15/08/2014 Asia Business Report

apartment near London. Now on BBC News all the latest

business news live from Singapore. As European growth stalls with its

major trading partners in Asia, people are starting to feel the

fallout. And a sport is now finding its mark in Asia.

Welcome to Asia Business Report. Hong Kong and Malaysia and Taiwan

are all due to unveil their fresh economic numbers later today. As we

wait for those numbers, there are concerns for investors that the

world economy is heading for a major slowdown following week growth

figures from Japan and the Eurozone this week. However, stocks shrugged

off the bad news. Asian stocks are trading slightly higher, with the

exception of Japan. The Dow Jones ended higher overnight. In Europe,

markets gained despite learning via Roseann's recovery ground to a halt

in the second quarter. `` the Eurozone's. What is causing this? I

spoke to a chief economist at the bank of Singapore. One of the things

supporting the markets is the week growth increases the chance that

this loose monetary policy will extend in the future. It is those

loose monetary conditions and low interest rates that have been

supporting the demand for the stock market. But you do not have those

policies for the likes of New Zealand, Indonesia, India and the

Philippines. Even in the case of Australia and New Zealand, the

expectations that interest rates would be going up a lot have faded.

Australia are even talking about reductions. This could also hamper

corporate earnings going forward. From the mindset of many investors,

they are lowering forecasts. The recession would be good for nobody

if there was a proper decline in growth. We are not talking about

that. Corporate earnings coming out of America have been relatively

strong. News from Japan has been pretty good as well. We are any part

of the economy where growth is not so worried about. It is not so weak

that you are worrying about a fall in profits. People are looking for

investment opportunities and finding growth in the stock market. We have

some numbers coming out of Malaysia, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

These countries rely on China. Numbers coming from the mainland are

rather mixed. What do we expect to see? What might happen is the credit

bubble unravelling. The growth in China in the second quarter was

quite good. They have some various stimulus measures. It does look as

if the growth in Taiwan will be 4%, Malaysia 5%, Hong Kong 3%. The

problem is what happens if China slows down Hydro. Places like Taiwan

will be affected. `` slows down harder. In other business News

making headlines, a 70% stake is being purchased in monster beverage

for more than $2 billion. It drove up shares of the 2%.

Coca`Cola has been shrunk to offset slowing sales by buying popular

alternative drinks. Club Med's offer has been withdrawn.

The stock market regulator approved a rival bid made by an Italian

businessmen. He offered to pay 790 million euros for the holiday

chain, which was 22% higher than the previous bid. Whether you use them

for sending e`mails, playing games or taking pictures, smartphones are

big business in many parts of the globe.

While India has the second`highest number of mobile phone subscribers

in the world, about 930 million, the latest figures show that only one in

eight of them are smartphones. But that is changing.

There is no shortage of places when it comes to buying a smartphone in

India. Over 20 brands to choose from in the market. All of them are

trying to push performance by improving reliability and functions.

But it is the price that is fuelling demand in a big way. The sales

growth and population means more and more companies are launching

products. A China `based company sold thousands of handsets through

an online website. Partly helped by low prices, these entrants are

eating into the market share of. These include local brands and

global giants like Samsung and Motorola's. It has got a lot of

different users. It has got people who speak different languages. It is

quite different age groups, different consumer preferences. To

succeed in India, any player has to be able to offer a different range

of models. A small number of models will not work in India. There is a

variety of demand. It is not just about the handsets. The boss of one

of India's largest retailers says the rise of fast mobile Internet

access will also boost sales. Countries are waiting for 4G to

happen. That will be a game changer. More access to the Internet and

better connectivity, the business will grow. India's competition means

barely a week goes by without the launch of another smartphone. It is

often accompanied by a hefty discount. The eventual winner could

be the Indian consumer. Have you ever played darts? It is

now considered a global sport. In Asia, one with an expanding fan

base. That means it is a growing business. The first ever World

Series ducks competition in the region starts in a week. `` darts.

This is probably how you think of darts.

In a pub. It is not commonly called a sport. We do not usually describe

the people who play it as athletes. But think again. This is a serious

business. Meet this five`time world champion, a Dutch man. These

top`ranked players, all in Singapore this weekend to show the locals held

darts are done. We want to promote the sport more and more. More and

more countries will get involved. More and more companies will sponsor

their best players. At the end, there is more money involved as

well. Already, there is massive money in darts. Players will be

fighting to win $100,000. And for the promotions, they are hoping it

will eventually bring in the group turns. We are not just a one hit

wonder. We will be coming back to Singapore. The potential is huge.

But the game you see here is not quite the same as the one embraced

by Asian players. This is soft darts. Instead of steel tips, the

ends are plastic points. Instead of doing the numbers in your head, the

electronic board calculates the school. `` scorer. When you hit it,

you feel happy. It has been popular in Japan for years. It is now

sweeping across the region. Every one of these machines Anns on

average $800 per month. And that about $1 per game, the numbers are

growing every day. It attracts up to 200 new players per week. There is

no denying more people are adopting the game. Where there is

popularity, the players and promoters are hopeful there is

profit. Do you have $200,000 to spare? If

so, you will be able to get one share in a US investment company.

The company saw its stock price hit a record $200,000 on Thursday,

making it the most expensive stock on US markets. Thank you for

investing your time with us. Here are the headlines: Iraq's Prime

Minister has agreed to step down. Resident Obama has said American

airstrikes have freed most of the people trapped by militants on Mount

Sinjar in the north of