| Thief Sentenced
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(XINHUA) |
Shi Baikui, who stole art pieces from the Palace Museum in Beijing in 2011, was sentenced to 13 years in prison, fined 13,000 yuan ($2,058) and was deprived of his political rights for three years, according to the ruling announced by the Second Intermediate People's Court of Beijing on March 19.
Shi, 27, a farmer from east China's Shandong Province, broke into the museum on May 8, 2011, and stole nine pieces of artwork made of gold and jewels. The missing items were on loan from the Hong Kong Liangyi Museum and were on temporary display at the Palace Museum.
Shi said he didn't accept the 13-year jail term and would appeal to a higher court.
China received $7.73 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in February, down 0.9 percent from a year ago, dropping for the fourth straight month, said the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM).
The amount for the first two months of this year totaled $17.72 billion, edging down 0.56 percent.
"China has maintained attractiveness to global investors, but capital inflows may continue tapering off due to the growing woes of developed economies," said Zhao Qingming, a researcher with China Construction Bank.
"Weakening expectation for the yuan's appreciation may have also impacted China's appeal as an investment destination," said Bian Weihong, a researcher with Bank of China.
In February 45 out of the 70 cities monitored reported month-on-month decreases in prices of new commercial residences, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics. Meanwhile, 21 cities recorded no price changes, and only four experienced price increases.
As for second-hand homes, prices in 45 cities dropped month on month in February, and only 11 cities saw their prices increase. Prices stayed unchanged in 14 cities.
The downward trend will continue into the rest of the year, said Feng Lianlian, an analyst with Beijing-based Homelink Property, citing property developers' rising debt pressure and the government's firm stance to control high home prices.
PayPal, an online payment platform for eBay Inc., plans to expand its presence in the burgeoning Internet market of China.
PayPal services are already used by merchants in the country to facilitate cross-border international payments. The company's plan is to make its online payment services available for domestic use in China as well.
"We are currently applying for a domestic payment license in China," said PayPal spokesman Dickson Seow.
In China, PayPal will potentially face off against AliPay, a payment company under local e-commerce giant Alibaba Group. Alipay currently controls around 46.9 percent of market share, according to data from the Beijing-based research firm Analysys International.
China increased its holdings in U.S. Treasury securities by $7.6 billion in January after five straight months of net reductions, said the U.S. Treasury Department.
China retained its position as the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury securities, with $1.16 trillion in its portfolio.
Analysts said foreign demand for U.S. Treasuries remains strong, reflecting the appeal of this "safe haven" asset for global investors even at a time when risk appetite is improving.
The Shanghai-based advertising network Focus Media reported $75.4 million in net profits in the fourth quarter of 2011, soaring 60 percent from a year ago, as ad income from its LCD display network and outdoor billboards boomed.
The company, which operates more than 155,700 LCD screens in office buildings nationwide, said sales revenue for the three months ending on December 31 increased 63 percent year on year to $256 million.
In the full year of 2011, its profit was $200.9 million and sales revenue reached $793 million.
In the second half of last year, Focus Media rolled out interactive advertising screens that allow users to receive discount information and download coupons to their cell phones.
The 2012 Beijing International Business Aviation Show will be held on September 4-7 in Beijing. More than 150 airplane manufacturers from home and abroad including Boeing, Airbus and Dassault will bring their latest products to the show.
The exhibition will focus on display of corporate aircrafts and helicopters, targeting wealthy buyers from energy and health care industries.
In October 2011 the government released new rules to reform management of its low-altitude airspace. Ever since then, the country's general aviation sector has experienced a significant boom, with corporate aircraft sales soaring. General aviation refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. | 
