This is People’s Daily Tonight, your news source from China.
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New Zealand-China economic ties strengthened: Minister
New Zealand Revenue Minister Stuart Nash said economic ties between New Zealand and China are being strengthened with a new taxation treaty.
The double taxation agreement between New Zealand and China was signed on Monday.
The agreement replaces one in 1986 with a more modern set of rules which ensures that taxing cross-border economic activity remains up to date. (Xinhua)
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China sees surge in exit-entry permit applications following streamlined procedures
China witnessed a surge in the number of applications for exit-entry permits on Monday, the first day a new regulation to streamline related application procedures took effect.
About 77,000 exit-entry permit applications from citizens with household registration from elsewhere were handled on Monday, including 22,000 for passports, figures from the National Immigration Administration show.
There were also 24,000 applications for travel passes for Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions as well as Taiwan and 31,000 for group tour endorsements for the three regions.
Citizens are no longer required to return to their household registration place to apply for exit-entry permits. (Xinhua)
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Trump's threat to close border stirs fears of economic harm
US President Donald Trump's threat to shut down the southern border raised fears of dire economic consequences in the US.
His plan affects a stretch of the country that relies on the international flow of not just goods and services but also students, families and workers.
Politicians, business leaders and economists warned that such a move would block incoming shipments of fruits and vegetables, TVs, medical devices and other products, and cut off people who commute to their jobs or school or come across to go shopping.
The US Chamber of Commerce said such a step would inflict "severe economic harm." (AP)
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17 confirmed dead in Peru bus fire
Seventeen people were confirmed dead after a double-deck bus caught fire Sunday night in Lima, Peru's public prosecutor's office said Monday.
The autopsies will take place at the central morgue in Lima, the office said.
Initial reports placed the death toll at 20, but the prosecutor said the number was 17.
The bus operated at an informal terminal that had been placed out of service in January 2018.
The dead included eight men, five women and four children, the prosecutor said.
Peru's National Police arrested early Monday the bus drivers, who are expected to give statements to local authorities. (Xinhua)
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Customs officers clamp down on meat smuggling
Guangzhou customs officers will expand cooperation with their counterparts in the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions to curtail frozen meat smuggling.
They said they have seized more than 1,800 metric tons of frozen meat and related products, valued at $6.44 million since the beginning of the year.
Items seized included beef, tripe, cow stomach, chicken feet and pig’s feet. (China Daily)
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Foshan clears 842 officials of wrongdoing
Authorities in Foshan, South China's Guangdong Province, have cleared 842 officials of suspected wrongdoing after the city started investigating reports of official malfeasance deemed suspicious a year ago.
The actions taken can serve as an example for lower level to enhance accountability mechanisms and deal with the problem of malfeasance by officials, according to a People's Daily editorial on Monday.
In a recent case in Foshan, two local officials were warned after making up false reports about another official while competing for a new job, which they then maliciously spread.
The detailed regulations are still needed to differentiate between malicious false reports and unintentional ones. Those who intentionally make false reports should be punished, while those who made reports in error should be forgiven. (Global Times)
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Severe thunderstorm in Nepal leaves 25 dead, hundreds injured
And at least 25 people have been killed, and around 400 hurt in a thunderstorm that swept through the southern part of Nepal late Sunday.
Authorities said the death toll may rise as rescue efforts continue.
Pre-monsoon thunderstorms are common in Nepal during the spring season but are rarely of an intensity that causes high casualties.
Television channels said the storm and accompanying heavy rainfall uprooted trees and telephone poles, crushing some people to death. (CGTN)
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And that’s People’s Daily Tonight. Thanks for joining us.
(Produced by David Nye and Wang Zi)