Rescuers extended their search for victims of a Chinese cruise ship sinking to include a vast stretch of the Yangtze rive, as the confirmed death toll rose to 396.
US lawmakers wrote Communist leader Xi Jinping on anniversary of the Tiananmen square crackdown, saying China's continued rights abuse is a "barrier" to improved bilateral ties.
China will more than double the tax on tobacco to 11 percent, as authorities try to deter smoking in the world's largest producer and consumer of tobacco.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Russia this week to attend World War II anniversary celebrations, with Kazakhstan and Belarus also on his itinerary.
Reclamation work in the disputed South China Sea, where China has constructed an airstrip and other structures on coral reefs, threaten to "undermine peace, security and stability" in the region.