BEIJING — China’s foreign trade dropped 7.3 percent year on year to 13.63 trillion yuan (2.23 trillion U.S. dollars) in the first seven months of 2015, official data showed on Saturday. Exports edged down by 0.9 percent from a year ago to 7.75 trillion yuan, while imports slumped by 14.6 percent to 5.88 trillion yuan, according to data from the General Administration of Customs (GAC). The trade surplus doubled to hit 1.87 trillion yuan in the Jan.-July period. In July, foreign trade decreased by 8.8 percent from the same period last year to 2.12 trillion yuan, with exports declining by 8.9 percent to 1.19 trillion yuan and imports falling by 8.6 percent to 930.2 billion yuan, data showed. (Xinhua)…[+]

RAPID CITY, S.D. – Members of Suriname’s Defense Forces were in the Black Hills taking part in a subject matter expert exchange with the South Dakota National Guard focusing on disaster relief and emergency operations, July 27 to Aug. 1.The most recent exchange gave the South American service members the opportunity to observe emergency operation centers from the SDNG’s Joint Operation Center to the South Dakota Emergency Operations Center. “Over the last few years, we’ve been troubled by some bad weather and flooding,” said Suriname Defense Force Lt. Col. Johnny Antonius, head of Defense Strategic Planning and Education. “In just a three to four week period, we had severe wind gusts causing hundreds of houses to lose their roofs or be destroyed altogether. We believe storms like this will return and while we can’t avoid it, we can at least get a system in place that better helps us get assistance to the ones that need it.”...[+]

GUYANA-An outgoing Insel Air flight, 81-791, to Aruba and other connecting destinations, was Thursday cancelled and the plane grounded after the pilot refused to transport eight Indian nationals who were refused entry to Guyana since July 19. Kaieteur News was told that Immigration Officers ordered Insel Air officials to take the men out of the jurisdiction yesterday morning but the pilot refused, claiming that the flight was filled. The men had arrived in Guyana on an Insel Air flight on one-way tickets and without visas.( Kaieteur News)…[+]

BEIJING — With airplane debris discovered on Reunion Island confirmed Thursday to be from the missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, an aviation security expert said future search mission should still center on finding the black box. Graham Braithwaite, aviation security expert at Britain’s Cranfield University, told Xinhua that the search for the black box is still the core objective, as the data within it is key to solving all the mysteries. In fact, given that such a long time has passed, precisely locating the black box is already too hard, Braithwaite said, but the discovery of the debris at least indicates that the search is in correct direction, and it may also dismiss those wild conspiracy theories. (Xinhua)…[+]

A priceless violin made in 1734 will be returned to its rightful owner Thursday — 35 years after it was stolen. The Stradivarius violin was swiped from renowned violinist Roman Totenberg in 1980 after a concert in Cambridge, Mass. On June 26 a violin appraiser recognized the missing instrument and alerted authorities, Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a release. The owner, who received the violin from a former spouse, relinquished it to authorities.(Nydailynews)…[+]

BEIJING  — The body of Zhang Jinfu, former State Councilor of China, was cremated on Thursday morning in Beijing. President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang, and senior leaders Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli, attended the funeral at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery in west Beijing. They paid their last respects to the remains, and offered his family their condolences. Zhang died aged 101 in Beijing on July 31.(Xinhua)…[+]

BEIJING  — Malaysia Airlines’ Beijing office has vowed to fully cooperate with the MH370 investigation, as consensus forms that the flaperon found on Reunion Island was part of the lost flight. It said in a statement on Thursday that it will continue to update passengers’ families on the search, and that it extended its “deepest sympathies to those affected.”Malaysia’s prime minister has said the flaperon had been confirmed as part of MH370, though other parties involved in the investigation have stopped short of expressing complete confidence. Some family members of the passengers have complained about the apparent mixed messages.(Xinhua)…[+]

“There is an increase in the number of flu cases in many parts of the country. We are dealing with influenza type A and B during this flu season,” said   Doctor Lesley Resida, director at the Public Health Bureau (BOG). The Public Health Bureau has visited several family doctors and has concluded that the number of flu cases is on the rise. “The rise can be expected when there is a constant change in the weather,” said Resida…[+]

Officers from the RBT Paramaribo police unit on Tuesday arrested a 51-year-old man on car theft, burglary and destruction of private property charges. Reports indicate that 6 people have filed a complaint against the suspect at the Munder Police Station. Police Inspector Sjaam Debi-Tewari, chief of police at the Munder Police Station, confirmed that the suspect is currently in police custody…[+]

USA – Top-ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight contenders Miesha Tate and Jessica Eye clashed on July 25, 2015 at UFC on FOX 16 inside United Center in Chicago, Illinois. While they were largely tough fights, Tate managed to rack up three straight wins after her second loss to division champion Ronda Rousey. By defeating Eye, Tate would earn another Top 10 victory and likely assure herself another shot at the crown.(mmamania)…[+]