Traffic accidents on China's roads killed 46,000 people and injured 236,000 in the first six months of the year, the government said Friday, according to AP. Some 229,000 accidents occurred causing direct economic losses of 960 million yuan (US$118.37 million; ¤95 million), the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing a report from the Ministry of Public Security. Traffic accidents in China killed more than 107,000 people last year, making its roads among the world's deadliest. On Thursday, five people were killed and three were injured when a bus collided with a fuel truck in western Gansu province, Xinhua said in a separate report. An initial investigation showed that the bus driver, who was among those killed, had no license. Accidents caused by reckless driving, poor road conditions and overloaded vehicles are reported almost daily, as a rising number of people own cars due to the country's economic boom. The World Health Organization estimates that road accidents cost China's economy up to US$21 billion (¤16 billion) each year, more than 1 percent of gross national product. --SP 1232 Local Time 0932 GMT
