Global celebrations highlight worldwide enthusiasm for China's Mid-Autumn Festival

As China's Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, colorful celebrations are taking place around the globe, highlighting worldwide enthusiasm for the charm of Chinese culture. The Mid-Autumn Festival, one of the most important traditional Chinese holidays, falls on Sept 25 this year. Celebrated on the night of a full moon, it is a time when families gather to share mooncakes, light lanterns and admire the moon, a symbol of reunion.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between China's Shanghai and the German city of Hamburg. To mark the occasion, a Mid-Autumn gala was held at the traditional Chinese-style Yuyuan Garden in Hamburg. Modeled on its Shanghai namesake, the garden was built to honor their special partnership.

At the event, a folk music quintet, dances and dramas took the stage, drawing warm applause as Chinese and German residents gathered to celebrate the festival. "I'm very pleased to attend the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration held at the Yu Garden in Hamburg. Hamburg and Shanghai have walked hand in hand for 40 years. Celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival together today sends a beautiful message: even when we are far apart, we will still reunite, and our hearts remain with our family and friends," said Andre Trepoll, first vice president of the Hamburg Parliament.

Mooncakes, tea, music and cultural activities brought more than 600 people from Myanmar and China together in Yangon, offering an opportunity to experience traditions shared across the two neighboring countries.

The cultural event was held as part of celebrations ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday and was jointly organized by the Yunnan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, the China Cultural Center in Yangon, and the Bank of China.

Chinese artists from Yunnan and Myanmar presented music, dance and other cultural performances. Around 30 booths showcased tea, mooncakes and cultural artifacts, while visitors took part in interactive activities, including DIY mooncake making.

In addition, a variety of vibrant Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations were also staged in many places across Canada.

The city of Nanaimo on the east coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia held a Mid-Autumn Festival lantern display. Local residents enjoyed Chinese cuisine, watched a film at an open-air cinema, and celebrated the festival amid colorful lanterns and fireworks.

Alongside celebrations in Toronto and Vancouver, the small city of Burlington in southern Ontario held its first Mid-Autumn event on Friday, featuring an Asian night market at the city's largest shopping mall complete with Chinese cultural performances, lion dances and Kung Fu demonstrations.

Global celebrations highlight worldwide enthusiasm for China's Mid-Autumn Festival

Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond yield temporarily spiked to 3.055 percent on Wednesday, the first trading day after the country's five-day Silver Week holiday period.

According to public broadcaster NHK, the 10-year government bond yield, a key barometer of long-term interest rates, reached its highest level since September 1996.

Bond prices and yields maintain an inverse relationship. As bond yields rise, bond prices fall, and conversely, when yields decline, bond prices rise.

Higher bond yields will put further pressure on Japan's debt-servicing costs. According to the International Monetary Fund, Japan has the highest public debt ratio among advanced economies, at about 207 percent of its gross domestic product. That is roughly double the average of the Group of Seven economies.

Japan's 10-year gov't bond yield hits highest level since Sept 1996