:00:00. > :00:00.Mikaeel Kular, the three-year-old boy who has gone missing in
:00:00. > :00:00.Edinburgh. Now, it is time for Asia Business
:00:00. > :00:20.Report. Global prospects, what is the year
:00:21. > :00:26.have in store for Asia and other major economies? And, India looks to
:00:27. > :00:32.tap into Myanmar, but will investment opportunities their pay
:00:33. > :00:39.off? Welcome to Asia Business Report. We are into the third week
:00:40. > :00:41.of the New Year, and both the World Bank and the International Monetary
:00:42. > :00:46.Fund have been optimistic about a pickup in the global economy. The
:00:47. > :00:50.World Bank also said it sees higher growth in America, which suggests
:00:51. > :00:57.that the Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary policy measures
:00:58. > :01:05.are actually working. The American Central Bank will welcome a new
:01:06. > :01:14.chairman in February. In his final appearance, Ben Bernanke said it had
:01:15. > :01:17.enough tools to manage its policy. I think we have plenty of tools at
:01:18. > :01:21.this point, we have developed all the tools we need to manage interest
:01:22. > :01:24.rates, to tighten monetary policy, even if the balance sheet stays
:01:25. > :01:31.where it is a bit bigger. Because we can do that, that means that we can
:01:32. > :01:37.run monetary policy the normal way, and avoid any risks of undue
:01:38. > :01:46.inflation or such problems. I don't think that is a concern. Earlier, I
:01:47. > :01:52.spoke with Fred Newman from HSBC and asked for his reaction to Ben
:01:53. > :01:56.Bernanke's comments. With a fairly upbeat US economy, the bad news
:01:57. > :02:01.seems to be behind us, the devastating news of the global
:02:02. > :02:05.financial crisis. I think he can tap himself on the shoulder. There are
:02:06. > :02:09.still problems ahead, but the economy is stabilised, and he does
:02:10. > :02:13.point out, for example, that the large balance sheet that the Federal
:02:14. > :02:17.Reserve has, shouldn't be a problem in the years to come. It is
:02:18. > :02:21.interesting when you see how Asian stocks finished up at the end of
:02:22. > :02:25.last year. Ricky upbeat, but the last few weeks have not been very
:02:26. > :02:31.good. -- pretty. What is your view on how things will go in the next
:02:32. > :02:36.few months for Asian markets? Asian markets often anticipate business.
:02:37. > :02:38.They had some strong movements last year anticipating some of the
:02:39. > :02:44.movements of the global economy. There are still dangers lurking in
:02:45. > :02:49.the economy, for example we see disinflationary pressures. In the US
:02:50. > :02:54.and Europe it is very low, which is bad. Markets over time. The GDP
:02:55. > :02:59.figures are coming out in China, what do you expect to see? A slight
:03:00. > :03:05.deceleration. It did very well in the first quarter, but some data
:03:06. > :03:10.suggests that China is slowing down. It is not a collapse, but a slight
:03:11. > :03:14.slowdown. We might see new weekly growth echoes the reform process
:03:15. > :03:21.itself is weighing on economic demand. Looking into that crystal
:03:22. > :03:25.ball of yours, Tommy what you think will be the big thing we need to
:03:26. > :03:30.watch out for when looking at the Asian economy this year. -- tell me.
:03:31. > :03:37.It is not just a Chinese issue, it is an Indian problem, a Japanese
:03:38. > :03:43.issue, Southeast Asia. They have to reform the economy is to rescue
:03:44. > :03:48.growth. This week we have been looking at property sectors in Hong
:03:49. > :03:58.Kong and London. In a final instalment, we caught up with the
:03:59. > :04:07.founder of Singapore -based capital land. She asked him what qualifies
:04:08. > :04:12.as a hot property market. I definition of hot property market is
:04:13. > :04:20.what they see as high return and high risk investment. You commented
:04:21. > :04:24.on money going in and seeking high and fast returns. Is there a danger
:04:25. > :04:34.that some of the cities could be experiencing a bubble? In the city,
:04:35. > :04:39.in the first place, there is some control over how much you can pay
:04:40. > :04:53.for your mortgage. The leverage cannot be 100%. In Asia, in
:04:54. > :05:03.Singapore, you only get about 60%. So, you have 30% scheme inside your
:05:04. > :05:14.investment, the bubble happening is less because unless the value is
:05:15. > :05:26.beyond 40%, then you have bust. Now, over two Myanmar. China became its
:05:27. > :05:31.biggest trading partner. Now, with Myanmar opening up its trade with
:05:32. > :05:38.other countries, India has seen an opportunity. We went away trade fair
:05:39. > :05:42.to find out more. There are strong historical ties
:05:43. > :05:56.between the unmarked and India. Odds of Hermes Indians live here -- lots
:05:57. > :06:04.of earn these Indians -- Burmese. In terms of trade and investment here
:06:05. > :06:08.India lags a long way behind. In the struggle for influence here between
:06:09. > :06:12.China and India, the two economic superpowers of the region, it has so
:06:13. > :06:17.far been China who has been coming out on top, with little concern for
:06:18. > :06:21.democracy or human rights. Over the last several decades they have
:06:22. > :06:27.invested the lens of dollars in an oil and gas pipeline, and
:06:28. > :06:36.large-scale infrastructure projects. But the relationship with China has
:06:37. > :06:42.cooled, and countries such India are sensing an opportunity. At the
:06:43. > :07:00.moment, India imports more from in the -- Myanmar than it exports. The
:07:01. > :07:04.time is never so late. How easy is it to do business here? Does that
:07:05. > :07:10.put off some Indian companies from coming here? I would say that Indian
:07:11. > :07:13.companies are still not clear about the political scenario of this
:07:14. > :07:20.country. They are still looking forward to, they are waiting for
:07:21. > :07:25.2015, then it will be much clearer. After the election in 2015. Those
:07:26. > :07:30.two there are all sorts of tactical device is being sold at this fair,
:07:31. > :07:41.irrigation systems, solar panels... This is by far the most popular of
:07:42. > :07:47.the stalls. Look at this. Of course, the Indians are not the only
:07:48. > :07:52.ones celebrating opportunity here. Many Western countries have
:07:53. > :07:57.established a presence here in Myanmar. Hermes hope the companies
:07:58. > :08:03.don't just come here to sell their products, but that they invest money
:08:04. > :08:08.as well. One week into the US and earnings
:08:09. > :08:11.season, and many are looking for indications of corporate America is
:08:12. > :08:16.starting to invest again. The trend for several years has been to cut
:08:17. > :08:19.back on spending. We take a look at whether companies are taking a fresh
:08:20. > :08:26.look at investing in their businesses.
:08:27. > :08:31.One tile at a time, these workers are transforming this 9000 square
:08:32. > :08:39.feet space in Brooklyn into Jonathan Butler's newest project. He is
:08:40. > :08:44.bringing his successful summer outdoor food market inside. This is
:08:45. > :08:48.our first venture into bricks and mortar. We have been operating as
:08:49. > :08:52.businesses that are open, that pop up on the weekends and have gone on
:08:53. > :09:05.Mondays. We thought it was time to put down some routes and get some
:09:06. > :09:10.seven-day a week business. Many are hoping this will become a trend in
:09:11. > :09:15.corporate America. Now that the GDP looks to us to be the most stable
:09:16. > :09:19.and consistent asset in the world, CEOs are starting to feel more
:09:20. > :09:26.confident that they can loosen the cough is a little bit. It is not
:09:27. > :09:31.just a GDP that is looking good, but Washington is no longer dragging
:09:32. > :09:34.confidence, and the Federal Reserve is starting to ease its financial
:09:35. > :09:49.support of the US economy. Indications point to a Woolwich
:09:50. > :09:52.market. -- bullish. If the economy is doing better and producing more
:09:53. > :10:06.goods, it will be healthier, stronger, and more wealthy. Beer and
:10:07. > :10:09.food, the winning combination that made this company invest. Now it is
:10:10. > :10:17.a matter of other businesses doing the same.
:10:18. > :10:18.Damping results from America have cast a shadow on Asian trading this
:10:19. > :10:46.morning. Our top stories: The Afghan Taliban
:10:47. > :10:47.have told the BBC they believe they are winning the fight against NATO