04/07/2017 BBC Business Live

This is Business Live from BBC News with Susannah Streeter

The Americans may be marking Independence Day today,

but does the world's biggest economy have much to celebrate

now that the CEO president is in charge?

Live from London, that's our top story on Tuesday 4th July.

As global leaders prepare to meet later this week as part of the G20,

today we're going to look at whether Donald Trump's

policies are a step forward for the world's biggest economy.

Also in the programme, The billionaire co-founder

of struggling Chinese technology giant LeEco has had

We're live in our Asia business hub with the details.

And we've got the latest from the markets.

And get comfortable, because we'll be getting

It's the product you've probably never heard of that luxury brands

And as the American owner of Shredded Wheat completed

we want to know, what do you love to eat for breakfast?

It's the 4th of July and while Americans will be

taking the day off to mark Independence Day,

the Republicans and Democrats will have differing views

on whether the state of the country's economy gives

The self-styled CEO President wants America to grow by 3% a year -

With growth currently at just 1.6%, how exactly does

Central to his plan is the renegotiation of US trade deals.

The Trump administration now says that it plans

to start talks over the North America Free

Trade Agreement "as soon as practicable".

Similarly, the President has pulled out

of a global climate agreement, saying

he will not be part of a deal that disadvantages US

Mr Trump is also trying to push through a new healthcare deal

which is estimated to bring federal deficits down by $119bn -

but crucially would also leave 23 million people without health

So could these and other aggressive policies give

They have now downgraded growth forecasts to 2.1%.

Emeritus Professor of Gresham College and Chairman

Let's start with that 3% that Donald Trump is aiming for. Can he do it?

It doesn't look likely. Business confidence remains resilient, but

they are still praying for lower taxes and lower regulation. But the

US is a consumer driven economy and consumer confidence remains in the

doldrums. Politics is part of the problem. President Trump was sworn

in on the 20th of January, so it has been five and a half months. His

campaign was very forthright and emotional. He has a majority in the

House. You would think that by now, he should have achieved a lot. What

is your perception of the situation? The striking thing about the Trump

presidency from a policy perspective is the absence of policy. He rode

this populist wave that he could solve America's problems with a few

big solutions, simple solutions that only he was able to do because he

wasn't going to pander to vested interests or the politically

correct. And the absence of anything that has changed anything is a

problem for consumers. He has also been waged by this health care bill.

Failed to get it through the first time. In the meantime, his plans to

tax cuts which would help reinvigorate the economy for

corporate America have been pushed into the long grass. There are two

problems. One is his inability to get things done. Secondly, what he's

trying to get done is not clear. It is not clear that the health care

plan will be good for the economy. The US has a productivity problem

and good health care and good education are important for web

activity. -- for productivity. We have seen a boom from President

Trump's election, but it was deregulation that markets were

looking for that has not happened yet. Well, in the election campaign

we had this delusion that by cutting taxes, somehow the tax revenues

would grow larger because they have incentivised the economy so much. We

have lots of evidence to say that is not the case. The debts are still

quite big. So he is not going to get through a big public spending

campaign through Congress. So he wants 3%. The IMF said it will be

2.1. It will be between 1.5 and 2%. Thank you, Avinash Persaud.

Let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news.

Energy-rich Qatar said on Tuesday it plans to increase natural gas

production by 30% over the next several years, as it faces

pressure from its neighbours in a diplomatic crisis.

A system failure at the Nasdaq stock exchange has caused the share price

of some of the world's biggest companies to be set

This caused Amazon's market value to fall by over 87%,

while Microsoft's share price soared by 79%.

Nasdaq says the glitch was caused by improper use of testing data.

Australia's central bank has kept its benchmark cash rate at 1.5%

The decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia was widely expected

after recent concerns about financial stability.

Chinese technology giant LeEco - that had hoped to topple Tesla -

has had its assets frozen in a row over an unpaid loan.

What more can you tell us? The company might not be a household

name outside China, but it's an exciting company that was known as

the Netflix of China. Then as you mention, they started drawing

comparisons with the likes of Apple and Tesla when it started branching

out into hardware like smart TV, smartphones and even electric cars.

But just after it started selling devices in the US last year, the

company's cash crunch also started to get attention. Today, assets of

the company's chairman and his wife and three affiliates worth over $180

million have been frozen by a court. The ruling comes after a company

failed to pay interest that was due on bank loans taken out to fund its

smartphone business. The chairman has admitted previously to

shareholders that the financial problems were more severe than

expected. He has not commented on today's latest developments, but it

goes to show how expensive all those new innovations are. Thank you.

Let's look at the financial markets now.

Asian shares turned lower as earlier gains were quashed by tensions

on the Korean peninsula after North Korea fired a missile

A system failure at the Nasdaq stock exchange caused the share price

of some of the world's biggest companies to be set

This caused Amazon's market value to fall by over 87%.

Nasdaq says the glitch was caused by improper use of testing data

and no trades were completed at those prices.

Let's take a look at what's happening in Europe -

there were expectations that Britain's FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX

Joining me is Jane Sydenham, Investment Director,

Let me start with the Nasdaq, that great story. It feels like we are

hearing more stories of fat fingered trades or glitches in the system. Is

it something traders now need to take into consideration? I think it

is, because so much trade is automated and high-speed. So the

technology is important and traders need to be aware that not everything

works perfectly all the time. It is interesting that it is the tech

stocks that have been hit. There is growing unease about technology

stocks in general. It seems that their financial stocks have gone

through torrid times and now the focus is back on tech, do you think

it could be the end of a bubble that we have seen? One of the reasons

technology stocks have done so well is that they are genuinely growing

companies in what has been a relatively low growth environment.

But because it feels as though interest rates are starting to rise

and economies are strong enough to withstand a bit of an increase in

rates, in that environment where banks have been so undervalued for

so long and some people would say they look quite cheap and tech

stocks look expensive, there is a bit of a transition going on. People

are beginning to say, maybe I should dip my toe back into the financial

sector. And do you think with all these regulatory decisions made on

the tech stocks, like the Google decision made by the European

Commission, that big find that it was hit by, do you think that will

have an impact going forward? It may. If we look at what happened to

Microsoft, that was quite a point for them. It is too early to say if

that will be a transition, but it's possible. It is all about news flow.

If we see lots of positive news for sectors, that will support share

prices. If the news becomes negative, the opposite is true.

Let's talk about oil. It has had a good run. Yes, the best run for five

years in terms of eight successive days of rises as a result of

reduction in the rig count of American shale oil and gas, which

now seems to be the thing that oil traders are watching, rather than

the pricing via Opec. It is interesting how quickly they can

ramp up production and an ease off the pedal when the oil price doesn't

look so attractive. Absolutely. It is amazing how technology has made a

difference in that industry both in terms of bringing the costs of

production down, but also the sensitivity to turn off the supply

tap, which used to be a hard thing to do. We were talking about the

American owner of shredded wheat dying Weetabix. What is your

favourite breakfast? I am a measly girl, sorry! -- I am a muesli girl.

Still to come, the luxury product you've probably never heard of.

We're going to be talking about Alcantara and its use

in everything from supercars to private jets.

You're with Business Live from BBC News.

British chip company Imagination Technologies has

announced a 19% increase in revenues.

But the results are overshadowed by its continuing dispute

with its biggest customer, Apple, who announced

in April that they are stopping using the chips?

Theo Leggett is in our business newsroom.

It's been a tough year for the company, hasn't it?

Absolutely, and the answer to your question is yes. Look at the share

price. This was where it was in March before Apple said it wasn't

going to be using Imagination's intellectual property and its

designs for chips any more. And here is what happened to the share price

afterwards. It has not recovered. Nipped up a bit over the past few

days because there is talk of the company being sold. But this is a

major dispute. Imagination provides the design for chips used in things

like iPhones, iPads, Apple TV 's and watches. It provides a good stream

of revenue through royalty payments. And if Apple stubs using those

designs, that royalty stream also stops that provides problems for the

company. It provides a great deal of uncertainty. Who might want to buy

Imagination Technologies? There are plenty of names in the frame. Apple

is one of them. It owns an 8% stake at the moment. There is talk of a

Chinese company potentially being interested, and Intel as well.

Although it has problems, Imagination has been talked about

for years as one of the UK's leaders in technology and it does still have

useful intellectual property. Thank you.

Sainsbury's is up 2.3%. Their chief executive says the market is

competitive. Big supermarket chains are finding

life to be tough. Could there be another round of takeovers?

Sainsbury's is apparently in talks to buy Imagination Technologies a

wholesaler and Nisa. The drive for cheaper groceries. The discount is

also performing pretty well. Interesting Sainsbury's is not doing

too badly either. A quick look at how

markets are faring.... Look at how they have opened in

Europe. A bit of a sea of red following on from falls in Asia. The

FTSE 100 currently down. Asia falls took place after an uplift earlier

in the session following the news that North Korea have fired a

missile into the waters off Japan. And now let's get the inside track

on a type of material that you may but you may have sat

on it, or even worn it! Alcantara is a synthetic

suede-like material, One of its main selling

points is its durability, alongside its similarity

to real suede. If you're lucky enough to own

a Lamborghini, Porsche, yacht, or even a private jet,

you'll probably have come across their product which is used

as an interior trim. Alcantara is protected by several

patents and is produced by its Italian parent company,

also called Alcantara. Joining us is Andrea Boragno,

chief executive officer Thank you for joining us in the

studio. My pleasure. Let us talk about the product, the type of

material... Very innovative. As a result of proprietary technology.

Very versatile. It can be resented in countless different ways. We

started in the fashion industry, in the 70s, Versace and other important

fashion designers using Alcantara, then we moved into interiors and

then the automotive industry. Nowadays, because of the versatility

of the material and because of the properties of being presented or in

countless different ways, we are expanding more and more in many

business sectors. The last one where we are growing significantly is

consumer electronics and especially information technology.

Headphones... In the earpads, we have glasses here. It is carbon

neutral as well? Your production process? The first Italian company

to be carbon neutral and we have a strong commitment on sustainability

and we believe this trend will grow and grow. And talking about growing

trends, we are positioning the brand at the intersection of

high-performance technology and emotions. The emotion of beauty,

something related to design something related to fashion and

even to art. Which is why you have been at the Festival Of Speed.

Exactly. We are very pleased about this participation with the London

design Festival in partnership with... We wanted to put together

the best of the UK design together with Italian excellence. For several

years, we have had a very intensive and fruitful relationship with the

world of design, of creative people, and even artists, it is a relation

of give and take. For designers, Alcantara becomes the means by which

they express their creativity and very often, Alcantara becomes the

integrating part of the creative process and as they return, we have

a lot of ideas. So important it became an integrated part of the

business. The business proposition, in Italy, do you think that is the

right way to go to luxury products to revitalise the economy? It is a

global trend, not only in Italy. It is an advantage to some extent

compared to other countries. We believe and we have been practising

the positioning of the brand at the intersection between technology and

emotion. We think there is a growing trend of this. And the market once

exclusivity and top quality is not enough -- and the market wants

exclusivity. For me, top quality is boring. You need luxury and emotion.

The motion and luxury. That is what the market wants. We need breakfast.

Thank you. Let's talk about gender equality

because a new report from the Wharton Business School

says venture capitalists who provide funding for start-ups

have an inbuilt bias From New York,

Samira Hussain reports. It is loud, dark and it is popular

with women. That popularity has propelled this brand of stationary

cycling from a single studio to a national phenomenon and soon it will

debut on the public stock exchange. But does its dependence on women

speak to the wider trend of women starting female focused companies? I

believe ultimately what investors are looking for businesses with

sound fundamentals, have you proven you are able to consistently grow

your business and are you making returns on your capital? Studies

have shown women are more reluctant to get into business. And a good inn

is solving a problem you face personally. That was how the camp

and alternative was born. -- tampon. I was terrified of becoming an

entrepreneur. The chance of success is slim to none but I was facing a

deep personal problem and I knew I had to solve it. But if female

entrepreneurs only focus on solving their own problems, or catering to

women, they risk reinforcing the same stereotypes that have plagued

women in business for years. The stereotypes and preconceptions about

what men and women are good at and the traits they possess more

exaggerated than reality. I think in most businesses, in reality, men and

women are relatively create likely to have the traits needed to be

successful but it is the perception. Less than 5% of Fortune 500

companies have female CEOs and while more women than ever are starting

businesses, it is still far less than men. If the economy is ever

going to receive the full benefits of gender equality, everyone will

need to rethink what businesses women can succeed in. Time to look

to see what other stories have been making the news today. Dominic

O'Connell joins us. Starting with the story in the Financial Times

come UK ministers calling for post-Brexit cooperation with the EU.

Quite an extraordinary story. When was the last time you can recall two

Cabinet ministers writing an open letter to the Financial Times that

was not a response to anything, lead letter, it is all about the

relationship between Britain and Europe when it comes to approving

drugs? They are saying, giving assurances the drug companies, big

industry in Britain, worth about ?60 billion a year to the UK, assurances

the old way of approving medicines, done in collaboration with European

regulatory authorities, it will not be damaged by Brexit talks. How can

they say this? The ECJ, the European courts, they are part of the whole

regulatory apparatus and one of the points of Brexit is we do not want

European courts to have any say in European chilly UK affairs. If we

did go down that road, the UK might become yet another international

market and not part of the centre of the drugs world and it is a careful

line. This will appeal to those after a hard Brexit, blue --

complete absence of control of the ECJ? It talks about prioritising

patients and the best possible way of approving medicines without

saying, yes, we will still be in Europe when it comes to approving

drugs. If you make that concession, the European regulators will still

hold sway over the pharmaceutical industry, in the car industry, the

aerospace industry, the City of London, they will say, why can't we

have that too? It is a very tricky can of worms, if I can mix in

metaphor. A can of worms, that is not what you want for breakfast.

What did you have? Porridge. I had porridge at 2am. You are virtuous. I

had a piece of Victoria sandwich sponge cake. A sneaky slice. A story

in the Times about an American company which has just bought

Weetibix. Amanda says on Twitter, a full English, would be her favourite

breakfast, but the reality is porridge. Nothing beats a sausage

sandwich! It is either Victoria sponge or a bacon Sahni! The reason

the Americans are buying it because the Chinese bought Weetibix thinking

the Chinese diet would change to more Western-style processed

carbohydrates like Weetibix but it did not work. The Chinese company

has sold it to the Americans who of course have tastes which are much

more in line with British tastes, eating breakfast there are real. The

Chinese have proved quite stubborn, they have not adopted Weetibix, as

they thought they would do. Is this any more concern in terms of

takeovers for the UK? It already was in Chinese hands, it had fallen to

foreign companies already and given we have sold our ports, airports,

power companies, we not that bothered about a breakfast is a real

maker! This is a picture of a viewer's breakfast cereal. Oh, dear!

They have obviously got a hard day coming up. Or they have been on a

night shift. Anyway... I think it has to go to porridge. It seems as

Weetibix. Interestingly, some Weetibix. Interestingly, some

Weetibix was impounded in New Zealand. Slip of the time, I grew up

in New Zealand and I said Weetbix. Weetibix was impounded, brought in

by British rugby supporter. We will have to leave it there. Bye-bye.

Good morning. A North- south split in the weather over the next couple

of days. Northern areas, it will be quite cool at times. But it is going

to turn much