Just as Europe is hoping for China to be its sugar daddy financial savior, tourism industries throughout the Asia Pacific region are bending over backwards to court Chinese tourists and the revenue boost they represent. We thought a special round-up on the subject was in order. more ›

• Whether or not you believe in this commentary about how China is like Apple - and we're pretty sure we don't because, well, your iPod can't force you to have an abortion and Jobs can't menace you for meeting with people it finds "unstable" - it's an interesting read. [A Product Guy]
• Like for instance, China has now explicitly said it opposes Obama meeting with the Dalai Lama and doing so would "seriously undermind the political foundation of Sino-U.S. relations." [AP]
• And then responding to the Taiwan arms sale, Beijing has said it will retailiate against the U.S. by suspending military ties and imposing sanctions on American companies involved. [The Globe and Mail]

• The list of U.S. cities er... places hoping for a new and exciting relationship with Chinese tourists now includes Hawaii, California and Las Vegas [USA Today]
• Can China's new plans to curb the carbon intensity of its economy really help break the impasse at Copenhagen and kick start the stalled U.S. senate? HA! Dream on. [WSJ]
• Of all things China wants to be, a global burden-sharing partner of the U.S. is not one of them. "We do not approve of the notion of G-2," Premier Wen said, adding that China has a long ways to go "before it becomes a modernized country." [AsiaTimes]

Chinese tourists on National Holiday killed roughly 300 butterflies a day at the Shanghai Botanic Garden - meaning that the destination has lost around 2,400 of the insects over the last eight days. It tried to hire three volunteers to prevent visitors from grabbing at the butterflies to take pictures of themselves with the insects, but three volunteers apparently couldn't do much versus 10,000 visitors. Ginkgo trees, which tourists shook for fruit, were also damaged. Source: Shanghai Daily more ›

Due to the ongoing riots in Thailand, the Chinese government has issued a warning suggesting that tourists postpone their trips into the country. According to the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok, all Chinese travelers in the country are currently believed to be fine, but that the unstable political situation should be taken into account. Many tourism companies insisted they had modified their tours to stay away from places near the riots and could guarantee the safety of Chinese tourists, however they would refund delayed or canceled trips. Last week, the riots, carried out by supporters of ousted ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, forced the shutdown of the ASEAN convention and the quick evacuation of some of Asia's top leaders from the country. Yesterday, they escalated into violent confrontations with troops, leaving scores wounded and two dead. more ›