10/07/2014 Asia Business Report

delays for passengers. Now on BBC News all the latest business news

live from Singapore. Budget day for India. Will the new

government deliver on promises to reform the economy? Both candidates

claim victory at Indonesia's presidential election with official

results due in two weeks. Welcome to Asia Business Report. India's new

government will be in the spotlight later today when it reveals its

first budget. With high inflation slowing growth and an implement

worries across the country, or will be a lot to look out for. We are

joined by a correspondent in Delhi. Some are calling this the budget of

hope and others say it is the most crucial since 1991. What are the

most salient features of this budget? I am actually standing right

in front of the parliament building and that is where Finance Minister

`` the Finance Minister will be delivering his budget today. It is

the first of the Narendra Modi government and that is why there is

a much expectation as the kind of majority they won and the elections

indicates the changes. Analysts believe that because of that

majority, they have the mandate to make tough decisions to fix the

economy because they may not based too much political opposition.

They're expecting bad decisions that might be unpopular like reducing

fuel subsidies which means making fuel more expensive for the people

of India, things like that which are actually needed to fix the economy

might be some of the things we hear today. And that could be the bitter

medicine. Narendra Modi is talking about but there could also be a

focus on manufacturing infrastructure and tax reforms. That

is right. We have been talking to a lot of business leaders in the past

few weeks and asking what they expect from the budget. What

industry is really looking out for is simply ways in which it can be

easier to do business here in India. One of the key things that

they want clarity on is the goods and services tax which basically

means a single common tax across the whole of India... In some places, if

you are running a business, you have to pay as many as 34 taxes and that

makes running a business very difficult and cumbersome. But they

are looking for is a concrete plan on how this single tax might be

implement it. It was proposed a few years ago and the previous

government said that they were making moves forward on it but there

has been no concrete plan so far and that is what industry will be

watching for. Thank you. She will be back for the next bulletin in about

an hour. Moving to Southeast Asia and Indonesia is in its tightest

election battle for the presidency since the end of egalitarian rule.

The candidates have each claimed victory and the election's final

results are not expected for two weeks but quick counts by posters

which are considered reliable given one the advantage over the other.

Earlier I spoke with a pollster. Certainty is what foreign investors

are looking for. They're looking for a smooth transition from one

administration to the next. The previous it ministration was not

very kind in terms of its erratic policymaking in its twilight moms.

`` months. They want something more pro`business. The concern amongst

investors will be this disputed result which could push out a smooth

transition and could upset the timetable. Indeed coming it could

upset the timetable for economic reforms going forward because if the

results are not accepted by either candidate, it could lead to a

further cloud of uncertainty on the economy which has been slowing down

since last year. Exactly. I think the post watchers at Indonesia were

looking forward to analyse thing who is going to populate the economic

ministries inside the next government. That trading should be

starting now rather than hustling over who should actually be the

president because those positions and the individuals and interest

groups who surround them are really going to set the chart for the next

Indonesian administration in terms of economic reform. Of course, your

clients want to find out if this is a time to stay on or to go to the

sidelines or move out of the country? There have been a lot of

speculation about the position on economic nationalism and a more

technocratic approach from the other candidate. I don't think there is

not much between them in all honesty. If we do get one

president, one has surround themselves with the country's vested

interest which will have a drag on reform but with the other, the party

is supporting him and they're quite heavily populated with their own key

sectors for foreign investors like mining and will resort to extraction

`` oil resource extraction, and that will have an impact on investment.

China will be offering fresh clues on how the country is faring

economically. Experts are hoping for improvement in imports and exports

with a vast amount of foreign trade conducted in US dollars there

although next year, it is estimated that 30% of its trade will be

carried out in its own currency. Earlier I spoke with a banker from

HSBC and asked him what this means for convertibility of currency in

terms of the ease with which a country's currency can be converted

into another. Our prediction is that it will be fully convertible in

roughly 2017. The nature of it becoming convertible is one of the

factors that is driving an increase in trade settlement. What difference

will that mean for China's trade figures? The issue for suppliers and

buyers that trade with China is a that, by adopting their currency, it

makes it easier for suppliers or buyers to build a long`term

sustainable relationships with their counterparts and what our survey has

said is that of companies surveyed, 47% believe there is a financial

benefit in trading with that currency. Such as price discounts

and availability. 49% also believe there is a relationship benefit in

using it as the trade currency as opposed to an alternative currency.

What do they mean by that? Making it easier for them to win business in

China and seeing themselves as being differentiated from other buyers or

suppliers in their industry who are trying to trade with China and maybe

only trade in the euro or the US dollar. Cities across Asia are

facing the largest sustained population migration in human

history. City leaders are using technology to tackle challenges like

budget cuts, limited natural resources, and infrastructure that

is outdated. We spoke to someone about using Microsoft technology to

provide safer cities. As we look at cloud coming mobile, and things like

that, their new things that cities can do for infrastructure for the

future and it is about putting people first and providing solutions

that create jobs and more sustainable cities. You have some

examples about applying technology to real`life situations? We have

many. One of them comes around public safety. We have a fantastic

partner called Signal that is based in New Zealand and it is looking at

social media feeds in terms of events that are happening and having

a constant pulse on what is happening in the city vote for

emergency responders and also for determining how happy the city is in

any given day. It can be used in public safety and other applications

because social media is having a dramatic impact on how governments

create a sustainable and exciting city. It is not just public safety

that transport is also an issue. What is really exciting in this era

of big data, we are providing opportunities to unleash data in new

ways and in Kathmandu, we held an creating contest, and through this

technology, you can see within on your mobile device, where the

transportation stops or if a bust line is delayed. It is important to

know if your timelines will be Matt, if you are a parent meeting your

child on the bus stop `` delayed. It will create new opportunities for

cities and opportunities for jobs. Thank you so much for investing your

time with us. `` app`creating contest. 'm Mike Embley. The top

stories this hour. Gaza's deadly conflict continues to escalate, a

second day of