China's trade for 2005 reaches $1.422 tril.: report
January 10, 2006China's total trade for 2005 has reached $1.422 trillion, up 23.2 percent from a year earlier, the China News Service reported Tuesday. The news organization, which caters mainly to overseas Chinese, quoted Mou Xinsheng, head of the General Administration of Customs, as mentioning the figure at a meeting of the heads of customs authorities nationwide held on the same day in Beijing.
Baby kidnapper declared bankrupt in 2002: sources
January 10, 2006A man arrested on suspicion of kidnapping a newborn baby from a Sendai hospital to demand ransom was declared bankrupt in September 2002 as his clothing retail business slumped, sources close to the investigation said Tuesday. Nobuyasu Nemoto, 54, had about 73 million yen in debt when the Sendai District Court declared him bankrupt, the sources said. He was also convicted in 2001 of importing and selling fake designer brand products and his company went under in 2003.
Matsushita unveils 180 bil. yen plan to build plasma display factory
January 10, 2006Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. said Tuesday it will start building in May the world's largest plasma display panel factory by production capacity in Hyogo Prefecture in a move that will cost the maker of Panasonic brand products 180 billion yen. Matsushita said it expects the new factory in Amagasaki to start operations in July 2007. The move aims to meet surging demand for flat-panel televisions in the United States, Europe and China.
N. Korean leader arrives in China on unannounced visit
January 10, 2006North Korean leader Kim Jong Il traveled to China on a special train in an unannounced visit Tuesday, his first in nearly two years, diplomatic sources in Beijing said. The sources said the train carrying Kim passed through the Chinese border city of Dandong on Tuesday morning and arrived at the northeastern city of Shenyang around noon, before traveling on to an unknown destination.
Gov't says 77 people suspected of past bird flu infections
January 10, 2006A total of 77 people in Japan, mostly chicken farm workers, may have been infected with the H5N2 strain of avian influenza, in the world's first reported possible infection of humans with the strain weaker than the deadly H5N1 variety, according to a Japanese government report released Tuesday. Antibody tests of their blood suggest the 77 people may have been infected but none had any symptoms nor the virus itself, and there is no danger of developing symptoms and infecting other people, government officials said.
Japan eyes resuming subcabinet-level dialogue with China next month
January 10, 2006Japan is seeking a way to resume subcabinet-level talks with China as early as next month in a bid to jumpstart high-level dialogue amid strained bilateral ties, government officials said Tuesday. The move to pursue such talks comes after Japan and China agreed during informal talks in Beijing on Monday to promote working-level negotiations.