19/08/2014

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:00:00. > :00:00.ceasefire has been agreed. The government has been ordered to

:00:00. > :00:00.pay more than ?200 million to an American defence company, after a

:00:00. > :00:08.scheme to electronically monitor people entering and leaving the UK

:00:09. > :00:11.was cancelled because it was behind schedule. Now on BBC News all the

:00:12. > :00:19.latest business news live from Singapore. $1 billion, that's the

:00:20. > :00:27.amount of money Indonesia is aiming to raise by reaching out to a new

:00:28. > :00:30.pool of investors. And, doing business in China, Mercedes`Benz is

:00:31. > :00:40.the most recent company to face penalties on the mainland.

:00:41. > :00:46.Welcome. Thanks for joining us for this edition of Asia Business Report

:00:47. > :00:57.on BBC World News. Indonesia is on a drive to raise funds. Today is the

:00:58. > :01:00.first day of a roadshow for a $1 billion global Islamic bond. An

:01:01. > :01:05.Islamic bond is different from a conventional government bond because

:01:06. > :01:08.it complies with Sharia Law. Indonesia needs to raise cash to

:01:09. > :01:11.finance its budget deficit and by making the Islamic bonds available

:01:12. > :01:24.globally, they hope to reach a group of investors that are not tapped

:01:25. > :01:26.yet. Although Indonesia has the biggest Muslim population in the

:01:27. > :01:30.world, its Islamic finance industry lags behind Malaysia, which is the

:01:31. > :01:32.biggest issuer of these bonds in south`east Asia. I spoke with Vicki

:01:33. > :01:39.Jones, a debt capital markets lawyer about these bonds. These are

:01:40. > :01:47.Sharia`compliant investment products, including the prohibition

:01:48. > :01:50.on payment of interest. Investors still want to receive a return, so

:01:51. > :01:54.we have to structure the arrangement in a way that gives that return and

:01:55. > :01:56.in a way that the market has done that is to invest the assets, the

:01:57. > :02:01.funds that investors put into product in various assets which

:02:02. > :02:13.either create a profit or an income stream, which is then used to give a

:02:14. > :02:17.return to the investors. Why would a government do that instead of a

:02:18. > :02:20.conventional bond? Lots of reasons. They want to diversify those

:02:21. > :02:23.investments, they want to tap a broader range of investors and that

:02:24. > :02:34.would include issuing a variety of investors. Countries which have a

:02:35. > :02:36.large Muslim population would have an interest in providing a

:02:37. > :02:43.Sharia`compliant investment product to support the ethical concerns of

:02:44. > :03:01.the population. That was Vicky Jones, debt capital

:03:02. > :03:04.market lawyer. In other news making headlines, US `based oil and gas

:03:05. > :03:08.giant says it has discovered a big oil well over the coast of Western

:03:09. > :03:12.Australia. Estimates say it could be the largest find in Australia in

:03:13. > :03:15.decades. It is said that the well is being evaluated and could result in

:03:16. > :03:28.as many as 300 million barrels of crude. A company says the potential

:03:29. > :03:31.of the well is extraordinary. The largest mining company in the world,

:03:32. > :03:33.BHP, is preparing to release its results on Tuesday, and is

:03:34. > :03:35.considering restructuring, announcing that a demerger is its

:03:36. > :03:38.preferred option, which is the company is keen to spin off assets

:03:39. > :03:41.which aren't big earners. An announcement is expected on the

:03:42. > :03:55.restructuring process as early as today. Facebook is testing a new

:03:56. > :04:07.feature that warns users about satirical content. These posts will

:04:08. > :04:18.be tagged as satire. Satirical stories have created some confusion

:04:19. > :04:20.and anger. Reports from China that the German car maker Mercedes`Benz

:04:21. > :04:23.was found guilty of price`fixing has given foreign businesses and other

:04:24. > :04:27.reason to question whether it is being unfairly targeted by the

:04:28. > :04:30.government. China is the world's largest car market and other brands

:04:31. > :04:33.like BMW, Chrysler and others have been accused of anti`competitive

:04:34. > :04:36.behaviour. I spoke earlier with our correspondent, John Sudworth, for an

:04:37. > :04:42.update on the fine Mercedes could face. We don't know yet what level

:04:43. > :04:47.of fine the authorities will level on Mercedes`Benz. Ahead of the

:04:48. > :04:49.announcement, under the shadow of the investigation, Mercedes and the

:04:50. > :04:56.other carmakers you mentioned have already been engaging in heavy

:04:57. > :05:02.cost`cutting. They have slashed the prices of spare parts after sales

:05:03. > :05:05.services. Too little and too late to avoid the attention of the

:05:06. > :05:08.authorities. There are some suggestions that a 20% reduction in

:05:09. > :05:20.the cost of spare parts in China might cost a carmaker around 1% of

:05:21. > :05:24.net profit. China has been saying that it doesn't discriminate between

:05:25. > :05:31.domestic and overseas companies. The European chamber in China feels

:05:32. > :05:37.otherwise. There is concern about this, not only in the car industry

:05:38. > :05:39.but across foreign business sector. We have seen a number of industries

:05:40. > :05:51.targeted, pharmaceuticals, technology companies, food

:05:52. > :05:54.companies, all under the spotlight. There is a worry that foreign

:05:55. > :06:05.business is singled out for political reasons. The cost`cutting

:06:06. > :06:08.in the car industry shows that margins are high, the Chinese

:06:09. > :06:12.authorities will suggest that proves there a point, that there is a case

:06:13. > :06:14.to be answered. People think that in many ways these companies are

:06:15. > :06:17.victims of their own success. The reason they can charge these prices

:06:18. > :06:20.is because the real monopoly they have in China is a perceived

:06:21. > :06:35.monopoly on quality. John Sudworth in Shanghai. We will get a sense of

:06:36. > :06:37.global trade when we get half year results from China's big shipping

:06:38. > :06:39.company, Costco international. Revenues last year totalled $9

:06:40. > :06:43.billion, down 7% from 2012. Investor sentiment has recently taken a

:06:44. > :06:46.positive swing. I spoke earlier with our correspondent in Hong Kong and

:06:47. > :06:50.asked for an outlook on the industry and Costco International.

:06:51. > :07:00.That industry has been struggling since the financial crisis of 2009.

:07:01. > :07:03.A lot borrowed a lot of money before that period. They are struggling to

:07:04. > :07:09.pay that down. Also, there has been a slump in global trade. There are

:07:10. > :07:12.too many ships around, so rates one can charge for shipping on those

:07:13. > :07:20.vessels are lower than they once were. This is something the industry

:07:21. > :07:23.is struggling with over capacity. Costco say this is a problem that

:07:24. > :07:30.could continue They didn't have a great year, its profits were down by

:07:31. > :07:44.almost one third. We will see how they fared in the first six months

:07:45. > :07:46.of the year and for the whole year. Indeed, a very challenging

:07:47. > :07:49.environment for the industry. Surely, the focus is on

:07:50. > :08:01.cost`cutting. Absolutely. There is huge pressure in the industry to cut

:08:02. > :08:04.costs. The parent of Costco International, the China Ocean Group

:08:05. > :08:06.has already cut some routes to Europe and America. Some developers

:08:07. > :08:09.are looking to developing ghost ships, ships without captains on

:08:10. > :08:19.board, where captains would sit on shore in an effort to cut costings.

:08:20. > :08:21.Family business is integral to developing nations and that is no

:08:22. > :08:24.different in south`east Asia's largest economy, Indonesia.

:08:25. > :08:26.According to the latest Rich List, Indonesia's wealthiest million has

:08:27. > :08:29.come from family`run companies. Keeping it all in the family can

:08:30. > :08:31.have its disadvantages. In the final instalment of the series, our

:08:32. > :08:40.correspondent reports from a plantation in western Indonesia.

:08:41. > :08:42.Surveying his empire from the clouds, this massive factory complex

:08:43. > :08:45.belongs entirely to the Kinoto family, with an estimated wealth of

:08:46. > :08:54.more than $2 billion, they are amongst Indonesia's top ten

:08:55. > :09:05.wealthiest families. This is the young man in charge on the ground.

:09:06. > :09:09.Only 25 years old, Anderson is a manager at a pulp and paper company

:09:10. > :09:16.whose product is sold in more than 75 countries. US educated, he is the

:09:17. > :09:23.younger son of the owner. This is a family business that has been handed

:09:24. > :09:27.down for two generations. The company relies on solid foundations.

:09:28. > :09:39.Working in a multigenerational team can bring its challenges.

:09:40. > :09:42.It isn't easy, but it is our culture and our company that is not only

:09:43. > :09:45.about tenure but about fresh ideas. We have to have mutual respect. The

:09:46. > :09:48.more senior people in the company have respect for the younger people

:09:49. > :09:52.and the younger generation with fresh ideas. Likewise, the younger

:09:53. > :10:02.generation need to have mutual respect for the people they work

:10:03. > :10:05.with. My father said don't forget how far we hav come and never forget

:10:06. > :10:08.how lucky you are so you can appreciate where you come from.

:10:09. > :10:12.Anderson is the only son in the family business, but he hasn't let

:10:13. > :10:14.his fast tracked career go to his head.

:10:15. > :10:17.You are no different to anyone else, yes? The day that you feel your

:10:18. > :10:20.sense of entitlement is the beginning of the decline, because

:10:21. > :10:33.everything that you have, you need to work for. You are not entitled to

:10:34. > :10:37.anything. This is the value that was imparted by my father and that is

:10:38. > :10:44.close to the whole family. This is the nursery growing the next

:10:45. > :10:48.generation of saplings. This business is firmly rooted in family

:10:49. > :10:55.values and says that has been a key to its success. Thank you so much

:10:56. > :10:57.for investing your time with us. I am Rico Hizon in Singapore. Goodbye

:10:58. > :11:06.for now. The top stories this hour: President

:11:07. > :11:17.Obama says Iraqi forces have taken back the country's largest dam. He

:11:18. > :11:19.called it a major step forward in the battle against Islamic State

:11:20. > :11:22.militants. Calls for calm in Missouri after

:11:23. > :11:24.days of violence. The National Guard takes to the streets, as the

:11:25. > :11:25.governor