China No.1Exporter

Germany's multi-year reign as the world's No. 1 exporter is officially over, with the crown formally passing to rising Asian power China after new figures showed that German exports slid by nearly a fifth in 2009, the biggest decline in 60 years.

Tuesday's German government figures only confirmed an open secret: China's runaway growth and resilience amid the financial crisis put its exports ahead of Germany, which suffered a severe recession before returning to growth in last year's second quarter.

Last month, China's customs agency said that total 2009 exports were more than $1.2 trillion, well ahead of the euro803.2 billion (nearly $1.1 trillion) that Germany reported Tuesday.

For Germany, the figure was a drop of 18.4 percent from 2008, although exports returned to year-on-year growth in December.

"The crisis has accelerated the shift in power in world trade toward the emerging countries," said Anton Boerner, the head of Germany's BGA exporters' association.

– Associated Press

Sutong bridge to set world record

The Sutong Changjiang Highway Bridge over the Yangtze River is seen under construction in east China's Jiangsu Province, April 23, 2007. The cable-stayed bridge will have a world record 1088 metres main span and tallest cable towers when completed in 2008.

China Japan Tension- News On BBC

It seems Mao's View is still relevant in
2006.

Rising tensions

Relations between China and Japan are
at their lowest point in years, after Japan approved
new school textbooks which China says gloss over
Japan's often brutal wartime record.

Yasukuni Shrine
Japanese Prime Minister's Office