新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2015/02/09
时间：2015-05-12 08:19:20
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It's Shane Bigham with you on this Monday, February 9th, 2015.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on our program this evening...
The man who admitted to a murder that a teenager in Inner Mongolia was
previously1 convicted and executed for has been sentenced to death...
A senior US official has called on the international community to apply sustained pressure on North Korea over its nuclear program...
The international atomic watchdog will be reviewing progress on Japan's effort to decommission a damaged nuclear plant...
In business...gasoline and
diesel2 prices in China will increase tomorrow...
In Sports...8 Chinese cities in the bidding for the 2019 basketball world cup...
In entertainment...Sam Smith and Beck are among the big winners at the Grammys, held Sunday night in Los Angeles...
First, let's check in with what's happening with the weather...
Weather
Beijing will be clear tonight, with a low of minus 4. It will be sunny tomorrow, with a high of 11 degrees.
Meanwhile Shanghai will be clear tonight, with a low of 0, tomorrow will be sunny, with a high of 10.
Chongqing will be
overcast3 tonight, 7 degrees the lowest, tomorrow it will be cloudy with a high of 11.
Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia
Islamabad, sunny tomorrow with a high of 26.
Kabul, cloudy, 12.
Over in Australia
Sydney, shower, high of 28.
Canberra, cloudy, 28.
Brisbane, shower, 29.
And Perth will be sunny with a high of 36.
Top News
Zhao Zhihong, the man who confessed to the 1996 high-profile
rape6 and murder of a woman, has been sentenced to death.
The crime has received much attention in recent months following the retrial and
exoneration7 of an
ethnic8 Mongolian teenager who was executed for the crime months after the woman was killed.
The boy's parents have received state compensation of over two million yuan for the wrongful execution of their son.
Hong Daode is a professor with China University of Political Science
"The money includes one million yuan in compensation for mental damages. This is good. One million yuan is a large amount of money for mental damage compensation in one case. This is a big breakthrough, as the amount is usually around 300 thousand yuan. This in itself is quite
remarkable10, and also can be a good example for future cases."
When it comes to finding accountability for the government officials involved in the
miscarriage12 of justice involving the executed teen, Hong says China needs to further improve its legal system.
"After the
rehabilitation13, and compensation, it is kind of hard to take individuals to blame. This has taught us a lesson. Starting from now, in the legal system, we should have clear division of responsibility to the people instead of only to departments. Then, when a miscarriage of justice happens, it is possible to find who to blame."
The Hohhot Intermediate People's Court found Zhao guilty of
raping14 and murdering a woman in the bathroom of a textile factory located in the Inner Mongolia regional capital.
The 42-year-old also confessed to raping seven other women and committing a string of robberies around the same time of the murder.
China executes five mafia-style gang members
Five gang members have been executed in Hubei province.
The five, including brothers Liu Han and Liu Wei, were among 34
defendants15 convicted of organizing, leading, or participating in a gang, as well as on murder charges, last May.
Five other defendants were sentenced to death with a two year
reprieve16. Four received life in prison and the remaining 22 received prison terms of varying lengths.
The death sentences against the five executed men were upheld by the court in August.
The criminal group had
monopolized17 the gaming business in Guanghan City, seriously harming local economic and social order.
Remains18 of 3 Taiwan plane crash victims set for Xiamen
The bodies of three mainlanders who died in the plane crash in Taiwan last week have been transported to Xiamen.
They are the first of 29 victims from the mainland to be returned from the island.
An official says the three victims were accompanied on the flight by family members.
The families of the other 26 mainland victims have yet to decide if their relatives will be
cremated20 in Taiwan or transported home.
Forty people died in the crash. One flight attendant and 14 passengers survived.
Investigators21 are still looking for the bodies of three passengers. A memorial ceremony for the deceased will be held tomorrow in Taipei.
Xi plans to make state visit to US
It's been confirmed Chinese President Xi Jinping is going to be making his first state visit to the US as President.
Chinese ambassador Cui Tiankai says discussions are already underway about the logistics of the trip.
The date for Xi Jinping's trip has yet to be set.
The expected talks between Xi Jinping and Barack Obama are likely to focus on issues related to the Western Pacific.
Xi Jinping was last in the US for an informal summit with Obama in California in June 2013.
They met again at the APEC Summit in Beijing back in November.
China calls for G20's members to play greater role amid complex economic situation
Anchor:
China has called for G20 members to work together closely and improve
coordination22, to better handle the world's complex economic situation.
The appeal was made in Istanbul on Sunday, just ahead of the first Ministerial Meeting under Turkey's G20
Presidency23.
CRI's Wang Wei has the details.
Reporter:
Financial officials and bankers from more than 40 countries have attended the conference.
Chinese Deputy Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao highlighted the risks facing the world economy.
"Now, global economy faces big challenges particularly
uncertainty24 and
complexity25. (At the) beginning of the year, IMF unfortunately downgraded global economic growth again from 3.8 percent to 3.5 percent. This is
consecutively27 from last year IMF aready four times downgrade global growth in 2015."
According to Zhu,
diverging28 monetary29 policies and the fall of oil prices are also sources of risk for the global economy.
He also adds that the economic slowdown in Europe is another risk, as Greece casts additional
uncertainties30 to the euro zone.
Therefore, the minister has called on G20 members to join efforts to face the challenges.
"Now that's need more strong policy and real coordination on policy to promote economic sustainable development. And we really hope facing challenge of uncertainty and complexity this year's G20 agenda and Turkey's Presidency can really achieve its target."
The deputy minister has also stressed that China will continue to record strong and sustainable economic growth, contributing to the stable global economic development.
At the same time, the Turkish side has expressed willingness to interact with each member state to improve the global economy.
Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan highlights the G20's significant role.
"G20 enables the countries to have a thorough discussion; you can have actual
interactive31 dialogue. So that you have
geographic32 representation, you have the developing and developed countries and so it focus on the global GDP. So the high presentation power and the ability to really discuss issues in an effective way is something I think make G20 quite a special one."
The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting kicked off on Monday in Istanbul.
The two-day meeting provides an opportunity for dialogue between senior officials and private-
sector33 leaders in the international financial community.
The topics range from inclusive growth, job creation, private sector support for
infrastructure34 investment, and financial globalization.
For CRI, I'm Wang Wei.
US Senior Official Calls for Int'l Pressure on North Korea
New U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken has met with South Korea's first
Vice35 Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong in Seoul.
Both sides have exchanged comments on regional issues including North Korea.
Blinken says the pressure on North Korea should be sustained until the country shows its
sincerity36 toward the issue of denuclearisation.
"Look, I think what we've seen working together is that the pressure that the international community has exerted on North Korea has made a meaningful difference in its ability to acquire materials for its weapons and missile programme to put pressure on it to move in a different direction."
Blinken stresses that ultimately it is up to North Korea to decide whether it is serious about having
credible37 and
authentic38 talks.
Blinken is on the first leg of a three-nation trip, including China and Japan.
New Minsk peace talks planned over Ukraine
Ukrainian forces remain in control of the strategic railway hub of Debaltseve in the east of the country, despite intense shelling by rebels.
Government troops say they haven't suffered any casualties so far.
The commander of the 25th volunteer
battalion39 "Kievska Rus", who goes by the name "Vysota," explains the situation.
"We didn't have any direct encounters (with the rebels) today but our position was shelled by
mortars40 and one particular position was fired at with GRAD rockets. Fortunately no one was killed, but the situation is rather difficult, but we will overcome it."
Ukrainian tanks, Armoured Personnel Carriers, and howitzers could be seen moving toward Debaltseve, while several wounded Ukrainian soldiers were taken to hospital in a nearby town.
Separatists have
intensified41 their shelling of government forces on all front lines and appear to be
amassing42 forces for a new offensives on Debaltseve and the
coastal43 city of Mariupol, according to Ukraine's military.
Meanwhile, this week, the leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine are preparing for a possible summit in Minsk to discuss a new peace plan for Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin says the meeting may happen on Wednesday if both sides agree on a number of issues.
German
Chancellor44 Angela Merkel says it is uncertain whether further
negotiations45 would lead to a deal with Putin. However, she argued that all opportunities for a diplomatic solution should be pursued.
For more on this, CRI's John Artman
spoke46 to Feng Zhongping, Vice President, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.
More than 5,000
civilians47, Ukrainian soldiers and pro-separatist fighters have been killed since a separatist rebellion erupted in Ukraine's eastern territories in April.
Egyptian-Russian cooperation would benefit regional stability: expert
Russian president Vladimir Putin's two-day visit to Egypt holds special significance, with experts saying Egyptian-Russian cooperation could benefit stability and peace in the region.
Putin is right now on his first state visit to Egypt in 10 years.
During the visit, an arms deal is expected to be signed to aid the Egyptian army.
Sherif
Gad48 is Chairman of the Russian Political and Cultural Center.
"Both countries have a similar stand concerning the Syrian crisis; they
condemn49 the violence in Syria. Both are also similar in that they recognize a Palestinian independent state concerning the Palestinian-Israeli file."
The expert says Russia's significance in Egypt stretches beyond politics.
"Russia helped Egypt build the high dam with a 2% interest loan while the world Bank wanted 19% interests. We even paid the loan in fruits and oranges. Russia also built all the heavy industry that drove the economy such as the steel industry,
aluminum50, and textiles industry and others."
The former
Soviet51 Union and Egypt were close allies during the Cold War.
IAEA to Review Decommissioning Work at Japan's Nuclear Plant
Experts with the International Atomic Energy Agency will review Japan's decommissioning work at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant this week.
The IAEA says that leaks of contaminated water remain a challenging issue.
The company has proposed building a 1.4-km underground wall of ice to block groundwater from
seeping55 into the Pacific Ocean.
Juan Lentijo is the IAEA Director of the Division of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology.
"One of our objectives in this mission is to review up to what extent these countermeasures progressed, and the situation has been improved since 2013."
The team of 15 experts will visit the Fukushima site to observe the decommissioning work and release a report next week.
At least 25 Egyptian Football Fans Killed in Clashes with Police
At least 25 football fans in Egypt's capital have been killed in clashes with police.
A riot began outside of a major football game, and it caused a stampede and fighting between police and fans.
It was not immediately clear what caused the violence.
Security officials said fans tried to force their way into a match without tickets, sparking clashes.
But fans of one of the teams have posted on Facebook that the stampede was caused by police who fired tear gas at the crowd.
Egypt's Cabinet has announced that upcoming football matches are
postponed58 until further notice.
Biz Reports
Anchor:
First, let's have a look at the numbers across the Asian markets on this Monday evening.
Joining me on the desk is Tu Yun.
Reporter:
Chinese stocks closed higher after the launch of the country's first stock option.
At close, both the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index and the Shenzhen
Component59 Index gained around two thirds of a percent.
Total
turnover60 on the two bourses shrank to over 70 billion U.S. dollars, the lowest in three months.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index dropped by two thirds of a percent, dampened by the losses in the blue chips.
Elsewhere in Asia,
The Japanese Nikkei added two fifth of a percent. Gains were limited due to weak Chinese trade data.
South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index dropped nearly half a percent.
Singapore's Straits Times index lost nearly two fifths of a percent.
And finally, Australia's ASX 200 closed almost flat.
China launched its first stock options on the Shanghai Stock Exchange today, offering investors a new hedging tool for trading index heavyweights, which regulators long have hoped to boost.
The options are based on the exchange-trade fund that tracks the SSE50 index, composed of the 50 most heavily weighted stocks on the bourse.
Xu Wen is the office
marketing63 director at Hua Tai Securities.
"Stock option is a new business for us, and there's been a lot of preparation before the launch of its trading. But it's not until recently that have we
finalized64 the paperwork for private investors, and therefore we do not have an exact number of people who have opened accounts."
Regulators are
essentially65 guiding investors into blue chips, which most investors have avoided in favor of smaller firms.
Components66 in the SSE50 index have average price-to-earnings ratios of 10 times, compared with 17 times for the broader market.
Options will allow investors to hedge their investments but may also expose speculators to heavy losses.
The
premium67 is the price of option contracts, or the money that investors pay to own option rights.
Analysts68 forecast the product will have a slow start due to regulatory
restrictions69 to
curb70 risk, although they believe it will benefit Chinese equity markets in the long run.
The retail price of regular gasoline here in China will rise tomorrow, following the National Development and Reform Commission's latest adjustment.
The top economic planner says the retail price of gasoline will rise by 290 Yuan per ton and diesel by 280 Yuan per ton.
This will lead to retail prices of some 6 Yuan per liter. Oil prices had dropped in each of the 13 previous adjustments.
Retail gas prices in China rise when international crude prices change by more than 50 Yuan per ton over a period of 10 working days.
HSBC helped
conceal72 $100 billion in Swiss accounts.
British bank HSBC admitted its Swiss subsidiary helped wealthy customers
dodge73 taxes and conceal millions of dollars of assets.
Earlier media reports by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists revealed how HSBC used the secretive Swiss
banking74 system to conceal the identities of accounts
holders75 to avoid paying taxes.
The number of accounts in HSBC Swiss private bank have fallen from 30-thousand to 10-thousand in the past 7 years.
A former HSBC IT worker leaked
detailed76 information of HSBC's Swiss private bank.
Bank of China in Sydney becomes RMB clearing bank in Australia
The Bank of China's Sydney branch has officially become the clearing bank for renminbi in Australia.
This means that transactions between Australian firms and their Chinese mainland counterparts using the Chinese currency can be done more
efficiently80.
The move follows years of efforts by banks and regulators to remove barriers to direct currency
conversion81 between Australian dollars and the yuan.
By increasing their familiarity with the RMB, local financial institutions, investors, and firms are more likely to use the currency.
'Big Four'
Auditors82' Chinese Units Settle with U.S. SEC over Document Dispute
Anchor:
U.S. regulators have reached a deal with the China-based units of the "Big Four"
accounting83 firms after a
lengthy84 dispute over their 2012 refusal to turn over documents connected to Chinese companies under investigation.
The settlement involves the China units of Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Each company is going to pay a 500-thousand US dollar fine.
The Securities and Exchange Commission sued the firms in 2012 amid a dispute over the release of documents the firms argued would break Chinese secrecy laws.
For more on the settlement, Beijing Hour's Paul James spoke earlier with Mike Bastin, Director of The China Business Centre based in London.
New Zealand, Chinese customs move toward electronic trade verification
China and New Zealand's customs authorities are to set up a new system to enhance trade.
A new assurance system would involve electronic verification under the New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement signed in 2008.
New Zealand Customs Minister Nicky Wagner says the new system will ensure exports travel
smoothly85, with standard documents from both sides.
Insiders say the
joint86 electronic verification system will include
tariff87 preference for Chinese traders.
In 2013, New Zealand meat was left sitting on Chinese
wharves88, after the failure to properly inform Chinese customs officials about changes in export certification.
China's CSR to buy British underwater robot
maker89
A subsidiary of China's leading train maker CSR has signed a deal to buy all shares of British SMD, one of the world's leading subsea equipment manufacturers.
The deal, worth about 1.2 billion yuan, or over 200 million US dollars is still awaiting approval from regulators.
The move will pave the way for Zhuzhou-based CSR to enter the high-end subsea equipment sector and will support business in areas such as
maritime90 wind power and engineering.
Market researchers estimate that spending on subsea remotes between the years 2013 and 2017 will reach nearly 10 billion U.S. dollars
Beijing promotes electric vehicle
rental91 service
A new electric vehicle rental service has been launched in Beijing by Foxconn and Beijing-based BAIC Motor.
Users can book the vehicles at rental locations or online, including a smartphone app.
A thousand electric cars are available for hire. Users can choose to pay 30 yuan per hour, 160 yuan per day or 99 yuan per night.
Currently, the service offers 12 rental locations and 17 charging points in Beijing.
The rental company says more electric car models are to be added to the market.
Beijing municipal government is to help promote the program by building more charging facilities and encouraging more private capital in the electric vehicle rental market.
Alibaba invests US$590m in Meizu
Alibaba is to buy a minority stake in Chinese smartphone maker Meizu for 590 million U.S. dollars.
The deal aims to help Alibaba push its mobile operating system within China through Meizu's handsets, while giving Meizu access to Alibaba's e-commerce sales channels and other resources.
Headline News
China raises retail oil prices
The retail price of regular gasoline here in China will rise tomorrow, following the National Development and Reform Commission's latest adjustment.
The top economic planner says the retail price of gasoline will rise by 290 Yuan per ton and diesel by 280 Yuan per ton.
This will lead to retail prices of some 6 Yuan per liter. Oil prices had dropped in each of the 13 previous adjustments.
Retail gas prices in China rise when international crude prices change by more than 50 Yuan per ton over a period of 10 working days.
China executes five mafia-style gang members
Five gang members have been executed in Hubei province.
The five, including brothers Liu Han and Liu Wei, were among 34 defendants convicted of organizing, leading, or participating in a gang, as well as on murder charges, last May.
Five other defendants were sentenced to death with a two year reprieve. Four received life in prison and the remaining 22 received prison terms of varying lengths.
The death sentences against the five executed men were upheld by the court in August.
The criminal group had monopolized the gaming business in Guanghan City, seriously harming local economic and social order.
S. Korea's ex-spy chief gets 3 years for election
meddling92
South Korea's ex-spy agency chief has been sentenced to three years in prison on charges of intervening in the 2012 presidential election.
The Seoul High Court says 62-year-old Won Sei-hoon instructed his subordinates to intervene in domestic politics, in
violation93 of election law.
Won allegedly ordered NIS officials to use some 700 Twitter accounts to post over 270,000 negative comments online against
opposition94 candidates and in favor of the then ruling party hopeful Park Geun-hye.
HK gov't may introduce airport improvement fee
Visitors to Hong Kong may have to bear the construction cost of the planned third runway at Hong Kong International Airport.
A senior executive at Hong Kong's Airport Authority says that the charging of an airport improvement fee is accepted internationally. He adds that it would not have any effect on the competitiveness of Hong Kong International Airport, one of the busiest in the world.
The third runway project of Hong Kong International Airport is expected to expand the airport's capacity to handle over 600,000 flights a year by 2030 and double the current amount of
cargo95 and passenger traffic handed by the airport.
The construction cost of the new runway is expected to reach nearly 17 billion U.S. dollars.
Beijing promotes electric vehicle rental service
Drivers in Beijing can now rent electric vehicles.
Beijing-based BAIC Motor and Foxconn, the world's largest electronics
contractor96, have launched a joint electric vehicle rental service in the capital.
Users can hire the vehicles at a rate of 30 yuan an hour. The amount is less-than five US dollars.
The joint venture, Beijing Hengyu New Energy
Automobile97 Rental, now has 1,000 BAIC electric cars for hire.
It plans to introduce models from Tesla, BYD, and BMW.
Newspaper Picks
GLOBAL TIMES
A rare anti-graft themed crosstalk will be featured in the 2015 Spring Festival Gala reportedly with
rehearsals100 held last week.
Pundits101 believe allowing the traditional Chinese two-man comedic performance is another sign that Chinese authorities are confident in
dealing102 with corruption issues under the nationwide anti-graft campaign.
The traditional Chinese crosstalk will be performed by two new stars from a popular comedy group based in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province.
The only other time a similar-topic crosstalk was performed in the gala was in 1988.
Ha Wen, this year's gala director, said that vulgar programs and performers who have moral issues will not appear in the show.
CHINA DAILY
"Lung disease in coal mining claims far more lives than accidents do"
A recent report says 62 percent of patients with a lung disease caused by dust inhalation come from the coal mining industry, and its death
toll103 far outnumbers those in mining accidents, highlighting a significant danger to miners' health.
The form of the
ailment104 prevalent among coal miners is known formally as black lung disease.
More than 720-thousand workers nationwide have reported their disease to the China Coal Miner Pneumoconiosis Prevention and Treatment Foundation.
The foundation has spent more than 113 million yuan, or 18 million US dollars, and has provided assistance for the treatment of more than 125-thousand patients. But it's far from enough to cover the large group of workers suffering from the ailment.
It's estimated that there are 6 million workers with black lung nationwide and 90 percent are rural residents.
Meanwhile, the death toll from mining accidents declined to 1,067 in 2013, down from about 7-thousand
annually105 15 years ago.
BBC
"Canada to allow doctor-assisted suicide"
Canada's
Supreme106 Court has ruled that doctors may help patients who have severe and
incurable107 medical conditions to die, overturning a 1993 ban.
In a unanimous decision, the court said the law impinged on Canadians' rights.
The case was brought by a civil rights group on behalf of two women, Kay Carter and Gloria Taylor, with degenerative diseases. Both have since died.
The government now has a year to rewrite its law on assisted suicide.
If it does not, the current law will be struck down.
Assisted suicide is legal in several European countries and a few US states.
In Canada it is illegal to counsel, aid or
abet108 a suicide, and the offence carries up to 14 years in prison.
XINHUA
"Researchers tag sharks to protect Australian swimmers"
Australian scientists are
catching109 and tagging tiger sharks in an effort to stop deadly attacks on humans.
A shark researcher from the University of Queensland said the research team was working with non-profit global shark research organization OCEARCH and is using satellite,
acoustic110 and accelerometer tags, and even cameras to track tiger sharks.
The study follows a series of fatal shark attacks in Australian waters, the latest on Monday when a surfer was killed by a 4 meter-long shark.
Researchers are also collecting
genetic111 information from
fin11 clips and taking blood samples for analysis.
They say if they could discover why tiger sharks came into inshore waters, it could help protect the species and keep people safer.
Tiger sharks migrated up and down the Australian east coast, but scientists knew little about their mating habits.
Special Reports
Life-Like Elephant in Beijing shopping mall to raise conservation
awareness112
Anchor:
A new public awareness campaign for elephants has been launched in Beijing involving an electrically-controlled elephant in a shopping mall in downtown Beijing.
CRI's Zhang
Wan19 has more.
Reporter:
People in Beijing are now able to touch and play with a cute electrically-controled elephant inside this shopping mall.
IFAW communication officer Zhang Qi says people can actually communicate with Elephant Laura with
stomps113 and even take a shower with her.
Laura is an elephant full of stories. A book about her and her family has hit shop and library bookshelves in China.
Girl "I am Xie Wenxuan. I am 9 years old and I am a third grader.
Killing114 elephants and trading ivory is wrong."
Boy "We are not capable of actually doing something for them over in Africa, but we can do our best to tell people their stories."
Man "I didn't know ivories come from dead elephants, now I'll tell my friends never consume ivory anymore."
Grace Ge is the Asia Regional Director of IFAW. She says illegal ivory trade in Africa remains alarming.
"In Africa, Elephants are being killed for the ivory trade. And it's very alarming, their populations, they're disappearing. Every link on this chain, from poaching to trafficking of ivory to consuming ivory is full of blood."
The latest figures from IFAW estimate that at least 10-thousand elephants have been killed in Africa in the past three years.
UN figures also suggest that at least 60 percent of the deaths of elephants in Africa in the past decade were caused by poaching. In some places, this number could be as high as 90 percent.
"When the buying stops, the hunting stops as well. If there is a market for wildlife parts, the hunting will definitely be going on."
Some other wildlife experts also argue that illegal ivory trading can be actually destructive to local economy, since it can make the country look bad to tourists and hurt the
backbone115 of many African economies - tourism.
Ge says the government should put stricter laws on illegal ivory trading so as to cut off the source of the business.
"Because consumers cannot tell which is legal ivory and which is illegal ivory. Once illegal ivory gets
smuggled116 into China and sold in the market, the consumers would not able to tell and law enforcement officers could not tell."
As a signatory of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Flora117 and
Fauna118 or CITES, China has stepped up efforts in
curtailing119 ivory
smuggling120. Government figures show the number of illegal wildlife smuggling cases last year dropped 70 percent from the year earlier.
For CRI, I'm Zhang Wan.
Sports
Basketball: 8 Chinese cities Bidding for the 2019 Men's Basketball World Cup
8 Chinese cities including Beijing are now bidding for the 2019 Men's Basketball World Cup. It is the second time Beijing has bid for the game in 2009, according to the Beijing Administration of Sport.
Beijing failed last time, when the game was called the Men's Basketball World Championship (2014).
Wuhan, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Foshan and Dongguan are also bidding for the game, an authority said.
The International Basketball
Federation121 (FIBA) is going to carry out a week long investigation on the bidding cities earlier next March. The investigation will focus on the facilities and infrastructure of the bidding cities including gyms, availability of accommodation and transportation.
Meanwhile, the FIBA is to hold a
symposium122 together with the CBA, to listen to the cities their statements of the ideals,
aspirations123 and objectives for holding the games.
The final result will be announced by the FIBA in June.
Tennis: Czech Republic complete 4-0
rout124 of Canada in Fed Cup
Defending champions Czech Republic completed a 4-0 rout over Fed Cup World Group newcomers Canada in Quebec, and will now go through to face France in the semi-finals.
Playing without their number one player Eugenie Bouchard - who elected to skip the competition - and trailing 0-2 after Saturday's opening singles, it was up to Gabriela Dabrowski to keep Canada in the tie.
And she got off to a
promising125 start in front of the home fans - taking a 4-1 lead in the first set against Karolina Pliskova.
The Canadian mixed up her game with slices, drop shots and visits to the net, forcing Pliskova to make some uncharacteristic unforced errors.
But Canada's hopes swiftly evaporated as Pliskova, ranked 22 in the world to Dabrowski's 185,
regained126 her focus and won five
consecutive26 games to take the first set 6-4.
And Pliskova never looked back in the second set, dominating from start to finish and reeling off 11 of the last 13 games to win 6-4, 6-2.
This victory gave Czech Republic an unassailable 3-0 lead and ensured them of their place in the semi-finals for the seventh straight year.
With the tie already won, the Czechs completed a clean sweep when Denisa Allertova and Lucie Hradecka defeated Dabrowski and Francois Abanda 6-1, 7-6 in the dead rubber doubles.
Golf: Kim Sei Young takes Bahamas LPGA Classic
South Korean rookie Kim Sei Young won the Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic on Sunday for her first LPGA Tour title, holing an eight-foot birdie putt on the first hole of a playoff with fellow countrywoman Sun Young Yoo and Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn.
Second-ranked Inbee Park had a chance to take the top spot back from Lydia Ko, but closed with a 72 to tie for fifth place at 12-under.
Ko recorded her best round of the tournament with a 68, but it was not enough to put her into
contention127. The 17 year-old New Zealander tied for seventh at 11-under.
Azahara Munoz also finished at that mark.
They day came down to three golfers - Ariya Jutanugarn, Sun Young Yoo and Kim. Jutanugarn
scattered128 an eagle, four birdies and two
bogeys129 over her final card for a 69 and walked off at the 18th at 14 under
par9.
Yoo passed Jutanugarn on the leaderboard with a birdie on the par four 14th hole, but she bogeyed 16 to drop back into a tie. After
parring130 the final two holes, the South Korean signed for a 70.
Kim blasted out of a bunker on the 14th and the wind carried it to the green, leaving her with a short birdie to get to 13 under par.
Football: Ghana fans react to shocking loss at C?te d'Ivoire
Ghana fans in Accra watched in disbelief as their side lost the African Cup of Nations final to C?te d'Ivoire in a dramatic penalty shoot-out.
After an
edgy131 90 minutes and goalless extra time, the match went to a penalty shoot-out.
The 'Les Elephants' had lost final shoot-outs to Egypt in 2006 and Zambia in 2012, and they looked
destined132 for more disappointment after missing their first two penalties in Bata on Sunday to fall behind 2-0.
Ghana fan Gerald Deku says that his side missed a golden opportunity when they blew that lead to C?te d'Ivoire:
"You can even see it in the penalty shoot out that we don't even take our time to finish up, if not we could have capitalised on the two from the start to finish the first set of five."
Ghana fan Michael Afeku was among those left in shock and disappointment.
"I am really
devastated133, if we had taken our chances in the first half, the chances we got in the game I mean, we would have buried this game."
C?te d'Ivoire 's only previous African Cup of Nations title was
clinched134 in 1992, when they beat Ghana 11-10 on penalties.
CBA Recaps & Previews
In CBA action from round 2 of the playoffs:
Guangdong took out Dongguan 112-89.
And Beijing downed Jilin Northeast 111-92.
And tonight's action:
It will see Liaoning will take on Guangsha and Qingdao and Shanxi go head to head.
NBA: OKC Thrash Clippers 131-108
In NBA action, a full
slate135 of games now on the books:
Oklahoma City destroyed the LA Clippers 131-108.
And Cleveland took out the LA Lakers 120-105.
Memphis downed Atlanta 94-88.
It was Pacers over Hornets 103-102.
Minnesota beat out Detroit 112-101.
Chicago edged the Orlando Magic 98-97.
Portland bested Houston 109-98.
San Antontio got the better of Toronto 87-82.
And it was the Sacramento Kings over the Pheonix Suns, 85-83.
Entertainment
Sam Smith wins big at last night's Grammy Awards
Beck, Beyoncé,
Jack136 White and Sam Smith were among the winners at last night's Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.
Sam Smith picked up four awards including Record of the Year and Best New Artist. His success meant that Ed Sheeran who was nominated in three of the same categories went home empty-handed.
The surprise of the night was Beck winning Album of the Year for his record Morning Phase. The competition for this category was tough, as he was up against Beyonce, Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran. This has started an interesting conversation on social media with many people on Twitter asking who Beck is. Kanye West has yet again sparked fury after he declared that Beyonce should have won as she was a real artist.
Tony Bennett added to his Grammys haul picking up his eighteenth Grammy Award for his collaborative album with Lady Gaga.
Chinese pianist Lang Lang, Madonna, Katy Perry, AC/DC and Rihanna, Kanye West and Sir Paul McCartney were among the performers on the night.
Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 on course for strong opening in China
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay –Part 1 is on course for a strong opening frame in China.
The film opened yesterday on some 4,000 screens. Preliminary estimated data points to an opening day score of 10 million U.S. dollars.
This puts it miles ahead of the previous Hunger Games film Catching Fire which took just under 13 million dollars in its first full weekend.
The film follows Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence in the aftermath of escaping the Hunger Games. Under the advice of President Coin and her friends she fights to save Peeta and a nation moved by her courage.
The gross for Mockingjay – Part 1 in North America currently stands at 336 million dollars with an international running total of almost 380 million before the Chinese contribution.
BAFTA awards take place in London
In further awards show news, the British Film Academy Awards took place last night in London.
Coming of age drama Boyhood
scooped137 three prizes including best film and director while The Grand Budapest Hotel took five awards but missed out on the most
prestigious138 categories.
Richard Linklater won the director award for Boyhood which he filmed over a 12 year period. Ethan Hawke picked up the award on behalf of the director.
"The unbelievable light that comes from them and their
generosity139 and their creativity and their playfulness. They went for this. There is nothing more fun in the world than over twelve years to watch these kids grow up. The easy part was making the movie, the hard part was giving it to the world and we are so proud."
Eddie Redmayne took the leading actor award for his
portrayal140 of Stephen
Hawking141, a
celebrated142 cosmologist who is paralysed by motor neuron disease in The Theory of Everything. The film also won the award for outstanding British film.
"Really this award belongs to one incredible family and they're here this evening. I would like to thank them. I would like to thank them for their trust in us, for their generosity and their kindness and for reminding me of the great strength that comes from the will to live a full and
passionate143 life."
The Theory of everything took three awards in total. The Imitation Game starring Benedict Cumberbatch failed to convert any of its nine
nominations144.
The BAFTAs are often seen as
indicators145 to the Oscars which will take place on February 22.
Justin Bieber's shoes have sold for 62,000 dollars at a charity auction.
They were sold on the online auction site ebay to raise money for a food bank in the singer's hometown of Stratford, Ontario.
The Nike baseball shoes were among a collection of signed childhood items donated by Justin Bieber's grandparents to go towards the food bank.
Other items sold include Bieber's Toronto
Maple147 Leafs comforter, a pillowcase and ceiling light. The ceiling light raised two thousand dollars.
The auction began on January 31 and concluded at the weekend.
Earlier this week, the singer uploaded two clips to photo sharing site Instagram featuring snippets of his new material.
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