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

China, EU vow to join hands to promote multilateralism, free trade

China and the European Union (EU) agreed on Friday to join hands to promote multilateralism and support free trade.

The agreement came as Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Federica Mogherini, the high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Council on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers' meeting and related meetings.

Wang said the leaders of China and EU had held successful talks in Beijing not long ago and the two sides reached consensus on safeguarding the rule-based multilateral trade system and resisting trade protectionism and unilateralism. (Xinhua)

China ready to levy differentiated tariffs on $60 billion worth of US goods

China is ready to levy differentiated tariffs on $60 billion's worth of American goods if the US further escalates trade frictions, the Ministry of Commerce announced on Friday.

China always believes that negotiation on the basis of mutual-respect, equity and mutual benefit is the efficient way to resolve trade dispute. Unilateral threat and blackmail will instead lead to escalation of frictions. (People's Daily app)

Mainland warns against official, military contact between US, Taiwan

A Chinese mainland spokesperson Friday reiterated the country's opposition against any official and military contact between the United States and Taiwan.

The Taiwan issue, vital for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, remains the most important and sensitive issue between China and the United States, said Ma Xiaoguang, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council.

Ma was commenting on the US National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, passed by the US Senate on August 1, which endorses strengthening defense ties with Taiwan. (Xinhua)

China hopes Japan will translate positive remarks into actions: FM

China hopes Japan will translate positive remarks on improving relations with China into actions, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Friday.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers' meeting and related meetings Thursday.

Kono said that Japan is pleased that the development of Japan-China relations is on the right track and steady progress has been made in economic cooperation. (Xinhua)

MH370 investigators to meet families of the Chinese victims in Beijing

The team of investigators of the MH370 disappearance is scheduled to meet the family members of the Chinese victims in Beijing on Friday. 

China National Radio reported that Malaysia Airlines wrote to the family members to invite them to the meeting. This will be the first time that the investigation team from Malaysia has come to China.

The meeting comes after the release of the final investigators report from Malaysia Airlines on Monday, which failed to identify the cause of the disappearance of flight MH370. 

Flight MH370 lost contact with air traffic control during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014. There were 239 people onboard, including 154 Chinese passengers. (China Plus)

PLA shows its mettle during International Army Games

The People's Liberation Army led the International Army Games 2018 after it opened on Monday, ranking first in two of the three contests held in Korla, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Eleven countries, including Russia, China, Iran and Pakistan, are participating in four contests in Korla and Quanzhou, Fujian Province.

The Chinese teams took the top three places in the Suvorov Attack individual race that concluded on Wednesday and also broke their own records, reaching the finish line 29 seconds faster than last year.

They also ranked first in the Clear Sky "mastery race" for air-defense missile units on Tuesday. (Xinhua)

No casualties reported in magnitude 5.1 China quake

No casualties have been reported after a magnitude 5.1 earthquake hit an uninhabited area in Northwest China's Qinghai Province Friday.

The quake jolted Zhidoi County in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture at 9:34 am, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The center said there were no villages within a 20-kilometer radius of the epicenter. (Xinhua)

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

(Produced by Jiang Zhuqing, Han Xiaomeng and Wu Kai)