【听 · 焦点】台风袭击沿海多地致12人遇难

Senior Chinese and US officials discuss bilateral ties, Afghanistan issue over phone

Senior Chinese and US officials have discussed bilateral relations and the Afghanistan issue.

That was part of telephone conversation between Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Yang Jiechi says China and the United States have been maintaining communications and cooperation in a wide range of areas, saying it is in the interests of both countries and the world at large.

Tillerson says that the U.S. is willing to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state and promote communications and cooperation.

He says President Trump is looking forward to his important visit to China, expressing hope for concerted efforts to make a success of the visit.

The two sides also exchanged views on the current situation of Afghanistan.

Sales of Xi's book on governance hit 6.42 mln

President Xi Jinping's book on the governance of China has inspired people home and abroad, selling 6.4 million copies in 21 languages.

The book "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China" is on display at the ongoing Beijing International Book Fair.

The Chinese leader's book has been issued in more than 160 countries and regions since its debut in September 2014.

The book contains 79 speeches, talks, interviews, notes and letters of the Chinese leader between November 2012 and June 2014.

12 killed as China hit by strongest typhoon of year

Twelve people have been killed in southern China since the arrival of the strongest typhoon of the year on Wednesday.

The fatalities include 8 in Macao and 4 in Guangdong province.

Also in Guangdong, local authorities have evacuated over 26,000 people to temporary shelters. About 660 hectares of farmland have been damaged.

China steps up deleveraging at central SOEs

A State Council executive meeting has decided that China will establish more channels to reduce corporate debts amid efforts to further deleverage at central State-owned enterprises.

The meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang agreed decided that debt ratios of over-leveraged sectors will be monitored.

（这里有一句留给大家来填空，记得听完留言写下你的答案哦！）

The meeting also pledged more support to push forward debt-for-equity swaps and explore new market-based models for the swaps.

Data showed that in the first seven months of this year, central SOEs registered profit growth of 16-percent year-on-year, while their debt ratio was down by 0.2-percent.

China softens restrictions on unregistered businesses

Chinese authorities have unveiled new plans to ease restrictions on unlicensed businesses.

A new regulation exempts licenses for people selling farm products and daily goods at sites and during times designated by governments at county levels or higher.

It stipulates that people using their skills to provide services do not need official approval.

Meanwhile, it requires market regulators to help businesses obtain licenses and certificates instead of simply shutting them down.

Unregistered business operators in China used to face fines and confiscation of the items necessary for their business.

The new rules suggest such fines should be reduced, while confiscation could be avoided.

UN racism committee issues 'warning' over US tensions

A UN committee tasked with combatting racism has issued a formal "early warning" over conditions in the United States.

Analysts say this is a rare move often used to signal the potential of a looming civil conflict.

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination says it has invoked its "early warning and urgent action procedure" because of the proliferation of racist demonstrations in the US.

It specifically noted the unrest in Charlottesville, Virginia, in which a woman was killed after an avowed white supremacist ploughed his car into a group of anti-racism counter-protestors.

U.S. Navy relieves Seventh Fleet commander in wake of collisions in Asia

The U.S. Navy says it has removed the Seventh Fleet Commander - Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin.

This comes after a series of collisions involving its warships in Asia as the search goes on for 10 sailors missing since the latest mishap.

A pre-dawn collision occurred between a guided-missile destroyer and a merchant vessel east of Singapore and Malaysia on Monday, the fourth major incident in the U.S. Pacific Fleet this year.

The Seventh Fleet, headquartered in Japan, operates as many as 70 ships and has around 140 aircraft and 20,000 sailors.

Lebanese army makes gains against Islamic State on northeast border

The Lebanese army is reportedly making gains in its battle against Islamic State.

This comes as the army advances on its northeast border to dislodge extremists from mountains straddling the border with Syria.

A Lebanese army spokesman says that 100 square kilometers had been recaptured since the offensive began.

The Syrian army and Lebanon's Hezbollah group are conducting a simultaneous but separate operation against the same pocket from inside Syria.

Rooney will never play for England again

England's record-holding goal scorer Wayne Rooney has announced his retirement from international football.

His announcement came after manager Graham Southgate told him he wanted him for the England team to meet Malta and Slovakia next month.

Rooney had recently re-joined his first club, Everton, after a glittering career at Manchester United where he earned the title of top goal scorer.

He scored two goals in his first two outings for Everton, where fans gave Rooney a hero's welcome to his home city of Liverpool.

The 31-year-old earned 119 international caps for England, scoring 53 goals.

小提示：新闻中间有一句，留给大家来做听力填空。

上期回顾： 呆萌大熊猫“贝贝”过生日

上期答案公布： The official statement comes after a report saying Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono is scheduled to visit Africa for a conference, where he will call for freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.

跟随英语环球，天天进步就从这每日一题开始吧！