介绍:
China confident over int'l trade target: minister
China's commerce minister has expressed confidence of achieving the 7.5-percent growth target in foreign trade this year, citing an improving global economy and competitiveness among domestic enterprises.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the ongoing legislative session, Gao Hucheng said although the economy of emerging markets is slowing down, the fundamentals are sound enough to tackle the existing difficulties.
China's foreign trade surpassed 4 trillion U.S. dollars for the first time in 2013, up 7.6 percent over 2012.
12 missing in north China factory blast
A factory explosion has left one person injured and another 12 missing in north China's Tangshan city.
The blast hit a chemical plant which mainly produces water-proof explosives for mining.
The injured worker has been sent to hospital and rescue work is continuing.
Obama proposes to Putin diplomatic resolution to Ukraine crisis
US President Barack Obama has proposed a diplomatic resolution to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine during a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Obama's suggestions include direct talks between the governments of Ukraine and Russia.
He's also calling for the deployment of international monitors and the return of Russian forces to their bases in Crimea.
Obama told Putin that Russia's actions in Crimea are in violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
For his part, Putin said the current Ukrainian leadership had come to power in an unconstitutional way as a result of government coup.
Earlier, the European Union and the United States joined Ukraine's government in condemning as "illegal" a move by the Crimea region to set up a referendum to endorse joining Russia.
MPs in Crimea - whose population is mostly ethnic Russian - earlier set a date of March 16 for a referendum on the issue.
Venezuela expels Panama ambassador
Venezuela has expelled Panama's ambassador and three other diplomats amid growing tensions over opposition protests in Caracas.
It comes a day after Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro broke diplomatic relations and froze economic ties with Panama, accusing the country of conspiring to bring down his government.
At least 20 people have died in anti-government protests in Venezuela in the last month.
Two hurt in shooting in Thai capital as officials assess emergency
Two people have been wounded in a shooting at a site of anti-government protests in the Thai capital Bangkok.
It came as government officials were due to decide whether to maintain a state of emergency that business leaders want lifted.
The shooting erupted in Bangkok's Lumpini Park, where several thousands of protesters are camping out.
Twenty-three people have been killed, most of them in shootings and grenade blasts, since late November.
Argentina foils plot to smuggle cocaine in Spain in skis
Police in Argentina say they have foiled a scheme to smuggle cocaine into Europe by hiding the drug in skis.
Five Argentines and one Spaniard have been detained and 14kg of cocaine seized in seven pairs of skis.
The cocaine had allegedly been compressed into tablets which were stuffed into specially build equipment.
The group was preparing to fly to Madrid when the authorities made the arrests.
Australia's Queensland hit by record drought
Australia's Queensland is suffering its most widespread drought on record, with almost 80% of the state affected.
Officials say Queensland received little rain in February, which is normally the wettest month of the year.
Three years ago much of the state was flooded, forcing thousands to evacuate.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has approved an emergency drought relief package worth more than 280 million US dollars.
H7N9 vaccine may hit market in May
A Chinese expert on infectious disease says vaccines for the H7N9 bird flu could hit the market as early as May.
Li Lanjuan with the Chinese Academy of Engineering says the vaccine is being submitted to drug control authorities for tests.
The H7N9 virus has infected more than 120 people in China and killed at least 36 of them so far this year.
Smog won't hurt Beijing's Winter Olympics bid: official
A vice mayor of Beijing says the city will take a series of measures to tackle its environmental problems and is confident they will not derail its bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Li Shixiang says Beijing has formulated 84 measures to deal with environmental issue and air pollution.
Among those, the city is expected to cut its current coal consumption by more than half to 10 million ton a year by 2017.
Beijing and Zhangjiakou City in neighboring Hebei Province are in a joint bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
