:00:15. > :00:19.live from Singapore. Malaysia Airlines is set to announce
:00:20. > :00:27.a big restructure after posting big losses and warning of more to come.
:00:28. > :00:37.And, Japan's economy stalls as the sales tax pain persists.
:00:38. > :00:42.Hello and welcome to Asia Business Report on BBC World News. I am Rico
:00:43. > :00:44.Hizon. Shares of troubled national carrier Malaysia Airlines are
:00:45. > :00:48.suspended today ahead of an announcement of the details of a
:00:49. > :00:52.major restructuring move. The company revealed a loss of $98
:00:53. > :00:59.million for the three months until June after the disappearance of NHS
:01:00. > :01:03.370 in March and with the MH17 tragedy months later `` MH370. The
:01:04. > :01:06.airline was warned of weak earnings in the second half after a sharp
:01:07. > :01:12.decline in bookings. Our correspondent has more.
:01:13. > :01:16.Prayers for the victims of the two extraordinary aviation disasters
:01:17. > :01:23.that happened to one airline. Like his company, Malaysia Airlines Chief
:01:24. > :01:27.Executive is under enormous pressure. The losses announced this
:01:28. > :01:35.week underlined that challenge the airline must meet. He says after
:01:36. > :01:38.MH370 disappeared, airline tried to rebuild but tragically, just as we
:01:39. > :01:44.were beginning to see signs of recovery in all regions, we were
:01:45. > :01:47.dealt a blow of MH17. The full financial impact of the tragedies
:01:48. > :01:52.will be seen in the next set of results. They will need fresh energy
:01:53. > :01:56.to come in and to make some very tough decisions that will probably
:01:57. > :02:00.be unpopular at a political level but they are things they will need
:02:01. > :02:04.to do in order for the airline to survive. That is serious work is now
:02:05. > :02:09.the task of the state investment fund design at which plans to take
:02:10. > :02:17.ownership of the company and implement a radical restructure .
:02:18. > :02:20.For staff, it is an anxious wait. TRANSLATION: I am anxious but I hope
:02:21. > :02:24.for success. There is no shortage of options for how to turn around the
:02:25. > :02:30.airline. As many as 6000 jobs could go. More than one quarter of its
:02:31. > :02:32.staff. Unprofitable international routes might be cancelled and the
:02:33. > :02:38.chief executive and other senior management replaced. No other
:02:39. > :02:43.carrier has lost two passenger planes in the space of less than six
:02:44. > :02:48.months. For the airline, fixing the finances is just the beginning. The
:02:49. > :02:52.restructure will only go some way towards gaining the confidence of
:02:53. > :02:57.passengers. The accuser at this check`in counter aren't exactly
:02:58. > :03:01.long. `` queues. Some planes are flying with rows of empty seats.
:03:02. > :03:05.Passengers aren't the only ones who were spooked. Nearly 200 cabin crew
:03:06. > :03:09.have resigned in the past six months, much more than normal
:03:10. > :03:11.turnover. The real challenge for Malaysia Airlines and its owners
:03:12. > :03:19.will be to get people playing a game.
:03:20. > :03:23.`` flying again. In other news, Virgin Australia 's losses have
:03:24. > :03:28.trebled to $330 million. They say is it was more than 200 roughly in line
:03:29. > :03:35.with market expectations. It plans to sell a 35% stake in developed ``
:03:36. > :03:39.velocity frequent`flier programme to Affinity Equity partners in a deal
:03:40. > :03:42.valued at about $900 million US. Figures from Japan highlighted
:03:43. > :03:45.challenges of boosting the third largest economy in the world with
:03:46. > :03:48.industrial production rising less than expected in July while
:03:49. > :03:54.household spending slumped and the inflation rate remains unchanged.
:03:55. > :03:59.Fujitsu research institute spokesperson tells us how to read
:04:00. > :04:04.the report. Japan has stabilised. We had a shock in April when the sales
:04:05. > :04:13.tax hike was increasing for consumers by 3% with real incomes
:04:14. > :04:22.diving down by 3% on that matter as well. 3.3%. We have 1.3% real
:04:23. > :04:28.consumer inflation if we take out the tax. This is good, but it does
:04:29. > :04:35.not mean we are on a positive trend. It is bottoming out. 1.3% is way
:04:36. > :04:41.below the 2% inflation target of the Japanese government. Will we see an
:04:42. > :04:46.upward trend going forward? Not for the summer. We very much hope the
:04:47. > :04:51.economy will recover. We heard `` hope for third quarter growth of
:04:52. > :04:55.2.5% and issued increased to the end of the year but it keeps the
:04:56. > :04:58.government on its toes to come up with more reforms for some
:04:59. > :05:03.reductions in taxes corporations for example. Some reforms that make
:05:04. > :05:07.people more positive in terms of the overall outlook and that will help
:05:08. > :05:13.create a positive trend. We shouldn't expect too much this
:05:14. > :05:17.summer. Revised numbers from the US reveal the economy grew at its
:05:18. > :05:22.fastest pace in `` than first thought at 4.2% in the second
:05:23. > :05:25.quarter, up to .2%, reflecting stronger business spending and
:05:26. > :05:30.exports. It was the fastest pace of growth since the first quarter of
:05:31. > :05:34.2013 `` the quarter. The Indian economy is growing at slowest pace
:05:35. > :05:36.in three decades. It has been high since Narendra Modi took charge of
:05:37. > :05:42.three months ago. The latest numbers are out today. Are there any signs
:05:43. > :05:46.of a pickup in business confidence? In Mumbai, our correspondent follows
:05:47. > :05:52.a local product on its journey from factory floor to shop window.
:05:53. > :05:56.It is a busy day in this shoe factory. The last few months, this
:05:57. > :06:01.has been a common sight with new orders coming in fast `` in the last
:06:02. > :06:05.few months. It wasn't always like this. The Indian economy slowed down
:06:06. > :06:12.considerably over the last two years, affecting businesses across
:06:13. > :06:17.the board. But, this firm, providing shoes to stores across the country,
:06:18. > :06:29.feels that business sentiment has started improving ever since the new
:06:30. > :06:32.government took charge. The initial sentiment shows everything went
:06:33. > :06:36.correct, everything in the right direction. We actually got to see
:06:37. > :06:40.the result. Everyone's gone through a lean period, right? So everyone
:06:41. > :06:43.sees an opportunity to grow big. They need to make up for lost time,
:06:44. > :06:52.make up for lost business. This seems to be that make up time taking
:06:53. > :06:59.place. O'Neill has come to the store to buy some new shoes for work. He
:07:00. > :07:02.worked in the information and technology sector and lost his work
:07:03. > :07:07.earlier this year due to the economic slowdown, as jobs in IT
:07:08. > :07:13.dried up `` Anil. After numerous interviews, he finally got the job
:07:14. > :07:17.earlier this month. TRANSLATION: I went for many interviews but there
:07:18. > :07:22.were very few jobs in the market. One or two companies were ready to
:07:23. > :07:26.hire me weren't offering a good salary. Since taking up his new job,
:07:27. > :07:29.three or four companies have shown interest in hiring me. Suddenly,
:07:30. > :07:37.there are so many jobs in the market, which wasn't the case when I
:07:38. > :07:39.was on the lookout. Most people and investors seem more positive about
:07:40. > :07:44.the economy than they were six months back. There is also a sense
:07:45. > :07:49.that this optimism may last only for a while. In the long`term, a lot
:07:50. > :07:54.will depend on how quickly the new government can introduce reforms
:07:55. > :08:02.bold enough to put Asia's third`largest economy on the fast
:08:03. > :08:07.track to grow. Fuel prices in Indonesia are some of the lowest in
:08:08. > :08:09.the world because the government spends $25 billion each year on
:08:10. > :08:16.subsidies but there is a limit on how much cheap fuel the government
:08:17. > :08:21.provides. The state`owned oil giant imposed restrictions on subsidised
:08:22. > :08:24.fuel but not now. Our correspondent looks at the impact on people
:08:25. > :08:31.travelling on one of the country's busiest highways.
:08:32. > :08:34.This is the north coast highway, a 1300 Kilometre Rd that links the
:08:35. > :08:40.cities in Java, Indonesia's most populated island. On average, 30,000
:08:41. > :08:45.motor vehicles use this road every day `` 1300 kilometre road. Trucks
:08:46. > :08:50.carry factory goods and residents of the town go about their daily lives.
:08:51. > :08:55.Fuel is a crucial commodity here. In the past few days, subsidised fuel
:08:56. > :08:59.has been in high demand. We have travelled about 200 kilometres and
:09:00. > :09:02.all along the road, we can see gas stations that didn't have the cheap
:09:03. > :09:07.fuel and those who did were limiting the amount that people can buy for
:09:08. > :09:10.each vehicle. At this petrol station, I have been told it has
:09:11. > :09:13.been out of a cheap fuel since yesterday and today's supply won't
:09:14. > :09:19.get here for another couple of hours. This man is on a long journey
:09:20. > :09:23.transporting goods for a company that operates mobile phone towers.
:09:24. > :09:32.Because of the limited supply, he has had to buy nonsubsidised fuel.
:09:33. > :09:37.TRANSLATION: I can go bankrupt. What the company paste is only an a for
:09:38. > :09:41.subsidised fuel. `` pays. Some are taking advantage of the restrictions
:09:42. > :09:46.on fuel. Nearby residents here are lining up to buy and resell it in
:09:47. > :09:51.remote villages. This woman has been waiting for six hours. TRANSLATION:
:09:52. > :09:55.I am trying to buy their fuel to make money but I have been waiting
:09:56. > :09:59.too long and there is no guarantee I will even get the fuel. Seems like
:10:00. > :10:03.this aren't good for public morale. So, the government stepped in. A
:10:04. > :10:15.spokesman from the state`owned oil firm told the BBC:
:10:16. > :10:20.How the government solve this issue at the pumps will affect
:10:21. > :10:24.Indonesia's growth. A new administration will take office in
:10:25. > :10:32.less than two months and already it is facing a critical challenge.
:10:33. > :10:37.Before we go, a quick look at the markets in Asia. It is lacklustre in
:10:38. > :10:40.mid`morning Friday trade after US equities slept overnight after the
:10:41. > :10:45.latest tension between Ukraine and Russia. Japan is done by 86 points
:10:46. > :10:48.due to disappointing economic data, while Hong Kong at a straight into
:10:49. > :10:57.higher on selective buying. Thank you for investing your time with us.
:10:58. > :11:02.I am Rico Hizon. Goodbye for now. I'm Mike Embley. The top stories
:11:03. > :11:05.this hour. President Obama is blaming Moscow
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:11:09. > :11:11.fighting alongside the separatist Plymouth.
:11:12. > :11:13.states 1000 Russian troops are fighting alongside the Humiliation
:11:14. > :11:16.followed by certain death as militants from Islamic State post
:11:17. > :11:19.this video online of