:00:00. > :00:00.Thousands of people watched as his coffin was carried
:00:07. > :00:08.through the city to his local church.
:00:09. > :00:13.Now on BBC News, all the latest business news live from Singapore.
:00:14. > :00:22.High-level partnership. The Chinese Premier wants to boost corporation
:00:23. > :00:25.with Australia. And the business of meditation and quiet time for these
:00:26. > :00:40.little clients. Welcome to this Friday edition of
:00:41. > :00:43.Asia Business Report. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will spend today
:00:44. > :00:48.in talks with Australia's Prime Minister in Canberra. They will be
:00:49. > :00:54.discussing how to build on the free trade agreement they signed two
:00:55. > :00:57.years ago and Mr Li 's visit comes at a time when China is trying to
:00:58. > :01:01.capitalise on the global uncertainty following Donald Trump's victory.
:01:02. > :01:09.Our Australian correspondent has been looking at how the relationship
:01:10. > :01:12.works. Handmade for some of the world's most demanding sleepers,
:01:13. > :01:16.these mattresses are on their way from Sydney to Shanghai, where they
:01:17. > :01:24.will sell for 75,000 Australian dollars. They only started exporting
:01:25. > :01:29.to China in 2013. In a few years they hope to have 100 stores there.
:01:30. > :01:36.The 2015 free trade agreement has helped push down tariffs and boost
:01:37. > :01:40.profits, bolstered by the massive demand for western goods. By a
:01:41. > :01:47.typically is not interested in buying locally produced products.
:01:48. > :01:50.They are looking for something which is imported, particularly Australia,
:01:51. > :01:54.because we have a very natural product and beyond, I guess, the
:01:55. > :01:58.quality of the product in the master craftsmanship which goes into
:01:59. > :02:05.producing the product, they are looking for something that is
:02:06. > :02:09.genuine. Premier Li has been given the traditional welcome afforded to
:02:10. > :02:13.old allies. He has come to tell Australia it doesn't have to choose
:02:14. > :02:18.between China and America. They can trade as a circle of friends.
:02:19. > :02:21.Australia has spent decades carefully cultivating its
:02:22. > :02:26.relationship with China. It has become its biggest trading partner.
:02:27. > :02:30.The free trade agreement sealed the deal, but there are more doors that
:02:31. > :02:33.could be opened, like making it easier for Australian companies to
:02:34. > :02:39.sell online. At the moment, exports are still dominated iron ore and
:02:40. > :02:44.coal, the commodities that have kept the Australian economy moving. At
:02:45. > :02:50.there is a need to change track. Food sales like beef are on the
:02:51. > :02:54.menu. There may even be time to discuss China stepping into the
:02:55. > :03:03.space vacated by America in a new transpacific partnership. I think
:03:04. > :03:07.the TPP itself may need to be modified, because it has very strict
:03:08. > :03:12.rules on prices and a bunch of other issues where China has been
:03:13. > :03:16.difficult in the short term. Other kind of modified version may be
:03:17. > :03:20.possible. For this company, more could be done to put the finishing
:03:21. > :03:24.touches on the trade agreement, like improving customs clearance. China
:03:25. > :03:33.and Australia have become pretty happy bedfellows. In other business
:03:34. > :03:37.news, South Korea's Samsung Electronics told shareholders this
:03:38. > :03:42.morning it is unlikely to adopt a holding company structure right now.
:03:43. > :03:50.The shareholder meeting comes as the chief sits in jail on bribery
:03:51. > :03:52.charges. Samsung Electronics has been under pressure to simplify its
:03:53. > :03:59.ownership structure, which would have helped solidify the family's
:04:00. > :04:02.control over the company. American car manufacturer Ford has signalled
:04:03. > :04:07.lower earnings for the first quarter due to higher spending and a drop in
:04:08. > :04:11.sales, including in China. Ford is also losing market share in the US
:04:12. > :04:15.as lower fuel prices have led to customers choosing to buy trucks or
:04:16. > :04:21.SUV 's, which have become more fuel efficient. We are wrapping up the
:04:22. > :04:24.first quarter of the year, and it has been a rather volatile three
:04:25. > :04:29.months. On Wall Street, the presidential election rally fizzled
:04:30. > :04:33.out recently on worries about President Trump's economic policies.
:04:34. > :04:38.In the energy markets, oil prices have been sliding due to supply
:04:39. > :04:42.glut, and that has been lowering the value of oil related firms. And
:04:43. > :04:46.investors are also waiting on more rate hikes from the US central bank.
:04:47. > :04:50.With all of this in mind, how would you sum up the first quarter, and
:04:51. > :04:58.where is the safe haven for investing? Here is the view from an
:04:59. > :05:02.investment advisor. If we look at the start of this year, we have been
:05:03. > :05:07.quite positive for equity markets, in particular US equities. So I
:05:08. > :05:13.would say it has played out quite well so far. Hence we have been
:05:14. > :05:16.turning a bit more cautious, but our investment outlook for the rest of
:05:17. > :05:21.the year still remains quite positive for equities. Right, but
:05:22. > :05:27.what about geopolitical and economic risk? We have terror attacks, we
:05:28. > :05:31.have impending Brexit, you've got uncertainty over President Trump's
:05:32. > :05:35.policies as well, will these continue to interest markets going
:05:36. > :05:39.forward? Absolutely, we think a lot of these positives and expectation
:05:40. > :05:44.has been priced in at the markets are kind of forgetting about all the
:05:45. > :05:50.risks you mentioned. Unfortunately, geopolitical risk like terror
:05:51. > :05:54.attacks we have just seen in London is something we are more or less
:05:55. > :06:01.used to, so the market reaction was not even there. But I think for us
:06:02. > :06:06.the bigger risk looking ahead is the French election. Something we are a
:06:07. > :06:12.bit concerned about, and hence we recommend our clients stay a little
:06:13. > :06:15.bit more defensive. These are all global influences you mentioned, but
:06:16. > :06:20.what about investment destinations in Asia? Where should investors be
:06:21. > :06:24.paying attention to? In Asia we have also seen a nice rally so far. I
:06:25. > :06:29.think the markets were quite concerned about Trump being elected
:06:30. > :06:34.last year, and hence more protectionism to come. It hasn't
:06:35. > :06:38.really materialised yet, so we have seen especially north Asian equity
:06:39. > :06:43.markets, stock markets in China, Taiwan or in Hong Kong rally quite a
:06:44. > :06:49.bit. We are still thinking these other regions investors should look
:06:50. > :06:54.at when talking about Asia. Very briefly, what are some of the risks
:06:55. > :06:57.in Asia, closer to home? So protectionism is one of the key
:06:58. > :07:03.risks. We are not really talking about political risks any more but
:07:04. > :07:09.detection is in the form of trade restrictions could be one of the key
:07:10. > :07:12.risks looking forward. Rising stress levels for our children are being
:07:13. > :07:19.blamed on all sorts of issues, from headaches to anxiety attacks, even
:07:20. > :07:23.suicide. Aligned with this has been the rise in demand for classes
:07:24. > :07:32.teaching kids meditation and mindfulness. For the final story of
:07:33. > :07:37.how Business of Kids series, we found out more about
:07:38. > :07:57.When I came to the meditation lesson, it helped me so much. It was
:07:58. > :08:01.what we don't know is that there are thoughts running through our head
:08:02. > :08:06.every day, so fast, and a majority of them might not be positive. Let
:08:07. > :08:07.Mac I have learned how to become, understand situations deeper, so I
:08:08. > :08:22.don't have to get so angry any more. This is Soul Centre, 1-stop shop for
:08:23. > :08:27.meditation and mindfulness. For about a month kids can attend eight
:08:28. > :08:33.classes, and are taught ancient Asian techniques to help them focus.
:08:34. > :08:37.This man set up Soul Centre in Singapore ten years ago. Revenues
:08:38. > :08:43.have grown substantially since then. We in Asia. We want to also be known
:08:44. > :08:46.in the West, in the US and the UK. We want to reach out and transform
:08:47. > :08:50.thousands of people around the world, children and adults alike.
:08:51. > :08:55.Mindfulness is now a billion-dollar industry in America. There are no
:08:56. > :09:00.statistics yet for Asia, at centres like these are on the rise. Here at
:09:01. > :09:04.Soul Centre, it is not just classes on offer. Books, CDs and other
:09:05. > :09:09.products are on sale as well. Some parents say it is worth the cost.
:09:10. > :09:14.You need to make an effort to recognise it, but it is definitely
:09:15. > :09:17.worth the money. You realise that after the class, when you reap the
:09:18. > :09:25.benefits of this... I would call it training. But, as any other training
:09:26. > :09:31.goes, you need to practise. In Singapore, are also entering the
:09:32. > :09:35.mindfulness market. This woman set up his studio for children in
:09:36. > :09:40.January. What I would like them to learn is to accept who they are, and
:09:41. > :09:44.in turn be a bit more emotionally resilient, so they do not get blown
:09:45. > :09:49.away by all this digital age, and what other people are saying and
:09:50. > :09:54.other people are doing. Our class is about 30 US dollars, the same as you
:09:55. > :09:57.would pay for a tennis or swimming lesson. But, as mindfulness becomes
:09:58. > :10:06.more mainstream, it may well become more common in Asia. Let's take a
:10:07. > :10:10.look at the markets before we go, because we are seeing some gains in
:10:11. > :10:15.Asia. Rather unusual because we did see that flat close on Wall Street,
:10:16. > :10:18.lots of concerns about the delay on the Trump healthcare bill,
:10:19. > :10:22.Republicans delaying a vote on that which now may take based on Friday
:10:23. > :10:30.or potentially Monday. So there is a lot of uncertainty, however we are
:10:31. > :10:32.seeing a weak US dollar, and that is helping those markets. Have a great
:10:33. > :10:36.weekend. The top stories this hour:
:10:37. > :10:38.The perpetrator of Wednesday's attack outside the Houses
:10:39. > :10:42.of Parliament in London has been