Dongguan Mayor: employment is picking up
Yesterday (July 29), the mayor of Dongguan, Liu Yuquan addressed a delegation of overseas journalists currently visiting Guangdong, who are hoping to find out more about the province's economic performance. Dongguan, being a big center for export-orientated manufacturing companies, is under the spotlight since foreign trade dropped dramatically last autumn. According Liu, of the 15300 foreign companies in the city, 865 companies closed down last year, that's 70 more than usual. In comparison, in the first half of this year, only 342 foreign firms have closed or have moved out of the city, 78 less than over the same period last year, which officials see as a sign the situation is getting better. The delegation will arrive in Guangzhou today, the last stop on their tour. They should meet with the secretary of Guangdong's CPC committee, Wang Yang later today to hear his views on the state of the province's economy.

Guangzhou to Have More Internet Coverage by 2012
Yesterday (Jul 29th) Guangzhou co-signed an agreement with China Telecom to guarantee that by 2012, Guangzhou's telecom, internet and public TV network be fully integrated and that internet coverage reaches over 90%. The agreement also states that within the next 5 years, a bandwidth of 4 megabytes is made available to household users.

Chinese Mainland and Taiwan co-Host Sailing Race
A historic sailing race co-hosted by Chinese Mainland and Taiwan kicked off today (Jul 30th). The race starts in Wuyuan Bay located near Xiamen and ends across the straits in the port of Anping. The race will last until August 4th and is considered a historic event given the fact that this is the first time Chinese Mainland and Taiwan co-host a sailing race in such troubled waters.