New Express
April 16, 2009

Hundreds of parents took to the Dongguan streets yesterday to distribute fliers with information about their missing children, the New Express reported. Some of them told the newspaper that more than 1,000 children had been abducted in the city since 2007.

The article reported that the parents had put up more than 10 million yuan as a reward for people who can bring their children.

More widely reported today was a statement by PLA Navy Admiral Wu Shengli, who said in an April 13 media interview that China would develop "large-size surface combat vessels."

Chengdu Evening News
April 16, 2009

Speculation that China will acquire its first aircraft carrier has been gathering weight since the issue was brought up in this year's legislative sessions, and reports have begun to surface in the media fairly frequently. Wu's talk was immediately interpreted by some observers as a clear sign that an aircraft carrier is coming. Xinhua has more details here.

Another news item concerns China's rich. According to research released by Rupert Hoogewerf (胡润), mainland China has 825,000 people whose personal wealth exceeds 10 million yuan. Beijing tops the list of the upper ranks of the country's wealthy with 143,000, and Guangdong and Shanghai claim 137,000 and 116,000, respectively.

The numbers have resulted in locally-oriented headlines in different regions, including the Chengdu Evening News, which wondered, "Do you believe it? Hoogewerf says Chengdu has 650 people with more than 100 million yuan."