatest advancer in the S&P 500.

At the closing bell,Dow Jones rose 0.8 percent.

S&P 500 added 0.9 percent.

The Nasdaq was up 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile in Europe, the equities also gained on Thursday.

At the closing bell,The UK's FTSE 100 grew 0.6 percent.

Both Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 increased 0.2 percent.

Finally here in China,The shares surged on Thursday, the day the markets reopened after the seven-day National Day holiday.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose by 3 percent while the Shenzhen Component Index surged 4 percent.

Meituan and Dianping MergeAnchorTime to check in with some of the stories making headlines from the corporate world this week.

China's two online-to-offline service providers Meituan.com and Dianping.com have merged.

The 15-billion-U.S. dollar new company will run on a co-CEO basis and keep the original structure of their respective human resources departments.

Meituan and Dianping will also continue to run their businesses in parallel, retain their brands, as well as remain independent.

Meituan.com is a group-buying site backed by Alibaba Group.

Consumer review service Dianping.com is funded by Tencent Holdings.

The merger is expected to compete with Baidu.

For more on this, we are joined live on the line by Doug Young, Associate professor at Fudan University and former China company news chief with Reuters.

Questions:

Q1.Why did Meituan and Dianping merge into a new provider of online services?

Q2.Analysts say the merge between Meituan and Dianping would allow them to have absolute dominance of the group-buying market in China. Do you agree with this point? And do you believe the move will benefit both companies?

Q3.What is the significance to the Chinese online to offline market?

Back Anchor: Doug Young, Associate professor at Fudan University and former China company news chief with Reuters.

China Exim Bank funds homegrown civil aircraftThe Export-Import Bank of China has signed a 50-billion-yuan financing framework agreement with Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China.

Under the agreement, China Exim Bank will provide funds to support research, manufacturing and sale of China-made large civil aircraft, including the C919 and ARJ21.

The bank has already approved a loan of nearly 10 billion yuan or 1.6 billion U.S. dollars for the homegrown civil aircraft projects.

The loan balance is around 4.5 billion yuan.

China's ICBC Clears 1st RMB Transaction in Singapore via New Cross-border Payment SystemICBC's Singapore branch has completed the first clearance of 35-million yuan via the newly-launched Cross-border Interbank Payment System.

The newly-launched system provides settlement and clearing services for cross-border transactions using the renminbi for financial institutions both domestically and abroad.

Vice President of the People's Bank of China Fan Yifei says the new system will make it much easier for companies to do business in China.

"The launch of the system is a millstone in the development of the RMB's cross-border use. It creates a much more efficient cross-border RMB clearing system. It also promotes the worldwide use of the RMB and will have a profound influence in supporting the world economy and China's going-out strategy."The system has been developed and will be administered by China's central bank.

It allows organizations outside of China to clear yuan transactions with their Chinese counterparts directly from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Beijing time during normal working days.

Chinese luxury shoppers' online spend risingStatistics show that Chinese consumers of luxury products are spending increasingly online.

A survey, by auditor KPMG and Twitter equivalent Sina Weibo, analyzed survey responses from 10-thouand luxury consumers.

Nearly half of these interviewees said they purchased most of their luxury items online.

The maximum amount paying online for a single item was 42-hundred yuan or 660 U.S. dollars.

The average expenditure was 30 percent higher than last year.

There were also large numbers of Chinese buying luxury items from abroad online.

Shanghai Pharma joins hands with Internet company to create better e-clinicsShanghai Pharmaceuticals Holdings has joined hands with DXY.com, one of China's largest online pharmaceutical platform.

Under the deal, Shanghai Pharma's e-commerce subsidiary will become DXY's only pharmaceutical supplier.

Its business covers pharmaceutical R&D, manufacturing, distribution and retail.

Meanwhile, DXY will help provide better e-clinic services.

The online pharmaceutical platform had 4.5 million registered users be the end of last year, including all medical, pharmaceutical and life science professionals.

AB InBev makes merger appeal straight to SABMiller shareholdersAB InBev is making merger appeal to SABMiller shareholders for its 104 billion US dollars takeover bid despite a triple rejection by SABMiller.

AB InBev has warned shareholders that they might be turning down a golden opportunity.

This came on day after SABMiller's chairman said the Belgian-Brazilian brewer was still "substantially undervaluing" his company with an offer of 64 dollars per share.

However, SABMiller shares stood at 37 dollars on Thursday.

US-based AB InBev is the world's largest beer maker, responsible for brands like Budweiser, Corona and Stella Artois.

SABMiller is the second-largest brewer in the world and makes beers like Fosters and Grolsch.

Ride-hailing company Lyft partners with Hertz, ShellRide-hailing company Lyft has partnered with Hertz Global Holdings to offer rental cars to its drivers.

Daily, weekly and monthly car rentals from Hertz are now available as part of a pilot program for Lyft drivers in Las Vegas.

At the same time, Lyft is also partnering with Shell to offer its drivers cheaper gasoline.

The discount will be available at over 12-thousand Shell gas stations in San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles.

The two partnerships are the most recent unveiled by Lyft to give it an edge against its rival Uber.

Last month, Lyft announced a deal with China's largest ride-hailing company, Didi Kuaidi, allowing each company to serve the other's passengers.

SportsWorld cup qualifier: Qatar beat China 1-0Beginning with the latest action from the world cup qualifiers,China's hopes of making it through the group dimmed after an 1-0 defeat by Qatar.

China have not had a victory over Qatar in 11 years.

China dropped to third place in Group C behind the team from Hong Kong, still tied on points but down on goals.

There is little hope for direct qualification for China from top of the group with three more games to play.

Going through as one of the four best second-placed teams is still possible.

After the first half of the group stages in the qualifiers, China are third on 7 points, 5 points behind group leaders Qatar.

China next face Bhutan at home on November 12.

Bhutan scored three goals in the last six minutes of the game but could not overturn the result as they lost to Maldives 4-3.

In other action,Jordan shocked Australia 2-0 to claim the top spot in Group B;Japan went to the top in Group E with a 3-0 win over Syria.

Euro 2016 qualifiers resultsOver in the Euro 2016 qualifiers,Portugal have secured their place as top of Group I and qualified for the tournament after a 1-0 win over Denmark.

Ireland beat Germany 1-0 in Group D to put Germany's qualification on hold.

In the same group, Scotland conceded a last-minute goal to draw 2-all against Poland and crash out of contention.

Top scorer Robert Lewandowski scored both goals for Poland to make his talley 12.

And Northern Ireland defeated Greece to qualify over in Group F.

Liverpool officially announce Juergen Klopp as new coachSome off-pitch football news,Premier League's Liverpool have officially announced Juergen Klopp as their new coach.

Klopp takes over from Brendan Rodgers who was unseated after Liverpool's 1-all draw against Everton last weekend.

British media reported that Klopp had agreed to a three-year contract.

Klopp quit as coach of Dortmund at the end of last season and had indicated he was open to a move to England.

He led Dortmund to back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012.

China Open resultsIn tennis action from the China Open,Ana Ivanovic beat Svetlana Kuznetsova in three sets in the third round.

Awaiting Ivanovic in the quarter-finals is Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

Other quarter-final match ups are Agnieszka Radwanska versus Angelique Kerber, Bethanie Mattek-Sands against Garnine Muguruza, and Sara Errani taking on Timea Beacsinszky.

Over on the men's side,Novak Djokovic cruised past Chinese player Zhang Ze 6-2, 6-1 to make the quarter-finals.

Other names that join him in the last eight include Fabio Fognini, Pablo Cuevas, David Ferrer and Lu Yen-Hsun.

Chinese pair Liang Chen/Wang Yafan overcame the fourth seed in women's doubles to reach the semi-finals.

Ning Zetao pulls out from 100m free with injuryNewly crowned world champion Ning Zetao pulled out from men's 100 meter free at the Military World Games.

Ning suffered an injury to the shoulder in the pool during warm-up,It remains unclear whether he will be competing in the other four events.

Golf updateIn golf,The United States has taken a 4-1 lead over the Internationals after the opening day's foursomes at the Presidents Cup in South Korea.

Jordan Spieth partnered up with Dustin Johnson to beat their New Zealand opponents Danny Lee/Marc Leishman 4-3.

World number one Spieth said earlier that he is happy to pair with Johnson and that theirs is a good duo.

He's really good. He can bust it down the par 5's and then I can kind of control some shots into those greens. I feel like he's been trending upwards really. He's been playing some really solid rounds, been striking the ball great. Just some putts haven't gone in during the playoff run, and I think that that's going to be easy to change once he's over here -- it changes greens to greens, week-to-week, so his ball-striking looks really solid."South African pair Branden Grace/Louis Oosthuizen were the only bright spot for the Internationals on the scoreboard.

The tournament continues today and tomorrow with foursome and four-ball match-ups, before wrapping up on Sunday with 12 head-to-head single matches.

Elsewhere in golf,Matthew Fitzpatrick fired six birdies and an eagle to take a one-shot lead after the first round at the British Masters.

And it is Gwladys Nocera in a one-shot lead at the Xiamen International Ladies Open.

Chinese golfers Shi Yuting, Sui Xiang, Liu Yan are tied for fifth place at two shots down.

Usain Bolt ponders retirement after the 2016 Olympic GamesThe world's fastest man is hinting that his professional running days may be over after next year's Olympics.

Usain Bolt has made the revelation while attending a promotional event in Mexico City.

"Me and my coach have been discussing when we're going to retire so after the Olympics he says we shouldn't say no or yes. After the Olympics we should decide whether we continue for one more year or not, so after we come to that".

Bolt, who recently dominated at the IAAF championships here in Beijing in both the 100 and 200-meter event, says he still has some running life left in him.

"If I go to the Olympics and win then I will be comfortable to say to anybody that I'm a legend. Other people are saying you're a legend, I want to do it one more time and then I'll be comfortable if people ask "are you a legend", then I can say to people I am a legend. I want to be among the greats of the world so if I want to do that I have to continue doing great things, pushing the barriers. That's my focus, that's what I want".

Bolt has previously suggested he would consider calling it a career after the 2017 World Championships in London.

EntertainmentHuang Xiaoming and Angelababy Tied the Knot in ShanghaiChinese celebrity couple Huang Xiaoming and AngelaBaby tied the knot on Wednesday in an ultra-glamorous wedding reception in Shanghai.

37-year-old actor Huang Xiao Ming and long-time girlfriend, actress Angelababy held the fairy tale like wedding at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre.

26-year-old Angelababy indicates they'll have kids, but not in the near term.

"I really like kids. I'm sure I will have kids in the future. I'm not in a hurry. We'll see how things go and just be natural. I'm still young, so I'm not in a rush."More than 2000 guests attended the wedding banquet, which has been dubbed by some netizens as "the wedding of the century".

The all-star guests list includes big names like Zhao Wei, Shu Qi and Huang Bo.

"Transformers" star Li Bingbing was a bridesmaid and Chinese pianist Li Yundi was served as a groomsman.　Angelababy's agent also released photos from her wedding album shot in Paris, in advance of the ceremony.

The couple registered for marriage at Huang Xiaoming's hometown, Qingdao in May. They announced this news by posting a photo of their marriage certificate online.

China's National Day Holiday Box Office Sets RecordsChina's box office during the just past National Day holiday has hit a record high, as pulling in 1.85 billion yuan, or some 291 million US dollars.

According to State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, this figure eyes a roughly 60 percent growth rate compared to the same period last year.

This year's biggest success was 'Goodbye Mr. Loser', a comedy about a man's magical journey back to the school days to find his true love.

The low-budget film earned some 558 million yuan in ticket sales over the seven days.

Director Xu Zheng's 'Lost in Hong Kong' is in second place, pulling in some 547 million yuan during the holiday.

This latest installment of the 'Lost' franchise follows the story of a pair of strangers, who bond after becoming involved in a series of stories in Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, action-thriller 'Chronicles of the Ghostly Tribe' directed by Lu Chuan was among audience favorites over the holiday, grossing 463 million according to official statistics.

Yo-Yo Ma Releases New Album Together with Kathryn StottChinese-American Cellist Yo-Yo Ma has released a new album with his collaborator, pianist Kathryn Stott.

The album titled "Songs From the Arc of Life" features recordings of familiar classical music.

It includes two versions of the traditional and popular song "Ave Maria," and features pieces by Debussy and Gershwin among others.

Ma has described the album as a soundtrack for life and discussed how music is often associated with life's most important moments.

"Everybody goes through hard times, good times, and when you go through any one of those times, extreme moments, there's usually some music associated with it. First date, first kiss, you know, moments where ... or grief, first loss, and, so we kind of compiled something that goes from beginning to end, and, uh, and to acknowledge that no matter how focused we are at any moment on our lives, that it is part of a larger whole, and how in the end do we want that life to be."The Grammy-award winning cellist says music is not just his profession; it is also the thing that helps him relax.

Ma and Stott will be on the road in Asia in late October and November to promote their recent album. They will also play in Boston and Indiana in November.

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

Recapping our top stories this morning...

A Belarusian writer taking the 2015 Nobel Prize for Literature...

China's commerce ministry expressing its openness to any trade agreements that strengthen the Asia-Pacific region...

And US House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy makes a surprise exit from the race for Speaker of the House...

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