Dirty, polluted and congested -- China's large cities have an unenviably poor reputation. But Xiamen, located on the south-east coast two-and-a-half hours by plane from Beijing, is so different from that image that you could be forgiven for thinking you are no longer in China.

China has never promised South Sudan $8-billion in development funds after President Salva Kiir visited Beijing in April, a senior diplomat has said.

Chinese officials accused the United States of double standards on Wednesday for criticising China's oil investments in Africa, and insisted the country had a positive role to play in the continent's development. China's booming energy demand and Africa's bountiful oil resources are mutually beneficial, the officials said.

China's new president Xi Jinping will be under pressure to tackle growing inequality and pervasive corruption.

Accusations by a US computer company that a secretive Chinese military unit is likely behind a series of hacking attacks are unreliable, says China.

The Beijing city government has said that it will give users of micro blogs three months to register with their real names or face legal consequences.

Chinese media praised President Hu Jintao's visit to the United States on Friday as a diplomatic "masterstroke" in easing tensions.

The leaders of the Brics nations have voiced lofty goals, from rebalancing the global economy to giving the developing world more say in the G20.