The Hong Kong authorities began destroying 15,000 chickens at a poultry market and suspended imports from mainland China after some birds were found to be infected with bird flu.

Firefighters fought for three hours to put out a blaze today at a major petrochemical refinery in the north-eastern Chinese city of Dalian, the second fire in two months at the facility, police and the company said.

Hundreds of children have been sold to Chinese factories as slave labour, reports said today.

AT least 32 people were killed, five missing and 116 injured as Typhoon Dujuan slammed into southern China, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.