新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 08:00 2015/02/20

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

Coming up on our program this morning...

The United Nations says it has not made any plans for a peacekeeping contingent¹ in Ukraine, despite a public request from that country's President.

World leaders are calling for a united front to battle extremism around the world.

Pollution levels across parts of China still running high following the start of the new Lunar New Year.

In business... Gold sales have been spiking² in China ahead of the Year of the Goat.

In Sports... a flurry of trade activity in the NBA ahead of the now-concluded trade deadline.

And in the second half of our program, we'll be bringing you a holiday-edition of Horizons.

First, let's check in with what's happening with the weather...

 

 

Weather 

 

 

Beijing will have sleet³ in the day with a high of 4; light snow tonight with a low of minus 1.

Shanghai will have slight rain today with a high of 12 in the daytime; the temperatures should drop down to around 9.

Chongqing will also have slight rain today with a high of 17, it will be overcast⁴ tonight with a low of 13.

Elsewhere in Asia.

Islamabad, slight rain with a high of 13.

Kabul, sleet with a high of zero.

In North America.

New York will be cloudy with a high of minus 5 degrees.

Washington, light snow, minus 8.

Honolulu, cloudy, 27.

Toronto will also be cloudy with a high of minus 14.

Finally in South America,

Buenos Aires will be overcast with a high of 24.

And Rio de Janeiro will be overcast with a high of 31 degrees Celsius⁵.

 

 

Top News 

 

 

UN receives no request from Kiev to send peacekeeping troops yet: Spokesperson

 

A spokesperson for UN chief Ban Ki-moon says the UN isn't taking any steps at this moment toward sending international peacekeepers into eastern Ukraine.

Stephane Dujarric's comments come on the heels of a public call from Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko for the installation of a UN peacekeeping contingent.

"Obviously we've seen the reports. The reports of calls by the Ukrainian authorities for the possible deployment⁶ of peacekeepers under UN mandate⁷. The UN has not received any formal request on this issue and as you know UN member states obviously authorize⁸ peacekeeping operations through Security Council resolution and we will be guided accordingly."

Russia has dismissed the call, warning the addition of 'blue helmets' may disrupt the Minsk peace accord.

As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, Russia has the power to veto any peacekeeping mission.

The plea from Kiev comes as fighting in Ukraine reportedly spreads from the transportation hub of Debaltseve to several other cities.

Kiev has already withdrawn⁹ its military from the town.

Reports of shelling are coming from the cities of Donetsk and Mariupol, where the truce¹¹ had been observed.

 

 

Leaders call for united plan to defeat IS group

 

Delegates from 65 countries have concluded a conference on fighting violent extremism in Washington, DC.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon took part in the meeting.

He says he's optimistic that people of all faiths and ethnic¹² backgrounds can come together to stop extremism.

"I take heart at the acts of heroism¹³ and solidarity¹⁴ that are so often on display at times of test like this. I take heart when I read a Muslim grocery clerk spiriting Jewish patrons to safety in a Paris grocery store. Or when Christians¹⁵ offer a pathway to Muslims freeing carnage in the Central African Republic, or when thousands counter terrible bloodshed with marches of solidarity from Copenhagen and Chapel¹⁶ Hill."

US President Barack Obama chaired the meeting.

He says the world needs to confront the warped¹⁷ ideology¹⁸ of extremist groups such as al-Qaida and the Islamic State.

"These terrorists are desperate for legitimacy¹⁹ and all of us have a responsibility to refute the notion that groups like ISIL somehow represent Islam, because that is a falsehood that embraces the terrorists' narrative²⁰. At the same time we must acknowledge that groups like al-Qaida and ISIL are deliberately²¹ targeting their propaganda to Muslim communities, particularly Muslim youth. And Muslim communities, including scholars and clerics, therefore, have a responsibility to push back."

In making the call, Obama has also pointed²² to Arab nations to take steps to quell²³ sectarian violence and boost economic and educational opportunities so that young people have options other than joining extremist groups.

 

 

Minister says Greek bailout proposal 'not sufficient': Germany

 

Germany's vice-Chancellor and Economy Minister says a new proposal put forward by Greek officials for a restructuring of its bailout package isn't good enough.

Sigmar Gabriel says it lacks the concrete measures Athens needs to take to get its debt under control.

"I advise that in the next few days, and tomorrow especially, concrete measures ought to be agreed on. This letter can only serve to get further talks started, but it's not sufficient to make financial promises based on it."

The Greek government has asked to extend its loan agreement by six months in order to give all sides more time to hash out a more permanent deal.

The new Greek government came to power last month on a pledge to eliminate the austerity measures the country has been enduring as part of its 340-billion US dollar loan package.

Greece's bailout is due to expire at the end of this month.

Without additional funding, Greece will default on its loans and will be forced to leave the Eurozone.

 

 

Chinese investment important to Greece: PM

 

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says his administration welcomes Chinese investment into the country.

"We place special emphasis on the existing Chinese investments in Greece, including the important activities of COSCO at the port of Piraeus. We pay special attention to Chinese investments which we want to support and strengthen as a common interest and benefit for both our peoples."

Tipras has made the comments during visiting the Chinese naval²⁴ fleet at the local port of Piraeus.

The Tsipras administration has halted privatization projects launched by previous Greek governments.

This includes a previous plan to privatize two-thirds of the Piraeus port, where Chinese group COSCO maintains a strong presence.

It's been suggested the move could make COSCO's investments into the port more difficult.

However, an official with COSCO in Greece says its operation of a pair of container terminals at Piraeus is not affected²⁵.

 

 

Fireworks push up pollution levels in Beijing on first day of the Spring Festival

 

Anchor:

Air pollution has reached "dangerous levels" in more than 100 Chinese cities to mark the beginning of the Lunar New Year thanks to fireworks and firecrackers.

Authorities have put the number of air-polluted cities at 201 from Wednesday night to daytime on Thursday, with more than 40 of them seeing "serious pollution."

CRI's Chloe Lyme has more.

Reporter:

Beijing had a superb day on Lunar New Year's Eve in the daytime, with AQI levels starting out below 50, but then becoming ruined by fireworks celebrations at night.

In the first hour after the start of the Lunar New Year, PM2.5 levels spiked²⁶ to 500 in certain parts of the city, with the average across the city coming in at around 400 parts per million, which is in the Hazardous²⁷ range.

Li Yunting is with the Beijing Municipal Environment Monitoring Office.

"First, the fireworks displays all erupted around the same time, which forced a major upswing in PM2.5 readings. The situation wasn't by the lack of wind at that hour as well. The pollution just kept accumulating in the air, rather than being shifted around."

The peak readings during the first hour were up 12-percent year on year through the first hour of the Lunar New Year here in Beijing.

The skies in the neighboring Tianjin and Hebei were also swallowed up by fireworks pollution, with the PM2.5 levels staying elevated until the following afternoon.

Other parts of China, including much of the northeast, as well as Sichuan and Gansu also suffered heavy air pollution.

It's estimated a single firecracker will pollute an area of 10 cubic meters.

As such, the government has been urging people to take it easy when it comes to lighting²⁸ off fireworks and firecrackers, even though lighting them off is part of traditional Chinese society.

There were around 83-thousand boxes of fireworks sold in Beijing as of Wednesday, a decrease of 34-percent compared to last year.

The municipal authorities have also confiscated²⁹ more than 10-thousand boxes of illegal fireworks.

For CRI, this is Chole Lyme.

 

 

5 killed in a fireworks shop explosion in east China

 

Five people, including a child, are dead following an explosion at a fireworks factory in Zhejiang.

The explosion took place yesterday afternoon in the city of Yongkang.

2 others managed to survive the blast.

Initial investigations³⁰ are the shop owner set off a firework to test his product, but inadvertently ignited the fireworks he had stored outside the shop.

The shop owner, who survived, has since been detained by police.

 

 

Audience rating of 2015 Spring Festival Gala reaches nearly 30%

 

Anchor:

New stats are suggesting nearly one-in-three people turned on China Central Television or the internet on Wednesday night to watch this year's Spring Festival Gala.

189 different channels carried the event live across China.

Combined with online views, its estimated around 30-percent of China's population, or around 450-million people, sat down to watch this year's event.

CCTV also, for the first time, aired the program for an international audience, with 10 different foreign broadcasters carrying the Gala.

For more on this, we are now joined live by Mike Bastin, Director of The China Business Centre based in London.

…

Mike Bastin, Director of The China Business Centre based in London.

 

 

Chinese New Year boosts gold sales across China

 

China has seen a surge in gold sales in recent weeks in the lead-up to the Chinese Lunar New Year, as the holiday marks a peak period for Chinese households to buy gold.

Some families have maintained a tradition of buying gold jewelry³¹ as festival gifts for friends and relatives.

Among the most popular items this year is gold jewelry featuring the Chinese zodiac sign of the goat.

Caibai jewelry, Beijing's largest gold jewelry retailer³², has been seeing a rise in sales since December when customers began shopping for the New Year.

Wang Jun is a manager with Caibai Jewelry.

"The daily number of customers has increased by 50 percent and sales have gone up 30 percent over normal days."

Gold prices have been on the rise in recent weeks, though the commodity has been on a downward trend this week, given the situation with Greece, which has pushed investors³³ away from the precious-metal.

Many jewelry retailers³⁴ are now tapping into the online market.

Some have reportedly drawn¹⁰ 30 to 40 percent of their revenues from sales through mobile phones.

On the production front, gold processing factories have reportedly been increasing their workforce³⁵ to handle the rush on orders as part of the busy season.

 

 

China shuts dating websites over fraud, obscenity

 

China's Internet watchdog has shut down and canceled 65 dating and match-making websites.

The Cyberspace³⁶ Administration of China says the sites in-question leaked customer information, allowed registrations³⁸ with false names, and spread obscene and sexual content.

Authorities contend fraud and other violations³⁹ on dating websites have become a public nuisance to millions of users, especially around the Spring Festival when young people use the services during the holiday.

Dating websites in China are forced to use real-name registration³⁷.

 

 

Pudong -- Easiest Place to Set Up Business

 

Anchor:

Shanghai's Pudong New Area is being touted⁴⁰ as one of the best places on the mainland to set up new businesses.

But in making it easier to do business in Pudong, local officials admit they've also been strattled with a number of new challenges.

CRI's Cao Yuwei reports.

Reporter:

There used to be a long list of pre-requisites that companies had to fulfill⁴¹, before they could set up a business or expand an existing one. And now, 520 procedural items have been knocked-off, since reform began in 2003.

In other words, thanks to the bold steps to simplify business approval and cut government red tape, the average time needed for a go-ahead has been shortened from 22 to 8 days.

This has turned Pudong into the quickest launch pad for both domestic and multinational⁴² companies who want to tap into the lucrative⁴³ Chinese market.

But it was a tough battle at the beginning as Jiang Hongjun explains. He directs the local Administrative⁴⁴ Approval System Reform Center.

"Actually pushing forward reform was very hard at the beginning. If many administration approval items are to be cut-off, it means that some government institutions will become redundant⁴⁵ and have to be cut as well. So it was really hard."

But it pays. Pudong New Area has been providing one-stop services to investors since 2010. Companies can now submit materials to only one designated department instead of going from door to door. This has greatly reduced administrative costs and improved efficiency.

Jiang Hongjun says innovation is vital for the reform process to succeed.

"For example, if the materials can be shared among different government departments, why asking companies to submit them over and over again? It's time consuming. We should make it more convenient."

Construction projects take up the largest proportion among all business applications. Zou Yaobin is the deputy general manager of the Shanghai Gezhouba Real Estate Group. He says quality inspection⁴⁶ usually takes about three months.

"From our perspective, we hope the approval process won't affect our pace of construction. And the standards of inspection should be unified⁴⁷."

Zou Yaobin is happy that the reform measures introduced in Pudong are quite practical and effective.

"The number of procedures our companies have to follow and the number of departments we have to interact with have been greatly reduced. Before, we had to deal with many departments like the fire hazards department, lightning protection department to get our plans approved. Now we only have to communicate with professional companies since everything has been entrusted⁴⁸ to them. This is definitely beneficial to enterprises."

The government now employs professional architectural and engineering firms to check project designs. Head of reform center Jiang Hongjun says this enables professional organizations to play a bigger role.

"We started a pilot program in 2002, to separate technical supervision⁴⁹ from administration. Professional work should be done by professional organizations. "

Foreign firms are also positive about the improvements of business atmosphere.

Wu Chuangao is an Operation Assistant of Toscotec, an Italian company specializing in paper-making machinery⁵⁰, located in Pudong.

"When the business needs to expand, we must get new government approvals, on safety concerns or more import and export licenses⁵¹. It usually takes about three months to get customs approval. Sometimes we turn to an agency to deal with administrative approvals, which takes less than a month. It is pretty fast."

But the lack of transparency in government procedures and information asymmetry⁵² remains⁵³ a problem. And Wu Chuangao calls for unified guidelines on new applications.

Experts say that the government should focus on scientific management during the reform process. Tan Lin is the head of the economics department at the All-China Federation⁵⁴ of Industry and Commerce.

"Transforming the way the government functions is at the heart of the reform process. The government has to make fundamental adjustments from administrative approval to market regulation and supervision. It should adapt to this change. New mechanism⁵⁵ should be established. "

Founded in 1992, Shanghai Pudong New Area has been a pioneer in China's government reforms to create a more conducive⁵⁶ environment for businesses and vitalize market forces. Such efforts were accelerated since the establishment of the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone in September, 2013, covering Pudong and three other nearby districts.

The ongoing⁵⁷ reform in Pudong is part of a nationwide reform process to streamline⁵⁸ administrative powers, facilitate fair competition and fuel entrepreneurship. It also aims at easing the burden on private businesses and ensuring fair market access for foreign investors.

As the central government approved three more free trade zones in mid-December, some of the successful experiments in Shanghai are expected to be introduced in Tianjin, Guangdong and Fujian.

For investors, the message is clear: the government is determined⁵⁹ to streamline its powers, to refrain from unnecessary meddling⁶⁰ in market affairs and to do better in market regulation, service and supervision. For that end, Pudong, as a pioneer, has done a lot, and there's a lot more to be done.

For CRI, this is Cao Yuwei.

 

 

Chelsea FC suspends trio in 'racist⁶¹' Paris Metro⁶² probe

 

English football club Chelsea is moving to sanction three of its fans for racism⁶³.

The move follows the release of a video appearing to show the Chelsea supporters stopping a black man from boarding the Paris Metro.

Amateur video shows the man being pushed from the Metro train while the group hurls⁶⁴ racist abuse at him.

The victim is a 33-year-old who only wants to be identified as Souleymane.

"I wanted to board the train, they shoved me. I didn't even know why they shoved me. They were speaking English, so they were saying things I couldn't understand. I tried to board the train twice and they pushed me out."

The incident was filmed by a British man ahead of a Champions League match between Chelsea and French side Paris St-Germain.

In a statement, Chelsea, which plays its matches at Stamford Bridge, says orders banning the group for life will issued if there's enough evidence to kick them out of Stamford Bridge for life.

The three suspects have already temporarily banned from the pitch.

The abuse has been widely condemned⁶⁵ by leading football authorities, including FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

 

 

Day two of Australian Women's Open golf tournament to get underway

 

Round two of the Australian Women's Open golf tournament is getting underway this morning in Melbourne.

South Korea's Lee Ilhee holds a one-stroke lead after firing a solid 5-under-68.

She sits one stroke ahead of Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn, who's alone in 2nd at minus-4.

Chinese golfer Feng Shanshan, playing in her first tournament of the year, still finds herself in a decent position to make the weekend.

She's tied for 33rd after shooting one-over yesterday.

In the PGA, the first round of the Northern Trust open in California is underway.

The European Tour stop is in India this week for the Hero Indian Open.

Canadian golfer Richard T. Lee among a group of 5 golfers tied for the first round lead in New Delhi after firing a 6-under-65.

 

 

NBA season resumes following close of trade deadline

 

In basketball,

The NBA season is resuming after the all-star break, with just a pair of games this morning.

The Dallas Mavericks⁶⁶ take on the Oklahoma City Thunder, while San Antonio is battling the LA Clippers.

But most of the action in the NBA has taken place off-the-court, as a flurry of trades has taken place ahead of the trade deadline, which has now closed.

Among them, a major shakeup among 4 different teams.

The Boston Celtics, Phoenix⁶⁷ Suns, Milwaukee Bucks⁶⁸ and Philadelphia 76ers have all shaken up their rosters⁶⁹ through a series of trades.

The Suns have reportedly acquired point guard Brandon Knight⁷⁰ from the Bucks and forward Miles Plumlee from Phoenix.

The Bucks have acquired point guard Michael Carter-Williams from the 76ers and point guard Tyler Ennis from the Suns.

The Celtics have acquired guard Isaiah Thomas from the Suns in exchange for Marcus Thornton and a 2016 first round pick.

Philadelphia, meanwhile, appears to have acquired draft picks in the exchange.

In other trade news, Kevin Garnett is headed back to Minnesota.

The Brooklyn Nets have traded the long-time Timberwolf back to his old club in exchange for Thaddeus Young.

The Phoenix Suns have given Zoran Dragic his wish.

The All-NBA'er had been making it clear that he wanted out of Phoenix because of a lack of minutes.

So he's been dealt to the Miami Heat for a number of prospects⁷¹.

And the Houston Rockets have aquired K.J. McDaniels in a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Isaiah Canaan and a 2nd round pick.

 

 

Dubai Duty Free semi-finals set for today

 

In tennis,

The semi-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Championships are set to take place later today.

It will include unseeded Garbine Mugaruza taking on 17th seeded Karolina Pliskova.

The other bracket has top-seeded Simona Halep taking on 3rd seeded Caroline Wozniaki.

China's Peng Shuai was bounced early in the tournament, going down in an upset in the 2nd round.

On the men's side at the Open 13 ATP event in France,

4th Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain will be taking on Austria's Dominic Thiem in the quarter finals.

France's Gael Monfils will take on Italy's Simone Bolelli, who upset Canadian Milos Raonic to make it into the quarters.

Unseeded Ukranian Sergiy Stakhovsky will have a tough test against 2nd Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland.

And the other quarter-final in Marseille has a pair of Frenchmen doing battle, with 5th seeded Gilles Simone up against unseeded Jeremy Chardy.

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