Talking points

Australia continues its efforts to build ties with China as Prime Minister Julia Gillard meets Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing. Gillard, who led a large Australian delegation to the Boao Forum in Hainan , which ended yesterday, has made building ties with Asia a key plank of her strategy as she seeks re-election later this year. China is Australia's largest trading partner, with goods and services deals worth A$128 billion (HK$1.04 trillion).

Bolshoi Ballet principal dancer Nikolai Tsiskaridze attends the first hearing of a civil lawsuit he is bringing against the theatre's director as part of an effort to unseat him. The battle between the two men reflects tensions at the famed Moscow theatre that spilled into the open in January's acid attack against the ballet's artistic director, Sergei Filin.