China prepared for escalation of Huangyan Island incident: vice FM

The Chinese government now says it's fully prepared to respond to anything the Philippines does to escalate the situation at Huangyan Island in the South China Sea.
Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying has relayed this message to the Charge D'affaires of the Philippine Embassy, saying China is not optimistic about the situation.
Fu Ying has, once again, summoned the Philipine diplomat over Huangyan Island, the third meeting between the two sides in a month.
Fu Ying says because of the continuous provocation by the Philippine side, Chinese vessels will continue to be on alert in the area around Huangyan Island.
China moves to stop SOE executives overspending

The central authorities in China have issued a ban in an effort to curb overspending by state-owned enterprises (SOEs)
SOE executives will be forbidden to purchase company cars and high-end office supplies if their enterprises suffer losses.
They are also banned from using company funds to cover expenses incurred by their families and relatives.
SOEs are also ordered to strengthen management over the annuities and housing subsidies of executives.
Colombian President Santos starts visit to China

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has arrived in Beijing for a five-day visit to China.
Before leaving Colombia, Santos said that he hoped his country can expand cooperation with China in all fields and become an "important ally".
It is Santo's first official trip to China as president.
During his visit, Santos will meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao and other top officials as well as business leaders.
Santos will also visit Shanghai.
Annan urges Syrian gov't, opposition to seize opportunity to avoid civil war

Speical envoy to Syria Kofi Annan has urged both the Syrian government and the opposition to "sieze the opportunity" to avoid a full blown civil war in the country.
Briefing the UN security by video conference from Geneva, Annan said that there was a real if fragile opportunity to restore peace in Syria.
The UN-Arab League envoy agreed that although his own 6 point peace plan had led to an abatement of violence in some areas, many serious violations were still being committed by both sides.
Annan also confirmed that the UN had pledged to have the full 300 observers on the ground in Syria by the end of this month.
His comments come in the wake of Sunday's first multi-party elections in Syria for 40 years-although opposition groups have boycotted the elections, labeling them a sham.
Medvedev becomes Russia's new PM

Former Russian President Dimitri Medvedev has been endorsed as Russia's new Prime Minister, less that an hour after the Russia's parliament – The Duma – approved his nomination.
Medvedev had been put forward for the post by Vladimir Putin, sworn in Tuesday for a third term as Russia's president. It means that the two most important men in Russian politics have effectively swapped jobs, as Putin served as Prime Minister for the entire duration of the Medvedev's presidency.
In the Duma vote, Medvedev won 2 to 1 approval, gaining the support of the United Russia Party and the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia. The Communists and A Just Russia party voted against his nomination.
Death toll in flash flood in western Nepal reaches 26

Police in Nepal are reporting that the chances of finding any more people alive following last week's flash flood are very slim.
26 people are now confirmed dead after the Nepalese Army and Police carried out special rescue operations in the country's Central Annapurna region.
However, some 40 people - including three Ukranian tourists - are still missing after the river Seti burst its banks close to the city of Pokhara last Saturday.
China's credit card payment up 48 pct in 2011

The China Banking Association says that China's credit card transactions totaled seven and a half trillion yuan in 2011, up nearly 50 percent from a year earlier.
The Association said new payment methods - particularly via the Internet - expanded rapidly over the past year.
And about 167 million people, or 33 percent of Chinese Internet users, used Internet payment last year.
China, Singapore to build 100 bln yuan high-tech zone

China and Singapore are jointly building a high-tech zone in southwest China's Sichuan province.
The Singapore-Sichuan High-tech Innovation Park will cost 100 billion yuan.
Once complete, it will be able to house 120,000 residents in Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan.
The project is expected to attract 100 billion yuan in investment by 2020.
The park will also create as many as 150,000 jobs in fields such as information technology, digital media, and biomedicine.
Tap water might dirtier than imagined

Water quality at least 1,000 purification plants in Chinese cities is not up to standard, that according to a senior official from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.
The official pointed to a survey of more than 4,000 water plants conducted in 2009.
He also stressed that the quality of urban tap water has not improved much since the survey.
Experts say at least 20 percent to 30 percent of the nation's water plants need to improve their processes immediately in order to ensure greater quality.