Taipei - Taiwan's state-funded Straits Exchange Foundation said Monday that China had apologized to Taiwan for the losses and troubles caused by the recent tainted milk scandal.

The foundation said it received a letter of apology to Taiwan's consumers and manufacturers Monday from the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits.

Beijing- Mainland China's stock markets plummeted Monday by more than 6 per cent to their lowest levels in more than two years over global recession fears.

The Shanghai Composite Index dropped 116.27 points, or 6.32 per cent, to close at 1,723.35. The Shenzhen Component Index plunged 424.14 points, or 6.89 per cent to close at 5,734.81.

Washington, Oct 27 : A tunnel, buried for nearly 2000 years, has been found in Changan City, Shaanxi Province, in China.

According to a report in The Epoch Times, the entrance to the 4-meter deep tunnel was found during reconstruction of the Han Dynasty’s Xian Gate.

The tunnel, which is intact and filled with mud, might have been built as an escape route for the emperors, according to an archaeologist.

Wang said that the Xian Gate, the gate closest to the Weiyang Palace (a palace complex, located near the city of Changan), was an entrance that was likely used by the royal families.

He said there were only two reasons for building such a tunnel under an entrance near the palace.

Taipei - A Taiwan delegation flew to China Monday to hold preparatory talks on the upcoming Taipei-Beijing dialogue aimed at expanding exchanges across the Taiwan Strait.

The 11-member delegation is led by Kao Kung-lien, vice chairman of the Straits Exchange Association. The talks will be held Monday afternoon in Shenzhen, south China.

The talks would pave the way for the November 3 formal dialogue between Taipei and Beijing to discuss expanding exchanges as proposed by President Ma Ying-jeou.

China negotiator Chen Yunlin will be the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Taiwan since 1949, when Taiwan and China split at the end of the Chinese Civil War.

Beijing - Great potential is offered for European Union business investment in China's Sichuan province, parts of which were devastated by last May's earthquake, EU officials said Sunday.

"We want to give a sign that the situation is not just difficult, but that there are business opportunities there too," EU Chamber of Commerce President Joerg Wuttke said.

He was speaking during a conference of some 200 business people and officials attending a trade fair in Chengdu.

The area of the city and of nearby Chongding were home to 120 million people presenting "huge potential purchasing power", Wuttke said.

Beijing/ Onboard Air India One, Oct 26: Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh met his Chinese President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of the seventh two-day Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit in Beijing on Saturday.

Dr. Singh said the Chinese President agreed with him that the two countries would be able to achieve the trade target of 60 billion dollars set for 2010.