:00:00. > :00:00.vote for independence. That is due to an EU directive that the banks
:00:00. > :00:16.have only recently noticed. Now, time for Asia Business Report.
:00:17. > :00:23.The April vote, India has called for national elections. Will a change in
:00:24. > :00:29.leadership turn around the economy? Dry spell. What the recent drought
:00:30. > :00:35.could mean for agricultural industries in Asia. Welcome to Asia
:00:36. > :00:40.Business Report, broadcasting to viewers around the world. I am Rico
:00:41. > :00:44.Hizon in Singapore. We start in Singapore, in the world's largest
:00:45. > :00:53.democracy, which has set a date for the general election, which is a big
:00:54. > :01:00.task. Many are hoping that these elections may be a turnaround for
:01:01. > :01:06.the land wishing economy -- India. I am in the industrial hub of the
:01:07. > :01:08.north-western state, a region that is in the spotlight because it is
:01:09. > :01:18.home to one of the main contenders for the PM is post in the upcoming
:01:19. > :01:21.election. Besides them, and the other major party, dozens of other
:01:22. > :01:25.regional parties will have a major part to play. Organising the
:01:26. > :01:32.elections is a mammoth task, because more than 800 million people have
:01:33. > :01:37.come out to vote. The vote is likely to cost around half $1 billion,
:01:38. > :01:41.which is not including what individual outfits will pump into
:01:42. > :01:43.their campaigns. It is suggested the total expense could be nearly $2
:01:44. > :01:59.billion. It is like to be a very busy Indian
:02:00. > :02:02.summer. Businesses. There is a bigger picture here, with growth
:02:03. > :02:07.slowing down India in the past two years. Any people we have been
:02:08. > :02:11.speaking to say they feel like things are at a standstill waiting
:02:12. > :02:14.for the outcome of this election. Consumers are holding back on
:02:15. > :02:18.spending, something that hasn't been seen in the run-up to an election
:02:19. > :02:20.before. There is hope that if a strong and politically stable
:02:21. > :02:24.government comes to power, they will be prepared to take some hard
:02:25. > :02:27.decisions on the economy that could trigger growth again. We are
:02:28. > :02:33.certainly likely to see is the streets of villages and cities in
:02:34. > :02:36.India, coming alive with campaign speeches and all the colour
:02:37. > :02:42.associated with what is often called the world's biggest election.
:02:43. > :02:47.The spending spree is on the rise in Australia. Fresh reports reveal
:02:48. > :02:53.retail sales jumping by more than 1% in January, when compared to the
:02:54. > :02:56.same period last year. The government also revised up retail
:02:57. > :03:03.sales figures from December. The Australian dollar is picking up
:03:04. > :03:09.following this data, and it will support the case for a steady
:03:10. > :03:13.outlook on interest rates. The reserve bank of Australia has agreed
:03:14. > :03:17.to keep the cost of borrowing at a record low. Changes are taking place
:03:18. > :03:25.in the executive ranks at capita targets. The chief information
:03:26. > :03:37.officer has resigned, and the company says it will search for an
:03:38. > :03:44.incident, -- interim CIO. -- Target.
:03:45. > :03:49.The US central bank has confirmed that severe weather conditions
:03:50. > :03:54.across much of the country has taken a toll on shopping and consumer
:03:55. > :04:03.spending in recent weeks. A report which gives a snapshot of business
:04:04. > :04:09.conditions across the country, said that consuming slowed during
:04:10. > :04:14.December and January because of severe weather conditions. It has
:04:15. > :04:19.been hot and dry in the east. In Singapore, February was the
:04:20. > :04:27.country's driest month in 144 years. It only ran for seven days last
:04:28. > :04:31.month. In Malaysia, residents in the capital are rationing water after a
:04:32. > :04:38.two-month dry spell. Forest fires have broken out in Indonesia. We
:04:39. > :04:40.have also heard this week about the effects of the drought in the
:04:41. > :04:46.outback of Australia, and in the north-west of Sri Lanka. So, what is
:04:47. > :04:51.the effect of this unusually dry season in this part of the world?
:04:52. > :04:54.Earlier, I spoke with John Baker, a food and agricultural expert, asking
:04:55. > :05:02.him how the current weather conditions will impact food prices.
:05:03. > :05:05.I think Indonesia is the focus. Indonesia is a significant producer
:05:06. > :05:10.of palm oil, rubber, cocoa and coffee. They are the top four ranked
:05:11. > :05:13.of all those commodities. We have already seen palm oil rise
:05:14. > :05:23.significantly, and the expectations for prices to rise above 300 in the
:05:24. > :05:28.next few months. Inevitably, the lag will be significant, so there won't
:05:29. > :05:32.be an instant impact from the weather event, but it will take
:05:33. > :05:37.place over the next few years. The market is factoring in that already.
:05:38. > :05:50.We are seeing rising prices for some commodities, but the opposite trend
:05:51. > :05:53.in Australia was much? The industry is affected mainly in the livestock
:05:54. > :05:58.industry. When it is dry, farmers are forced to sell their stock at
:05:59. > :06:04.the same time, so the price is dampened. Generally, talking about
:06:05. > :06:09.Indonesia or Australia, the farmers on the ground are the most affected
:06:10. > :06:15.by the drought, and businesses, such as the retail sector, are the ones
:06:16. > :06:19.who benefit? I think that is a plausible argument. When we look at
:06:20. > :06:27.drought, the first order in practice on the farmer. In my home country,
:06:28. > :06:30.there are many farmers going through significant social distress at the
:06:31. > :06:35.moment. We need to be mindful of that. As for the market, we are more
:06:36. > :06:43.interconnected than ever, and production will find a way to a
:06:44. > :06:49.market. Your company invests in food and agriculture. Not a good time to
:06:50. > :06:55.put your money into it? Agribusiness is a long-term investment
:06:56. > :06:58.proposition, and it works in cycles. Weather cycles and also commodity
:06:59. > :07:02.cycles. You have to pick your time to enter the market, and I think now
:07:03. > :07:05.is quite an interesting time to be investing in the sector, given where
:07:06. > :07:28.evaluations lie generally. Moving to corporate news, and
:07:29. > :07:34.Standard Chartered bank has posted a loss for the first time. It was
:07:35. > :07:40.warned that they would take a hit because of losses in Asia. The
:07:41. > :07:45.lender earns 90% of its profit in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. We
:07:46. > :07:48.are into the second day of the leaders meeting in Beijing, known as
:07:49. > :07:52.the National People's Congress. The finance minister said this morning
:07:53. > :07:57.that job creation would be the most important policy going forward. The
:07:58. > :08:06.message comes one day after Premier Li Kequiang committed to increasing
:08:07. > :08:13.growth at 7.5%. This report from Beijing.
:08:14. > :08:18.7.5%, China's annual growth target over the next year, that would be
:08:19. > :08:22.the envy of most Western nations. What you have to remember is that
:08:23. > :08:25.China is still a developing country, and its leaders fear that any
:08:26. > :08:31.slowdown could lead to social instability. China's remarkable
:08:32. > :08:35.economic development over the last 30 years has come at a huge cost. We
:08:36. > :08:39.are seeing the impact of that on people's health, as well as damage
:08:40. > :08:43.to the environment. That is the reason why it Premier Li Kequiang
:08:44. > :08:51.said that his government would wage war on pollution. TRANSLATION: Smog
:08:52. > :08:55.is affecting large parts of China, and pollution has become a major
:08:56. > :09:06.problem. That is a red light warning sent by nature against fast
:09:07. > :09:12.development. Premier Li Kequiang also talked about the need for a
:09:13. > :09:23.painful structural reform, in order to ensure sustainable economic
:09:24. > :09:26.growth. That will mean taking on state-owned enterprises that
:09:27. > :09:42.continue to dominate the economy. It would be an easy task. TRANSLATION:
:09:43. > :09:51.Currently, China must rely on its people. We need comprehensive reform
:09:52. > :09:56.in all areas. The concern hanging over China's economy is the level of
:09:57. > :10:02.debt being racked up to ensure more growth. Some economists warn that
:10:03. > :10:06.until the government tackles the rate of growth in China, and till it
:10:07. > :10:11.slows it down, what we are actually seeing here is inflation of an
:10:12. > :10:26.enormous credit bubble. Asian markets are mixed, after Wall
:10:27. > :10:32.Street posted little change overnight.
:10:33. > :10:38.Thank you for investing your time with us.
:10:39. > :10:49.Our top stories: Tension in eastern Ukraine still very much in evidence
:10:50. > :10:52.is pro- Russian activists clashed with supporters of the new
:10:53. > :10:55.government. American efforts to broker a meeting between Russian and
:10:56. > :10:59.Ukrainian foreign ministers has failed. The Russian Foreign Minister
:11:00. > :11:01.refused to meet his new Ukrainian