HEGANG, China (Reuters) - The death toll from China's latest coal mine disaster reached 87 as hopes dimmed on Sunday that more survivors would be found a day after a gas blast at a colliery in the country's far northeast.

Xinhua news agency reported 528 workers were in the mine, at Hegang in Heilongjiang province, at the time of the blast, and 420 had been rescued by Sunday. Some 21 miners remained trapped or unaccounted for.

Zhang Fucheng, an official in charge of rescue efforts, told Chinese television that efforts were being impeded by dense gas and collapsed tunnels.

This was the latest accident to hit the world's deadliest major coal mining industry. The blast was so violent it shook the surrounding area and nearby buildings partly collapsed.

The Xinxing mine in Hegang lies near China's border with Russia. It is owned by the Heilongjiang Longmei Mining Holding Group, and produces 12 million metric tons of coal a yea...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:08:33 +0800     By Saud Abu Ramadan, Emad Drimly

    GAZA, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Amid the hard living conditions that 1.5 million people of the blockaded and impoverished Gaza Strip endure, Nada Joma'a, a girl with one leg, and Yasser al-Za'eem, a boy with a dream and love of computers, are struggling to exist and live to tell the tale.

    It was hard for the 14-year-old girl from Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in northern Gaza City to forget the scenes when an Israeli missile destroyed her house, killed her mother and injured her leg during the 22-day Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip at the beginning of the year.

    Meanwhile, the 14-year-old boy, who is from the impoverished Shatti refugee camp in western Gaza City, spent his time sitting in front of a cheap computer in his room and chatting with friends from other countries through a slow Internet server.

 &...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:07:34 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197993/MTk3OTkz1fOuaMs3.html     BEIJING, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Yao Jingyuan, chief economist with China's National Bureau of Statistics, said Saturday that cooperation between China and Africa is mutual beneficial and would lead to win-win results.

    China has made great achievements in its industrial sector, urbanization and globalization since its reform and opening-up initiative three decades ago, Yao said at the three-day China Africa Industrial Forum starting Saturday in Beijing.

    China's rapid economic growth also means plenty of business opportunities to Africa, he said.

    The world's third-largest economy expanded 7.7 percent year on year in the first three quarters, largely due to the massive stimulus package unveiled in November 2008.

    The forum can further boost bilateral investment and business cooperation in the industrial sector and help Chinese an...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:07:12 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197992/MTk3OTkymOQOuCJ5.html     PAPEETE, French Polynesia, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor, Jia Qinglin, met with French High Commissioner of the Republic in French Polynesia Adolphe Colrat here on Friday.

Jia Qinglin(1st L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, is welcomed by French High Commissioner of the Republic in French Polynesia Adolphe Colrat (C) and French Polynesia President Oscar Temaru (1st R) upon his arrival in Papeete, capital of French Polynesia, Nov. 20, 2009. Jia Qinglin arrived at the South Pacific island Nov. 20 for a technical stopover on his way to Peru. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)Photo Gallery>>>

    Jia, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), arrived at the South Pacific island Friday afternoon for a technical stopover amid his four-state trip.

  ...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:06:50 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197991/MTk3OTkxfOkTu9Nm.html     BUENOS AIRES, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- When 12-year-old Enzo Perino plays bandoneon, an over-sized accordion that serves as the backbone of tango music, he looks just like his grandfather.

    Perino, from Rio Plata city, 65 km south of Buenos Aires, is already a skilled bandoneon player of tango, a dance which has been declared part of the world's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the United Nations.

    Like most adolescents, Perino enjoys video games, including the popular Wii console, where his favorite is Guitar Hero.

    He is also a fan of the San Antonio Spurs, an American professional basketball team which recruited Emanuel Ginobili, a famous Argentine basketball player.

    He quotes poet Enrique Santos Discepolo's most famous expression about tango: It is a sad thought that you can dance. Saying it was his way to overcome ...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:06:29 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197990/MTk3OTkwPUpkmXPI.html     NOUAKCHOTT, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- One out of eight children in Mauritania dies before reaching the age of five years, UNICEF reported here on Friday to invite world attention to their protection on Universal Children's Day.

    Christian Skoog, a resident representative of UNICEF who presented the UN report on the situation of children in the world, pointed out that 686 out of 100,000 births do not see the world in Mauritania.

    But he hailed the progress by the northwestern African country's efforts in recent years to improve the plight, saying Mauritania is getting to the point of 100 percent in enrolling children at school without gender-based discrimination.

    On the legislation to protest children rights, Mauritania remains an exemplary country, he added.

    On her part, Maria Do Valle Ribeiro, resident coordinator of the United N...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:06:09 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197989/MTk3OTg5gOhI9gZG.html     ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- A senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC) expounded the Chinese government's measures to tackle the ongoing economic crisis and its foreign policy at the 11th national congress of United Russia Party here Saturday.

    Addressing the forum under the theme "political parties' social responsibilities in times of crisis," Chen Fengxiang, deputy head of the International Department, Central Committee of CPC, said that the CPC and the Chinese government have given top priority to ensuring economic growth by stimulating consumption, increasing investment.

    Meanwhile China has continued economic restructuring and given full play to government's role in macro-economic regulation with due respect to the laws of market economy, he said.

    All these measures would not only benefit China's development, but also m...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:05:46 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197988/MTk3OTg4VumTYDfR.html     BEIJING, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- A total of 927 media organizations from 83 countries and areas have joined the 24-hour global campaign to promote children's rights, which ended Saturday.

    The campaign, also called the "Global News Day for Children" program, was initiated by Xinhua News Agency and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to highlight the international media's role in helping improve children's living environments and promoting their healthy development.

    The campaign started from 8 a.m. (Beijing time) Friday, the Universal Children's Day. Xinhua President Li Congjun said in a TV address at the launching ceremony Friday that it was the first time in history that media institutions around the world had joined to focus on a shared coverage of a subject

    "I believe that this year's Nov. 20 will be remembered in the history of global children ...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:05:25 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197987/MTk3OTg3hBtasDFR.html     BEIJING, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao on Saturday sent a message to Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy to congratulate him on his election as full-time president of the European Union (EU).

    In the message, President Hu said China has always attached great importance to its relations with the EU and supported the EU integration.

    China appreciates the EU's efforts to play a greater and more constructive role in international affairs, Hu said. He also expressed the wish that the China-EU all-round strategic partnership will further develop during the tenure of Van Rompuy.

    Van Rompuy was unanimously elected on Thursday to become the first full-time EU president.

    In the message, Wen expressed his wishes that the EU integration will continue to make progress.

    Wen also said he is ready to work with EU leaders to bring into full play the strategic leading role of China-EU summits, enhance pragmatic cooperation in various sectors, join hands to tackle global challenges and further promote the China-EU all-round strategic partnership to a higher level.

    Van Rompuy was unanimously elected on Thursday to become the first full-time EU president.

    Some 150 pictures from different times were put together for comparison at the exhibition, demonstrating great accomplishments of new China in economy, foreign affairs, military affairs, culture and education, as well as mores of various ethnic groups of China.

    Ren Guangxuan, Chinese dean of Confucius Institute at Moscow State University that hosted the exhibition, said the Chinese people went across an extraordinary path of development over the past 60 years, during which China has transformed from an impoverished, underdeveloped nation into a world major power.

    Ren also acknowledged indelible contribution from Russian experts and scholars to China's 60 years of development in fields includin...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:04:19 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197984/MTk3OTg0604vGSYd.html     WUHAN, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Former French prime minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin awarded here Saturday the Legion of Honour toa doctor in central China for his contribution to Sino-French cultural and medical exchanges.

    Zhou Yunfeng, head of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University in Hubei province, received the honour from Raffarin who was in his two-day visit in Wuhan.

    Zhou is the first Chinese clinical doctor wining the Legion of Honour, said Li Jian, Party chief of Wuhan University.

    With the help of former French president Valery Giscard d'Estaing, Wuhan University has been the key institution of Sino-French cooperation on education since 1979.

    Zhou has dedicated himself to the bilateral medical exchanges since 1980s when he concluded his study in France and came back to China, Li said.

    Zhou help...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:03:56 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197983/MTk3OTgzTtyUydD0.html     By Cheng Ming

    VANCOUVER, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Like all international cities, Canada's Vancouver is home to a full spectrum of global authentic cuisines. Right now, at the center of attention are Chinese cuisines.

    For the past six weeks, Vancouverites have been polling online for their favorite Chinese restaurants. The results of the 2009 HSBC Diners' Choice came out Friday. Close to 10,000 voters have identified which are the most popular Chinese restaurants in Vancouver.

    Craig Stowe is the founder and director of the Edgewater Casino Chinese Restaurant Awards, under which HSBC Diners' Choice is an important section. Having traveled the world extensively, Stowe realized that the Chinese gourmet capital outside of China is no other place but Vancouver, his home town.

    In Stowe's opinion, "Vancouver Chinese cuisine is only sec...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:03:34 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197982/MTk3OTgyj7XWHyex.html     TOKYO, 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi was interviewed Saturday by Japanese state broadcaster NHK on various issues.

    In the interview, Yang answered questions concerning China's development and its role on the international stage, China-Japan as well as China-U.S. relations, regional cooperation in East Asia and the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula.

    Also in the day, Yang met separately with former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and Kyoto Prefecture governor Keiji Yamada.

Chinese, Japanese FM meet on bilateral ties, int'l issues

   TOKYO, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met with Japanese counterpart Katsuya Okada Thursday evening to discuss bilateral ties as well as international and regional issues of common concern.

   Yang said after the new government was f...]]> China Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:03:07 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197981/MTk3OTgxnEFsub9P.html President Barack Obama's eight-day trip to Asia produced no tangible wins for the United States, though he is citing talks with Asian allies that he says could help create thousands of job and open new markets for American goods in the future.

Citing progress on a trip that took him from Tokyo to Seoul, Obama noted that "Asia is a region where we now buy more goods and do more trade with than any other place in the world — commerce that supports millions of jobs back home."

"I spoke with leaders in every nation I visited about what we can do to sustain this economic recovery and bring back jobs and prosperity for our people — a task I will continue to focus on relentlessly in the weeks and months ahead," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address taped while he was in Seoul, the South Korean capital, and released Saturday.

The president pitched his trip as a way to reintroduce the U.S. to those trading partners, including China.

The...]]> China Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:05:10 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197980/MTk3OTgw6OeJMxHL.html Visitors to America might have noticed the television ads urging us to buy gold. One such “spokesman”, formerly in charge of managing the government’s hoard of the yellow stuff, including the ingots buried at Fort Knox, points out that the value of gold has never fallen to zero. Why investors are expected to find such a modest claim reassuring I can’t imagine. But something is persuading people to buy gold, driving the price to and past $1,100 per ounce, from about $270 at the beginning of this decade, and around $700 when the financial crisis first hit.

This is not mere panic buying by a herd of small investors trying to benefit from what is called a momentum play. John Paulson (no relation to Hank), the investor who made $20 billion for his hedge fund between 2007 and 2009 by betting on a collapse of the financial and housing markets, is betting o...]]> China Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:40:03 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197979/MTk3OTc54pzoJTTg.html

The blast ripped through the mine when there were 528 people at work, but more than 400 have now got out safely, the official Xinhua news agency said, citing rescue team spokesman Zhang Jinguang.

The blast was so violent it shook the surrounding area. Buildings near the mine mouth have partially collapsed, and some survivors were knocked unconscious temporarily.

"I passed out for a while. I found I was shrouded by heavy smoke, when I regained consciousness. I groped my way out in the dark," 27 year-old electrician Wang Xingang told Xinhua.

Wang is in hospital with 28 others who escaped the mine, said Pan Xiaowen, deputy director of the Hegang Mining Bureau Hospital. Six of them are seriously injured.

The Xinxing mine is in Heilongjiang prov...]]> China Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:32:42 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197978/MTk3OTc45XURjock.html

The blast ripped through the mine around 2.30 on Saturday morning, when there were 528 people at work, but 419 got out safely, the official Xinhua news agency said.

The Xinxing mine is in Heilongjiang province, which borders Russia. It is owned by the Heilongjiang Longmei Mining Holding Group, and produces 12 million tons of coal a year, Xinhua said.

Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang is heading to the site of the accident, and Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have given instructions about the rescue work, a sign of official concern about the latest in a long string of disasters in the world's deadliest mining industry.

Rescue teams are already on site, with 60 people hunting for the missing miners, Xinhua said.

Lax safety standards and strong demand for resources have made China's mines the deadliest in the world, despite a government drive to clamp down on the tiny, unsafe operations where most accidents occu...]]> China Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:03:44 +0800 /articles/09/1122/197977/MTk3OTc3OtuhLFMT.html

* Prosecutors ask court not to release him, bail denied

* Suspect worked at Ford from 1997 through early 2007

By Jeremy Pelofsky

WASHINGTON, Nov 21 (Reuters) - A Chinese engineer arrestedon suspicion of stealing Ford Motor Co. (F.N) trade secretswill likely face additional charges after more secret data wasfound on his computer, U.S. prosecutors said this week.

Xiang Dong Yu was arrested last month when he arrived atChicago's O'Hare International Airport from China on chargesthat he stole thousands of secret documents detailing Forddesigns that prosecutors say were worth millions of dollars.

In court papers filed in Michigan this week, prosecutorssaid that FBI agents seized a laptop Yu had when he arrived anddiscovered more Ford trade secret design documents as well asconfidential documents from a company they did not identify.

"Based on what was recovered from the defendant's la...]]> China Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:03:22 +0800     MACAO, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- A total of 17 hotel projects were under construction in Macao in the third quarter of 2009, which was one project less than the previous quarter, according to the figures released on Saturday by the city's Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau.

    Once completed, these projects, with a gross building area of 1.71 million square meters, can provide up to 22,300 guest rooms to local hotel sector, the figures indicated.

    Meanwhile, some 25 hotel projects were still being examined by the Bureau, which was one project more than the previous quarter. The gross building area of these projects were just 790,000 square meters.

    Spurred by an upsurge of 85.3 percent of receipt from room sales of local five-star hotels, Macao's hotel sector registered total receipts of 10.39 billion patacas (1.32 billion U.S. dollars) last year, a signifi...]]> Business Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:02:16 +0800