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

______

China's FAST identifies 11 pulsars

China's and the world’s largest single-dish radio telescope discovers 11 new pulsars.

Officials say since the telescope began trial operations in September 2016, it has discovered 51 stars which bear features similar to pulsars.

They say 11 of them have been confirmed as new pulsars by observatories in other countries.

______

Wang Yang elected chairman of China's top political advisory body

Wang Yang was elected chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). 

Twenty four vice chairpersons and 300 Standing Committee members were also elected by more than 2,100 CPPCC National Committee members.

______

British scientist Stephen Hawking dead at age 76: family spokesman

Scientist Stephen Hawking has died at the age of 76.

Hawking contracted motor neuron disease in 1963 and was given two years to live.

But he went on to study at Cambridge and became one of the most brilliant theoretical physicists since Albert Einstein.

______

S. Korean ex-president Lee Myung-bak questioned on graft

Former South Korean president Lee Myung-bak reported to prosecutors for questioning in a corruption probe.

All living former South Korean presidents have been convicted, charged or embroiled in criminal inquiries.

______

China imposes $870 million penalty for stock market manipulation

China's securities regulator imposes the equivalent of $870 million in penalties on a Chinese company for manipulating newly-listed shares.

They were the largest penalties ever handed out by the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

The penalties were slapped on a logistics company which manipulated shares of newly-listed shares. The shares included those of a commercial and a rural bank.

______

Merkel re-elected by German parliament to 4th term

German lawmakers voted on Wednesday to re-elect Angela Merkel as chancellor for a fourth, and likely final, term.

She leads a fragile coalition with her standing diminished.

Lawmakers voted by 364 to 315, with nine abstentions, in favor of re-electing Merkel.

______

Lavrov: Russia supports de-escalation on Korean Peninsula

And Russia says it has consistently supported steps to lower tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed that Russia welcomes Seoul's desire to build a broad front of participants in the settlement process on the Korean Peninsula.

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

(Produced by David Nye, Wu kai and Liang Peiyu)