The Wall Street Journal reports "China's shares reversed a recent sharp selloff, as investors elsewhere in Asia push off concerns about a default in Greece until the outcome of a referendum next Sunday. The Shanghai Composite Index closed up 5.5%, after falling more than 5% earlier. The index is still off 17% from its June 12 high. Despite that rout, China's main benchmark is up 14% for the second quarter, and has more than doubled over the past year. Chinese authorities worked swiftly to draw a line under the stock declines. On Tuesday, officials said they are considering lowering stamp duties on stock purchases, which would encourage buying. The central bank also added more cash into the financial system, following a cut to interest rates over the weekend."
Reuters writes, "China has completed some of its land reclamation on the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, the Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, raising the stakes in Beijing's territorial dispute with its Asian neighbors. China stepped up its creation of artificial islands last year, alarming several countries in Asia and drawing criticism from Washington. The United States, which has called for a halt in China's island building, said earlier this month that it was concerned about Beijing's plans for more construction work, including for military defense. China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a daily briefing that the land reclamation projects on some islands and reefs in the South China Sea had been completed "in recent days". China had been working on land reclamation projects on seven reefs among the tiny islets at the center of the maritime territorial dispute involving the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei. Recent satellite images have shown a hive of work on China's new islands. U.S. officials say China has reclaimed 1,500 acres of land this year alone."
The Associated Press reports, "four days of heavy rain have caused severe flooding in central China, killing at least 15 people and leaving 19 others missing, China's Ministry of Civil Affairs said Tuesday. The deaths in four provinces and one municipality were from drownings, mudslides and house collapses, the ministry said. Up to 51.4 centimeters (20 inches) of rain fell in the eastern city of Changzhou from Friday to Monday, and water levels of rivers and lakes were dangerously high in a six-province region across the country's central part, the ministry said. Millions of people have been affected by the heavy rains since Friday and tens of thousands were relocated, the ministry said. Heavy rain in southern China earlier in June left at least 18 people dead."