Talking points

Our editors will be looking ahead today to these developing stories ...

Donald Tsang, Guangdong chief lead talks

Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen and Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua (pictured) lead delegations to the 14th plenary session of the Hong Kong-Guangdong Co-operation Joint Conference, to discuss measures to enhance co-operation. Agreements covering several areas of co-operation will be signed.

Mapping centre opens in Beijing

A national innovation hub in Beijing for surveying and mapping opens to the media tomorrow. Experts will give briefings on surveying and mapping work in China's west, as well as the updating of the 1:50,000 geomatic database. China will launch its first high-definition civilian survey satellite at the end of the year, which will help map its western region.

Foxconn to report on second quarter

Foxconn Technology Group, maker of the iPhone, reports second-quarter earnings. The Taiwanese company, which also controls Hon Hai, makes most of Apple's products - including the iPad - at its Shenzhen factories.

Cross-strait summit may be delayed

A summit scheduled for this week between the central government and Taiwan's top negotiator, at which a deal on mutual investment protection was expected to be reached, may be postponed. Media speculate that the seventh meeting between the president of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait, Chen Yunlin (pictured, left), and the chairman of Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation, Chiang Pin-kung, (pictured, right) may be delayed to mid-September at the earliest. Nearly a million Taiwanese businessmen have investments on the mainland.

Strauss-Kahn rape case returns to court

Former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, accused of trying to rape a hotel maid in New York, returns to court, with prosecutors likely to drop the sexual assault case amid lingering questions about his accuser's credibility. Strauss-Kahn, 62, was arrested on May 14, hours after Nafissatou Diallo (right) accused him of trying to rape her in his suite at the Sofitel. He resigned from the IMF on May 19. Diallo, who sought political asylum in the US, told prosecutors in June that she lied to immigration authorities over a gang rape in Guinea. She also changed her story about what she did immediately after Strauss-Kahn's alleged attack.

Kim, Medvedev summit to focus on energy

A summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (left, arriving in northeastern Russia) and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev could occur as early as today, with talks expected to focus on nuclear disarmament and the building of a pipeline to bring Russian natural gas to both Koreas. South Korean media said the North could earn up to US$100 million a year from the pipeline, but not much progress has been reported on talks because of the nuclear dispute. Kim's rare visit to Russia comes amid signs the North is increasing efforts to get aid and restart six-nation nuclear talks stalled for more than two years.