:00:00. > :00:21.all the latest business news live from Singapore. Australia gives the
:00:22. > :00:26.green light to a coal mine that could provide power to millions, but
:00:27. > :00:31.environmentalists are worried. And an apology from the boss of the firm
:00:32. > :00:38.that owns a Chinese company at the centre of a food scandal. It is all
:00:39. > :00:45.about wielding respect and trust in the management of systems and their
:00:46. > :00:49.integrity. Welcome to Asia Business Report. The Australian government
:00:50. > :00:55.has approved the construction of their biggest coalmine. The $15
:00:56. > :01:04.billion Carmichael mind in Queensland is being built. It could
:01:05. > :01:08.provide electricity to millions in India. Coming a fortnight after the
:01:09. > :01:12.government repealed its carbon tax on big polluters, the appeal is a
:01:13. > :01:16.Mac approval has angered environmentalists, who say it could
:01:17. > :01:22.threaten the Great Barrier Reef. The Prime Minister says strict
:01:23. > :01:30.conditions will be imposed. I asked our correspondent how markets will
:01:31. > :01:33.be reacting. I think the market, and especially the environmentalist is,
:01:34. > :01:39.are concerned about the Carmichael coal mine being approved. Because it
:01:40. > :01:43.will be moving something like 60 million tons of thermal coal per
:01:44. > :01:51.annum. And it will be Australia's biggest thermal coal operation once
:01:52. > :01:54.it is in production. The environmentalists are concerned
:01:55. > :02:02.about the amount of coal, because there are water tables, and also the
:02:03. > :02:19.area where the coal will be shipped. Abbott `` Abbot's Point. Does it
:02:20. > :02:27.need another mine? How will this address energy needs? There is no
:02:28. > :02:31.doubt that this will be able to supply power stations for a long
:02:32. > :02:35.time to come. The life of the mine is something like 60 years. We do
:02:36. > :02:39.believe that, looking forward, thermal coal as an energy source is
:02:40. > :02:45.not going to go away. It will incrementally increase. So by the
:02:46. > :02:48.time this project comes into being, which will be several years, we do
:02:49. > :02:58.expect the demand for thermal coal would have risen. By the mid`2020s,
:02:59. > :03:06.you know, I expect the coal will be well used. New data out this morning
:03:07. > :03:11.shows Japanese spending and retail sales dropped. Consumers are
:03:12. > :03:20.tightening their purse strings, showing they are not happy with
:03:21. > :03:24.recent tax hikes. He campaigned, and he promised and he delivered, and
:03:25. > :03:27.now his popularity is declining, in part due to those promises, aimed at
:03:28. > :03:30.bringing Japan back on the path of economic growth. 18 months after
:03:31. > :03:36.taking office, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's policies are no longer popular
:03:37. > :03:39.at home. A recent poll carried out showed his approval rating for his
:03:40. > :03:51.Cabinet fell to 45.6%, which is the lowest ever. From 1000 who responded
:03:52. > :03:55.to the poll, 47% expressed disapproval of the Prime Minister's
:03:56. > :03:58.economic policies. His most recently implemented policy was to increase
:03:59. > :04:09.consumption tax, a move expected to spur spending. And end nearly two
:04:10. > :04:15.decades of deflation, or falling prices. It is also designed to bring
:04:16. > :04:18.down Japan's massive public debt. But one month after the hike in
:04:19. > :04:26.consumption tax, retail sales fell at a record price in May. Consumers
:04:27. > :04:34.racked up spending before the tax hike, and held off spending after.
:04:35. > :04:38.The government will face another battle in December, when it needs to
:04:39. > :04:45.decide whether they should hike the unpopular tax from 8% to 10%. I
:04:46. > :04:49.spoke to a correspondent from JP Morgan. He says Shinzo Abe is still
:04:50. > :04:56.very popular, despite his economic policies. For the first time in 1.5
:04:57. > :05:01.years in power, his popularity is below 50%. It is hardly a big
:05:02. > :05:07.plunge. I think most politicians would be envious of his 45% rate.
:05:08. > :05:10.But to the point, yes, taxes have been hiked, and people are not happy
:05:11. > :05:16.about it. That is natural. That is the way it is. But I think the good
:05:17. > :05:21.news is going to be that the underlying economic recovery in
:05:22. > :05:24.Japan is still intact. So a feelgood factor is going to start coming
:05:25. > :05:30.through in the next couple of months. Tell us, how is the Prime
:05:31. > :05:38.Minister trying to bring back voters and boost the rural economy? How
:05:39. > :05:42.might this work? Let's face it. There are no easy solutions here for
:05:43. > :05:46.the government. Taxes will have to go up further. Japan's public
:05:47. > :05:54.deficit is more than 250% of GDP. So it is going to be not an easy route.
:05:55. > :05:57.The good news is the private sector. It is not about the Prime Minister
:05:58. > :06:03.or the government. Corporate Japan has restructured. Corporate Japan
:06:04. > :06:05.hiring people quite aggressively. It is their falling unemployment rate,
:06:06. > :06:12.their improvement in income, that is where the feelgood factor is coming
:06:13. > :06:16.from in Japan. In fact, new figures show unemployment in Japan rose for
:06:17. > :06:19.the first time in almost a year. The jobless rate climbed to 3.7% in
:06:20. > :06:23.June. The markets had been expecting unemployment to remain flat, but it
:06:24. > :06:26.may not be as bad as it seems. The Labour Ministry said the number of
:06:27. > :06:30.job offers rose to its highest rate in more than two decades. More
:06:31. > :06:38.people are said to be looking for work, as the Labour market improves.
:06:39. > :06:48.Japanese carmaker Nissan has reported a rise in profits, which is
:06:49. > :06:53.a 13% jump. And it is nearly tripled the margins posted last financial
:06:54. > :06:57.year, when they felt the impact of a expansion drive in lifting its
:06:58. > :07:00.global market share. Microsoft has confirmed that the body responsible
:07:01. > :07:04.for enforcing business laws in China visited some of its officers. The
:07:05. > :07:07.firm, which is not accused of any wrongdoing, did not disclose the
:07:08. > :07:17.reasons for the visit, but it may face an anti`trust investigation.
:07:18. > :07:24.Microsoft issued a statement saying it will answer any concerns the
:07:25. > :07:26.government have. American meat supplier which owns a Chinese
:07:27. > :07:40.company at the centre of the food scare is stepping in to take control
:07:41. > :07:43.of operations. The OSI Group says Husi in Shanghai fell short of its
:07:44. > :07:46.high standards. It comes after five Husi staff were detained last week,
:07:47. > :07:53.following allegations he firm sold out`of`date meat to firms like KFC
:07:54. > :08:02.and McDonald's. Boss of the parent company is now in damage control. It
:08:03. > :08:08.is all about rebuilding trust and respect in systems with integrity.
:08:09. > :08:15.And about ensuring that never happens again. The food safety
:08:16. > :08:20.scandal was not confined to the Chinese mainland. It also affected
:08:21. > :08:26.Japan and Hong Kong, where local food safety officers are looking
:08:27. > :08:31.into it. From there, our correspondent reports. Like other
:08:32. > :08:34.outlets across China, this McDonald's, located in Hong Kong's
:08:35. > :08:41.business district, has stopped selling its products because of a
:08:42. > :08:44.tainted meat scandal. Now here, Chicken McNuggets, amongst other
:08:45. > :08:47.items have been pulled from the menu because they have been linked to
:08:48. > :09:01.Husi, the supplier accused of selling expired meat. Now in other
:09:02. > :09:07.parts of the country, hamburgers are also off the menu. Now at this
:09:08. > :09:10.particular branch, it is no exaggeration that business used to
:09:11. > :09:15.be booming for Breakfast, lunch and dinner, and all the hours in
:09:16. > :09:20.between. But now it is clear they far fewer customers. So what do
:09:21. > :09:27.consumers have to say about eating here? TRANSLATION: Actually I know
:09:28. > :09:30.that McDonald's food is not healthy. After the news broke, I stopped
:09:31. > :09:36.eating McDonald's, because I worried that more problems would arise
:09:37. > :09:39.later. I am not surprised. I think that other companies would have
:09:40. > :09:46.similar things, whether this is exposed or not. There is a mix of
:09:47. > :09:51.opinion here. It is important to point out that no`one has reported
:09:52. > :09:55.being sickened by the expired meat. Here at McDonald's Hong Kong, they
:09:56. > :10:00.promise to resume selling salad as early as next week, with supplies
:10:01. > :10:08.from Taiwan or the United States. But it is unknown at the moment when
:10:09. > :10:13.chicken will be back on the menu. A quick look at the markets now. Most
:10:14. > :10:18.markets are higher. However, a lot of markets and investors are
:10:19. > :10:21.sidelined as they await some aged data due out this week. Housing data
:10:22. > :10:27.from the US as well as reports from GDP. As well, the Federal reserve is
:10:28. > :10:31.meeting to decide on interest rates this week. So a lot of anticipation
:10:32. > :10:41.ahead of that. That is it for this edition of Asia Business Report. You
:10:42. > :10:46.are watching BBC News. The main headlines: Intense shelling is
:10:47. > :10:49.continuing in Gaza, after Israel's Prime Minister warns of a prolonged
:10:50. > :10:50.military campaign. Air strikes have targeted a building housing media
:10:51. > :10:52.companies.