:00:00. > :00:17.Now on BBC News all the latest business news live from Singapore.
:00:18. > :00:26.It is triple threat Thursday. Good global event create time oil in the
:00:27. > :00:32.market. A new generation of robots hitting the factory floor. A factory
:00:33. > :00:42.helping manufacturers prepare for the future. It is a Thursday,
:00:43. > :00:51.everyone. Good morning, Asia, hello, world. We start off the programme
:00:52. > :00:57.with the US dollar dropping seven week low to what some are calling
:00:58. > :01:03.triple threat Thursday and it will indeed be a busy day with plenty to
:01:04. > :01:07.make traders edgy. Sacked FBI director James Comey gives a
:01:08. > :01:10.testimony to the Senate committee and the European Central Bank
:01:11. > :01:17.deciding on interest rate policy and of the UK is waiting in its general
:01:18. > :01:21.election that will choose a government that will steer it
:01:22. > :01:27.through Brexit. What will it mean to the pound and the euro? I asked an
:01:28. > :01:32.expert if these global events are likely to have significant impact.
:01:33. > :01:37.The fact the Trump Administration has managed to get nothing through
:01:38. > :01:50.in its legislative agenda is starting to see this Trump inflation
:01:51. > :01:55.effect drop. A lot of life sucked out of the expectations of Federal
:01:56. > :02:01.rate hikes in the US. Do you see more pressure on the US dollar going
:02:02. > :02:08.forward? I think we will, into the next 24 hours at least. Into the
:02:09. > :02:12.early part of next week as well when we get the rate hike decision from
:02:13. > :02:17.the Federal Reserve and it should remain under sustained pressure. The
:02:18. > :02:24.UK elections, what kind of impact will it have on the pound? In a
:02:25. > :02:30.short way of saying it, if Labour were to get into power, or a hung
:02:31. > :02:33.parliament, that would be perceived as a negative for sterling
:02:34. > :02:38.initially. Remember these results will come out in Asian time tomorrow
:02:39. > :02:42.morning, much like Brexit. An increased majority for the Tories
:02:43. > :02:48.will see that pound rise reflecting the weaker dollar we are seeing
:02:49. > :02:57.against the other majors. What will this mean for the euro, the policy
:02:58. > :03:05.from central back. We are not expecting major changes that. A lot
:03:06. > :03:13.of push and pull is because of the developments in the global landscape
:03:14. > :03:17.but what about the Japanese yen? With the rate differential between
:03:18. > :03:24.Japan and the US and the interest rates closing up, it has put added
:03:25. > :03:30.pressure on the Japanese in yen. A double-edged sword, a negative for
:03:31. > :03:35.exporters are positive for importers? Yes, unfortunately oil
:03:36. > :03:42.also fell overnight so will be an offset. Which among the major
:03:43. > :03:50.currencies do you like given this environment? You cannot go too far
:03:51. > :03:53.away from the Japanese yen. Emerging markets has seen the Singapore
:03:54. > :03:57.dollar be very strong and investors will be looking for someone nice and
:03:58. > :04:03.quiet to put their money over the next few days. The Japanese
:04:04. > :04:06.government has just released economic numbers of revealing the
:04:07. > :04:12.country 's economic growth between January and March was a slower than
:04:13. > :04:20.first thought. Revised GDP figures reveal and analyse growth rate of
:04:21. > :04:24.just 1%, revised down to 2.2%. Latest trade figures will be
:04:25. > :04:31.announced. Data which is a key indicator of global demand. What are
:04:32. > :04:38.we looking out for? An analyst joined us from Beijing. He strayed
:04:39. > :04:43.slowing or will the numbers remain stable? Import will be strong this
:04:44. > :04:46.year going into China but some signs that economic activities and
:04:47. > :04:52.domestic economy is starting slow down. If the import number stays
:04:53. > :05:01.down in May, that would be a site confirming domestic growth may be
:05:02. > :05:09.slowing. Possible trade frictions between Beijing and Washington, have
:05:10. > :05:14.those fears ease? Yes, certainly in the short term. They are discussing
:05:15. > :05:21.trade globalisation matches and have reached agreement on other aspects
:05:22. > :05:27.of the relationship. We expect this moment 3-piece will last mainly
:05:28. > :05:40.because US policies unpredictability and the fact that the US policy is
:05:41. > :05:46.dependent on the North Korea issue. It is never going to an entirely
:05:47. > :05:53.satisfy the US. Not only the trade data, is set investment retail sales
:05:54. > :06:00.with Beijing curbing lending has these avoided debt risks and above
:06:01. > :06:05.all? That process has only begun. The debt mountain for China is
:06:06. > :06:13.massive and it will take years to sort that problem out. Their steps
:06:14. > :06:20.this year have been positive. They have tightened credit policy. That
:06:21. > :06:26.is encouraging. They will be easing off that campaign as they come into
:06:27. > :06:33.a political transition. Leadership will want stability ahead of that.
:06:34. > :06:36.The ER you, Rafferty. Donald Trump has been criticised by both
:06:37. > :06:44.political and business leaders for withdrawing America from the Paris
:06:45. > :06:55.treaty. Some are cheering the decision, however. America's largest
:06:56. > :07:03.underground coalmining firm told us whether the President made the right
:07:04. > :07:15.decision. Mr Trump is a hero and lauded for doing the right think
:07:16. > :07:24.which -- thing from the treaty. It did not obligate China but obligated
:07:25. > :07:31.the US, and China has a coal industry which is many times bigger.
:07:32. > :07:39.US mining chief executive Robert Murray. A new generation of robots
:07:40. > :07:44.are on the way - smarter and more mobile, promising to bring major
:07:45. > :07:50.changes to the factory floor but how are they preparing for these
:07:51. > :07:55.arrivals? Experts helping companies to get ready.
:07:56. > :08:03.Welcome to the factory of the future. It is a multi- million US
:08:04. > :08:07.dollar project set up by Mackenzy and it aims to help companies make
:08:08. > :08:14.the most of the new technology that is becoming available. Some of the
:08:15. > :08:22.highlights are predicted maintenance. There is also 3-D
:08:23. > :08:27.printing. It is getting sophisticated. They can print out
:08:28. > :08:33.more complex designs using more materials and it means factories can
:08:34. > :08:40.print out spare parts whenever and wherever they need them rather than
:08:41. > :08:44.keep a warehouse full of spares. In South East Asia 70 million jobs are
:08:45. > :08:53.at risk from this. In the future we see people as platforms. If you look
:08:54. > :08:59.at the transport sector, they are ripe for transformation. More
:09:00. > :09:10.autonomous vehicles. We're starting to see them here. Manufacturing
:09:11. > :09:14.industry, it will see changes in the transport logistics. If you go into
:09:15. > :09:20.healthcare, there will still be a need for tasks to be performed by
:09:21. > :09:27.humans. There will still be a need for old traditional skills but I
:09:28. > :09:30.would encourage people to make it is a period of renewal for each
:09:31. > :09:35.individual and they need to understand how to work with machines
:09:36. > :09:38.like the ones we have in the background. Technology is
:09:39. > :09:45.transforming everything, forcing companies to retool the way they
:09:46. > :09:48.work-it is all about efficiency and productivity. In Asia, where Labour
:09:49. > :09:56.is comparatively cheap, will companies embrace it as quickly?
:09:57. > :10:05.Before we go, a look at the markets. As you can see, the Nikkei is
:10:06. > :10:11.already open for trading and up. The all ordinaries lower due to a fall
:10:12. > :10:16.in oil prices overnight. Nevertheless not much of an imam.
:10:17. > :10:25.Gains in the US stocks with investors are looking ahead to the
:10:26. > :10:32.testimony of James Comey, the UK election and the central bank
:10:33. > :10:41.announcement. Thank you for your time. - now.
:10:42. > :10:46.Former FBI Director James Comey has said Donald Trump asked him to drop
:10:47. > :10:49.an investigation into a top White House official's