09/03/2016 Asia Business Report

possible Commons defeat after Sunday trading in England and Wales after

the SNP decided to inTory remembers who wanted to block the move. First

here is Rico with Asia Business Report.

A total eclipse for hotel bookings in Indonesia as tourists flak there

to witness this rare celestial event. Trouble in the waters for the

shipping industry. We find out why this year could be its worst ever.

Good morning Asia, hello world! Glad you could join us for this edition

of Wednesday's Asia Business Report. I am Rico Hizon in Singapore. We

have been witnessing a rare occurrence this morning of the moon

elbowing its way in front of the sun. Look at that! A solar eclipse.

Visible only in parts of Indonesia. Authorities have been promoting this

total eclipse as a tourist event since 2014. Total eclipses draw

scientists and sky gazers from around the world and hotels are

booked out and some overseas agencies have even chartered ships.

Our correspondent has more. The sleepy town in India is having

its moment in the sun or rather out of it. It has been the prime viewing

position for a rare solar eclipse taking place in Asia and the

Pacific. Day turned tonight for a few minutes, as the moon passed

directly in front of the sun. Thousands of people have flocked to

Indonesia especially for this event, bringing in some much-needed

business. TRANSLATION: March is low season,

but now it has become high season, as we reported more than 100%

increase in comparison with last year. More than 100 hotels in the

Sumatran city of Palembang filled up weeks ago and extra space on boats

even had to be hired out for the influx of tourists. Parties and

tribal rituals and even a musical festival was organised. Given

India's economy has been growing at its slowest pace in six years, the

extra tourist dollars are very welcome.

TRANSLATION: In March we are usually booked for government activities,

but some of them are cancelled, so we are accommodating tourists who

want to see the eclipse here. We don't have any special targets but

we will accommodate them as far as our capacity fits. For the multitude

of skygazers, there were fears of cloudy weather, but for these

tourists, scientists and astronomers, it looks like their

trips that paid off. But on a hazy day in Indonesia of course the

eclipse might be quite difficult to see. The Western Province of Rio has

declared a state of emergency over fires policing on the island of

Sumatra. Last year fires raged uncontrollably across several

provinces, costing an estimated US $15.7 billion according to the Royal

Ban -- World Bank. What does the amount of soy beans tell us about

the state of the world economy? It is actually one of the best

indicators of global supply and demand. It is call Dry Bulk Shipping

and the index which measures it has fallen dramatically over the last

eight years, hitting a low last month. Now it is being forecast that

this year could be the worst ever. So, should we be worried?

Very poor numbers, indeed. Earlier I spoke with our Asia-Pacific

correspondent and I asked her if global trade is falling off the

cliff. Actually, I think what we need to understand or sort of

reflect on is that global trade has been far lower than the levels we

saw before the global financial crisis for some time now. So, in a

sense, this is to be expected. It is mart of the ongoing narrative.

Before 2008 when the financial crisis struck, countries were

trading with one another double what global GDP was. You could see that

people were buying and selling to one another and shipping lanes

across the region, in our part of the world certainly, were filled

with ships transporting goods like coal, iron and steel, two huge

economies like China and India. But since then growth has slowed in some

of these major economies. China, for example. We saw import data just

yesterday coming out and confirming this ongoing story of slower growth,

slowdemand there. So we have seen global trade consistently fall since

the 2008 financial crisis. That has been reflected in the global - in

the dry bulk's trading index. That is the story of trade in this part

of the world. But, if you take a look at the numbers, trade volumes

around the world still increasing, but more slowly than in the recent

past and of course shipping companies are not just sticking to

the ships that they have right now. They still have to record. Since

2012, 2013 despite nushl indications that growth was starting to slow

down in places like China and countries around the region,

shipping companies continued to order massive amounts on their

books. Now, remember it takes a while to build a ship, Rico.

LAUGHS . I know. When they decide they have

got to put one on the order becomes, it takes a while for that to come

through. In the first two quarters of 2016 in this year alone, we are

expecting to see the bulk of those ship ms come through. That is going

to continue to put a dampener on rates. You mentioned about rates.

Has it Goan significantly lower? Quit significantly. I will give you

an example. At the height of the global trade or right before the

financial crisis, I should say, a ship in the dry bulk industry could

demand fees of up to $185,000 a day. That was a daily fee. Today it is

anywhere between $4,000-$4,000. It takes -- $4,000-6,000. You can

imagine how much companies are now losing. Our Asia business

correspondent there. Now, why do people visit India? Is it because of

the temples or the history? How about the adventure sports in up in

the north an area has turned itself into a hotspot for paragliding and

it even hosted the Sports World Cup. On the book of that success, a new

economy is bombing. Our correspondent went to the town to

find out more. A leap of faith. Moments later, just

a distant speck sparkling in the sun. Racing against each other, more

than 100 paragliders from across the world. They have attracted quite the

audience, too. Locals and tourists have come to enjoy the action.

Jockey Sanderson, a veteran of the sport, has been training pilots for

more than 2.5 decades. We have been coming to India for five years now.

It is very versatile. But, for me, it is so predictable, it is perfect

for training. The culture is so diverse and magnificent. Trudging up

a mountain with a glider that weighs 20kg is almost a daily ritual for

paragliders. I have just seen a lot of pilots take off from here and

they all made it look incredibly easy. They just run down the

mountain and then glide, so I have decided to try it as well. Really

experienced pilot there is going to take me along with him on what is

called a "tandem flight". I am really looking forward to it. I am

very excited but also a tiny bit nervous. After the sudden rush of

take-off, it is like sitting back in a chair, floating above the world.

Your mind goes quiet, as the wind and beauty engulfs you. Over the

past decade, this him mallean village has become a favourite for

paragliders. It has nearly 150,000 visitors every year. So, former

farmers have opened up restaurants and cafes. A part of a tea estate

was converted into this - the most famous hotel The Colonel's Resort.

We started out with camping. Just tents initially and then we made one

quarter as an experiment. We got a good response and then we made four

rooms. We got a better response. Today we have got about 15 rooms.

And, with the World Cup being held here for the first time, para

gliding may perhaps bring even more business for the area. The only

risk, perhaps - growing too fast too soon. It looks exciting. You can

watch this and other stories on the Asia-Pacific report at these times

over the weekend on BBC World News. Here are the markets, currently

mixed due to the fall in US equities after oil prices fell and China

reported poor rate figures of Japan and Hong Kong in negative territory.

Thank you for investing your time with us. I am Rico Hizon. Bye for

now.