:00:00. > :00:15.passengers. Time for the latest business news.
:00:16. > :00:23.Budget day for India. Will the new government deliver on promises to
:00:24. > :00:27.reform the economy? Both candidates claim victory in
:00:28. > :00:38.Indonesia's presidential election, with results due out in two weeks.
:00:39. > :00:43.Welcome to Asia Business Report. India's new government will be in
:00:44. > :00:53.the spotlight later today when it reveals its first budget. There will
:00:54. > :01:00.be a lot to look out for. We are at joint from Delhi. Some are calling
:01:01. > :01:11.this a budget of hope, others say it is the most crucial since 1991. What
:01:12. > :01:14.could be some of the features? It is bright and early in Delhi.
:01:15. > :01:20.That building behind me, that is the Indian parliament. In three hours,
:01:21. > :01:25.we will hear the Finance Minister begin to deliver his budget speech.
:01:26. > :01:29.They have taken over power at a difficult time for the Indian
:01:30. > :01:33.economy. That is something that is being reflected in the newspaper
:01:34. > :01:37.today. This is the most widely read newspaper in India. It looks as if
:01:38. > :01:43.footballers factory making the headlines as well. If you look
:01:44. > :01:49.closely, that is the Finance Minister's head on the body of a
:01:50. > :01:56.footballer. Something he has to tackle is low growth, inflation and
:01:57. > :02:01.poor rain. People will be expecting to hear a concrete plan on how he
:02:02. > :02:05.plans to fix the economy. That is the promise on which the government
:02:06. > :02:09.was voted to power less than two months ago. People will be waiting
:02:10. > :02:16.to hear the details, to really see how they plan to do that.
:02:17. > :02:22.And they plan to focus on jobs particularly in the manufacturing
:02:23. > :02:32.and infrastructure sector. That is right. They are expected to
:02:33. > :02:35.boost manufacturing. One of the things that businesses and all the
:02:36. > :02:42.people we have been speaking to over the past few weeks want to see is a
:02:43. > :02:50.single tax. India has several layers of taxation. If you are running a
:02:51. > :02:52.factory, you might have to pay 20 ` 30 different taxes. That makes
:02:53. > :03:00.running any business really cumbersome. What has been proposed
:03:01. > :03:05.is a central tax across India. The previous government was not able to
:03:06. > :03:13.set out a roadmap for it. Businesses are hoping that they see a concrete
:03:14. > :03:17.plan for this to be put in place. Analysts are expecting that given
:03:18. > :03:20.the government has won with such a strong majority, perhaps some of the
:03:21. > :03:25.tough decisions to actually fix the economy, to fix the amount the
:03:26. > :03:31.country is spending, that is something we might see.
:03:32. > :03:37.The Indian economy and the Indian government also has to address its
:03:38. > :03:47.battered government finances. Everyone is also looking for reforms
:03:48. > :03:51.in terms of cutting subsidies. Exactly. India's finances have not
:03:52. > :03:58.been in order for a while. India spends a lot of money on subsidies.
:03:59. > :04:04.A lot of that on fuel. India imports about 70% of the oil it needs. That
:04:05. > :04:07.makes it cheaper for its people, but that the bill is being courted by
:04:08. > :04:15.the government. It is something gets into cannot afford. Even though it
:04:16. > :04:20.might be an unpopular decision to reduce the subsidy, analysts are
:04:21. > :04:26.hoping the government might be able to do that. Indonesia is in its
:04:27. > :04:38.tightest election that will for presidency since the end of
:04:39. > :04:45.authoritarian rule. `` for the role of. Quick counts by pollsters give
:04:46. > :04:50.the mayor of the car to a slim lead over his rival. `` Governor of
:04:51. > :04:54.Jakarta. I asked what the result means for the country's business
:04:55. > :05:11.environment. Uncertainty is what foreign investments `` investors are
:05:12. > :05:15.looking for `` certainty. They are looking for something much more
:05:16. > :05:23.certain, much more pro`business. The concern among investors will be this
:05:24. > :05:30.disputed result, which could push out that transition. It could upset
:05:31. > :05:36.the timetable. Upset the timetable for economic reforms moving forward.
:05:37. > :05:39.If the results are not accepted by either candidate, this could lead to
:05:40. > :05:45.a further cloud of uncertainty on the economy, which has been slowing
:05:46. > :05:51.down since last year. The river close Indonesia watchers will be
:05:52. > :05:54.looking forward to analysing who is going to populate the economic
:05:55. > :06:00.ministries inside the next government. That should be starting
:06:01. > :06:07.now, rather than the husband over who is going to be president. Those
:06:08. > :06:14.decisions, and the groups who surround them, are going to set the
:06:15. > :06:20.chart for the next Administration. And of course, your claims want to
:06:21. > :06:24.really find out, is this a time to stay on or is it time to go to the
:06:25. > :06:32.sidelines for a move out of the country? There has been a lot of
:06:33. > :06:39.speculation about the position on economic nationalism or a
:06:40. > :06:46.technocratic approach. I actually do not think there is much between
:06:47. > :06:50.them, in all honesty. If we get the new president, he has surrounded
:06:51. > :06:58.himself with most of the country's vested interests. They will have a
:06:59. > :07:04.drag on the form. Equally, with the incumbent, the party supporting him
:07:05. > :07:13.is heavily populated with their own vested interests. Key sectors like
:07:14. > :07:23.mining or resources. That is going to have an impact on policy.
:07:24. > :07:27.China chalked up a 60% rise in trade surplus in the month of June to $31
:07:28. > :07:30.billion. The latest numbers also show the rise in imports and
:07:31. > :07:34.exports, signalling continued strength in the world's
:07:35. > :07:39.second`largest economy. The vast amount of foreign trade is done in
:07:40. > :07:47.US dollars. But it is forecast at 30% will be in its currency. Earlier
:07:48. > :07:53.I spoke to someone from HSBC and asked what this means for the ease
:07:54. > :07:58.with which the country's currency can be converted into other
:07:59. > :08:06.currency. Our prediction is it will be fully convertible around three
:08:07. > :08:11.years. The nature of it becoming convertible is one of the factors of
:08:12. > :08:18.the trade settlement. What difference will use in its mean for
:08:19. > :08:23.China's trade figures? The issue for suppliers and buyers that trade with
:08:24. > :08:29.China is by adopting the currency, it means it is easier for people to
:08:30. > :08:32.build long`term, sustainable relationships with their
:08:33. > :08:36.counterpart. What a server has said is of the companies surveyed, 47% of
:08:37. > :08:44.companies believe there is a financial benefit to trading. Such
:08:45. > :08:50.as price discounts. 49% also believe there is a relationship that in
:08:51. > :08:55.using it as a trade currency as opposed to an alternative. What do
:08:56. > :08:59.they mean by relationship benefit? Making it easier for them to win
:09:00. > :09:04.business in China. They see themselves as being differentiated
:09:05. > :09:07.from other buyers or suppliers in the industry who are trying to trade
:09:08. > :09:16.with China. There may be only trade in the euro or US dollar. Cities
:09:17. > :09:26.across Asia are facing the largest sustained population migration in
:09:27. > :09:28.human history. We went to speak to Microsoft, which has developed
:09:29. > :09:35.software being used to help create safer and more efficient cities.
:09:36. > :09:38.The transformations and technology are providing more opportunity. As
:09:39. > :09:44.with a pet cloud cover mobile, big data, the new things as this can do
:09:45. > :09:49.will have a dramatic impact on citizens. This is about putting
:09:50. > :09:53.people first. It is about providing solutions that create jobs and more
:09:54. > :09:56.sustainable cities. And you have some examples about providing
:09:57. > :10:01.technology to realise situations. We have so many examples, but I want to
:10:02. > :10:07.share a view. One of them is around public safety. We have a partner
:10:08. > :10:13.based in New Zealand, looking at social media in terms of the safety
:10:14. > :10:20.of a city. Having a constant pulse and what has been happening in the
:10:21. > :10:25.cities. We are seeing this technology getting deployed in
:10:26. > :10:29.public safety and for other applications. Social media is having
:10:30. > :10:32.a dramatic impact on how governments create a more sustainable and
:10:33. > :10:35.exciting city. They give are watching.
:10:36. > :10:46.`` thank you for. Here are the headlines: Gaza's
:10:47. > :10:52.deadly conflict is still escalating. A second day of missile
:10:53. > :10:53.and rocket attacks on Israel and Palestinians lead to at least 60