Ambassador Wu will be always remembered

I was in Vietnam on Friday, and had a chance to meet a senior Filipino diplomat. Talking about how China and the Philippines should improve their strained ties under incoming President Rodrigo Duterte, he suggested inviting one prominent and open-minded Chinese diplomat to give a lecture in Manila later this year.

Japan shows its colors with different standards on freedom of navigation

Japan asks China to respect "freedom of navigation" when it talks about the South China Sea. But that freedom does not apply to other waters.

Cartoon

Vestas open to deals in wind sector

Danish wind turbine maker Vestas Wind Systems A/S, the biggest player of its sector in the Chinese market, said it would be open to various business opportunities, as it adapts to changes in the world's wind power sector.

Starbucks hikes prices as 'costs rise'

Rising costs have contributed to the price surge of some Starbucks drinks on the Chinese mainland. According to the Seattle-based coffee chain, Starbucks stores on the Chinese mainland will adjust their pricing of selected beverages by one or two yuan beginning June 16, 2016. This price adjustment does not involve food, whole bean coffee, merchandise, or Starbucks reward cards.

Watchdog tightens scrutiny on IPOs

China's top securities regulator tightened the scrutiny on initial public offerings, vowing on Friday to eliminate any unqualified new share issues by companies.

ODI surges 62 percent to $74b in first five months

The growth of outbound direct investment from China is remaining steady this year, leaving the world's second-largest economy on track to exceed last year's record figure, experts said on Friday.

Two airlines restore business with major online travel agency Qunar

China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd and Air China Ltd have restarted doing business with online travel agency Qunar Cayman Islands Ltd after months of closure.

IN BRIEF (Page 6)

CMB's London branch seen as UK springboard

China Merchants Bank Co became the first of the country's joint-stock commercial banks to open a branch in London on Thursday, highlighting significant market-driven demand for financial services providers to expand internationally to serve increasing Chinese investment abroad.

BYD Qingdao factory to make 5,000 electric buses annually

Chinese electric-car maker BYD Co Ltd's new commercial vehicle factory in Qingdao, Shandong province, started production on Thursday. The facility is expected to manufacture up to 5,000 electric buses annually worth 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion).

Depth of Hong Kong's retail gloom revealed in heavy decline of stocks

For a telling measure of just how tough Hong Kong retailers now have it, take a look at Sa Sa International Holdings Ltd.