Canton Fair receives less orders, sign of trouble ahead 
China's leading trade fair, known as Canton Fair, ended yesterday (May 7) with export orders down almost 17 percent. Our journalist Yang Zhen has the details.
Amidst the financial crisis, more than 20,000 Chinese companies were competing for a piece of the cake, but export agreements reach only 26 billion U.S. dollars, a 16.9% drop compared to October 2008. With 165,000 people walking through the Pazhou complex, the drop of 5,2% in the number of attendants was barely visible. Wen Zhongliang, director of the Business Office of the fair commented:
"China's exports will continue to decline for a short while. Compared to the previous months, from November to February, the decrease rate and speed will become smaller and slower. Exports are showing positive signs and the amount of transactions is actually better than most exhibitors were expecting. "
The 106th Canton Fair will take place in the autumn of this year, and will see the inter-phase break shortened from 4 days to 3 days.

A total of 5,335 students in Sichuan dead or missing from May 12th earthquake.
After a year of waiting and of grieve for thousands of families, China has just released the number of students killed or missing after the earthquake that shook Sichuan province on May 12th 2008. A total of 5,335 students in Sichuan were confirmed as dead or missing after the earthquake. Another 546 students were disabled as a result of the disaster.

China lifts quarantine after 7 days
With letters of consolation and health certificates confirming they show no signs of A flu, a total of 128 quarantined passengers were released yesterday (May 7) from hotels where they had been held for the past week. One of them who was quarantined in Yunnan province, showed flu-like symptoms on Wednesday, but the person tested negative for the A (H1N1) flu virus and was released. A total of 166 passengers were held on the mainland after a flight from Mexico City landed in Shanghai on April 30th. A Mexican passenger on the flight was later diagnosed in Hong Kong with the flu.

(source from news.hexun.com)