Forbes ranks Merkel most powerful woman

The China Post - China's Deputy Prime Minister Wu Yi and Singapore state investment chief Ho Ching knocked U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice down two notches in the annual Forbes ranking of the world's most powerful women published Thursday. Full Story

Leadership of China's Hu strengthened as allies promoted

The China Post - One of Chinese President Hu Jintao's closest aides is tipped for promotion, while an ally who was sacked as Beijing mayor during the 2003 SARS crisis has made a political comeback, signs of the leader's growing strength. Full Story

New editor-in-chief named at Xinhua news agency

The China Post - China's cabinet has appointed He Ping as the new editor-in-chief of the state-run Xinhua news agency, the media group said. He, 50, was promoted from his post as vice president of the agency on Thursday and replaces Nan Zhenzhong, who has reached retirement age, Xinhua said in a brief dispatch on its website. Full Story

Police uncover China's online pyramid scam

The China Post - Chinese police have uncovered the country's largest alleged on-line pyramid selling scheme, involving 170,000 people and 1.36 billion yuan (US$180 million), state media said on Friday. Full Story

Passive smoking to kill millions in China

The China Post - Chronic bronchitis and emphysema caused by passive smoking are set to kill nearly two million people in China who today are aged over 50, according to a study published Friday. Full Story

Hong Kong police arrests 2 for smuggling 7,000 turtles

The China Post - Hong Kong police have arrested two men for trying to smuggle more than 7,000 live pet turtles to mainland China, the government said Friday. Marine police intercepted the two men Wednesday as they were loading about 300 cartons onto speedboats near an outlying island close to mainland Chinese waters, a government statement said. Full Story

12 missing after coal mine explosion in central China

The China Post - At least 12 miners were missing Friday after an explosion in central China, as authorities continued their efforts to reach 181 workers trapped in flooded coal shafts for two weeks, state media said. Full Story

China's finance minister sacked

The China Post-Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday sacked his finance minister amid a major political shake-up ahead of the ruling Communist Party's crucial five-yearly gathering. Full Story

Taiwan approves visit by NBA star Yao Ming

The China Post-The Houston Rockets' basketball star Yao Ming was given the green light Thursday to visit Taiwan next month, an official said. Full Story

China military 'not a threat': defense chiefmilitary 'not a threat': defense chief

The China Post-Chinese military growth is not aimed at threatening any state, China's defense chief said in Tokyo on Thursday, as he stressed that Beijing was working to become more transparent about defense matters. Full Story

China frees priests jailed over Vatican trip

The China Post-China has freed two underground Catholic priests jailed for flying to the Vatican on false passports, a Hong Kong-based group said on Thursday. Shao Zhumin and Jiang Sunian, from Wenzhou in the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang, were arrested shortly after returning from a September 2006 trip to Europe during which they met Vatican officials in Rome. Full Story

China beefs up vaccination law amid rabies surge

The China Post-China's top legislature beefed up its animal vaccination law on Thursday, making it clear that even urban pets need to be vaccinated amid a surge in deadly rabies cases nationwide, state media reported. Dog ownership is rising quickly among China's urban residents, and lawmakers said they were causing "a string of social problems," including attacks on humans, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. Full Story

Rising sea threatens China's south: report

The China Post-Over 1,100 square kilometers (440 square miles) of land in economically booming southern China will be inundated by rising sea-levels by 2050 due to global warming, state press said Thursday. Full Story

Heroin-addict elephant to rejoin herd

The China Post-A once drug-addled elephant fed heroin laced bananas by illegal traders will soon return to the wild after being weaned off his addiction through methadone and round-the-clock care. Full Story

Philippine court grants former first lady permission to travel

The China Post-Philippine courts granted former first lady Imelda Marcos permission on Thursday to leave the country for 15 days to travel to Hong Kong and China for medical treatment and to attend a trade show. Full Story

Don't take mooncakes to Oz, Chinese told

The China Post-China told its people on Thursday not to take mooncakes containing egg yolk or meat to Australia because of the threat of bird flu and other diseases. Full Story

Top mainland designer blends East and West

The China Post-One can probably be forgiven for failing to recognize a celebrity from mainland China, the other side of the Taiwan Strait. Full Story

China defense chief visits Japan amid thaw in ties

The China Post - China's defense minister kicked off a five-day visit to Japan on Wednesday, the first such visit in nearly a decade and a sign of thawing relations despite concerns in Tokyo over rising Chinese military spending. Full Story

China 'twins' split by 21-year-old bungle

The China Post - Chinese "twins" have sued a hospital over an apparent mix up of babies 21 years ago until they were reunited by chance and neighbors' complaints. Full Story

China reports sighting of 'extinct' dolphin

The China Post - A Chinese man has videotaped a large white animal swimming in the Yangtze river, which experts say is a dolphin species unique to China and feared extinct, the official Xinhua agency reported on Wednesday. Full Story