China has kicked off its seventh national population census with around 7 million staff to visit homes.
The National Development and Reform Commission says the census is critical to understanding the population size, structure and distribution.
It also says the census helps formulate national strategy for responding to the challenges of an aging population, as well as promoting high-quality development.
The census collects data including the name, ID number, gender, marital status, education and profession of Chinese citizens.
China's online retail sales reached over 8 trillion yuan, roughly 1.2 trillion U.S. dollars, in the first three quarters, up 10 percent year on year.
Online retail sales in rural areas reached 1.2 trillion yuan during this period.
Ministry of Commerce spokesperson Gao Feng says online retail has accelerated the digital transformation of the market, boosted new business forms and models, and injected momentum into the digital economy.
Hainan Province will launch a consumer products expo in the spring.
The first China International Consumer Products Expo is to be held in Haikou from May 7 to 10.
The exhibition will feature fashion, food, automobiles, electronics and medicare.
Chinese authorities aim to build the island province into a globally-influential high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.
A senior UK cabinet minister says a month-long lockdown could be extended if the infection rate does not decline.
The UK will enter a second lockdown starting Thursday as part of efforts to contain a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cabinet minister Michael Gove says if the new measures prove successful some of the restrictions will be lifted in December.
The R number represents the average number of people that one infected person will pass the virus on to.
At present the number is between 1.1 and 1.3, meaning on average every ten positive people will infect up to 13 other people.
During lockdown, pubs, restaurants, gyms, non-essential shops and places of worship will close, but schools, colleges and universities can stay open.
The United Kingdom is recording more than 20,000 new coronavirus cases a day and more than 46,000 people have died from COVID-19 so far.
Iran has reported over 400 COVID-19 deaths, its highest number for a single day.
Iran's total COVID-19 deaths have risen to more than 35,000 since the start of the outbreak.
The Iranian health ministry also reported more than 7,700 new infections, raising the total number of cases to more than 620,000.
The ministry says 27 out of 31 provinces are on red alert for a high risk of infection, while the other four are on yellow alert.
Due to the COVID-19 resurgence, the government last month imposed strict protective measures and compulsory use of face masks in Tehran and other major cities.
A new poll shows that U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is leading President Donald Trump by ten percentage points nationally.
Biden's support stands at 52 percent to Trump's 42 percent among national registered voters.
The poll found that Biden is ahead of Trump by six points in 12 battleground states including Florida, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.
It also found that 57 percent of voters disapprove of Trump's handling of COVID-19, while 55 percent approve his administration's dealing with the economy.
At least ten people are dead and three others are missing after Typhoon Goni swept across the Philippine island of Luzon.
Over 390-thousand people have been displaced, with over 340-thousand of them staying in government evacuation centers.
The typhoon has triggered floods and mudslides in the Bicol region, causing destruction in 12 out of the 17 regions in the Philippines.
It is heading towards the South China Sea, and is forecast to weaken into a severe tropical storm.