12/08/2016 Asia Business Report

of onlookers. Stay with BBC World News. Child protection protection

expert has been appointed chair of the royal commission. Now on BBC,

Asia Business Report. China's commerce giant Alibaba

recording its strongest rise in revenue since its stock market

listing. And we met the import manager who make sure it is smooth

sailing all the way to the dock. Good morning Asia, hello, world. It

is a Friday. Almost a weekend. Glad you could join us for this edition

of Asia Business Report. I am Rico Hizon in Singapore. We start off

with the world's biggest e-commerce company Alibaba, recording revenue

up by almost 60%. The big question is can the online marketplace break

out of its poor Chinese market and become a truly global player? Our

correspondent has the details. Alibaba's dramatic jump in

international sales could be a sign that it is finally gaining some

momentum outside China. International sales were up 123% in

this last quarter. But that is still just a small part of Alibaba's

business, accounting for about 4% of total revenue. Alibaba's current

business model has analysts feeling pretty up heat. Most e-commerce

companies try to focus on the Chinese market and look at China as

a source of product, a source of stuff. Alibaba kind of text that

theory and turns it on its head in what they are doing as they are

using the international suppliers like American e-commerce companies

or offline companies, European companies, etc, as suppliers to

Chinese consumers. And while there is still room to grow in its core

market, these latest earnings show that perhaps Alibaba has potential

outside China. For more on Alibaba I spoke earlier to a correspondent.

Deeper in their earnings you will see that more than 70% of their

earnings is coming from their core e-commerce marketplace and if you

look at the consumer investment market, that is growing at 20%. So

their reach is growing and the amount of spending per person is

growing and what is more, they are growing really profitably, 60 plus

percentage. So I think the focus of growing their core is really first,

but it is not like they are ignoring the rest of the world. It seems like

e-commerce consumers want the discounts, they like buying online

rather than in brick and mortar shops but they have also diversify

into other businesses including cloud computer, driverless cars and

online shopping in Southeast Asia. Are they spreading themselves too

thin? I think if you look at the fundamentals, they are still having

e-commerce as their core, and these are the ecosystems they are building

around it. Let me give you the example of cloud computing. The

largest customer for the cloud computer business of Alibaba is the

marketplace. If you look at a marketplace it requires so much

computing power so therefore it is an area which is a logical extension

for them. Shares of Sharp surging in early trade after China's Foxcon

approve the deal. Malaysia has made headlines for all the wrong reasons

lately with corruption allegations surrounding state development fund.

Later today we will find out how its economy performed between April and

June. Stronger growth is forecast because of weaker demand for

commodities. The reputational damage from the scandal could impact its

economy in the future. The reputational issue is certainly

becoming more and more challenging. And going forward I think it will

begin to have an impact on FDI inflows and perhaps even portfolio

inflows. Malaysia actually had two very good quarters of foreign

investment inflows primarily because the Chinese bought a number of

assets in December and the first quarter of this year. So that helped

with the foreign investment numbers. The other big challenge for Malaysia

of course is oil. With oil prices this week, the fiscal position has

deteriorated. Last year's fiscal position was only 3% of GDP but in

the first quarter the deficit was about 6% of GDP. So I think we will

be watching very closely to see what the second quarter of fiscal numbers

are, because that would be indicative of potential trouble

ahead. Because if the deficit stays this large they will have to rein in

spending. The GST was a big boon to revenues last year. That is now

done. I don't think we can raise the GST rate. And so, really, there

isn't too much that can be done under the current circumstances,

given the fact that oil prices are low. And you know, there is a little

bit of potential for generating revenue from the palm oil sector but

not much else. Maternity leave for many working mothers in India will

be more than doubled after the country's Parliament voted changing

the law. At the moment only government workers qualify for more

than 12 weeks off following the birth of a baby but the new law will

bring India into line with many western countries. The BBC's

correspondent has more from Mumbai. Here in India only one in four

females aged 15 and over are in work, according to the World Bank.

This is one of the lowest workforce participation rates in the world. So

why? Well, raising a child is largely seen as a woman's job in

India, not a shared responsibility between both parents and half of

women in India quit their careers after having a baby. Existing laws

already give job protection during maternity and 12 weeks paid

maternity leave but now Parliament is changing the law, doubling paid

leave to 26 weeks, giving paid leave for adoption and surrogacy and

forcing firms employing more than 50 people to provide creche facilities.

These will help 2 million women across the country but what do the

women think? A sickly we have too many nuclear families in Mumbai and

especially in the suburbs so getting additional leave will definitely be

helpful -- basically. My friend is currently pregnant and I think it is

a really good idea of because her to come back in three months is too

short, you need more time with your baby and I think it is a good

decision. Keeping women in work is something that it is suggested will

boost India's economy. But for many, especially in the informal

environment, it will still depend on family support and perhaps changing

traditional attitudes towards work. Singapore's shipping terminals and

port facilities are some of the busiest in the world. In fact, they

handled more cargo tonnage than any port on earth. So who would want to

manage all those ships and all their containers? We hear why being a port

manager in Singapore is this man's dream job?

As the port Master in Singapore I am responsible for the safe passage of

goods. On a day-to-day basis my work covers various portfolios. I have

about 200 staff under me, ensuring the Port runs like clockwork. I

remember very clearly, when you do things differently, you make sure

you do it better. And whatever you do, try to do what is not known,

because doing something known, which is obviously the easiest way out of

doing it. So I embarked on a seagoing career at the age of 18,

which was not quite normal back then, and I sailed for 12 years,

plus the added experience of handling ships in the busiest port

in the world. In totality I have about 20 years of seagoing,

chipboard experience. Doing this job right now reflects back on the

things I have done before. -- ship-board. The ship handling skills

I have gained, personally, has allowed me to actually use that

knowledge, which is crucial, because without experience you find it very

difficult to understand the industry's problems. I don't think

there is such a thing called a normal day in my job, per se.

Because when you have 1000 ships calling the port home at one time,

you will have various degrees of domestic issues and international

and regional issues which you need to deal with. But in a sense, being

a 24/7 port, there is no such thing as a 9-to-5 job Port Master because

as long as the Port of Singapore is running 24/7, it is all happening.

We are both in our dream jobs! Here is a quick look at the markets in

Asia. As you can see all in positive territory and heading north after US

stocks rose due to strong gains in petroleum shares and retailers.

Japan, Hong Kong and Australia in positive territory. Thank you for

investing your time with us. Stay with us.

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