:00:00. > :00:10.doctors' advice and went to Spain. Now on BBC News, all the latest
:00:11. > :00:17.business news live from Singapore. Going global. From start`up to
:00:18. > :00:24.worldwide giant, Alibaba get set to list in the US stock market. But can
:00:25. > :00:28.it take on its American rivals? How one tiny island in the Indian
:00:29. > :00:36.Ocean has made it a successful financial hub. Thank you for joining
:00:37. > :00:38.us for this edition of Asia Business Report on BBC World News, I am Rico
:00:39. > :00:47.Hizon. It is a big week for Alibaba as
:00:48. > :00:50.shares go on sale on the New York Stock Exchange at the end of the
:00:51. > :00:57.week. Early estimates indicate it could raise $20 billion. The Chinese
:00:58. > :01:02.juggernaut has bought up companies (the right, centre and generates
:01:03. > :01:06.more revenue than American online retailers Amazon and eBay combined
:01:07. > :01:16.`` left and right. Richard Taylor reports on how much of a threat
:01:17. > :01:20.Alibaba poses to its peers. Ride sharing San Francisco style.
:01:21. > :01:30.These are the hallmark of Lift, the hallmark of this smartphone app.
:01:31. > :01:34.Since its launch, the start`up has been on quite a journey, recently on
:01:35. > :01:38.Alibaba's journey, a key investor in the $200 million funding round
:01:39. > :01:45.earlier this year. That was just the latest in a spending spree.
:01:46. > :01:47.Alibaba's venture in mobile spreading way behind transport into
:01:48. > :01:52.areas as diverse as communications, gaming, and app search. So what is
:01:53. > :01:54.driving these investments? This Silicon Valley venture capitalist
:01:55. > :02:03.himself invested in Alibaba a decade ago. Jack is very astute, an
:02:04. > :02:06.operator and investor. I think they are trying to learn as much as they
:02:07. > :02:10.came, understanding that they are Chinese, they are trying to learn as
:02:11. > :02:23.much as they can about the US market. The tech market type economy
:02:24. > :02:28.in general. And obviously many of them have a strategic aspect, where
:02:29. > :02:30.they are trying to bring back into China and using them here as a
:02:31. > :02:32.beachhead to expand here in the US. And those potentially expansionist
:02:33. > :02:34.intentions are getting some in Silicon Valley concerned. Right now
:02:35. > :02:38.Alibaba's e`commerce presence is subtle or stop its retail outlet
:02:39. > :02:40.doesn't so much as carry any Alibaba ranting. `` branding. Some of
:02:41. > :02:42.observers say it e`commerce ambitions could eventually pose a
:02:43. > :02:51.real threat to established companies like eBay. Alibaba knows they can't
:02:52. > :02:56.come to the US and drop. They want some of their services in the US and
:02:57. > :02:59.they expect it to work. They will take a long`term approach and try to
:03:00. > :03:03.introduce other services slowly but surely into the US. But they have a
:03:04. > :03:10.ton money and experience and you can never discount Alibaba.
:03:11. > :03:12.But for start`ups needing investment in their quest to become the next
:03:13. > :03:16.big thing, Alibaba's investment positively welcome. Chinese funding
:03:17. > :03:17.these days is seen as a badge of credibility.
:03:18. > :03:24.It is clear that Alibaba's presence here in Silicon Valley is not a
:03:25. > :03:27.1`way street. Many established US firms may fear what they see as the
:03:28. > :03:29.encroachment by the Chinese Internet giant on US soil. But for
:03:30. > :03:36.others it is a gateway into China itself. Not just in new market, but
:03:37. > :03:41.the world's guest. `` world's biggest.
:03:42. > :03:46.Alibaba might be a household name in China, but this is not necessarily
:03:47. > :03:54.the case beyond its borders. In part of his ambition, the CEO's wants to
:03:55. > :03:57.raise awareness of the company among consumers in North America and
:03:58. > :03:59.Europe. I spoke to a representative from advertising giant McCann, who
:04:00. > :04:00.shared his insights into what Alibaba needs
:04:01. > :04:05.consumers in these markets. It is known for the best
:04:06. > :04:09.transaction. That is what it does. One site has it all. The reality is
:04:10. > :04:12.it will have to make some changes if it wants to build within those two
:04:13. > :04:15.geographic locations. Do you think that Alibaba has what it takes to be
:04:16. > :04:26.able to break into the American market and give American consumers
:04:27. > :04:29.that sense of experience? I would never underestimate the CEO. He has
:04:30. > :04:34.proved to be an incredible businessman and an incredible show
:04:35. > :04:38.man. He knows what it takes to find the consumer. The question is
:04:39. > :04:40.whether he wants to do that. He seems to believe that the best
:04:41. > :04:50.marketplace is one which is very successful. Today looking at the
:04:51. > :04:53.results in China, ears right. The question is whether he will have to
:04:54. > :04:57.adapt for the United States. I think in the long`term if you want a
:04:58. > :05:01.significant part of the market you will have to make changes. If he
:05:02. > :05:05.makes that adoption? What if he adapt to what the US consumers want?
:05:06. > :05:10.Can he beat the Amazon and the eBay is? `` eBays? He is not just looking
:05:11. > :05:13.to see whether he can eat those companies, he is in a race against
:05:14. > :05:15.Walmart, against a lot of individually oriented brands who
:05:16. > :05:19.have good consumer presence right now on the web and to have managed
:05:20. > :05:22.to find a way for consumers to find their goods. `` who have. Many
:05:23. > :05:25.consumers still prefer shopping with those companies. He is a
:05:26. > :05:31.marketplace, they are brand specific areas. I think this is a race with
:05:32. > :05:35.which still has a lot to be run. `` that still has.
:05:36. > :05:39.Can Alibaba educate American consumers with a transaction
:05:40. > :05:42.oriented philosophy? Without a doubt, he can bring some things
:05:43. > :05:47.which right now are not necessarily the same as in the United States.
:05:48. > :05:51.I'm not sure he can educate them, but he can make some of the things
:05:52. > :05:55.that Alibaba is doing more appealing for an American audience. There is
:05:56. > :05:58.no doubt that he can do that. He still has to then figure out is
:05:59. > :06:01.whether it is a sensory, wholesome experience. Do I get the
:06:02. > :06:04.experiential satisfaction I get in these other places? Can Asian
:06:05. > :06:12.e`commerce sites succeed in the US with their existing business models?
:06:13. > :06:15.No, I think they still need to do more about the security of data,
:06:16. > :06:18.they still have to engender more confidence about privacy, they still
:06:19. > :06:20.need to be more knowledgeable about American consumer experience. Those
:06:21. > :06:32.elements which the Asian business sites will have to adapt to. In
:06:33. > :06:34.other business is making headlines, China has released fresh numbers
:06:35. > :06:40.showing its weakest growth in industrial output in more than five
:06:41. > :06:43.years. China's state`owned oil giant China Petroleum and Chemical
:06:44. > :06:46.Corporation is set to sell a whopping $17.5 billion stake in its
:06:47. > :06:48.retail businesses. Its retail side includes tens of thousands of fuel
:06:49. > :06:51.stations and convenience stores. The sale comes as china's government
:06:52. > :07:00.looks to restructure and boost productivity in its major
:07:01. > :07:07.state`owned companies. Shares are trading lower in morning trade.
:07:08. > :07:14.Staying with China, they have released numbers revealing weak
:07:15. > :07:17.growth in more than five years. The industrial debt measures output at
:07:18. > :07:19.mines, factories and workshops. The numbers released over the weekend
:07:20. > :07:21.also revealed slowing growth in retail sales and weaker than
:07:22. > :07:23.expected investment in infrastructure.
:07:24. > :07:29.Analysts say the new numbers are raising concern over China's current
:07:30. > :07:34.economic strength. South Korean conglomerates Samsung
:07:35. > :07:36.and LG are in the midst of a strange dispute. Samsung accuses some LG
:07:37. > :07:40.employees of deliberately destroying washing machines in stores in
:07:41. > :07:46.Germany. Samsung says the vandalism took place earlier this month ahead
:07:47. > :07:49.of a major trade fair in Berlin. LG alleges that two machines were
:07:50. > :07:58.damaged, but said it was done accidentally. The case is now being
:07:59. > :08:01.investigated. Mauritius is a tiny island in the
:08:02. > :08:06.Indian Ocean but it is firmly on the map as an offshore financial centre.
:08:07. > :08:12.Even so it is thousands of miles from India, the low tax regime makes
:08:13. > :08:17.it an attractive gateway for companies investing from there.
:08:18. > :08:23.Our correspondent has more from the Mauritius capital.
:08:24. > :08:28.It is a tropical paradise with white sand beaches and sugarcane
:08:29. > :08:33.plantations, but Mauritius is also a working island, home to a thriving
:08:34. > :08:39.financial sector. Billed as an investment gateway to India and
:08:40. > :08:47.Africa now, banks have set up shop and businesses have flocked to set
:08:48. > :08:51.up companies here. This is the heart of Mauritius' financial sector and
:08:52. > :08:57.accounts for 10% of the country's GDP. It is a major employer of the
:08:58. > :09:02.island's professionals. It is such an important pillar of the economy,
:09:03. > :09:10.yet offshore finance has become the centre of a row with India over
:09:11. > :09:15.taxes. Despite its small 1.2 million population and GDP of just over $10
:09:16. > :09:24.billion, curiously, this tiny island was the top stores of FDI into India
:09:25. > :09:30.between 2000 and 2013, accounting for more than one third of inflows.
:09:31. > :09:34.Wolf it's more than 4000 kilometres away `` although it is more than
:09:35. > :09:38.4000 kilometres away, Huntony 's have rooted investment into India
:09:39. > :09:44.through Mauritius `based holding company is to benefit from the low
:09:45. > :09:48.tax regime. `` companies. Mauritius has a double taxation avoidance
:09:49. > :09:56.agreement dating back to the 1980s. Some worry India is losing out.
:09:57. > :10:00.Mauritius has strict rules in terms of Indian investing in the
:10:01. > :10:06.Mauritius. I would think that a lot of it has to do with the sheer tax
:10:07. > :10:08.advantage that the Mauritius `India Treaty offers to any foreign
:10:09. > :10:15.investor looking to invest in India. Mauritius' finance industry
:10:16. > :10:19.is a major pillar of its economy. The tax advantages it offers on
:10:20. > :10:23.something `` is something they aren't willing to give up. As for
:10:24. > :10:26.India's new administration, it will have to find a balance between tax
:10:27. > :10:33.policies that shore up revenues and don't deter business investment. Not
:10:34. > :10:43.for Mauritius or from elsewhere. Thank you for joining us. I am Rico
:10:44. > :10:47.Hizon. Goodbye for now. Hello. You are watching BBC News.
:10:48. > :10:50.The top stories this hour: Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron says
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:10:54. > :10:56.called a British hero. Queen Elizabeth has made her first
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:11:00. > :11:01.United Kingdom. She said she hoped people would think very carefully
:11:02. > :11:02.about the future