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This is the Beijing Hour.
Examining the events that impact and shape China and the rest of the world.
This is the Beijing Hour, one hour of news and information brought to you every weekday.
Now here's your host. Shane Begum with you on this Monday, March 24th, 2025.
You're listening to the Beijing Hour coming to you live from the Chinese Capitol.
On today's program, the China Development Forum, concluding today in Beijing, has witnessed record foreign attendance.
The U .S. is considering port fees for Chinese ships and fleets using ships made in China.
U .S. and Russian authorities have held another round of talks in Saudi Arabia discussing Ukraine and other issues.
In business, the annual Boao Forum for Asia is set to open in southern China on Tuesday.
In sports, a tennis legend sets another all -time record in Miami.
In Culture and Entertainment, an Italian director will be the jury president at the upcoming Shanghai International Film Festival.
Now check in the day's top stories.
Monday's the final day of the China Development Forum in Beijing.
The two -day events focused on finding ways to ensure stable growth in the global economy, covering topics like new quality productive forces, AI innovations, and green development.
At the opening ceremony on Sunday, Premier Li Chang reiterated China's commitment to openness and global collaboration.
He noted that more proactive fiscal policies will be implemented to hit the economic growth rate target of around 5 % for this year.
New growth drivers in various fields are continuously accumulating and growing, which will undoubtedly bring a sustained development impetus to the Chinese economy.
This year, we have set the economic growth target at around 5%.
This target is based on a profound understanding of the fundamental conditions of the Chinese economy, as well as a firm confidence in our governance capabilities and future development potential.
We will focus on intensifying policy efforts and combining them with the stimulation of market forces, striving to achieve the expected target set by the central government.
The event brought together over 80 high -level delegates from multinational companies in more than 20 countries Since its inception in 2000 the forum has become a key platform for dialogue and cooperation between China and the rest of the world.
Zhang Junfeng takes a look.
The China Global Forum is an ultimate platform for Chinese policy makers to communicate directly with the Fortune 500 company CEOs and also some Chinese private companies.
We all see him here, people talking to each other, phenomenal atmosphere, primarily at the chance speech. he spoke about 30 minutes on China's consumption market, on China's willingness to work with multinationals, on China's very firm stance on holding on to globalization and encouraging multinational companies to continue to invest in China.
Also the very strong message is that China provides stability, policy stability, stable environment, stable business opportunities and stable consumer markets opportunities for companies, including foreign companies and Chinese companies, and foreign companies are very glad to see that.
Foreign company management executives are very excited to hear all the information here at the DYOTI State guest house directly from China's policy makers.
They can shake hands with them, talk to them personally, or inject privately in a small It's a very important communication opportunity for them.
That was Zheng Shunfeng at the China Development Forum in Beijing.
Chinese Premier Li Cheng has met with U .S. Senator Steve Dain, along with prominent U .S. business executives at this year's China Development Forum in Beijing.
Premier Li emphasized the significance of the phone conversation between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in January.
Li stressed that China and the US have extensive common interests and broad room for cooperation, and there's no winners in a trade war.
The Chinese premier also expressed his desire to seek or to see the stable healthy and sustainable development of China -US relations.
Senator Dain said that the US companies actively participate in and support China's development and are willing to continue to invest in China, strengthen dialogue and cooperation, and International enterprises at the China Development Forum have underscored the attractiveness and huge potential of China's economy.
They've also spoken highly of the forum for playing an indispensable role in building bridges between China and the rest of the world.
Michael Nelson, CEO of Amway Global.
The forum has been very informative.
I think it's the interaction between the government officials, ministers and then the business community on how we can can certainly benefit China in the development opportunities here, but how we can collectively benefit across the globe.
Chairman and CEO David A.
Rigswith of Eli Lilly and Company held the growing openness of the Chinese market.
I think that China is working hard to grow the economy and attract and be clear about attracting global investment, that the economy is not becoming more close, it's becoming more open.
We have this kind of high ambition for the Chinese market.
BMW CEO Oliver Zipsey and prologist Global Vice Chairman Shane Tejaraty also shared expectations for their ever -closer business ties with Beijing.
I think the enemy policy in China here consisting out of a line of long -range black and hybrid, range extenders, and also hydrogen is I think the best whole setup for developing the nav policy.
We saw BMW sold last year 100 ,000 nav vehicles here here in China so we are participating in the market and at the end of this year we will introduce our new platform it's called the Noye Classen it's a pure electric car which is partly developed here in China and we're looking forward to that.
Yeah there are obviously a lot of global companies are in China and we serve them globally everywhere, and we want to serve them seamlessly here.
Increasingly, China's consumer economy is growing, so a lot of Chinese companies have their supply chain needs and we help them with their supply chain needs here.
For insights, Li Dong -Neng spoke with Associate Professor Wang Yao -Ching at Peking University.
First of all, we've heard a lot of optimism from the foreign delegates based on their observation of China's economic development and their understanding of the government policies.
But would you please give us an idea on the general sentiment of the economic situation in China in the coming year?
So the general sentiment for the Chinese economy in 2025 would be a cautious optimism, I would say, with institutions like the UBS and Goldman giving about 4 % to 4 .5 % growth for 2025 at the moment.
impact key growth drivers will include strong policy support in both physical and monetary policies as well as technological innovation.
Particularly in sectors like green energy, artificial intelligence, and biotechnology.
Well main challenges and risks would include potential trade tensions which is expected to impact manufacturing sector and foreign investment.
And property market adjustment is still under growing and can potentially weigh on economic the growth until it fully stabilizes.
So overall, the ability to navigate these risks will be crucial in determining the trajectory of China's economic in the year ahead.
Exactly. And talking about sustainable development, China is trying a lot in terms of boosting its economic through policies such as improving disposable income, to promote consumption, and as well as to protect and support, actually, SMEs in the country.
What's your assessment of those governed policies in terms of improving China's economic performance this year?
Well, these policies are a sign that China is prepared for any of the external trade pressures or potential structural changes in the property market, and the Chinese economy and the Chinese people have the resilience with robust policy support, of course, from the government to continue a vigorous growth in domestic demand, in scientific and technology innovation, in, say, green transition, and in education and health care all that supports basically every aspect of the Chinese society, while the geopolitical tensions in the world persist, as Manse argued, or to look for solutions in oneself.
So strengthen itself, take care of its people, keep on innovating and opening up, and the rest will just be history.
I was Wang Xiaoxing at Peking University.
American economist Jeffrey Sachs has said China's development in sectors, including the digital economy, artificial intelligence and robotics, will propel its economic growth.
He said China's target of GDP growth of around 5 % this year is perfectly achievable.
On the sidelines of the China Development Forum.
The Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University reiterated that China is not an enemy to the United States, but a success story.
Saks highlighted China's regional equity triumphs, like lifting the growth of its western provinces, while blasting U .S. protectionism as neglecting the big beneficiary of bilateral open trade.
He also said the world needs China's leadership in green and digital technologies.
With more Shu Xinchen sat down with chair and CEO Hermione Hudson of Pricewaterhouse Coopers China.
They spoke about how multinational firms see the outlook for China, especially amid mounting trade tensions around the globe.
As a leader of a multinational professional services firm operating both here in China and of course the US markets, how is PwC advising your clients to navigate the evolving US -China economic relationship, what strategic adjustments do you consider critical for multinational cooperations that meet rising trade barriers and these so -called de -risking policies?
Well I think the US -China dynamic is just one facet of changing global environment, and our multinational clients are having to navigate very uncertain times at the moment, And so our advice is for them to take a data -driven view and actually look at the differences between short -term challenges and longer -term opportunities.
Because there are still really good long -term opportunities.
Advanced manufacturing and high tech, the investment, the foreign direct investment into China is actually still increasing.
And there are other areas like we've heard about today, a lot of opening up into the service sectors.
Finance, biotech, pharmaceuticals, all these areas are untapped potential and there's a lot of long -term opportunities.
And as we have mentioned, foreign direct investment into China actually sees increase.
In a from TWC's latest global CEO survey, business leaders are actually pretty confident in the China market and even more confident in China regarding geopolitical tensions or external influences such as trade and conflicts, why is that?
Yes, our recent survey actually showed that CEOs across the world see China as one of the top areas to invest in.
And that's because I think of a few things.
Firstly, companies who are operating in China have been operating in uncertain environment for a long time.
They've actually become resilient to managing trade disputes and supply chain shocks so they're quite resilient both domestic companies in China and multinationals here but also it's because of the fundamental economics.
China is the largest global exporter in the world So, companies want to be able to invest in China, and they see the opportunity.
They see the scale, they see the innovation and, of course, they see a fantastic consumer market.
That was a PwC China chief for Mahni Hudson on China's economic prospects.
Coming up, the US is considering extra port fees for Chinese ships.
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Reports in the USA say the Trump administration is considering imposing additional fees of to 1 .5 million dollars on ships made in China or fleets that include Chinese -built vessels docking at U .S ports.
Experts have warned that these potential fees combined with existing tariffs could disrupt global supply chains and impact the American economy.
It is Tian Shen reports from Los Angeles.
Approximately 90 % of all U .S imports come through seaports and a majority of vessels are either constructed, owned or operated by China, all of which could soon be imposed additional fees for docking in any U .S. port.
The Trump administration is currently drafting an executive order on added port fees, and if implemented, the new policy could force shipping companies to turn to cost -saving efforts by limiting their stops at only major U .S. seaports like Los Angeles.
Because that could have major consequences for exporters in rural areas.
For a grower in the Central Valley to have to spend another $500 to $1000 to truck their cargo down to Los Angeles or Long Beach, get on a vessel and move out to Asia, maybe the price for that product, think of a walnut handler as an example, gets too high on a per unit basis, and suddenly they're competing with other growing nations.
Shipping industry executives say that we're still far from seeing the full scope of the retaliatory tariffs play out their full impact on the supply chains, trading costs for businesses and consumer prices.
And now the possibility of adding further costs international trade is only adding more to the instability of profit margins.
That was Edas Tianchen reporting from Los Angeles.
Turning to the tariff dispute between the United States and Canada, the auto industry breed the collective sigh of relief in early March after US President Donald Trump announced he'd paused the 25 % tariff that he was set to impose on the sector.
However, that 30 -day exemption runs out in early April, which is worrying because or worrying businesses and residents in Michigan just across the border.
Dan Williams has the story.
The latest headwind facing the so -called big three US auto manufacturers Ford, Stellantis and General Motors is tariffs.
Many cars and auto parts cross the border multiple times between the US, Canada and Mexico.
But that system could soon be upended with tariffs threatening a huge increase in the cost of cross border traffic.
Welcome to Daily Drive.
Jamie Butters is the Executive Director of Automotive News and host of the Daily Drive Podcast. It will start with the parts that become prohibitively expensive and so then a plant might get shut down or paused for some period of time, well then all of their supplier plants are going to be shut down too or working less and it can really ripple from there.
Glen Stevens Jr. is the executive director of the trade association Mish -Auto.
He says changing up supply chains is not possible in the short term.
The system is very lean, it works in what we call just in time, pulling parts into the assembly plant just in time to make the vehicle.
Nobody is going to make a quick decision on production changes.
It doesn't make sense.
It's very capital intensive, you have labor issues, you have part approval processes.
You can't switch production in a few days, a few weeks or even a month.
It takes time to make these changes.
A few miles away in Dearborn, home to Ford's Rouge factory, locals unwind at a neighbourhood bar.
Some here support President Trump's America First policy, but many here are worried about their jobs.
I think the potential impact is great in this community particularly because of the auto industry, but also because of the price we're going to have to pay for produce and everything else coming in.
It may take some time before the full impact of the tariffs on the auto industry become clear.
But experts warn that the potential fall out will likely be felt across many industries throughout Michigan According to a recent study by fit ratings Michigan's economy would likely be the hardest hit of all US states from the tariff Fallout With 19 % of its imports coming from Canada, Mexico and China You know you take out a manufacturing plant.
It's thousands of jobs It's probably ten thousand jobs at the suppliers that that serve that and then all of those people They buy groceries and homes and cars and movie tickets and they're gonna be dialing back.
We already have a market that's very competitive and so anything that puts a dampening on that overall production demand, if the consumer pulls back on spending, if prices became too high in the vehicle showroom, we as an industry don't want that.
It is a nervous time, not just for automakers, but for business owners and residents all across this state.
That was Dan Williams assessing the potential damage of Trump's imminent tear -off hike on the U .S. auto industry.
A Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carnies, called a snap election for April 28th, seeking a strong mandate to deal with the threat from U .S. President Donald Trump.
I'm asking Canadians for a strong, positive mandate to deal with President Trump and to build a new Canadian economy that works for everyone.
because I know we need change.
Big change, positive change.
Carney took office earlier this month after winning the Liberal Party leadership race.
U .S.-Canada relations have worsened since Trump imposed tariffs and even suggested annexing Canada as the 51st state.
Recent polls also showed a rise in Canadian nationalism as U .S. relations become the country's top concern.
Carney says Trump is directly threatening Canadian sovereignty.
We're facing the most significant crisis of our lifetimes because of President Trump's unjustified trade actions and his threats to our sovereignty.
Our response must be to build a strong economy and a more secure Canada.
President Trump claims that Canada isn't a real country.
He wants to break us so America can own us.
We will not let that happen.
Although the next election was set for October 20th, Carney's capitalizing on his Liberal Party's surge in the polls after former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resigned and Trump's threats escalated.
Tariffs on steel and aluminum imports along with potential reciprocal tariffs on Canadian dairy and lumber will take effect next week.
Coming up, the latest US Russia talks in Saudi Arabia.
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21 past the hour. US and Russian delegations have held fresh talks in Saudi Arabia.
It follows Sunday's meeting between the US and Ukraine in Riyadh, which Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustam Umarov described as productive.
The negotiations come as Moscow and Kiev confirmed an exchange of attacks over the weekend.
Ukraine says it launched a counter -attack on a settlement in Donetsk, which Russia claims to have captured.
For more, Gassmanikum spoke with Nadiya Swann who's in Saudi Arabia covering the story.
And Nadiya, any possible breakthrough for a ceasefire at this time?
Those talks are being led on the U .S. side by a senior director of the White House National Security Department, Andrew Peake, as well as another State Department official.
And the Russians have got, again, quite a senior leadership team here, a former diplomat, Gregori Karasin and Sergei Becedah, who is a federal security service adviser.
So, as far as we can see at the moment on the agenda, we've got the details of a proposed 30 -day ceasefire on strikes on energy infrastructure in both countries.
And they're also going to be talking about a longer -term peace deal, which is something that President Trump has really been pushing for.
The White House says the aim of the talks is to reach also a maritime ceasefire on the Black Sea.
Now, that's really important because that will allow the free flow of international shipping.
There was a previous maritime ceasefire to allow the flow of Ukrainian produce, but that did collapse.
And the teams are also going to be discussing the line of control between the two countries, talking about the verification measures that would be involved peacekeeping, freezing the lines where they are monitoring it and how that ceasefire would be involved.
And they're basically going to be talking about the return of Ukrainian children taken by Russia as well.
So that's what's on the agenda and we'll be keeping a close eye on that as well.
Nadir, you mentioned Sunday talks and Ukraine says the talks with the US were productive.
What are you hearing on that?
Well, you see, the Ukrainian delegation said the talks were as constructive as possible, so somewhat measured.
president Zelensky also said the talks have been useful.
Now U .S. officials on the contrary been quite bullish with the White House Special Envoy Steve Whitcoff.
Now he said that he believes Putin actually wants peace.
The Russians however have been less optimistic.
They've been very cautious about expressing any optimism saying they really are just concentrating on kind of an immediate ceasefire that would relate to energy infrastructure facilities.
So So in broad terms, the US is hoping to reach a ceasefire within weeks.
They've got an ambitious target of trying to get that sorted by the 20th of April.
But there is still really a huge gap between the Russian and Ukrainian demands.
So those talks are likely to be quite lengthy.
And then, in another sign of that rapprochement between the United States and Russia, we've seen the Russian ambassador to the United States, Alexander Daritchev.
He's heading to Washington next week.
and that's after talks in February between Moscow and Washington in Riyadh.
And that was when both parties agreed to reappoint ambassadors to each other's countries.
So a lot going on over here in Riyadh over the next day or so.
Wasn't Nadia Swan on the latest meeting between U .S. and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia.
Turning to the Middle East, an Israeli airstrike on a hospital in Kanunas has killed at least five people.
Hamas confirmed that the attack hit the surgery department of Nasser hospital, killing senior member Ismail Barham.
The Health Ministry of Gaza said Palestinian medics were also on the victims. Authorities in the coastal enclaves say more than 50 ,000 people have been killed since fighting started in early October 2023.
Jonathan Rivev has more from Tel Aviv.
It's continuing and expanding.
The Israeli army is sending evacuation orders to residents in northern the north of the Gaza Strip.
So we're seeing ground forces beginning to reenter the Gaza Strip both in the north in the areas known as Beth Laah and Beth Khanun, they are in the north of the Gaza Strip.
And in the south of the Gaza Strip in the area of Raf and by target specifically targeting Hassan Bar Dawil.
Israel is also sending another message.
This time it is not only looking at the military leaders of Hamas, but also civilian political The message is that Israel does not only want to try to take care of the military capabilities of Hamas but also the capabilities of Hamas to govern the Gaza Strip.
It's quite a challenge.
It's not going to be something that's very easy for Israel to achieve as Hamas is well rooted within the Palestinian population of the Strip.
but that is what Israel is aiming for, trying to take away the government of Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Constant anti -government protest as it seems that the government has taken an extra step in what the protesters described as the end of Israeli democracy.
Just in the last few hours we saw the government voting to dismiss the attorney general, Gahli Barav emiara.
She has been in constant feuds with many elements within this government, is many of the, their, their expected moves.
She has blocked them time and time again, saying they're illegal and they should be blocked.
And this comes just a few days after the government also unanimously voting to dismiss the head of the internal security agency, Ronen Barr, from his position.
And according to protestors, these are two moves in which the government wants to replace, to move away, probably possibly the last remaining forces will stand against it.
That was Jonathan Regev reporting.
The Israeli military says an armored division previously deployed in Lebanon is preparing for ground operations in the Gaza Strip.
The 36th Division has begun preparations following a situational assessment.
Executive director Khalil Jashan of the Arab Center shares his insights on the situation.
Considering what we've been witnessing over the past 17 months plus, survival is the key strategy that has been adopted in the past by groups like Hamas or both militarily and politically a resistance movement like Hamas.
So surviving at least the military onslaught and hopefully create a new political role for themselves might be the only strategy left at this point.
And many experts in Israel have been not only predicting but hoping that the opposition to this extreme right government in Israel would succeed in putting an end to this coalition.
Israel survives on coalition governments.
They are very difficult to keep in times of crisis because of internal political differences.
was thus far the magic, political magic, that Netanyahu has been accused of having throughout, you know, his political career seems to be working.
He has survived so many internal crises.
Many political parties are against him.
Hundreds of thousands of Israelis are on the streets of Israel demonstrating against him the strong lobby that emerged de facto led by the families of the hostages, even though they definitely, when the sympathy and support of the majority of Israelis, have not been able to nudge him from office yet.
That was Khalil Jashan, executive director of The Arab Center.
We're at 29 past and Beijing's down to seven degrees Monday evening.
It'll be cloudy in 22 on Tuesday, and then chunks down to 17 then sunny and 33.
Elsa on Asia, Islamabad is down to 15, overcast and 33 tomorrow.
Vientiane's at 22 overnight then sunny and 36 on Tuesday.
Phnom Penh is 24 this evening then a slight rainfall in 34 degrees.
In Africa, Nairobi is getting a slight rainfall in 26 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.
It's time for a short break.
So far this hour, the China Development Forum, concluding today in Beijing, has witnessed record foreign attendance.
The U .S. is considering port fees for Chinese ships and fleets using ships made in China.
The U .S. and Russian authorities have held another round of talks in Saudi Arabia discussing Ukraine and other issues.
Shane Beggem with you.
Stay with us here on the Beijing Hour.
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And right there, in the midst of all, be sta heart of humanity.
What if those other heartbeats were to stop?
Would ours keep on ticking?
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Examining the events that impact and shape China and the rest of the world.
This is the Beijing Hour.
One hour of news and information brought to you every weekday.
Now here's your host Shane Bigham with you on this Monday.
Still to come in business, the annual boil form for Asia is set to open in southern China on Tuesday.
In sports, tennis legend sets another all -time record in Miami.
In culture and entertainment, an Italian director will be the jury president at the upcoming Shanghai International Film Festival.
To contact us, you can email radio at cgtn .com or follow our X account at cgt and radio.
Now check in the day's headline news.
The Chinese Finance Minister has said the country will implement a more proactive fiscal policy this year and ensure it sustained strength and effectiveness.
Lan Fa 'an was speaking at the China Development Forum in Beijing.
Lan emphasized China's rich experience in macroeconomic management and fiscal governance.
He said the confidence in China's economic development stems from its solid fundamentals, numerous advantages, strong resilience, and vast potential that underpin its long -term growth.
the minister said this year's fiscal policy will focus on further boosting consumption and enhancing investment efficiency to expand domestic demand.
The French foreign minister will visit China this week.
Jean Noel -Barraut's visit comes at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, the triple run on Thursday and Friday.
China and Thailand will hold a joint maritime exercise.
The drill near Zhenjiang in South China will run from late March to early April.
The Chinese Defence Ministry says the exercise will focus on urban counterterrorism tactics, joint maritime strike operations and anti submarine warfare training.
The ministry also said the drill will enhance joint operational capabilities.
South Korean courts held the second preparatory hearing for impeached President Yoon Seok -yyoo's criminal trial.
The hearing aimed to clarify the main disputes and evidence.
Yoon was absent from the hearing after attending the first one back on February 20th.
The first formal hearing was scheduled for April 14th.
The formal hearing will question the country's finance and foreign ministers as witnesses at the request of the prosecution.
Authorities released Yoon on March 8th as the prosecution decided not to appeal against a court's release approval.
South Korea's constitutional courts rejected the impeachment motion against Prime Minister hand Duk -su.
The ruling reinstated hand to his role as acting president.
South Korea's National Assembly suspended Han in December for his alleged role in President Yoon Se -kyol's declaration of martial law.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's called an early election on April 28.
He said he's asking Canadians for a mandate to deal with US President Donald Trump and build an economy that works for everyone.
Carney took office earlier this month after winning the Liberal Party leadership race.
The country's political parties have now launched their campaigns.
The Turkish Interior Ministry says Istanbul Mayor Ekram Imamolu is in jail on corruption charges.
Supporters claim the arrest is politically motivated.
The main opposition figure has been detained since Wednesday.
The political confrontation has sparked nationwide protests.
The Danish Prime Minister expressed concerns about a planned visit by senior U .S. officials to Greenland.
Mitt Fredrickson said, any collaboration must be based on mutual respect and sovereignty.
The statement came after reports that U .S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz sold visit Greenland from Thursday to Saturday alongside Usha Vance, the wife of U .S. Vice President Jay Die Vance.
Protests at Tesla dealerships across the U .S. continued over the weekend with demonstrators calling for billionaire Elon Musk Ouster from the federal government.
The Trump administration has tasked the Tesla owner with cutting the country's federal funding and its workforce.
In Boston, 200 protesters held a peaceful demonstration on Saturday.
But attacks on property carrying the Tesla logo are cropping up across the U .S. and overseas.
Several more violent incidents have included cyber trucks being set on fire in Seattle, and shots fired at a Tesla dealership in Oregon.
Also on Saturday the man drove his car into protesters outside of a Tesla dealership in Florida but did not injure any of those who had gathered to demonstrate.
The first cruise ship of the seasons arrived in Santorini offering hope for the island's tourism recovery.
A series of earthquakes jolted the Greek island in February forcing ships to reroute triggering evacuations and raising concerns about the tourism season.
Tourists expressed excitement about returning.
It's exciting to know that the island's open again and we get to visit first. It's safe.
We love being the first cruise ship that got a chance to come to Santorini, we feel really blessed.
I heard about the earthquakes when I was in the States, thousands of earthquakes but small so initially I thought, well maybe I won't see Santorini, but it changed again, so luckily I get to come and it's beautiful.
And we got the most beautiful day to visit.
Local shop owners are also optimistic that tourism will rebound.
Santorini, like much of Greece, sits on multiple fault lines and experiences frequent earthquakes.
This is Shane Bigham in the Chinese capital.
Coming up in business, the annual Boao Forum for Asia is set to open in southern China on Tuesday.
The Beijing hour, your window on China and the rest of the world.
Thirty seven passed and with business now here's Wang Zhehand.
Thank you, Shane. Stock markets in Chinese mainland closed slightly higher on Monday.
The Shanghai composite was up nearly 0 .2%, while the Shenzhen component gained almost one -tenth of a percent.
Tourism and industrial metal sectors led the gainers.
Wang Yian has more.
The turnover of the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges was less than 1 .5 trillion yuan, down 100 .1 billion yuan from the previous session, with more than 3800 individual stocks close and lower.
Before turning into positive territory, the Shanghai Composite Index fell more than 0 .7%, but at the close, the index added 0 .15%, while the Shenzhen Component Index rose 0 .07%, with shares of the brain -computer interface, reducer and facial recognition sectors cap in the gains.
And the benchmark CSI 300 Index increases to 0 .51%.
The tourism and hotel, banking and nonferrous metal sectors sold the biggest gains while shares of property, healthcare and technology sectors were leading losses.
Meanwhile, micro cap stocks lost ground and market correction might still last for some time as for investors, it seems no new market stimulus is now inside.
There was Wang Yun reporting.
Elsewhere in China, the Hong Kong stock market also ended higher, with the Hang Seng index up 0 .9%.
Meantime, stocks in Japan closed this trading day at a bit of a loss, with the Nikkei down nearly 0 .2%.
Bo 'aoo in Hainan Province is ready to welcome guests attending this year's Bo 'aoo Forum for Asia.
The forum is scheduled to take place in the southern province from Tuesday to Friday.
This year's theme is Asia in the Changing World A World Towards the Shared Future.
It aims to uphold multilateralism, foster openness and development and jointly tackle global challenges.
Guests from China and foreign countries will engage in discussions on a wide range of topics such as China's economic outlook, artificial intelligence, and global self -cooperation.
Xu Yi has more details.
of the UN Summit of the Future, especially on the cooperation between Asia countries.
So being called the Asia doubles, the big gathering this week will bring together heads of international and regional organisations, the ministerial -level officials, the heads of global companies, especially from the Fortune Global 500, the renowned experts and scholars will gather here to explore the know -how on several various sectors, including the 8th Secretary General of the U .N., the chairman of the Boal Forum at Pankin -Mun, the former prime ministers of Finland and Pakistan, the 35th Secretary of the U .S., Department of Commerce Carlos Miguel 2010 with among other dignitaries will share their
insights and speeches during the forum.
So according to his agenda with our 40 topics, the event this year will focus on four major sectors including the Rebuilding Trust for promoting the global cooperation in the fast, changing world to strengthen the AI governors and applications also to accelerate the sustainable development goals, also to rebalance the globalisation force inclusive department.
And as for the AI industries, once again in the world many AI -related entrepreneurs with policymakers were gathered here in this small town to explore the know house on how to improve the digital connectivity on the global stage.
And meanwhile, notably, 2020 marks the year that Hainan Freight Trade Forum will achieve its full customs closed operations.
So the Global Freight Trade Forum development forum during the Boal Forum well featured and added some representatives from Hong Kong and Macau to discuss how to leverage the freight trade world zoon to foster the international trade and investment cooperation.
So, all in all, big moment and big week in this small town for China, for Asia and for the whole world.
And we can expect more on the further high end talks and sparks of ideas here in the few coming days.
There is a shuyi with a preview of the upcoming Bo Hao Forum in South China.
Now, this year's Bo Hao Forum is going all in on low carbon initiatives.
ships, Zhang Trunying dives in to explore the green highlights of the event.
Just to give you a glimpse of how the green transformation works, the floors are covered with PV tiles, and the annual conference just makes full use of these large spaces, including floors, including rooftops, walls and parking lots to generate over 5 .2 Mw of electricity across the distributed PV panels.
These flower -shipped wind turbines are not just visually stunning.
They're designed to capture wind energy and convert it into electricity that powers the farm facility.
Notably, unlike other traditional wind turbines, they can generate electricity even in gentle breeze, ensuring sufficient power supply.
And transportation is another major focus.
The farm introduced a fleet of electric vehicles to transport the attendees between venues, so no emissions, no noise pollution, just clean and green travel.
The operation of all these technologies and innovations are managed by an intelligent platform that is connected with the terminal facilities in the zone based on wireless Internet of Things communication technology.
So it can monitor the water supply, power, air quality and other conditions in the zone, and then transmit information to a carbon data platform and finally achieve intelligent and dynamic management." It's clear that sustainability is at the forefront of this year's event.
And it's really inspiring to see how a global platform like this is leading by example and pushing for a greener future.
There was Jeng Chun -Ying reporting.
Official data shows that 27 of the 50 capital goods monitored by China's statistics authority's registered price decreases in the first half of the month.
19 saw price increases and four remained unchanged.
Hark prices held steady at nearly 15 yuan per kilogram, or about two US Dollars.
China is one of the world's largest producers and consumers of pork.
The pork industry holds a significant position in the agricultural economy.
Chinese drink brands are making a splash in Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore.
These brands are winning over customers with friendly prices while allowing shop owners to streamline their opening process and operate with low costs.
Master franchisee James Long says Chinese drink brands allow them to maintain competitiveness more easily compared to private shops.
We are very strong in our cost to the economy of scale, so, for example ,ting shares more than 3 ,500 shops globally already.
So to compare this scale to any local brand is impossible to meet this scale, and once you have scale, you can lower your costs significantly while still maintaining a high quality of food standard. Long's business partner Joyce Lim also signed the Master Franchisee Agreement and went to China for a training program.
It's a very comprehensive training.
I think for the first seven days fully in the training academy where they actually taught us how to use and maintain the equipment from scratch. As well as learning like how to scoop the toppings the bubbles everything and how do we cut all the fruits to optimise everything.
Leung also says the inflation in Singapore is very high, adding that bringing Chinese brands to the country can bring affordability back to customers as well.
China's steel industry is speeding up its transformation and upgrading to become more intelligent and green.
This year, steel enterprises across the country have been quickening the pace of transformation.
Industry data shows that currently, over 80 % of steel companies have built intelligent control centers or launched large -scale model applications.
As of the end of 2024, over 170 steel enterprises completed or partially completed ultra -low emission transformation and assessment monitoring, covering over 70 % of the country's crude steel production capacity.
The cumulative investment has succeeded USD 200 billion were around USD 27 billion.
Enterprises have built or improved over 1 ,860 energy -saving projects and the comparable renewable energy consumption per metric ton has also decreased by nearly 1 .8%.
This year China will continue to implement a three -year action plan for the digital transformation of the steel industry.
More preferential policies will be in place to support enterprises in introducing advanced equipment and technology.
Meanwhile, authorities will strengthen regulatory efforts on green development to promote transformation and upgrading of the steel industry.
All right, thank you very much. That was Wang Ziyang with Business.
You're listening to The Beijing Hour.
Coming up in sports, the tennis legend sets another all -time record in Miami.
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47 pass now, and with sport here's Yuangguang.
Thank you, Shane. We begin with tennis from the Miami Open.
Dherek Djokovic set another recording reaching the last 16 after beating Camilo Ugo Karabelli in straight sets.
This was his 411th match ring at Masters 1000 level, moving him clear of Rafael Nadal for the most twins ever.
Jokob Piece Jokovic were next to face Lorenzo Mousetti after development No. 16 overcame Felix Orgia Alia Sim.
In other action, the found Alex Dominal beats China's Danielle Binkshakh in the second round.
The 10th seed sets up a third -round encounter with teenager Raul Fonseca.
On the women's side in Miami, Igor Shvontag picked up a straight -set swing of Alice Mertens to reach the last 16 and continue her bid for a 22nd career title.
The five -time Grand Slam champion connects the face -eliner with Lena.
China's Zheng Qingwen progressed to a Round -off 16 with a 6 -1 7 -16 over Tally Townsend.
Zheng won 80 % of total service points and converted two of the three breakpoints to take the match in 1 hour and 17 minutes.
Zheng's next match will be against Ashlyn Kruger.
In football at the UEFA Nations League, Italy fought back from three goals down but Germany's The dominant first half was enough to see them through 3 -0 on Sunday and 5 -4 on aggregate, booking their place in the semi -finals of the UBI Foundation's league.
Germany will face Portugal, who overcame a 1 -year first leg deficit to defeat Denmark 5 -2 after extra time, securing a 5 -3 aggregate victory.
German coach Julian Nagelsmans said it's going to be a tough game against Portugal.
First of all, Portugal are a team with good individual players, as well as a very, very good coach. And they play very interesting football.
They are going to be a tough nut to crack, but very interesting, especially the double midfield that they have, which is exceptionally good.
The victory also means that Germany will host the final stages of the tournament, which will now take place in Stuttgart and Munich in early June.
Also on Sunday, France overturned a two -goal deficit to qualify for the nation's league final four by eliminating Croatia 5 -4 on penalties after a 2 -0 victory in their quarterfinal second leg.
France will take on defending champion Spain who will endure a tense penalty shootout against the Netherlands after drawing 4 -0 on aggregates.
In F1 action from the Chinese ground prey in Shanghai, Oscar Piestri has walked back from disappointment in Australia to claim his first win of the season, while teammate Lando Norrie's crossed -line second in a 1 -2 finish for McLaren.
Piestri studied from the pole and held lead until he went in for his only pit stop of the race.
to do that for today.
I felt like I did a good job as well.
Very, very pleased." Mercedes -Benz driver George Russell completed podium in third, while Red Bull driver and defending champion Max Verstappen took fourth.
Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc finished in fifth and Louis Hamilton in sixth.
Those two were then disqualified then where their cars failed post -race technical checks.
As a result, Nari sits eight points clear of nearest rival Verstappen at the top of the driver's standings heading into the third race of the season in Japan.
McLaren is one point ahead of Mercedes in the constructor's standings due to Norris and Piastri winning the first two races of the year.
In track and field, Wuyangzi broke China's national indoor record in women's 60 meters hurdles after cliking 8 .01 seconds in her semifinal heat at the World Athletics Indoor championships in Nanjing, who raced in the first semi -final and finished the third in her heat ninth overall.
Although she didn't make it into the final, her time still set a new national record, beating Usi Zhang's mark from 2014.
Don't shout. I've been waiting for this moment for 12 years.
Ever since I started learning about this sport, I had the thought of becoming a national record holder.
I hope to hold both the 16 metre and 100 metre holder's national records.
World Record holder Devon Chilton then defended her title in the final winning in 7 .72 seconds.
In other actions, the United States dominated men's and women's 4x400m relays.
And finally, in race in Elphin Evans opened up the largest lead in the World Rally Championship history after three rounds following his victory at the Safari Rally Kenya on Sunday.
The Toyotar driver claimed his second win of the season after proving too quick for the rest of the field.
Evans finished 1 minute 9 .9 seconds quicker than Hyundai's or Tanuk, with Terry Neuvel completing the top three.
Victory means Evans now holds a commanding 36 -point advantage at the top of the standings ahead of the fourth race of the season at the end of April in Grand Canaria in Spain.
From North to South, East to West, people in China are chasing their dreams and leaving their mark.
Want to know how they beat the odds and made a difference?
Footprints brings you the true life stories of their journeys.
Fifty -three past the hour, turning to culture and entertainment, Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore will be the president of the jury for the Golden Goblet Awards at this year's Shanghai International Film Festival.
The Awards, later for mid -June, have five competition sections feature -length films, new Asian talent, documentaries, animated films, and short films. A tornatory is known for classics such as Cinema Paradiso and The Legend of 1900.
He has extended an invitation to filmmakers worldwide emphasizing the festival's significance for young directors.
The 2025 Shanghai International Film Festival coincides with several magnificent anniversaries, including the 130th anniversary of world cinema.
This year also marks the 120th anniversary of Chinese cinema and the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Italy.
China is extending the run of animated domestic hit Nezha II through April.
It's the second extension since the movie's release on Chinese screens earlier this year.
As of Friday afternoon, Nejia II had grossed over 15 .2 billion yuan or roughly $2 .1 billion globally.
It's now the fifth all -time global box office ranking leader after Titanic.
Released on Jan. 29 during the Chinese New Year, Nejia II rocketed to the top of China's all -time box office chart within just nine days.
It became the highest -grossing animated a movie of all time globally on February 18.
Bold architectural visions have dramatically reshaped cities in China over the past three decades.
This transformation is now receiving global acclaim.
As a Chinese architect claimed the Pritzker Architecture Prize, the industry's highest honor.
Junwei some reports.
In a nation of soaring skyscrapers, Chinese architect Liu Hao Jia Kwon has carved out a different path, designing spaces that prioritize community over spectacle.
His West Village project in Chengdu exemplifies this approach, creating urban environments where people can gather, move and interact naturally.
Nowadays, the rapid development of cities is driven by capital.
He is natural for capital to pursue profits but sometimes its a squeeze, only creating commercial high density usage spaces and squeezing out public communal spaces.
This philosophy sets Liu apart.
At his Luyei Yuan Stone Sculpture Art Museum, he created the interiors co -exist with the nature outside and also to reflect a sense of legacy, a signature approach that caught the Pritzker Juries attention.
I hope to deeply understand the intangible aspects of tradition that can be carried forward and then express it with contemporary technology and language, so that tradition can be used as the DNA of your work, but the way your work is presented is contemporary.
Liu's Pritzker wind challenges designers worldwide to think about how buildings shape not just our skylines, but the daily experiences of people who live among them.
This marks a significant shift, recognising architecture that values human dignity over spectacle.
A powerful statement as cities worldwide struggle to balance development with livability.
How was June way some reporting?
We're at 57 past the hour, checking the forecast before we go for the day and Beijing's down to seven degrees on Monday evening.
It'll be cloudy in 22 on Tuesday.
Nan hawk's down to 17 and then sunny skies in 33.
Elsewhere in Asia, Islamabad's 15 overnight then overcast in 33 on Tuesday.
Vientiane's 22 this evening then sunny in 36.
Phnom Penh's down to 24 then a slight rainfall and 34.
In Africa, Nairobi will get a slight rainfall and 26 degrees on Tuesday.
Kampala's down to 20 then a slight rainfall and 26 degrees.
Juba's 25 this evening then a slight rain and 35.
And finally to Oceania Port Vilep 23 overnight, then a slight rainfall and 29 degrees Celsius.
And that's it for this edition of the Beijing Hour.
Making news today, the China Development Forum, concluding today in Beijing, has witnessed record foreign attendance.
The US is considering port fees for Chinese ships and fleets using ships that are made in China.
In business, the annual bioform for Asia is set to open in southern China on Tuesday.
On behalf of the staff, this is Shane Bigim in the Chinese capital.
Hoping you'll join us for the next edition of The Beijing Hour, and open a window to the world together.
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He can't live without the Yellow River in his eyes.
The Yellow River is so noble and elegant.
Both my Grandpa and dad made the living from the river.
Would you like to move away from the Yellow River?
I don't think I would love it so much. The Yellow River, the second longest river in China, is regarded as a shaping force in the history, economy and culture of northern China.
Today, about 100 million people live within its water basin, making up nearly 9 % of the country's population.
How is climate change felt at its headwaters, and what are the locals doing to cope with it?
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From 2021 to 2024, our reporters visited the upper, middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, talked to the herders, farmers, boatmen, fishermen and eco -activists who share a close bond with the river, and present their stories in pictures, podcasts and videos, or in our 12 -part series, The Yellow River Mosaic, available only on CGTN radio.
