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

Coming up on the program...

the search-and-rescue operation at the landslide site in Shenzhen is now into its fifth day...

The Chinese president and premier have met with leaders from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions...

Security has been heightened in Jerusalem ahead of Christmas...

In Business...China's foreign exchange market is to extend its trading hours...

In Sports...basketball highlights and updates from the CBA and the NBA...

In Entertainment...a possible release date in China for the much anticipated "Sherlock" Christmas special...

All of that coming up in the next hour.

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Top NewsOnly one survivor as rescue continues at Shenzhen landslide siteFive-thousand rescuers are working for a fifth day at the site of a massive landslide in Shenzhen.

Heavy machinery continues to rake through the thousands of tons of soil and rubble that buried dozens of factories and residential buildings.

Zhang Hu, executive vice mayor of Shenzhen, gave an update on the rescue effort yesterday.

"As of 11:00, today, more than 5,000 rescuers had joined the rescue efforts. The on-site headquarters has divided the site into 35 parts. Rescue operations were conducted at the same time in 19 search zones. Six passages were open for the entry of rescuers and equipment. Rescuers took turns to work. And they have conducted nine thorough searches via life detectors and sniffer dogs."By Wednesday night, rescuers had found one survivor and 4 victims.

Nearly 70 others are missing.

Tian Zeming, a migrant worker from Chongqing, was pulled from the debris, alive, on Wednesday morning.

He was sent to hospital and is said to be stable condition.

President of the hospital, Wang Guangming, gave details of Tian's condition.

"The victim, Tian, is 21 years old. He was brought to the hospital by ambulance. The victim is extremely weak, suffering from severe dehydration and with multiple injuries. Soft tissue injuries and fractures can be found on his body. Severe crush injury and cutaneous necrosis can be found on his lower right leg."Gao Cunyi with the Guangdong public security and fire control authority says several areas with signs of life have been identified among the engulfed buildings.

"We have found four spots with signs of life at this time. At one spot we found survivor Tian, at another we found a dog which was still alive, and at a third spot we just found a water tank. Now we're continuing to dig at the remaining spot, but the signs of life are weakening and have almost faded. But, we haven't given up yet."The landslide, which took place on Sunday, covered about 380,000 square meters, which is equal to 50 football fields. The mud and silt is tens of meters high.

The massive mountain of construction waste that came pouring down on the industrial park buried over 30 buildings on the site.

A nearby section of a major gas pipeline burst, cutting off the gas supply to neighboring Hong Kong.

The State Council has begun an investigation into the incident, with officials from the Ministry of Land and Resources, the Ministry of Public Security, and others.

It is being reported that heavy trucks had been transporting silt and waste to the site for the past 2-years, drawing numerous complaints.

Chinese Leaders Meet HK Chief ExecutiveChinese President Xi Jinping has heard the work reports from the chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in Beijing.

When meeting with CY Leung on Wednesday, President Xi Jinping stressed the central government's firm implementation of "One country, Two systems" in Hong Kong.

"New situations have appeared in the practice of the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle in Hong Kong in recent years. I want to stress the central authority's adherence to the principle will not change or waver, and efforts must be made to ensure the principle is comprehensively and correctly followed in Hong Kong without any distortion."Xi Jinping says seeking development, maintaining stability, and promoting harmony are the common goals of citizens in Hong Kong, and the SAR's main tasks.

The president expressed his hope that the regional government can unite all circles in Hong Kong to maintain social and political stability.

In a separate meeting with Leung on Wednesday, Premier Li Keqiang pledged continued support to the development of Hong Kong.

"We fully support Hong Kong's economic development and people's livelihoods. The mainland and Hong Kong has just signed a service trade agreement under the Closer Economic Partnership Agreement, achieving free service trade. In the next five-year plan, the central government will take full consideration of the connection between mainland and Hong Kong in terms infrastructure construction, finance and shipping etc."CY Leung says his government will enhance financial and sci-tech cooperation with the mainland in the coming year and seek fresh impetus for Hong Kong's future development.

Chinese Leaders Meet with Macao Chief ExecutiveChinese President Xi Jinping has urged Macao to grasp development opportunities, after listening to the work reports of Macao's chief executive, Chui Sai On, on Wednesday.

"Although Macao's economy has witnessed a consecutive slowdown due to various factors, society remains stable and is facing new opportunities with a pressure-resistant economy. I hope the SAR government can unite the whole of society and seize opportunities to boost "appropriate diversification" of the local economy and improve people's livelihoods."The Macao regional government was told to be prepared for any eventuality, maintain political stability, improve the ability of governance and promote the "one country, two systems" plan.

In a separate meeting with Chui on Wednesday, Premier Li Keqiang pledged continued support to the SAR government.

Also, Li pledged support for the region to take part in the country's "Belt and Road" initiative and its efforts in reaching out to international markets.

Chui said his government will continue to boost diverse economic development, promote people's livelihood, and foster new development in Macao.

China to accelerate developing nuclear power: OfficialAnchor:

China's leading climate-change official says the country will further develop nuclear power to fulfill its target for non-fossil energy consumption.

CRI's Guo Yan has the details.

Reproter:

China has set a target of increasing its proportion of non-fossil energy to 20 percent of total energy consumption by 2030.

China's Special Representative on Climate Change at the Paris conference Xie Zhenghua says, to achieve that goal, China is seeking to upgrade its industrial and energy consumption structure, in addition to exploring new energy sources.

By stressing that, the official notes that safety is the top concern when developing nuclear energy.

"We need to ensure the safe development of nuclear energy, including the secure use and management of equipment, and finding safe locations. China has done a lot of work in this area, in terms of deciding inland locations and the timing of construction of nuclear power plants. We have begun some work in our coastal areas, while nuclear power technology is being upgraded. Based on China's needs, we should further develop nuclear power."The official also outlines some other measures that the country needs to achieve the goal under the UN Climate Accord reached in Paris.

According to Xie, China will launch a nationwide carbon emissions trading market in 2017.

Pilot programs have already been taking place in cities like Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai in 2011.

Xie Zhenhua says China is committed and highly appreciated the principle in the agreement.

"The Paris agreement addressed the funding issue, which was a concern among developing countries. Under the deal, developing countries can voluntarily participate in South-South cooperation. It also requires rich nations to provide 100 billion dollars in funding each year to the developing world by 2020, which is to be extended after that. The agreement engages all countries but also upheld the principle of differentiated responsibilities. It is a fair and considerate document. "China, during the United Nations climate change conference, pledged to cut its carbon emissions per unit of GDP by 60-65 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 and peak its carbon emissions by the same date.

The official notes that if these emission targets are realized, China's air pollution will also be reduced by about 42 percent.

"I think the serious environment problems at the current stage in development could be resolved if we stick to the current policies and measures, especially structural reform, and change our life style and way of producing. Developed countries have solved the problems though they also took detours in the process of development. We are punished by what we've done in the past. I think we have learned lessons from this and could do better. "Xie adds that the government will increase fiscal, tax, and price policy support to boost energy efficiency and speed up the reduction of emissions.

For CRI I'm Guo Yan.

More Chinese cities on air pollution alertAnchor:

China's Ministry of Environmental Protection has once again dispatched an inspection team to central China's Henan Province in order to make sure that factories that have been polluting the air have been shut down.

The latest round of inspections comes as about 50 cities in northern and eastern China have issued air pollution alerts because of smog in recent days.

CRI's Min Rui has more.

reporter:

The new round of inspections follow checks that were made earlier this month, in which inspectors found several factories emitting large amounts of pollutants in the city of Xinxiang, during the air pollution alert period.

This time, the inspectors found Yubei Chemical Ltd, one of the companies that had failed to pass the last inspection, had suspended its production.

City official Li Zhongyao says steps are being taken to cut pollution at its source.

"We have drawn inferences about other cases from one instance and checked the city's enterprises one by one. We will resolutely rectify problems once we find them."Various measures have also been carried out in northern and eastern China as heavy smog lingers.

Shandong Province has now issued its first-ever red alerts in four cities, after warning that the density of PM2.5 would exceed 400 micrograms per cubic meter for more than 24 hours.

The alerts take effect this morning, limiting the number of vehicles on roads while also banning fireworks and outdoor barbecues. All construction sites will be closed. People are told to reduce outdoor activity and schools are expected to suspend classes.

A blue alert covering the whole province of Anhui, where five cities have had air quality index readings over 200 since Tuesday, has also been issued.

Hebei, home to six of China's ten "most polluted" cities in November, issued red alerts on Tuesday at noon. Tianjin saw its first red alert the same day, just as Beijing lifted its second red alert.

The Tianjin alert will expire today.

Wang Zifa, a researcher from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, says issuing red alerts can help prevent pollutant clusters.

"During the continuous heavy pollution period, if we can issue the alert or carry out measures early enough, we can largely reduce pollutant accumulation and lower its speed in the entire area. Take Beijing for example, pollutant is like a snowball. As time goes by, the snowball becomes bigger and bigger. If we can issue the alert earlier, the accumulation of the snowball can be slowed down, and the pollution will be effectively eased."On Wednesday, the Ministry of Environmental Protection gave a preliminary assessment of the effects of recent emergency measures.

According to the ministry, Beijing cut pollutant emissions by 30 percent during its second red alert and neighboring cities emitted 25 percent less compared with ordinary days.

The ministry also named three organizations for environmental protection violations, pledging intensified supervision and heavier punishment for violators.

For CRI, this is Min Rui.

China Slams U.S. Double Standards on TerrorismChina has rebuffed U.S. criticism of its first anti-terrorism law, urging Washington to refrain from applying "double standards" in fighting terrorism.

The response on Wednesday comes after the U.S. raised questions about the impact of China's anti-terrorism law on U.S. companies.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei says drafting the law is "entirely logical and reasonable.""Terrorism has become a major factor that affects global security; it has become the common enemy of mankind. China is also facing grave challenges from terrorism. The Chinese people's property and safety are being threatened. We enact the anti-terrorism law for the purpose of bringing the legal system to perfection and fighting against terrorist forces."The spokesman pointed out that as the Internet is frequently used by terrorists in planning and conducting attacks, countries including the United States enacted laws obligating Internet operators and service providers to provide assistance to law enforcement agencies.

"The provisions of the law will not restrict the lawful operations and management of enterprises; neither do they leave "back doors" or encroach upon the property rights of enterprises or the freedom of speech by citizens. We hope the United States will respect China's legislation activities and not to indulge in double standards."Hong also stressed that fighting terrorism is part of the effort to protect human rights:

The draft anti-terrorism law is expected to be passed by the end of this month.

China braces for record passengers in upcoming "Chunyun"China's transportation system is expected to carry a record number of passengers during the upcoming "Chunyun," the peak travel period around the Lunar New Year Festival.

Over 2.9 billion trips are expected to be made between Jan. 24 and March 3.

That would be a gain of 3.6 percent year on year.

The authorities have been urged to prepare for extreme weather conditions to guarantee safe and smooth traveling.

This year, Lunar New Year will fall on Feb. 8.

The world's largest human migration, the travel spree will see millions of people traveling home to see their families.

UN Security Council backs Libya unity govt planThe United Nations Security Council has endorsed a UN-brokered deal supporting the formation of a unity government in Libya.

The deal was signed by the country's rival factions last week.

The resolution also asks countries to help Libya defeat the Islamic State group.

The international community has pressed for Libya's two rival governments to come together to stabilize the oil-rich African country.

The new agreement calls for a national unity government to be formed within 30 days.

Security Heightened in Jerusalem after Attack before ChristmasAnchor:

Security has been heightened in Jerusalem after a deadly stabbing, two days before Christmas.

CRI's Niu Honglin has more.

Reporter:

Two Israelis died and another was seriously wounded on Wednesday in a stabbing at Jaffa Gate, a tourism hub in Jerusalem's Old City.

Border police officers shot two Palestinians and killed both of them.

Micky Rosenfeld is a spokesman for the Israel Police.

"It's been the first attack in Jerusalem within several weeks, especially in such a sensitive area, but a quick respond from the border police managed to prevent the attack from being much more serious."Tensions have been mounting in Israel and the Palestinian territories for about three months. Since the beginning of October, fierce clashes have resulted in 20 Israeli deaths, while Israeli forces have shot dead more than 120 Palestinians.

Wednesday's attack, which happened in a highly-populated area, has made many Israelis worry about their safety.

"At this gate never happened any attack. Usually attacks happen at the Damascus Gate. Here we were safe, we can go to the hotel, the Old City, the Jewish Quarter. Now it brings some concern about the attacks, it's very scary. You concern about the safety and keep your eyes open."The attack happened just two days before Christmas, when tens of thousands of tourists are expected to visit the holy land. Rosenfeld says that police will remain alert to prevent further attacks.

"Security assessment is going to be made of the next 24 to 48 hours in preparations for Christmas. We have thousands of tourists that are coming here in the next couple of days for Christmas, therefore heightened security will continue as long as necessary."Despite the security problems, most tourists in the city are choosing to stay.

"That's pretty crazy. It's kind of scary. But it's such a big tourist destination, being among the people, you can't be in too much danger, I don't know.""I think here got a major problem, but I tend to be able to see both sides of the problem."For CRI, I'm Niu Honglin.

Valls promises reform on revoking citizenshipAs part of a constitutional reform, the French government plans to submit a law aimed at revoking citizenship of all dual nationals, including those who were born in France, who have been convicted on terrorism charges.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls made the announcement on Wednesday, saying the scope of the move will be strictly limited.

"The government has decided to submit to Parliament a proposal to extend the revocation of citizenship to all dual-nationals. The President of the Republic and the government have decided in all conscience to follow point by point the recommendation of the State Council on this issue. The scope of this measure will be strictly limited: it will only apply to people sentenced once and for all for a crime against the life of the nation, including terrorist crimes."Valls has also left open the possibility of prolonging the state of emergency beyond its current three-month window, describing an "unparalleled situation and an unprecedented fight."Under French law currently, only naturalized citizens can be stripped of their French citizenship.

Since 2012, six naturalized people with dual citizenship have been stripped of their French passports.

In the wake of Nov. 13 shootings and suicide bombings in Paris, French President Francois Hollande urged the constitutional amendment to extend the measure to all dual citizens in a move to beef up security measures enough to tackle terrorism.

The bill on constitutional reform will be discussed at the National Assembly in February.

U.S. bans British Muslim family from Disneyland holiday tripDowning Street says British Prime Minister David Cameron is expected to intervene on behalf of a British Muslim family that had been headed to Disneyland when it was turned back by US authorities.

Mohammed Tariq Mahmood says he and his family were about to fly to Los Angeles last week but were stopped by U.S. Homeland Security officials at London Gatwick Airport, without explanation.

"We were in the queue while a gentleman came and introduced to us as border control and he wanted our passports. So we gave him our passports. He came back five minutes later and said 'there's a problem with the ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). So he took us out of the queue, out of the room, took us into the corridor and then he went again and he came back after 10 minutes and he said 'right, yup, there's definitely a problem with your ESTAs, you can't board the plane'."The father denied reports some of his family members had ties to Syria and that his son had posted violent material on his Facebook page.

Santa Claus prepares for global gift givingAnchor:

Santa Claus is making his final preparations in Lapland before heading off on his annual globe-trotting gift-giving trip for Christmas.

Hundreds of thousands of letters from children across the world are being sorted by the elves.

CRI's reporter Tu Yun has the details.

Reporter:

Santa Claus and his 'elves' are busy making their final preparations for Christmas Eve at Santa Claus Village in Lapland.

Santa is confident they'll have their work done in time.

"Huh, they're going very well, everything is on schedule. Christmas of course is - I always say this that - it's such a good thing, Christmas Eve is always 24 December. So, it's very easy to plan ahead."Santa Claus Village is located in the Arctic Circle, around eight kilometres north of Rovaniemi, the capital of Finland's Lapland.

Around 300,000 people visit the village every year to meet Santa, play in the snow, and get in the festive spirit.

Student Audrey Morin is visiting Santa Claus Village from Auxerre in France.

She says it's a magical experience.

"You have the feeling to be in a different world, a different planet. It's like you have a magical atmosphere. You come here and you are amazed by all the lights and all the children playing, it's like really nice to be here."It's an out-of-this-world experience for Gavin Holcombe and his kids.

Gavin says they're normally accustomed to beachside festive fun in their hometown of Brisbane, Australia.

"We normally spend our Christmas at the beach out swimming in the surf, so being here in the snow is really different for us. It's a complete contrast to what our normal Christmases would be like in Australia, where it's really quite hot, it's normally about 35 or 36 degrees (Celsius) this time of year."Part of the experience of visiting Santa Claus Village is getting to meet the big guy himself.

He says he's seen adults reduced to tears and even tell him it's a "childhood dream come true.""They are amazed, surprised, some a little shy, many are very, very enthusiastic - they come like running and; 'Ah Santa' - and also the adults, it's the same with the adults."For those who can't meet Santa Claus in person, there's always old-fashioned mail to get in contact.

In the village's nearby post office, Santa's 'elves' are busy sorting through thousands of letters sent from all around the world.

The post office says Santa Claus receives around half a million letters every Christmas from around 200 different countries.

This year, the festive posts are coming from Asia, Poland, Italy and Great Britain. A popular request is for toys from the winter-themed animated Disney film 'Frozen.'

Santa says many of the letters he receives also include details of the children's home lives:

"They write about their life, their pets, their family and sometimes sad things, if the parents are divorced. but mostly it's good things, it's about nice things happening and nice wishes and things like that."With all the Christmas letters read and presents packed, Santa heads to the snow-covered forest to greet his trusty reindeer, Rudolph. He laughs as he rides off on his sleigh.

For CRI, I'm Tu Yun.

Headline NewsOnly one survivor as rescue continues three days after Shenzhen landslideFive-thousand rescuers are working for a fifth day at the site of a massive landslide in Shenzhen.

Heavy machinery continues to rake through the thousands of tons of soil and rubble that buried dozens of factories and residential buildings.

As of Wednesday night, rescuers had found one survivor and 4 victims. Nearly 70 others are still missing.

Tian Zeming, a migrant worker from Chongqing, was pulled from the debris, alive, on Wednesday morning.

He was sent to hospital and is said to be stable condition.

The State Council has begun an investigation into the incident, with officials from the Ministry of Land and Resources, the Ministry of Public Security, and others.

China braces for record passengers in upcoming "Chunyun"China's transportation system is expected to carry a record number of passengers during the upcoming "Chunyun," peak travel period around the Lunar New Year Festival.

Up to 2.91 billion trips are expected to be made via road, railway, air and water between Jan. 24 and March 3.

This is up by 3.6 percent year on yea.

Related agencies have been urged to prepare for extreme weather conditions to guarantee safe and smooth traveling.

This year Lunar New Year will fall on Feb. 8.

The world's largest human migration, the travel spree will see millions of people traveling home to see their families.

UN Security Council backs Libya unity govt planThe United Nations Security Council has endorsed a UN-brokered deal supporting the formation of a unity government in Libya.

The deal was signed by the country's rival factions last week.

The resolution also asks countries to help Libya defeat the Islamic State group.

The international community has pressed for Libya's two rival governments to come together to stabilize the oil-rich African country.

The new agreement calls for a national unity government to be formed within 30 days.

Afghan gov't dismisses fall of district to TalibanThe Afghan government is dismissing reports on the fall of Sangin district to the Taliban militants.

Afghan defense ministry said fighting is still continuing and reinforcement has been sent.

Media reports earlier said that Sangin district in Helmand province is almost entirely under Taliban control after days of conflict.

Afghan defense ministry admits that the militants have mounted attacks.

Sangin, which borders Pakistan, is important for the Taliban because its fall to the militants could enable them to threaten the provincial capital and cut the supply lines of troops to nearby regions.

Biz ReportsTurning to business news, starting with a quick look at the closing numbers across North America and Europe.

U.S. stocks rallied for a third straight session on Wednesday, as investors digested a batch of economic reports amid a strong rebound in oil prices.

The U.S. Commerce Department announced that the new orders for manufactured durable goods increased 100 million dollars in November.

Meanwhile, oil prices surged on Wednesday after an unexpected fall in U.S. inventories, with both U.S. oil and Brent crude jumping nearly 4 percent.

Trading volumes are expected to be relatively light this week, as the U.S. stock markets operate a shortened session on Thursday and close on Friday for Christmas.

At the closing bell,Dow Jones jumped 1.1 percent.

S&P 500 rose 1.2 percent.

The Nasdaq added 0.9 percent.

In Europe, shares surged on Wednesday, boosted by gains in commodities stocks on the back of stronger metals and crude oil prices.

At the close of trading,UK's FTSE 100 gained 2.6 percent.

Both Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 increased 2.3 percent.

China's central bank extends forex trading hoursAnchor:

China's central bank says the country's foreign exchange market will extend trading hours by 7 hours starting from January 4th.

Trading hours for the yuan in the Shanghai-based exchange will last till 11:30 pm local time.

The People's Bank of China, along with the forex regulator, said in a statement that they will also allow more overseas banks to enter the interbank forex market.

For more on the topic, we are now joined live on line with Cao Can, CRI's financial commentator.

Questions:

1. Can you explain to us the reason for the PBOC's decision? Why by 7 hours?

2. How will this affect the yuan's exchange rates after it's implemented?

3. What should investors, both domestic and overseas, expect?

4. What corresponding measures can we expect to come along in the future?

Back Anchor:

That is Cao Can, CRI's financial commentator.

Vanke welcomes Anbang's increase in shareholdingChina Vanke has issued a late night statement on Wednesday, welcoming Anbang Insurance to become one of its big share-holders.

Earlier this week, Anbang raised its stake in Vanke to 7 percent by acquiring shares worth over 2.8 billion yuan.

Anbang also issued a statement reaffirming the company's desire to cooperate with Vanke.

Anbang's increase in its shareholding means it is now more difficult for the Shenzhen-based Baoneng Group to grasp enough shares for controlling Vanke.

Earlier on Wednesday, during a visit to Credit Suisse in Hong Kong, Vanke chairman Wang Shi said the company will not take any "poison pill" to fend off a potential takeover from Baoneng.

Wang Shi said Baoneng is likely to join the board in the near future, given its large shareholding.

Wang added that Vanke would like to know Baoneng's demands and it wants to avoid any conflict between the two, or with China Resources Group, Vanke's second largest shareholder.

In addition, the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission said that it will not interfere in the share trading of Vanke, as long as those acquisitions abide by laws and rules.

6th China-built hydropower plant in Cambodia begins operationThe sixth Chinese-built hydropower plant in Cambodia has begun operations.

The 250-megawatt Tatay River Hydropower Plant was built by the China National Heavy Machinery Corporation at a cost of 540 million U.S. dollars.

Company President Lu Wenjun says the plant will enhance the supply capacity and reduce the price of electricity in Cambodia.

"The Tatay River Hydropower Plant will generate over 850 million kilowatts of electricity every year, which could fundamentally enhance Cambodia's capacity to meet the electricity demand."So far, Chinese companies have invested over 1.6 billion dollars to build six dams with a combined capacity of 930 megawatts in the Southeast Asian nation.

All of them are fully operational.

Alibaba hires ex-Apple investigator to fight fakesAlibaba has hired Apple's former counterfeiting investigator to lead the charge against fake products on Alibaba's e-commerce platform.

The Chinese online retail giant has appointed Matthew Bassiur as its head of global intellectual property enforcement.

Bassiur will lead a team to work with international brands and retail partners, regulators and law enforcement to help Alibaba's anti-counterfeiting efforts.

The appointment will take effect in January.

The decision comes after Alibaba avoided being put on a US blacklist for sites selling fake goods.

Food giant COFCO fully acquires Noble AgriChina's state-owned food giant COFCO has fully acquired Noble Agri from Hong Kong energy and commodity company Noble Group.

COFCO has agreed to buy Noble Agri's 49 percent stake for 750 million U.S. dollars.

As it already acquired a 51-percent stake in Noble Agri last year, COFCO will fully own Noble Agri upon the completion of the transaction.

Under the agreement, Noble Agri will serve as COFCO's overseas arm.

Noble Agri delivered nearly 50 million tons of agricultural products globally in 2014.

Uber partners with major Chinese auto makerUber has announced a partnership with a major Chinese auto maker.

The San Francisco-based company says it will work with Guangzhou Automobile Group in areas including investment, sales, marketing, and promoting new energy vehicles.

Terms of the strategic partnership include Uber China promoting GAC automobiles and the group's used-car trading platform to ride-sharing service drivers and partners.

Uber launched in China in 2014 and established its Chinese business entity, Uber China, in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone earlier this year.

SportsCBA updateFor you CBA fans out there:

Wednesday saw Guangshang defeat Liaoning 99-92 ton extend their winning streak to 14 matches in their 21st round.

It was a tough game for Liaoning, where 5 of their players scored double digit points in an attempt to combat the visiting Guangsha.

But in the end, it would still be visitors who walked away with the win.

And in other recent games:

Sichuan tied Guangdong 106-106 in four periods,but Sichuan would win in the tiebreaker, 17-15Shanxi beat Bayi 89-87Fujian beat Foshan 111-100Zhejiang beat Jilin 110-100Tianjin beat Jiangsu 116-114Qingdao thrashed Shanghai 109-101,Beijing took out Tongxi 105-77Xianjiang beat Aolong 109-94andShandong beat Shenzhen 108-94Lakers beat Nuggest 111-107And in some quick NBA news:

Kobe Bryant tied a season high with 31 points as the LA lakers beat the Denver Nuggets 111-107 on Tuesday.

This was a thrilling game for the Lakers, who had to come from a 21 point deficit to close out their win.

Bryant, who recently announced his retirement after the season, played a essential role in keeping the Lakers in the game.

Midway through the first quarter, the 37-year-old super star made a four point play to keep his team on top.

But this wouldn't be the end for Kobe.

With only 30 seconds to go, Kobe would hit two free throws and a jumper to seal his teams win.

Guus Hiddink returns to Chelseaand in premier league football:

Chelsea's interim manager Guus Hiddink has made his return back to the club and gave comment to the media of the situation regarding his return on Wednesday.

During the press conference, Hiddink spoke about the circumstances regarding how he landed back at Chelsea.

"As a matter of fact, I shouldn't be here, halfway (through) the season, because it means that things are not going well as foreseen at the beginning of the season. But anyhow I'm glad to be back and it's a few years ago now that I was here in a similar situation and I tried to help out, when I was asked to do so,"Hiddink would go on to state that the current problems facing Chelsea will take sometime for him to work on.

The interim manager would also encourage fans to continue to show support for their team.

Russia's Sports Minister expresses sympathies for Blatterin some sporting news from Russia:

Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko expressed regret for the downfall of FIFA President Sepp Blatter at a media briefing in Moscow on Wednesday.

Also during the press event, the minister touched on the countries anti-doping practices and encouraged athletes to take personal responsibility with regard to doping matters.

This comes after Russia was banned from international competition in November when the World Anti-Doping Agency published a report describing Russia's wide spread doping practices.

Mutko still insists that Russia, itself, had nothing to do with the doping and has promised the public to continue the fight against doping in Russia's athletics.

The sports minister also took some time during the press conference to express his sympathies towards the recently banned Sepp Blatter.

"I can tell you that I regret that (Sepp) Blatter is leaving in such a way, because in 40 years he has done so much to make football like we see it today, so that the World Football Federation would become a strong and big organization - look at its economy, look at its programme of development!"Former heads of FIFA football, Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini have recently been banned from football for 8 years, following a FIFA ethics committee decision.

Brazil's Attorney General accuses lawmaker of corruption in Olympic constructionin some Olympic news:

Brazil's attorney general is looking into allegations of bribery to powerful lawmakers who might have helped secure contracts for building venues and other works for next year's Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

In documents obtained by the Associated Press, Attorney General Rodrigo Janot accused lower house speaker Eduardo Cunha of receiving $475,000. US dollars from construction company OAS.

Cunha has responded to the allegations as being ridiculous.

OAS is involved in building the BMX, mountain bike and canoeing venues for the Rio games.

In a 190 page report, Janot further accuses Cunha of using the lower house for other bribing activities.

The attorney general would go on to describe Cunha and OAS as a "criminal organization".

A drone crash ruins ski race for Marcel HirscherAnd for all you skiing enthusiasts:

Watch Out!

A drone crash near four time defending champion Marcel Hirscher has ruined the star's world cup slalom ski run.

The race was the AT Madonna di campiglio and during the event, broadcast crews were using drones to film the athletes.

During Hirscher's second run, the done crashed behind the athlete.

The Austrian might have been hit by some pieces of the Drone, no reports of injury have come from the event.

Hirscher would state after his run the this happening was "horrible" and "can't happen again because there could be injuries".

The Austrian is currently riding the lead for overall World Cup races.

EntertainmentRumors have 'Sherlock' Christmas special open in China on January 4The internet has been buzzing with rumors that the "Sherlock" Christmas special will hit Chinese screens on January 4th.

The BBC-produced crime thriller has already been given the nod to open in China.

However, its release date has not been officially announced.

The drama will be screened in the US and the UK on January 1st.

The "Sherlock" special travels back to the 19th century Victorian era after three seasons in modern-day London.

The series has a huge fan following across China with thousands of dedicated fan clubs.

The third season premiere of the show on popular Chinese streaming site Youku received more than 5 million hits in the first 24 hours.

Four cities selected to co-present Spring Festival GalaFour cities have been selected to co-present the annual CCTV Spring Festival Gala.

Quanzhou, Xi'an, Shenzhen, and Hulunbeir will join Beijing to celebrate the Year of the Monkey.

The celebration will be the first of its kind in 2 decades.

The four cities represent the east, west, south and north of China, symbolizing a gathering of the whole country.

All four cities will host the show in the open air.

Audiences in the cities will join Beijing to sing the same song to welcome the new year.

This year's Spring Festival Gala will be aired live on February 7th, the new year's eve.

Beatles Music available on streaming servicesIt will be a joyous Christmas for Beatles fans, as the music from the legendary rock group is going to be streamed online for the first time, on various platforms.

Apple Music, Google Play, Spotify, Tidal and Microsoft Groove are among the nine platforms to stream the band's music.

The deal includes 224 songs from the original 13 studio albums as well as "essential" collections including Past Masters.

The decision comes after a number of high-profile disputes over the value of streaming services.

Artists like Taylor Swift and Adele have both chosen to severely limit the availability of their music on streaming sites.

Adele goes even further with her latest album "25," which has sold more than 7 million copies without appearing on any streaming platform.

Spotify reveals the most streamed artists of the yearMusic streaming service Spotify has revealed the most popular artists of the year on its site.

Canadian rapper Drake has topped the list with 1.8 billion streams.

Drake released a surprise album "If you are reading this it's too late" in February, which attracted a lot of attention.

His single "hotline bing" is also a hit at the moment.

Spotify trends expert Shannon Cook says people's tastes have changed a lot in the past year.

Drake's fellow countryman Justin Bieber also had an excellent year the new album "Purpose".

Despite not having a new album out, Rihanna was the most streamed female performer of the year, with 1 billion hits.

WeatherBeijing will be sunny today with a high of 5 degrees Celsius.

Overnight clear with a low of -6.

Shanghai will see slight rain with a high of 10 and a low of 6.

In Chongqing, a little bit rain with a high of 10 and a low of 7.

Elsewhere in the world, staying here in Asia,Islamabad will be sunny with a high of 15.

Kabul, cloudy, with a high of 6.

Over to North America,New York will have slight rain with a high of 24 degrees.

Washington D.C., slight rain with a high of 26 degrees.

Honolulu, overcast, 28.

Toronto, cloudy with a high of 14 degrees.

Finally, on to South America,Buenos Aires will be sunny with a high of 33.

And Rio de Janeiro will be overcast with a high of 32 degrees Celsius.

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

Recapping our top stories this morning...

the search-and-rescue operation at the landslide site in Shenzhen is now into its fifth day...

The Chinese president and premier have met with leaders from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions...

Security has been heightened in Jerusalem ahead of Christmas...

In Business...China's foreign exchange market is to extend its trading hours...

On behalf of the rest of the Beijing Hour team, 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.