10/06/2014 World Business Report

after a ruling by the International Court of Justice. Those are the

latest headlines from BBC World News. Now for the latest financial

news with Sally. Shutting mines and mass lay offs `

that could be the next steps for mining companies in South Africa as

talks to end the long running strikes collapse.

Let the games begin ` the E3 expo opens in Los Angeles as Sony and

Microsoft announce how they hope to win valuable market share.

Welcome to World Business Report I'm Sally Bundock. Also in the programme

we see how price rises in China are moving markets in Asia.

Talks aimed at ending the five month long strike in South Africa's

platinum sector have collapsed. A move that could mean the government

will pull out of its role as mediator. The walk out has affected

45% of the global platinum supply and has cost the mining companies

two billion dollars in lost revenues so far. Workers have now foregone

nearly one billion dollars in wages and benefits. And all this is

impacting the South African economy ` it shrank 0.6% in the first three

months of this year. So with talks breaking down again ` what does the

future hold for workers and the mining industry in South Africa?

Matthew Davies reports. When 80,000 miners downed tools in

late January, few thought the spike would last this long. The government

warned at the weekend that it would be pulling out of its role as

mediator if the talks failed. By the end of Monday, the negotiations

ended without agreement and the three main companies said they would

now review future options. Those options would include the closing of

some mineshafts and expensive process to reverse and one which

could see thousands of job losses. At the heart of the issue is the

basic wage, the Association of Mineworkers and construction union

is calling for wages of $1200 a month. Double the current level.

Owning companies say their best offer is to phase in the rises over

the next three years and they would also include other allowances for

things like housing. With the collapse of the latest talks and

with no end in sight for the prolonged and bitter strike, there

is a fear the economy will tip into recession later this year. The

ratings agency, stabbed and pause and Fitch are due to release their

annual ratings reviews later this week. Some analysts say the threat

of recession and the strike may strike ratings downgrade. The

world's largest video gaming expo, E3 is under way in Los Angeles. At

last year's show, Sony emerged as the undisputed victor with its

PlayStation four beating Microsoft's Xbox One on both price and positive

buzz. But this year, it seems there is yet to be a clear winner. Over

the last few our two companies outlined their plans for the year

ahead. And opinion ` on who came out on top ` seems to be split. For

Sony, the focus was on the return of two of its biggest exclusive

franchises: Uncharted and Little Big Planet. It also announced it would

launch a budget console for $99 this year. In short, Sony's event covered

more topics than Microsoft's. But the US company seems likely to

deliver on its promises sooner. So what did it have to offer? Richard

Taylor was at the Microsoft press briefing and has the details from

LA. Microsoft making abundantly clear

that it is laser focused on the Xbox one as a gaming console first and

foremost. That is in stark contrast to his strategy last year which

promoted the console as an all`round entertainer in the living room. That

has not gone down too well with hard`core gamers and Microsoft over

the last few months since the console has been out as lost ground

to Sony. In a press conference, we saw the reboot of old franchises, as

expected. Halo, the bestselling franchise sought a glimpse of what

Halo might look like when it comes out next year. Also, racing games

and old favourites like Call of Duty. What was left clear was the

fundamental innovation in the gaming experience itself. Overall, no real

surprises. Perhaps a few disappointments for some people who

were hoping for a little more in terms of innovation. Microsoft will

be hoping this new strategy will help them turn around what has been

a disappointing year for them in terms of sales.

Do have a look at our website, plenty more information there. It is

all there on the Web. It was another record breaking

session on Wall Street. The stock markets in the US crept to a record

high after several companies announced a handful of deals. The

broadest market ` that's the S P 500 ` closed at an all`time high of

1,000 951 ` and is now in striking distance of hitting 2000 for the

first time ever...so how are Asian markets reacting today? Well ` they

have also been heading higher. It has been a little bit mixed. The

focus there has been on China ` which has just released its latest

inflation numbers. In May prices rose 2.5% ` above expectations and

at a four month high. Let's get more on this ` Rico Hizon joins me now

from our Asia Business hub in Singapore. Tell us, how is Asia

digestive this news. Not much reaction to the Chinese inflation

data, Sally. This string of record highs on Wall Street is instilling a

lot of caution in Asian stock markets. They are currently drifting

in midday trading, despite evidence of improving economic prospects. In

the US, China and Japan, the top three economies. Investors are

waiting for new leads before buying back aggressively. Take a look at

the market numbers, gains have been quite moderate and volume has been

light over the recent trading session. You mentioned about Chinese

inflation data, it remained well within the government's comfort

zone. It did not excite investors. It is still below the government 's

target of 3/2%. Analysts say this could leave room for monetary easing

as the mainland economy is forecast to grow at its slowest pace since

1990. Traders say the week ahead is likely to be quiet for a merging

Marford. It is quite surprising, nothing to do with the markets.

Everyone will be waiting and watching and focusing on the World

Cup. Which begins in three days. Who are you supporting? Well, I am going

with the winner, Brazil. Hopefully! Keeping my fingers crossed! Thanks

very much indeed. I wonder if he is in the sweepstake we do have one in

the unit. Other business Tories: `` stories, After seven hours of talks,

no agreement has been reached between the Russia and Ukraine over

the price of gas purchased by Kiev ` but talks will continue tonight or

on Wednesday morning in Brussels. The European Commissioner for Energy

said that 'All issues were discussed' and that 'solutions have

been proposed'. GoDaddy, the company that sells

internet domain names and is known for airing risque Super Bowl

adverts, has moved a step closer to selling shares. The company filed

paperwork with US securities regulators on Monday but did not say

which exchange it planned to float on.GoDaddy estimates it has

registered roughly a fifth of the world's domains.

Facebook's photo`sharing application Instagram will add advertising in

Canada, the UK and Australia later this year as

generate more sales from mobile users. The application, which

Facebook acquired for about $700 million in 2012, will start to show

adverts to to its global audience of more than 200 million members.

According to reports, new Instagram ad sales will be a key part of

The competition to win new banking Facebook's mobile strategy.

The competition to win new banking customers in the UK is about to

intensify, as the country's largest supermarket launches its first

current account. Some 17 million customers of Tesco will be offered

extra shopping discounts if they open an account.The supermarket is

one of four banks offering new current accounts this year.

Let sure you those market numbers. Not a big reaction to the Chinese

inflation numbers. As you can see, a fairly mixed session. Indicate down

by .6. Partly due to the fact the yen has been strengthening versus

the dollar. There is that record close on the S 500. I will see you

soon as we look through the papers. Many thanks to Sally. We will take a

look at the papers in a moment. But first: From September all schools in

England and Wales will "actively promote" British values in the