20/03/2017 Asia Business Report

He will also be questioned over the attempted murder

Now on BBC News, all the latest business news live from Singapore.

From a disgraced president facing prosecutors to Chinese leader

heading down under, we take a look at the week ahead and how it impacts

financial markets. And while food companies are trying to offer

healthier options for Indian consumers. Good morning, Asia, hello

world. Glad you could join us for this Monday at edition of Asia

Business Report. I am Rico Hizon. It is set to be a busy week. Looking at

what is on the news and business agenda and how this could impact the

financial markets. The Korean impeachment saga is set to continue

this Monday with prosecutors questioning ex-president Park

Geun-hye. Later on in the week, the General Council of the European

Central Bank meets on Thursday with many expecting a potential rate rise

and to round out the week the Chinese Premier, Li Keqiang, heads

to Australia on Friday. Earlier I discussed what we can expect from

some of these stories with a market watcher. Most of them are macro

news, which tend to affect all the stocks in the markets when something

happens. And what have seen in the risk environment has changed since

the Trump election. We used to worry a lot about macro news in the past

several years but since then we are worrying more about company specific

news and the dispersion across the stock market has led to a much

healthier risk environment which has meant we can withstand more macro

bad news than we had recently. What about the European Central Bank

eventually raising the cost of borrowing, following in the

footsteps of the US? Will it happen? Europe is going to be a hotbed of

the next 12 months, the Brexit negotiations going on in the

background, elections coming in France, and we just had some good

news out of Holland, so Europe is going to be... The risk premium in

Europe will continue to remain high in the next 12 months because of

these things. I don't think talking about raising interest rates right

now is the best thing. But of course, despite all this talk of

protectionist policies from President Trump, we have seen the US

market is continuing to rise. But raising the cost of borrowing has

kept Asian stock markets on the sidelines. Some of the markets in

Asia are worried about that, because some of the markets in Asia have US

denominated debt, which will get more expensive for them. But there

are plenty of countries in Asia with no debt problem, no deficits, and

for them it is still just trying to figure out what is Trump about and

which of our companies and sectors will benefit from his policies? But

our investors concerned that the Fed could get aggressive this year in

terms of raising by another 25 basis points, by another 0.5%, on interest

rates? I think 0.5% is properly priced into the cost of doing

business, but what investors have learnt about central banks in the

last eight years or so is that they can be very accommodative when they

need to. In other business news making headlines, the president of

Uber has resigned less than a year after joining the country, Co. He

has said that the beliefs and approaches to leadership which have

guided his career are inconsistent with what he has seen at Uber. They

have been a number of controversies over the country's work culture.

Angela Merkel and Shinzo Abe have spoken up in defence of free trade

despite the increasingly protectionist stance of the US. They

were opening attack fear and the statement came after the G20 meeting

which dropped a long-standing mention of open trade in their final

communique, a move attributed to pressure from the US. While some

businesses are worried about the potential for market volatility in

2017, others are embracing it, and one of them is the currency trading

platform. But as the company starts to gain market share in Asia, will

investors be so eager to wade into the currency markets? As part of our

series, Two Minutes With, I spoke to the company's chief executive. Thank

you so much for joining us. Let's start. It is a very crowded market

out there. How do you survive? We are constantly seeking feedback from

our clients, and there are three big reasons why we are one of the top

retail foreigners exchange brokers out there. One is clients are

constantly looking for a trusted broker and we have been in the

market for 21 years, and no fines and no citations. You are based in

New York. We are based in New York. What are your plans for Asia? Big

plans for Asia, it represents 50% of our business today and we continue

to invest heavily. At the Asian markets are fragmented, do you feel

their are enough investors here who are financially sophisticated?

Definitely, definitely. We see investors in Singapore where we are

the market leader but also across greater China and the Asean region.

And investors want more engagement with the platform, and that is where

we are really investing. In education courses, helping people

understand the risks in the market, and that is what it takes. People

are looking for how do I get my trading strategy. That is true

everywhere in the world, definitely in Asia. And isn't it difficult for

Asian investors to learn online trading? They would rather talk

directly to their broker, rather than go online and trade. Actually,

you would find in the case of electronic trading, given 24/7

market access, or 24/5 market access, the way to consume

information is so easy, and you can trade on the mobile platform. With

the preponderance of mobile in Asia it is very good for investors. 2017,

a lot of volatility in the markets due to uncertainty in global events.

Does this bode well for your business? Definitely, it bodes well

for our traders and our clients, because while there is volatility in

the market they don't have trading opportunities, with more volatility,

they will look for more information and use that to trade and be

profitable. We are out of time, thank you so much for joining us,

from Oanda. India has been the standout economic growth story in

the past few years but increasing prosperity has a few downsides as

well. India's waistlines are expanding as quickly as its bank

account. The latest figures say 21% of women and 19% of men are obese,

and India's home to more than 65 million people who are diabetic. As

health concerns go, consumers are looking for healthier options and

manufacturers are taking note, with the world's largest food company

promising to make its most popular Indian products healthier. Our

correspondent has the details. Some of India's most popular food

products are going on a health kick. The company behind many of them,

Nestle, has vowed to cut sugar in some chocolate and dairy products

but its biggest gamble is a plan to cut salt and sodium content in Maggi

noodles. Indians love these noodles. Nestle's product is back to leading

the market in the category with a 60% share. That is despite a ban a

few years ago over claims these noodles contained dangerously high

levels of lead. Indians are over that controversy now, but what do

they think of Nestle's plans to make their favourite Breakfast, lunch,

dinner and snack healthier? I would rather prefer to buy something that

is organic, as a healthy choice, over a product like Maggi. I still

buy Maggi for the fact that it is Maggi and I like to have fun. You

change products and within one month you find your sodium level or sugar

levels are normal? I don't think so, but in the long run it is healthy.

It is going to make a difference. Nestle isn't the only global food

brand changing its strategy in India. Local brands are moving into

the sector as well. Spiritual gurus in particular have recognised the

potential of marketing flavours organically. These gurus have had

natural medicine products for years, but their expansion into food and

beverage retail is new. And, with hundreds of millions of followers

already, turning them into customers shouldn't be too hard. Food and

drink is a $57 billion industry in India, but alarmed by rising rates

of obesity and diabetes, the government is cracking down on

manufacturers. It plans to introduce rules on display in fat, sugar and

salt content on packaging and is considering a nationwide tax on food

products high in sugar and fat. There is more food news, this time

from China, where lobster imports from the United States have hit a

new high. American lobster is almost unheard of in most of the mainland

until 2010, when the value of imports jumped by a whopping 250%.

The market continues to grow, and last year China hit a new record,

importing lobsters worth more than 108 million US dollars

And before we go, here is a look at the markets, and Asia is starting

the new trading week a little weaker due to the decision to drop a pledge

to avoid trade protectionism at the G20. The All Ordinaries is down

slightly. The Hang Seng is moving sideways and South Korea is lower as

well. In UK is close for -- the Nikkei is ) of the colony.

The top stories this hour: President Trump has again accused

North Korea of acting very badly, after Kim Jong-un claimed