【英语简明新闻】Headline News 2016 February 29

Li meets Jacob Lew, pledges to deepen structural reform Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has pledged to deepen the country's structural reforms in face of a slowing economy. During a meeting with US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, the premier also ruled out devaluing the Chinese currency as a short-cut to boosting exports. Li Keqiang has told Lew that China is moving ahead with a long-term plan to reduce excess production capacity in industries in which supply exceeds demand, particularly in the areas of steel and coal. He has also pledged to properly handle the issue of unemployment in the process of reducing overcapacity. China cuts reserve requirement ratio for fifth time since February 2015 China's central bank has decided to cut the amount of cash the country's commercial banks must hold as reserves in the latest effort to bolster economic growth. Starting from March 1, the required reserve ratio for the banks will drop by 0.5 percentage points to 17 percent. This is the fifth such cut since Feb. 2015. China last cut the required reserve ratio on Oct. 23, when it also reduced interest rates by 25 basis points to rein in social financial costs. China to unveil retirement age plan in 2016: official China is working on a plan on raising the retirement age to cope with pressures from a shrinking work force and an aging society. Minister of Human Resources and Social Security, Yin Weimin, says the plan will be released this year to solicit public opinion. He says the policy changes will be phased in over a long period of time, with only slight annual increases. China's retirement age is 60 for men, 55 for female white-collar workers and 50 for female blue-collar employees. The policy was adopted six decades ago when life expectancies were much lower. At least 30 dead in Baidoa, Somalia, bombings: governor At least 30 people have been killed in twin bomb attacks in the Somali city of Baidoa. An initial car bomb struck a popular restaurant in a busy part of the city on Sunday afternoon, with a suicide bomber nearby hitting people as they fled the area. Local officials say more than 60 others have been injured, adding the victims were all civilians. The Al-Qaeda aligned Al- Shebab Islamists have claimed responsibility for the attacks, saying local officials were their target. Iranian parliamentary poll points to reformist gains The latest results of Iran's parliamentary elections are pointing to gains by the country's reformists. In Tehran, the reformist coalition has secured all 30 seats representing the nation's capital in parliament. But conservatives are still leading the race with a narrow margin in other regions where counting has been concluded. Observers believe the next parliament will open further space for the reformists and moderates. The results are seen as a blow to the hard-liners opposing President Hassan Rouhani's agenda to liberalize the economy and cooperate with the West. Pakistan on alert as governor's assassin is hanged Security has been beefed up in Pakistan after the government hanged an assassin of a governor seeking reform of the country's blasphemy law. Islamist supporters of Mumtaz Qadri had threatened violence if he was executed. Qadri, a former police bodyguard, shot liberal Punjab governor Salman Taseer 28 times in Islamabad in 2011. He later admitted the killing, saying he objected to the politician's calls to reform controversial blasphemy laws. Blasphemy is a hugely sensitive issue in Pakistan. Qadri has been hailed as a hero by many conservatives eager to drown out any calls to soften the legislation. France begins dismantling migrant slum in Calais French authorities have begun dismantling the sprawling migrant camp in Calais where thousands have set up camp hoping to make their way to a better life in Britain. The move comes after a court ruled that the shanties could be destroyed but not the common spaces that have also sprung up, like places of worship, schools and a library. The camp has existed for years in Calais, which has ferries across the English Channel and the Eurotunnel rail to Britain. But now with an estimated 4-thousand migrants in the slum, the situation in Calais has become a flashpoint for Europe's immigration crisis. Beijing life expectancy nears 82 years An official report shows that life expectancy in Beijing reached nearly 82 years in 2015, a slight increase over 2014. The report by the Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning also shows the infant mortality rate was 0.2 percent. It notes that the capital's top three fatal diseases were cancer, heart diseases and cerebral vascular diseases.