economic

www.npr.org — If the Sheriff of Nottingham can cancel kitchen scraps for lepers and orphans and call off Christmas, then certainly a province in China can just cancel a city! That's exactly what happened to Chaohu city in Anhui province with a population of about 4 million. The city's inhabitants went to bed one night and woke up the morning of Aug. 22 to find out that their city no longer existed.

www.chinahush.com — Currently the hottest news topic around the world is probably the World Cup. Other than the excellent performances by the teams of various countries, the most talked about subject is perhaps the loud horn noise that fills up the entire stadium from the beginning to the end of each match.

www.news.com.au — THE (Australian) Government is tracking the trials of 18 Australians facing charges of "economic crimes" as it deals with the 10-year sentence imposed on former mining executive Stern Hu.

blog.foolsmountain.com — On my trip to Mainland China a couple of weeks ago, I happened to run into an old family friend who used to be my mom’s acupuncturist (who has since retired). Despite having emigrated from the Mainland to the U.S. almost forty years ago, she still loves China - and has continually made her annual trip back to her home town for over three decades.

english.sina.com — As many as half of all toy manufacturers in the Pearl River Delta could go out of business within the next two years, an industry expert said Monday, following the closure of the Smart Union toy factory here last week.