The yuan broke the 7.4 mark against the US dollar for the first time yesterday largely fueled by expectations that China is seeking a quicker appreciation of the currency to fight inflation. more ›

But they only get RMB 25,000 in damages. The movie companies involved in the suit were New Line Productions, Walt Disney, Warner Bros Entertainment, Columbia Pictures, Universal Studios, 20th Century Fox and Paramount Pictures. The defendant was listed as Shanghai Leying Audio Visual Co. Ltd, but this story tells us the company also went by the name "Kadi" and was " well-known to many expatriates in Shanghai for selling pirated products." We think it might be safe to assume that they are talking about Ka De Club, the chain (?) of DVD shops that has been fleecing foreigners for years (OK, perhaps fleecing is a little strong — their prices were around 3 or 4 kuai higher than other shops selling the same thing). Evidently, the name change occurred after charges were filed, so the shop could continue to operate. We've lost track of Ka De — it moved around quite a bit over the years, trying to avoid Johnny Law, we assume (the raid that led to this lawsuit was in Changning) — and then there were Ka De clones, we think, trying to cash in on the "good" name. We have a feeling they'll be back. more ›

Thrill seekers in Pudong will have to stick to the street food for the forseeable future -- Universal Studios has shelved its much-ballyhooed plans for a Shanghai theme park, Reuters reports, adding that Universal's announcement opens the door for Disney to formalize its Shanghai park plans -- which aren't happening until after 2010. Don't fear, folks, there's always The Mummy Returns Live over at Zhongshan park if you feel like buying an overpriced ticket for something. more ›