CNN news 2013-05-12 加文本

cnn news 2013-05-12

How much sleep should we get and why are wegetting it? Some ABCs of these just a few minutes. First up, today, Wall Street.Yesterday, the Down Jones industrial average closed today about 15,000. That'ssignificant, but why? For starters, it has never happened before and thatnumber 15,000 comes from a complicated formula based 30 stocks that part ofDown Jones average. Higher number equals higher value for those starts. Thosecompanies represented for a variety of industries. The Downs gives an idea howthe stock market is doing and stock is one indicator how the U.S. economy isdoing. So, when the Dow reaches a new record, it means investors are feelingmore positive experts saying this is a sign that the U.S. economy is improving.

Next, President Obama welcomed South KoreaNPResident Park Geun-hye to the White House yesterday. This is the first visitto the United States as South Korea's leader. The countries have been alliesfor decades. And as part of  thatrelationship the two countries run joint military exercises every year. Majorpart of this year exercises have wrapped up last week. Something else the U.S.and South Korea have a common, both countries have a tense relationship withNorth Korea. That country recently made threats against South Korea and U.S.Thetension has calmed down a little bit, the North Korea gave a new warning thisweek about military drills happening off the west coast of Korean Peninsula.

See, if you can ID me. I am a country thathas one of world's only communist governments. I am the fourth largest nationin sizes, but I have the world's second largest economy. I am first when itcomes to the population.I am China and I became the world's second largesteconomy in 2010.

China took over that number two economicranking because its economy grew. Something you hear U.S. politicians talk alot about economic growth, usually it has considered a good thing. When acountry's economy growth too much too quickly. There is a chance it can startsupplying things that aren't in demand. Ivan Watson gives us one big example:

It's May Day a national holiday here inChina and in this factory town; families are packed into this amusement parkoutside a big shopping mall, all taking advantage the day off to have a goodtime.

From the outside this place looks like afestive boom town, but the view inside it's very very different. Take look atthis, this is the new south China mall. When it opened more than five yearsago, it was promoted as the world's largest shopping mall. But look at ittoday, the escalators are covered with sheets, the elevators are not evenworking and it is virtually deserted a ghost mall some people call it. Thereare almost shops opened into this entire place in fact, it looks like there arevery very few retail tenants operating any business here at all. The ground islittered with garbage and it smells like a lot of people have been using thisplace as a giant public bathroom.

It's here in this eerie urban landscapethat we stumble across to the Taiwanese businessmen who say the timing was badfor the new South China Mall.

You can't say just because you build it, itwill work. You have to have enough demand first.

The businessmen say they are negotiating adeal to turn the failed shopping mall into office park. It's too early to saywhether not these Taiwanese businessmen were succeed and turning what wassupposed to be a Venetian-inspired shopping experience into a profitable officecenter. But it's important to know this is not the first ghost mall we've seenin China. There are perhaps examples of what happens when the economy tries togrow too big to fast. You are bound to get some pretty big mistakes along theway.

Ivan Watson, cnn, Dongguan in southernChina.