:00:00. > :00:00.Hospital on Thursday, against the advice of doctors. Now on BBC News,
:00:00. > :00:17.all the latest business news live from Singapore.
:00:18. > :00:23.Boosting relations. India's Prime Minister is in Japan to improve
:00:24. > :00:30.economic and defence ties. Getting hitched in China, couples turning to
:00:31. > :00:39.novelty wedding photos have given rise to a new multi` billion`dollar
:00:40. > :00:44.industry. Hello, and welcome to Asia Business Report. I am Sharanjit Leyl
:00:45. > :00:49.in Singapore. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in Japan on his
:00:50. > :00:53.first big bilateral trip since taking office in May. Trade between
:00:54. > :00:59.the two countries was $10 billion last year, which pales compared to
:01:00. > :01:03.India's trade with China, which came in at $65 billion. On the weekend,
:01:04. > :01:08.Narendra Modi and the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited a temple
:01:09. > :01:11.in Kyoto ahead of the summit to discuss ways to expand bilateral
:01:12. > :01:16.cooperation relating to economic and defence issues. During the five`day
:01:17. > :01:19.visit, Shinzo Abe and his Japanese counterparts are expected to sign a
:01:20. > :01:23.deal allowing for the joint production of rare earth minerals
:01:24. > :01:26.and metals, key element in the defence technology sector. Both
:01:27. > :01:30.nations currently import the material from China. Earlier I spoke
:01:31. > :01:37.with the cheap economist for Asia Pacific at the consultancy IHS, and
:01:38. > :01:40.they asked how significant it was that the Indian Prime Minister is
:01:41. > :01:44.seeking to boost ties with Japan. They see Japan is a great
:01:45. > :01:48.opportunity to expand the relationship that has been a
:01:49. > :01:51.relatively underplayed one. I think particularly because costs of
:01:52. > :01:58.manufacturing are rising in China, it is a very good opportunity now to
:01:59. > :02:01.attract Japanese investment into the Indian manufacturing sector, and to
:02:02. > :02:05.establish co`operation in other areas, particularly in defence and
:02:06. > :02:12.energy as well. Whether India is going to Japan, to provide advanced
:02:13. > :02:16.technology. Talk about defence and energy, rat earth is on the agenda,
:02:17. > :02:21.nuclear energy pact as well expected to be on the agenda at `` red
:02:22. > :02:26.Earth. How crucial are these two sectors for India and Japan? For
:02:27. > :02:30.India in particular it is looking for energy technology. Nuclear
:02:31. > :02:33.technology still on the agenda for India. It will be looking for a
:02:34. > :02:37.nuclear technology from Japan, as well as other sorts of conventional
:02:38. > :02:46.energy technology as well. In terms of rare earth, Japan is actually
:02:47. > :02:54.very dependent on China for rare earth imports. So the opportunity
:02:55. > :02:59.has actually come to watch China to supply rare earths for Japan, which
:03:00. > :03:02.will be particularly used for the water industry in Japan. You say it
:03:03. > :03:06.is all about trying to diversify away from China. How much is this
:03:07. > :03:11.meeting and this trip about also deflecting the challenge brought
:03:12. > :03:16.about by an increasingly militarised China. I think in the Japanese point
:03:17. > :03:20.of view they are trying to build alliances around Asia`Pacific region
:03:21. > :03:26.is, of course they are traditional allies with the US. I think from the
:03:27. > :03:28.Indian perspective they are going to want to play a very balanced
:03:29. > :03:32.relationship between Japan and China. Because China is a very
:03:33. > :03:40.important economic relationship or India, and they don't want to get
:03:41. > :03:45.into an arms race with China either. The latest gauge of manufacturing
:03:46. > :03:51.activity in China, the purchasing manager's index, as slow to 51.1,
:03:52. > :03:55.compared to a reading of 51.7 in July. Any reading above 50 indicates
:03:56. > :04:02.an expansion. Before this morning's figures, the PMI had risen for seven
:04:03. > :04:07.straight months. A Japanese company has increased its spending on plant
:04:08. > :04:11.and equipment in the second quarter by 3% compared with the same time
:04:12. > :04:14.last year, underlining a moderate recovery in this investment. The
:04:15. > :04:18.increase follows a 7.4% increase in the first quarter of the year. The
:04:19. > :04:23.Indian economy has chalked up its fastest paced growth in 2.5 years,
:04:24. > :04:28.second`quarter GDP expanded by 5.7%. It was helped by strong growth
:04:29. > :04:32.in financial services. The expansion follows a fresh policies launched by
:04:33. > :04:40.India's new government, designed to encourage business investment. It
:04:41. > :04:44.cuts are underweight in an attempt to revive the beleaguered
:04:45. > :04:49.flagcarrier Malaysia Airlines. The investment fund which owns 69% of
:04:50. > :04:54.the airline has announced a near $2 billion restructure. 6000 jobs, or
:04:55. > :04:58.one third of the airline's workforce will go. There will be a new boss
:04:59. > :05:04.for the airline, and the aim is to be back to profitability by the end
:05:05. > :05:08.of 2017. The airline's financial troubles ballooned after the twin
:05:09. > :05:15.disasters of MH370 and MH17. For more, our correspondent covers the
:05:16. > :05:18.aviation sector at a consultancy, frost and Sullivan. People are
:05:19. > :05:26.reeling over the huge loss in jobs, 6000. Will this restructuring plan
:05:27. > :05:30.really be enough to turn Malaysia Airlines' fortunes around? I think
:05:31. > :05:35.it is a bold move, I think it is a good move. I think that they had no
:05:36. > :05:39.choice in doing so. I think the plan is a very good one. Looking at it
:05:40. > :05:43.from a strategic expected it makes tremendous sense, but it will come
:05:44. > :05:48.down to the into meditation `` perspective. Can they do it on the
:05:49. > :05:51.ground? You say it is good, but implementation, they seem to be
:05:52. > :05:56.taking a fairly hard`line already. They have chopped 6000 jobs. So will
:05:57. > :06:01.is this perhaps a sign that they are willing to implement? I think for
:06:02. > :06:04.sure. I really think that they have absolutely no choice whatsoever to
:06:05. > :06:09.do so. They are making the right moves, and very bold moves. So I
:06:10. > :06:14.think that they got off to a good starting point. Right. But this huge
:06:15. > :06:20.loss in the number of jobs. How will they even keep on running? Weren't
:06:21. > :06:23.they need to cut routes? They will need to cut routes, get rid of old
:06:24. > :06:30.aircraft, refocus where they fly to, probably more regional flights.
:06:31. > :06:34.Yes, there is going to be tremendous reshuffling and reorganisation to be
:06:35. > :06:38.done. Now even if the airline were to recover, the aim is by 2017 they
:06:39. > :06:41.want to go back into profitability, they still have to content with
:06:42. > :06:55.competition market. Everybody is faced with
:06:56. > :07:05.exactly the same thing. Thai Airways, a Asia. You have the same
:07:06. > :07:09.competition in the market `` Air Asia. You have to be strong, manage
:07:10. > :07:13.costs, and be very focused. I think the plan that Malaysia Airlines is
:07:14. > :07:18.showing is a far more lean, mean organisation. So I think they have a
:07:19. > :07:25.far better chance of survival than they have had in the past. We will
:07:26. > :07:31.leave it there. If you are planning on walking down the aisle, of
:07:32. > :07:37.course, there are lots of people planning that. How far would you go
:07:38. > :07:41.for your wedding photos? Well, in China, couples are no longer just
:07:42. > :07:47.after that traditional shot of their kiss at the altar. Their new demands
:07:48. > :07:50.have created big opportunities for China's entrepreneurs in today's
:07:51. > :07:58.edition of my business Asia, John Sutton worth reports on the booming
:07:59. > :08:05.industry in novelty wedding photos. `` John Sudworth. It is a photo
:08:06. > :08:10.shoot guaranteed to take the breath away. China's buoyant, booming
:08:11. > :08:15.economy has seen a splurge in wedding spending in recent years,
:08:16. > :08:22.and with it has come a rapid change in taste and customs. It is
:08:23. > :08:27.special, for us, because a lot of couples choose the original styles.
:08:28. > :08:34.We want a special style for us, I think underwater is more good for
:08:35. > :08:38.the couples, I think. If you can't afford time off work for those
:08:39. > :08:45.special images, then why not have taken on job? These photos of a
:08:46. > :08:49.paramilitary police officer and his wife recently went viral on the
:08:50. > :08:55.Chinese Internet. Unlike in the West, couples have their main set of
:08:56. > :08:59.photos taken well in advance of the wedding, and with more than 500,000
:09:00. > :09:06.registered wedding photographers countrywide, competition is fierce.
:09:07. > :09:11.In Shanghai alone, there are dozens of studios with the special tanks
:09:12. > :09:16.needed for the underwater shots. China might not have invented the
:09:17. > :09:22.genre, but it has caught on fast as old traditions are swamped by a
:09:23. > :09:33.flood of new money. This photo shoot is costing Yy and Lamy dearly, but
:09:34. > :09:38.with so many couples tying the knot, that soon adds up. The industry is
:09:39. > :09:42.worth an estimated 80 billion US dollars. That is more than the total
:09:43. > :09:46.output of some European economies, and includes all wedding spending.
:09:47. > :09:49.Ceremonies, receptions, and honeymoons. For photographers who
:09:50. > :09:56.want to hang onto their share of it, spotting the next new trend may
:09:57. > :09:59.determine if they think or swim. Let's have a quick look at the
:10:00. > :10:04.markets. Asian shares are taking their cues from the US, we saw
:10:05. > :10:12.positive data there helping extend a rally, with the S 500 closing
:10:13. > :10:18.strongly. US stocks are closed for Labour Day, so stocks here reacting
:10:19. > :10:22.in a fairly subdued manner. We are seeing shares over in Japan, in a
:10:23. > :10:27.fairly range bound trade, but Hong Kong, the Hang Seng has just opened
:10:28. > :10:31.and in the last few minutes it has been falling after that index of
:10:32. > :10:36.Chinese manufacturing data contracted. That is it for this
:10:37. > :10:42.edition of Asia Business Report. Thank you for watching. The top
:10:43. > :10:44.stories this hour: Pro`democracy groups in Hong Kong have reacted
:10:45. > :10:45.angrily to