This is People's Daily Tonight, your news source from China.

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Russia to fly new expedition to space station on March 14

Russia plans to launch the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft with an international crew on board for the International Space Station (ISS) on March 14 from Kazakhstan, crew members said Thursday.

The basic crew, including Russian astronaut Alexei Ovchinin and NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Christina Koch, were introduced at a press conference in Moscow.

The crew plan to perform scientific experiments and complete tasks of dismantling and delivering to the Earth equipment for checks of how it was affected by spaceflight.

Ovchinin said he considers a spacewalk scheduled for May the most interesting part of the mission. (Xinhua)

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China's home prices remain stable in January

Home prices in 70 major Chinese cities largely remained stable in January, official data showed Friday.

The National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement that new housing prices in four first-tier cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou -- edged up 0.4 percent month on month in January, retreating from the 1.3-percent increase in December.

New home prices climbed 0.7 percent in 31 second-tier cities and rose 0.6 percent in 35 third-tier cities.

Experts said China's home price were stable in general last month as local authorities stuck with control policies to stabilize land and home markets and guide expectations. (Xinhua)

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Shell receives oil products wholesale license in China

Shell Zhejiang Petroleum Trading Co., Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shell China, has obtained the domestic oil products wholesale license from China's Ministry of Commerce, according to the report by Zhejiang Daily on Friday.

Shell operates 1,300 retail stations in China through joint ventures and sole proprietorships. The license will enable Shell China's Zhejiang branch to carry out purchases and sales of oil products for its customers independently in the Chinese market.

This is the first time for a wholly-owned foreign company to obtain the oil products wholesale licensee in China. It is a sign that China is attracting more international participation and increasing the competitiveness of its wholesale market. (People's Daily)

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US to leave 200 American peacekeepers in Syria after pullout

The United States will leave "a small peacekeeping group" of 200 American troops in Syria for a period of time after a US pullout, the White House said on Thursday.

Trump in December ordered a withdrawal of the 2,000 American troops in Syria on the defeat of the last remnants of the Islamic State militants there.

But Trump has been under pressure from multiple advisers to adjust his policy to ensure the protection of Kurdish forces. (China Daily)

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HK, Macao legal workers to be arbitrators in Guangzhou

Legal professionals from Hong Kong and Macao will be allowed to work as arbitrators in Nansha district of Guangzhou as part of an effort by Guangdong province to strengthen cooperation with the two special administrative regions.

Nansha lies within the Guangdong Pilot Free Trade Zone.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security has approved the introduction of the legal professionals, who will work at the Court of Arbitration for Labor and Personnel Disputes to settle competing claims.

Sources at the court said the Hong Kong-and Macao-based arbitrators will be significant in promoting the business environment of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. (China Daily)

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Opinions solicited on tax, fee cuts in market reform push

Securities Association of China has released a notice to securities firms to collect opinions tax and fee cuts related to capital markets.

The move signals regulators' efforts to reduce operating costs of securities firms and other financial institutions as part of capital market reforms that focus on vitalizing market entities.

The notice said the collection of opinions is aimed at contributing to the country's bid to ease tax and fee burdens on enterprises, raising vitality of market entities, and guiding the industry in serving economic and social development. (China Daily)

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Japan's Hayabusa2 space probe successfully lands on asteroid: JAXA data

Japan's Hayabusa2 space probe successfully landed on the asteroid Ryugu, data from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) confirmed Friday.

Hayabusa2 began its descent a day earlier to the asteroid, which the probe arrived above in June last year, from an altitude of 20,000 meters.

The decent was delayed by a few hours while the final approach to the asteroid's surface was confirmed, JAXA said.

The probe is now scheduled to begin collecting rock samples from Ryugu's surface, according to JAXA's mission plans. (Xinhua)

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And that's People's Daily Tonight. Thanks for joining us.

(Produced by Han Xiaomeng and Bai Yuanqi)