Beijing - Negotiators from Taiwan and China signed a series of agreements Sunday to increase cooperation and investment across the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan's chief negotiator Chiang Pin-kung, chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation, met Chen Yunlin from the mainland Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits in the southern city of Nanjing.

Taiwan agreed to clear the way for Chinese companies to do business on the island, the state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

Taipei- Some 1,000 Falun Gong practitioners rallied in the Taiwanese capital Taipei on Saturday to protest ten years of persecution in mainland China, where the spiritual group was founded. Standing in front of a huge banner bearing the words Falun Gong Is Good, the Falun Gong members - in total silence - performed meditation rituals.

The protest, which was also held by Falun Gong members in major cities around the world, marked the 10th anniversary of Falun Gong's protest against China's persecution, as Beijing cracked down on the group and declared it a cult in 1999.

Taipei - Taiwan's top negotiator Chiang Pin-kung travelled to Nanjing, China Saturday for talks in Beijing on economic and judicial cooperation across the Taiwan Strait. "During the talks, we will stick to the interests of Taiwan and its public, and sign three agreements on joint efforts to fight crime, financial cooperation and regular flight service," Chiang said before the trip.

The two sides would also issue a joint statement on Chinese investment in Taiwan, he said.

Taipei - At least two Chinese tourists were killed and four others injured Friday in Taipei when a crane from 37th floor of a building construction site fell on their tour bus, the city mayor said.

"The accident occurred when the tour bus with 25 passengers from the Chinese province of Guangdong drove near the construction site," said Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin.

Taipei - Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou said Friday that the up-coming Taipei-Beijing dialogue is intended to build mutual trust and is vital for Taiwan's survival.

Ma made the remark while receiving the Taiwan delegation ahead of the talks to be held in Nanjing, China, Friday through Saturday.

Ma said that in the past 11 months since he took office, Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and China's Association for Relations across the Taiwan Straits
(ARATS) have been building mutual trust.

Taipei - Taiwan's export orders contracted for the sixth-straight month in March, falling 24.29 per cent from the same month a year earlier, but the decrease eased somewhat because of a slight recovery in global demand, the Economics Ministry said Thursday. The island received orders worth 23.94 billion US dollars in March, a fall of 18.99 per cent from February and an improved figure from the record contraction of 41.67 per cent registered in January, the ministry said in a statement.