22/02/2016 BBC Business Live

This is Business Live from BBC News with Ben Thompson

Britain has four months to decide whether to stay in or leave

Live from London, that's our top story on Monday 22nd of February.

In or out - the countdown begins for Britain to decide

in or our of the world's largest trading club.

We assess the case for and against the European Union.

Also in the programme: Banking giant HSBC predicts a bumpier road ahead

because of China's slowdown, even as profit swells

And as China removes its securities regulator over

We'll have all you need to know for the day ahead

Many would like to say so but are perhaps

Well later in the show we get the inside track on "Do-it-yourself"

curries from a woman how knows how ? in fact she has made a very

And the latest Lego mini figure is a stay at home dad

Is this political correctness gone mad or an important step

You know how to get in touch just use the hashtag BBCBizLive.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson has announced

he will campaign for Britain to leave the European Union.

The decision has seen as a huge blow to the Prime Minister and comes

after EU leaders agreed a package of reforms to the UK's membership

Many of the changes relate to migration and benefits

but agreements were also reached on a number of economic issues.

On trade - it was agreed that Britain could keep the pound

while being in the EU - without facing discrimination

because it hadn't adopted the single currency.

There are also safeguards for Britain's large financial

services industry to prevent Eurozone regulations

And it also calls on EU institutions to cut red tape.

Despite the agreement though, those supporting Brexit say the EU

imposes too many rules on business and charges billions of pounds

a year in membership fees for little real return.

The referendum on whether or not Britain should remain in the EU

Kamal Ahmed, BBC Economics Editor is here.

So, the deal was done, it has been talked about all we can. Give us

your take on how good or bad it is. A lots of people will be making

arguments about the nuances of the deal. Actually, when you look at

what moves people's volts, I think the bigger economic picture will be

far more important. I think we will see, on the issue of economics, lots

of very big numbers thrown around. We do over ?220 billion of trade

with the EU every year. It is a very important export market for the UK.

The UK itself is the fifth largest economy in the world, so an

important export market for the EU. I think it is important, over the

next few months, that we do not expect economics to provide hard and

fast answers. Many businesses will come out and say that they think we

should stay in the European Union. That may sway some people's votes.

Businesses like HSBC still say they want to stay in London, even if we

were to leave the European Union. The debate is quite nuanced, and

there will be no clear answers on economics. All the economic numbers,

there is an old joke, you lay every economist end to end and they still

do not reach a conclusion. After four months, it will be difficult to

get conclusive facts on the economy. From that point of view, it is quite

similar to the Scottish referendum. I remember prior to that vote, there

were lots of very strong arguments for and against and they were using

economic size a key point, and yet the opinions were starkly different.

From the point of view of the person ticking the box, it is hard for them

to know which one is right or wrong or otherwise. That's right. Whatever

the outcome of the referendum in June, whether we stay or leave the

European Union, businesses are dynamic. People will not sit there

and say, that is the result, so what will happen next will be this, this

and this. Businesses will react in different ways. There will be some

market signals. We can expect pressure on sterling if it looks

like we're coming up. Businesses servicing their debts, they might

find it more expensive to service those because investors in that debt

will ask for higher prices because of businesses being affected by

leaving the European Union. As you say, the notion that the public can

look at a set of economic numbers and say, those are the right ones

and those are the wrong ones, that is difficult because after any

event, whether we stay on leave, the economy, nation states, we'll all

react in myriad ways. The important point is, our big trading partners

outside the EU, countries like China and America, have made clear that

they think at least that Britain in the European Union is better for

trade with those countries. It is important to point out that sterling

is already down today because of the situation with borrowings -- Boris

Johnson saying he is on the side of Brexit. In business, you have the

FTSE 100 businesses, the majority of them saying they are for staying in.

In small and medium-sized companies, there is mixed opinions. It comes

down to the issue of mules. Many of the companies in Britain do not do

any trade at all with the European Union but do have to deal with

regulations from there. A letter will come out in the times tomorrow

morning from business owners. Many of them will say they want to stay

in. The public needs to understand that even if large businesses are

coming up, the business opinions are very changeable. Thank you very

much. Needless to say, he is going to be all over this until the 23rd

of June. Like the rest of us! Yes, leave is cancelled!

There have been huge falls in the value of the Shanghai stock market.

Samsung has unveiled its new smartphones. Some analysts say that

the overall design is very similar to last year's model, which could be

a challenge for the smartphone maker.

UK and European banks have failed to sell any so-called Coco bonds

this year amid worries about the health of the banking sector.

Cocos - short for contingent convertible bonds -

are turned into shares if a bank starts to struggle.

European banks raised around 50-billion dollars

But in 2016, none have been issued, amid wider investor fears

HSBC is grabbing all the attention today, coming out with its full-year

results. This is the Chief Executive, Stuart

Gulliver. His total compensation last year fell by 3.7%. He made

$7.34 million. Not bad. Sorry, pounds. $10.5 million. HSBC shares

are down. It may be Europe's biggest bank,

but the slowdown in China has Pre-tax profits at Europe's biggest

bank rose 1% to $18.9 billion Sharanjit is has the details

in our Asia Business Hub. HSBC are blaming slower economic

growth in China for what is likely to be a bumpy road ahead for its

growth prospects. Despite being Europe's largest bank,

it is actually this part of the world, Asia, which accounted for

most of its profit last year. Even though its chairman said that

China's slowdown means -- may cause problems, it will continue to be the

largest contributor to global growth. Stuart Gulliver said the

bank would continue to deliver on those cost-cutting measures

announced last year. It will also stay in London if the UK makes a

Brexit. Those shares are down in Hong Kong, almost 5%.

Here's how Asian markets finished with the Nikkei shrugging off early

losses to close higher at the start of the trading week.

That slight move higher for oil prices helping give a boost

to optimism with a potential freeze by key producers on the cards again.

The removal of China's securities regulator who oversaw last year's

market volatility also going down well with investors.

This is how Europe has opened and all eyes are on the pound today.

In the wake of that news about the EU referendum, the pound has fallen

by more than 1.5% against the dollar.

All that on the news of a date for the UK EU referendum on 23rd

June and the news that London Mayor Boris Johnson

is to campaign for Britain to leave the European Union.

We'll talk more about that in a moment, but first what's

Wearable technology - a fad or the future? Fitbit is expected to have

done well after the holiday period. The market wants to know what the

management is doing. There is a lot out there for the likes of Apple and

Adidas in this market. As for the share price, it has been a

roller-coaster. Fitbit shares doubled in value since last year.

Currently, they trade 20% below their IPO price. GoPro issued a

profits warning earlier this year. Joining us is James Bevan,

Chief Investment Officer at CCLA Good morning. Great to be here. The

starting gun has been fired, we know it is June the 23rd. When you say

the gun has been fired, for many people, it was five months ago. Now,

the gloves are off and we will have some real campaigning. We still

don't know what the big issues are. That is what is worryingly --

investors. -- worrying investors. The bonds market may come under some

pressure. Looking at the securities regulator, markets are taking a lot

from this. All the volatility we so in the Chinese markets, all of that

pinned on one man. He is gone. It is a very serious issue for the Chinese

to understand. They are pulling in a former banker who clearly has

experience and who will make better -- will make sure... They are trying

to raise capital for small and medium-sized enterprises. The casino

style of banking for private investors has been a big problem.

We have lots of economic data today. This is quite interesting. People

are saying, the markets are going back up, this is back to the races,

great news. I do not think this rally will take us back to the prior

highs. The corporate earnings numbers are so weak. We might see

zero growth in the United States in the current year. The FTSE is above

6000. Should we celebrate that? Don't get carried away. We will see

how long it lasts. We meet the boss of Spice Tailor

who tells us that the best currys aren't from your local takeway,

they're those you rustle up at home. You're with Business

Live from BBC News. The publisher, Trinity Mirror,

has revealed more details of the first new stand-alone

newspaper to be published in the UK The New Day represents a gamble

in the current climate Our Business correspondent

Simon Jack joins us An interesting time, isn't it, Ben?

An exclusive look for BBC viewers of a dummy copy of the New Day. It will

launch next week for real. It will be free on day one. It will be 25

pence thereafter for two weeks and then it will settle at 50 pence.

Now, I'm told it is aimed at women and men, who else is there? You

might well ask? I'm told by the Chief Executive, the reason they put

it in that order with its blue title, they are prioritising females

who don't buy a newspaper. They don't think it will cannibalise

anything else, but you might remember the Independent and the

Today which this reminds me a little bit of, but let's not forget the

realities of the newspaper publishing business and that is that

circulations are dwindling as more people move online and once online,

people are very reluctant to pay for it. It will be up against other

commuter reads like Metro, but what they are hoping is the success of

the I, recently sold to Johnston Press, showed that people are

prepared to pay a little bit of money for a daily read. The

Independent will be going online next week, exactly the moment when

this hits the newsstands. There will be an empty slot at the newsstands

in March and the publishers are hoping this will fill it. How

convenient. Thank you, Simon. So that's an interesting story.

And The Guardian says Sainsbury's expected to ask for more time

in Home Retail Group battle, but if the Takeover Panel does not

grant an extension the supermarket will be forced to either

raise its ?1.3 billion offer or walk away.

Clearly they have got to put up or shut up once again. There was a

debate about the deadline and about whether they would continue in their

pursuit of it and the pursuit is because they have got a lot of

infrastructure in place over at Home Retail Group that Sainsbury's wants

to get its hands on particularly when it comes to that network of

distribution. Our top story: The case for Britain

remaining inside a reformed What does the business community

think about economic benefits A lot on that story on the BBC

website. And a lot still to come. There will be a lot of debate until

then! We all like a good curry,

but how many of us would prepare I make a good curry, but only one

type. I'm going to cook a curry for Ben!

But globalisation and our love of travel means more of us

are dabbling with exotic cuisine in our kitchens.

Our next guest is a cookery writer, who has had her own TV series,

and taken her expertise in healthy Indian cooking

Anjum Anand is the Founder of the Spice Tailor,

Like many small start-ups it's a family affair.

Anjum is the creative and food brain, her husband runs

the operational and customer facing parts of the business.

Its main team is based in the UK, but all the manufacturing takes

place in India - where the Anjum tell us the vegetables taste better!

We will quiz her on that in a moment.

Although it sells spices worldwide, the UK, Middle East and Australia

It is good to have you on the show. And you are surrounded by your

products. Those viewers in the UK watching us now might well be

familiar with because they are sold in our major supermarkets in the

UK... And online. Tesco, Morrison, Waitrose. The Co-op is coming soon.

A couple of others are in the pipeline. We are really happy. We

are a small business. We are five years old. We are run by my husband

and I. In just five years to be in the major supermarkets in the UK,

that is no mean feat, how did you pull that off? There is a lot of

competition. The reason I started the brand because I remember when I

went to university and I left home and zint get a proper Indian meal, I

went to the supermarket and there wasn't anything I would consider

Indian and then fast forward maybe ten years into my cookery writing

career and I went back to the supermarket and the segment was

still the same. There was no innovation and no change and it was

always the same sort of balti Madrases and all the rest of it. I

feel like, I felt that the British customer is more savvy now. It is

not 20 years ago. We travel to India our our neighbour is Indian our or

best friend is Indian and we know that Indian food has more flavour

and I felt that the supermarkets weren't offering people like us

Indian food and I thought I'm going to be the one to do it. As a small

firm, how have you found relationships with the big

supermarkets? The big retailers have so much power when it comes to their

purchasing power and the influence they have on the market. How have

you found those negotiations? Well, I think, we, when I first presented

to the supermarkets, we had one who came on board. They were very foodie

and they were excited by the premium product. There is nothing artificial

in it. They felt their customer would love it and the other

supermarkets were careful and didn't want to jump in. Our track record

was really good. The product spoke for itself. People were buying it

and the other supermarkets came online. To be honest, right now, we

have a really positive, very supportive relationship because we

are making the fixture grow. We are bringing people in who wouldn't

normally shop in the Indian food aisle. What's your next step? As I

say, there are many other products similar to yours out there and also

there is other ranges of products where it is not so much the sauces

in bags, but the spices and the bits with instructions. It tells you what

need to get and how you put it together. How do you stay ahead? How

do you compete with these other people who are thinking the same way

as you are? I don't, I have to be honest, I don't look a lot around

me. I think I'm quite inspired by what happens in India and I've grown

up on this side of the world and I know how to eat here. I'm a working

mum. I'm busy. I know what little time people have. If you want to

scratch cook, that's there. What we are offering is a really authentic

tasty product where there is a little bit of cooking involved. If

you want free-range, buy free-range, you can Taylor it to your own

tastes. I think we're quite strong in innovation, we are looking to

launch other two ranges this year, we have got supermarket interest and

I don't, yeah, I don't really worry about what everyone else is doing,

but I'm really focussed on doing what we do and doing it really,

really well. You work with your husband on this. He does one part of

the business and you do the other. A lot of people say, "I can't think of

anything worse than working with my other half?" He kept saying, this is

not what I thought I would do in my life. I nagged him for 18 months

before he said yes. He kept cooking amazing curry. I remember thinking

it was a DISSer and we're going to get divorced. I suppose our

strengths are different. I do the communication design and telly and

he does the business side and our goals are the same. And we trust

each other and that's really important in a business

relationship. Can we mention his name? He is just known as the

husband. ArnisH a lot of people wanting to start something, but we

don't have every skill set so if you have a partner you can trust and I

would always say do it together. Thank you for coming in. It has been

a pleasure to meet you and we will keep an eye how the company

progresses. In a moment we'll take a look

through the Business Pages but first here's a quick reminder of how

to get in touch with us. We will keep you up-to-date with the

latest details with insight and analysis from the BBC's team of

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BBC Business News. Business Live on TV and online whenever you need to

What have the business pages been What have the business pages been

looking at? James Bevan is back with us. We start with Lego. We asked the

viewers to get in touch about their thoughts on this story. New Lego set

features stay at home dad and a working mum. This is in the

Huffington Post. A sign of the times. This is a really important

part of the Lego story. If you go back to 2003 when Lego was in real

problems, everybody said it was over, it is about the internet,

nobody wants to play with toys anybody. Allowing children to

express themselves through specific make-ups of the Lego set was a real

driver for the sales and that meant by last year they had become the

world's largest toy manufacturer. You pick another one Ben.

The issue is, I think that the Lego story is fascinating. We talk about

the women role and the female role, but this is interesting.