:00:00. > :00:12.This is Business Live from BBC News with Ben Thompson and Ben Bland.
:00:13. > :00:16.Brexit proposals: The UK government says there'll be no return to a hard
:00:17. > :00:35.Live from London, that's our top story.
:00:36. > :00:37.The British Government has unveiled its second
:00:38. > :00:40.Brexit position paper - looking to minimise disruption
:00:41. > :00:43.at the Irish border and let people and products flow freely
:00:44. > :00:51.between Northern Ireland and Ireland.
:00:52. > :00:57.Why Apple is making it harder for touts in Asia to profit
:00:58. > :01:06.European markets are looking like this in the first half hour of
:01:07. > :01:08.trade. More and more of us
:01:09. > :01:10.are globe-trotting alone, we speak to the founder of one firm
:01:11. > :01:14.who turned her own terrible travel Today we want to know about your
:01:15. > :01:25.travel highs and lows: tell us your stand-out experience
:01:26. > :01:28.while travelling the world? The British Government
:01:29. > :01:38.has unveiled its second Brexit position paper,
:01:39. > :01:40.ahead of negotiations in Brussels This time, it's about minimising
:01:41. > :01:46.disruption at the Irish border. Northern Ireland is the only part
:01:47. > :01:50.of the UK which will share a land border with an EU member state
:01:51. > :01:56.when the UK leaves the EU in 2019. Under one option the Government has
:01:57. > :01:58.proposed, there'd be no customs border at all between the UK
:01:59. > :02:02.and Ireland, enabling goods to flow freely between the Republic
:02:03. > :02:07.of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Protecting the Common
:02:08. > :02:09.Travel Area is key. Thanks to the current arrangement,
:02:10. > :02:13.people can move freely between Northern Ireland,
:02:14. > :02:15.the Republic and the rest of the UK This is important because,
:02:16. > :02:22.according to the Centre for Cross Border Studies,
:02:23. > :02:24.up to 30,000 people cross And the Central Statistics Office
:02:25. > :02:31.estimates the value of Ireland's exports to Britain has grown by 14 %
:02:32. > :02:40.to $8.5 billion so far this year. With us is Dr Paul Breen, Senior
:02:41. > :02:55.Lecturer, University of Westminster. Good to see you. Welcome to the
:02:56. > :02:59.programme. It is hard to overemphasise how important
:03:00. > :03:03.politically and economically there is an invisible border on the free
:03:04. > :03:09.flow of people and goods between the Republic of Ireland and Northern
:03:10. > :03:13.Ireland. In Ait is absolutely essential there is a detailed plan
:03:14. > :03:23.in place well in advance of March, 2019. Here in London, where we are
:03:24. > :03:27.now, we can get on the London underground March 2019, the morning
:03:28. > :03:35.after Brexit. For people living on the Irish border, it will affect
:03:36. > :03:41.them very dramatically. We need ideas now in place so that we can
:03:42. > :03:46.actually make sure there is a seamless and frictionless transition
:03:47. > :03:50.the morning after Brexit. You mentioned it would have an impact if
:03:51. > :03:56.suddenly there was a hard order and border checks. What would the
:03:57. > :03:59.potential effect of that be? There are at least 30,000 people who
:04:00. > :04:04.travel across the border back and forwards every day for work. Then
:04:05. > :04:08.there is the business impact. Northern Ireland relies very heavily
:04:09. > :04:13.on its trade with the Republic and vice versa. It is completely
:04:14. > :04:16.essential there is free movement of goods people. Otherwise we will end
:04:17. > :04:24.up in a very chaotic situation has to be planned in advance. 30,000
:04:25. > :04:26.bigger people crossing the border, that is probably a conservative
:04:27. > :04:29.estimate. That is probably people who travel for work. Then there are
:04:30. > :04:33.leisure travellers and people moving around the country. Another issue
:04:34. > :04:37.link to that is the fact that a lot of people in Northern Ireland to
:04:38. > :04:42.identify very strongly with Ireland as an entity, as a whole, the whole
:04:43. > :04:45.island. Culturally they also have a lot of activities and a lot of
:04:46. > :04:49.involvement with people on both sides of the border. For example Co
:04:50. > :04:58.Fermanagh, where I am originally from, is bored -- bordered by County
:04:59. > :05:02.Donegal. People would have interaction with neighbours across
:05:03. > :05:05.the border. Who has the final decision? You could have a situation
:05:06. > :05:10.where the UK Government and Irish fitment agree not having any border,
:05:11. > :05:17.no border checks, but then you have to get the agreement of the European
:05:18. > :05:21.Union well. -- Irish government. Everything has to be arranged within
:05:22. > :05:24.the parameters of the Good Friday Agreement. In the most recent
:05:25. > :05:28.statement the Government has emphasised that the peace process
:05:29. > :05:35.has to be prioritised. I think there can be no deal or no series of
:05:36. > :05:38.actions that would jeopardise the peace process and the terms of the
:05:39. > :05:43.Good Friday Agreement, which can't really be up for negotiation. Thank
:05:44. > :05:47.you very much. Interesting to get your thoughts. Thank you.
:05:48. > :05:49.Some of the other top business stories.
:05:50. > :05:52.Donald Trump has hit back at the business leaders who resigned
:05:53. > :05:54.from his manufacturing council in the last couple of days.
:05:55. > :05:57.So far six high profile figures, including the bosses of Intel,
:05:58. > :05:59.Merck and Under Armour, have left Mr Trump's panel
:06:00. > :06:02.in protest at the President's handling of the rally held by far
:06:03. > :06:07.At a press conference Mr Trump said the bosses in question were not
:06:08. > :06:11.Technology companies such as Microsoft and Cisco Systems have
:06:12. > :06:14.ramped up lobbying ahead of talks to renegotiate the North American
:06:15. > :06:21.The firms are looking to avoid any future restrictions on cloud storage
:06:22. > :06:25.and to promote an international pact to eliminate technology
:06:26. > :06:29.The US, Mexican and Canadian negotiators are due to start talks
:06:30. > :06:36.on the 23-year-old trade pact on Wednesday.
:06:37. > :06:39.US wholesaler Costco is facing a $19 million bill in damages
:06:40. > :06:41.after the jewellery chain Tiffany sued it for infringing
:06:42. > :06:44.It accused Costco of selling "Tiffany" engagement rings,
:06:45. > :06:46.but Costco disputed the claim, saying "Tiffany" is
:06:47. > :06:53.The court ruled however that it must call them
:06:54. > :07:16.I am sorry. You will set me off in a minute. Plenty of news on the
:07:17. > :07:24.business live page. On there now, they are taking the nuts away. No
:07:25. > :07:28.more nuts on Walnut whips. This is Nestle is saying that to cut costs
:07:29. > :07:35.they are taking the nut from the new versions of the classic Walnut Whip.
:07:36. > :07:38.As the director points out it is now just a whip. Controversially, I
:07:39. > :07:49.never liked the nut on the top anyway. It is music to my ears. We
:07:50. > :07:55.have also been asking about your views on travelling the world solo.
:07:56. > :07:59.Mel says, massive hydraulic your own comment meeting the best people you
:08:00. > :08:03.will ever meet. Below is seeing how people live in different countries.
:08:04. > :08:07.Maybe suggesting people living in poverty forced up Karen says, I love
:08:08. > :08:10.it. Meeting new people and choosing my own adventure. Some of the best
:08:11. > :08:13.holidays ever. Keep your comments coming in.
:08:14. > :08:16.Apple is attempting to crack down on touts buying new iPhones
:08:17. > :08:19.in Hong Kong and selling on the Chinese black market.
:08:20. > :08:39.There are a number of reasons. The first reason is Hong Kong's lower
:08:40. > :08:45.taxes and duties are offering a powerful incentive for people
:08:46. > :08:49.offering a quick. Every year after an iPhone delays they pop up in Hong
:08:50. > :08:54.Kong and now sold on the black market. They are sold to tourists or
:08:55. > :08:59.across the border, to mainland China, but customers who are willing
:09:00. > :09:03.-- unwilling to wait for them to become available there. This does
:09:04. > :09:08.not happen any more. From yesterday you can no longer return or exchange
:09:09. > :09:13.any Apple products online in Hong Kong unless they are defective. The
:09:14. > :09:18.previous policy allowed 14 days for products to be returned in the city.
:09:19. > :09:23.This change in policy is very timely. Apple is expected to unveil
:09:24. > :09:29.its new iPhone models later this year. It is a hotly anticipated
:09:30. > :09:33.tenth anniversary edition and is supposed to have a completely
:09:34. > :09:37.overhauled look. It is just in time for this. Really interesting story
:09:38. > :09:40.as Apple gets tough on the touts. There's been a decent
:09:41. > :09:42.rebound in markets over the last couple of days
:09:43. > :09:44.after tensions calmed Money moving back into some riskier
:09:45. > :09:48.assets but we're still not back to where we were last week,
:09:49. > :09:56.suggesting there's still a lot This evening's minutes from the US
:09:57. > :10:04.Fed are likely to give markets a taste of what was discussed
:10:05. > :10:07.at the July meeting between Fed members and some indication
:10:08. > :10:16.of rate rise timings. In Europe today we're
:10:17. > :10:18.watching for confirmation of the EU GDP number -
:10:19. > :10:23.expected to show growth of 0.6%. And hot on the heels of yesterday's
:10:24. > :10:26.inflation data in the UK, showing the Consumer Prices Index
:10:27. > :10:30.held steady at 2.6%. Today we get the unemployment stats,
:10:31. > :10:38.including average earnings, which should give some insight
:10:39. > :10:41.into whether wages are keeping More on that in a moment,
:10:42. > :10:45.but first let's head to the US where Samira has the details
:10:46. > :10:48.of the day ahead on Wall Street. The US Federal reserve will release
:10:49. > :10:51.the minutes from its past policy At that meeting policymakers
:10:52. > :10:55.unanimously decided to keep interest rates unchanged and planned
:10:56. > :11:00.to reduce the massive bond holdings In other news, American retailer
:11:01. > :11:05.Target will be reporting earnings. Last month, Target said it
:11:06. > :11:08.expects sales to increase which would be the first such rise
:11:09. > :11:12.in five quarters. It will thanks to improved customer
:11:13. > :11:18.traffic and sales trends and the company has also invested
:11:19. > :11:21.very heavily in keeping prices low and improving
:11:22. > :11:24.its e-commerce business. And finally, Cisco Systems
:11:25. > :11:26.is also reporting earnings. The world's largest networking gear
:11:27. > :11:30.maker will likely report another fall in revenue as declines
:11:31. > :11:33.in its legacy hardware business outweigh gains
:11:34. > :11:36.from its new divisions Joining us is Lucy MacDonald,
:11:37. > :11:42.Chief Investment Officer, Global Equities at Allianz Global
:11:43. > :11:54.Investors. Welcome. This morning, interestingly
:11:55. > :12:02.from the IMF about China's being filled much by debt. That is exactly
:12:03. > :12:07.the case was that we are seeing debt everywhere in the world as being the
:12:08. > :12:10.major determinant of growth. That has been the case since the
:12:11. > :12:18.financial crisis, but particularly so in China, which has really driven
:12:19. > :12:22.excess growth, over 6%. That has helped the rest of the world, for
:12:23. > :12:28.sure. Pointing out this debt is there and will need to be financed
:12:29. > :12:33.over time is a good caution, I think. It is a common picture around
:12:34. > :12:38.the world, the growth is fuelled by debt. Where is the dividing line?
:12:39. > :12:42.Read as a become manageable and healthy to keep the economy growing,
:12:43. > :12:49.and being into dangerous territory? We had a very clear number at 90% of
:12:50. > :12:53.GDP. That proved to be not entirely clear that it was an exact number.
:12:54. > :13:00.We are now in the hundreds of percent. 250% we are talking in
:13:01. > :13:05.China and similar levels house where in the world. It comes down to the
:13:06. > :13:14.ability to finance that debt. That is affected by how close the economy
:13:15. > :13:18.is in China. It is a very close economy. It is relatively easy to
:13:19. > :13:28.control and a similar picture in Japan as well. The central banks now
:13:29. > :13:33.own a faith of the overall debt. There certainly are major holders of
:13:34. > :13:39.it. It does depend on the structure, the majority of the debt and who the
:13:40. > :13:44.holders are, how manageable it is. We are in totally new territory as
:13:45. > :13:48.far as the levels are concerned. Interesting. Thank you very much. I
:13:49. > :13:49.know you will talk this through some of the newspaper stories later. For
:13:50. > :13:51.now, thank you. We'll meet the founder of one firm
:13:52. > :13:56.who turned her own terrible travel You're with Business
:13:57. > :14:09.Live from BBC News. We'll get the latest economic update
:14:10. > :14:13.for the UK this morning, with the latest unemployment figures
:14:14. > :14:18.due out shortly. Wages are still expected to be
:14:19. > :14:20.falling behind inflation, which we found out
:14:21. > :14:25.yesterday came in at 2.6%. Let's speak to Professor Geraint
:14:26. > :14:40.Johnes from Lancaster University. I suppose that is always the issue
:14:41. > :14:44.for the regardless of unemployment figures, wages are not going up and
:14:45. > :14:48.people are feeling the squeeze. That is right. We do not know what
:14:49. > :14:51.today's figure is will bring. If they are in line with what we have
:14:52. > :14:56.been seeing over the last couple of years we can expect to see a further
:14:57. > :15:02.rise in employment, possibly a fall in the unemployment rate. We will
:15:03. > :15:13.see very little Joy on pay. The CIP de brought out a survey earlier this
:15:14. > :15:16.week saying employment was still set to grow over the coming months that
:15:17. > :15:18.there was very little action on pay. That is in line with the information
:15:19. > :15:21.we have from the bank of England's agents reports. Over the last ten
:15:22. > :15:25.years or so we have seen implement grow from 29 million to 32 million,
:15:26. > :15:30.huge increase in employment. Output in the economy has not grown as
:15:31. > :15:35.rapidly. That means productivity growth has been sluggish and that is
:15:36. > :15:38.not enabling firms toward paying creases, also essential pay
:15:39. > :15:43.increases, two employees. There is also a significant availability of
:15:44. > :15:47.labour. Normally would we would suggest that when unemployment is
:15:48. > :15:52.falling it is more difficult to find workers. That means there is
:15:53. > :15:57.pressure for employers to put up what they pay. Yellow macro ten
:15:58. > :16:04.years ago we had 30% of all workers were self-employed. -- Ten years
:16:05. > :16:08.ago. 27% are now part-time. Many of those want to work longer hours than
:16:09. > :16:12.they currently have. There is an increased availability of labour. We
:16:13. > :16:17.are seeing that as well at the top end of the age range. There are a
:16:18. > :16:18.lot of older workers now wanting to remain in employment. Good to talk
:16:19. > :16:31.to you. The business live page is updated
:16:32. > :16:37.through the day. Balfour Beatty has seen profits for the first half of
:16:38. > :16:39.this year doubled to ?20 million and the Chief Executive credit it to
:16:40. > :16:48.winning a series of large infra structure projects.
:16:49. > :17:00.The news that the British government is to unveil its second Brexit
:17:01. > :17:04.battle, how to minimise the disruption between the Irish
:17:05. > :17:09.Republic and Northern Ireland of course to maintain relations and
:17:10. > :17:13.trade links and the passage of people across that border. They have
:17:14. > :17:15.laid out a number of options but it is still very early days in the
:17:16. > :17:17.negotiations. A quick look at how
:17:18. > :17:23.markets are faring. That is what the pound will get you
:17:24. > :17:26.against the dollar. Ever fancied travelling the world
:17:27. > :17:28.with just a backpack for company? But what if you wanted some
:17:29. > :17:31.like-minded travel companions Well, our next guest
:17:32. > :17:36.founded her travel firm, Flash Pack, The market for solo travel
:17:37. > :17:43.is booming, especially 30 and 40-year-old singletons
:17:44. > :17:47.with disposable income. According to UK travel body ABTA,
:17:48. > :17:50.nearly one in six Britons - that's 15% of the population -
:17:51. > :17:53.have travelled alone. Despite safety worries,
:17:54. > :17:55.a TripAdvisor survey of more than 9,000 women showed that 74% had
:17:56. > :18:02.already travelled alone in 2015. Radha Vyas is co-founder
:18:03. > :18:19.and Chief Executive of Flash Pack - Welcome to the programme. Let's
:18:20. > :18:23.start with how it began because we touched on a bit of your story, a
:18:24. > :18:26.terrible travel experience and you thought there had to be a better way
:18:27. > :18:32.of doing it so how did it come about? I was single and in my 30s
:18:33. > :18:36.and like many people working long hours and feeling overwhelmed and I
:18:37. > :18:40.needed some adventure and fun in my life. For the first am I could not
:18:41. > :18:45.find anyone to go on holiday with and being in my 30s a lot of friends
:18:46. > :18:48.were settling down or getting married or busy with their own
:18:49. > :18:53.careers and a friend said I should go on a group tour. This was the
:18:54. > :18:59.first time the concept came on my radar, I did not know what one was,
:19:00. > :19:04.that it was available for some of my age so I was intrigued. I had always
:19:05. > :19:07.travelled solo and was craving company so I started researching and
:19:08. > :19:13.realised the mass group tour companies were predominantly
:19:14. > :19:17.catering to young budget backpackers with a focus on partying or the more
:19:18. > :19:22.luxurious ones for the 65 and over market and I was in between. I
:19:23. > :19:26.wanted adventure and a dynamic itinerary put the boutique hotel at
:19:27. > :19:30.the end of the day also the problem is the expense, travelling solo you
:19:31. > :19:33.pay a single room supplement and your trip can be incredibly
:19:34. > :19:39.expensive so how does what you have set up deal with that, if at all? I
:19:40. > :19:42.understand it from both sides. It feels a bit like discrimination if
:19:43. > :19:47.you are travelling solo but equally the hotels need to earn a certain
:19:48. > :19:52.margin and if you are renting a room on Airbnb, you would not expect to
:19:53. > :19:57.have half the rent is a single person was renting from you. We do
:19:58. > :20:01.not enforce a single supplement and we give you a chance to share a room
:20:02. > :20:04.with somebody you would get on with. You get to experience a nice hotel
:20:05. > :20:09.and share the cost with somebody. And when you're travelling around
:20:10. > :20:13.the world, it is about meeting like-minded people. It is sort of
:20:14. > :20:16.not solo travel in some respects because you are with a group when
:20:17. > :20:21.you are out there but how do you make sure you find a like-minded
:20:22. > :20:25.group? There are certainly different interpretations of what a holiday is
:20:26. > :20:31.or could be so how do you get similar people on the tours? We only
:20:32. > :20:35.cater to people in their 30s and 40s and 90% of our customers come on
:20:36. > :20:41.their own. A couple of people come with a friend but most on their own
:20:42. > :20:44.and most are single, busy professionals at the same life
:20:45. > :20:48.stage. They already have a lot in common, everybody is up for an
:20:49. > :20:52.adventure and meeting new people to the probability of getting on with
:20:53. > :20:57.people is high. And we talked about experiences and we have been asking
:20:58. > :21:02.people to send us highs and lows and it strikes me the world is a much
:21:03. > :21:06.smaller place now. You can do most places, do most things, if there are
:21:07. > :21:12.still some work on your list you have not ticked off or places you
:21:13. > :21:16.could not offer at all? North Korea for example, but there is still
:21:17. > :21:19.demand. Absolutely and we started the company by offering really
:21:20. > :21:26.cutting edge destinations like Sierra Leone also my husband and I
:21:27. > :21:29.have both been to over 100 destinations between us but there
:21:30. > :21:34.are still so many more, I would love to go to South Korea, to Iran,
:21:35. > :21:39.places in South America I would like to explore and North America. There
:21:40. > :21:44.are a few places that we do a void just because of the risk. I would
:21:45. > :21:49.love to do hiking in north Korea but it is just not possible right now.
:21:50. > :21:52.We have been asking for people to share their highs and lows and we
:21:53. > :21:58.have had some fantastic ones. This is from Maria her with a koala,
:21:59. > :22:09.saying it was her highlight in Australia. And this one says the
:22:10. > :22:15.edge of the Moon Valley called Paradise on Earth. A lot of people
:22:16. > :22:20.sharing. And similar themes, Philip says travelling solo lets to be a
:22:21. > :22:26.version of yourself you never knew, that idea of discovery and Jeff said
:22:27. > :22:30.it is easier to meet new people. He also says the load that sometimes it
:22:31. > :22:37.can be lonely and you don't get to share the memories. -- the low. Do
:22:38. > :22:41.you find people stay in touch after the trip? So many people do. When
:22:42. > :22:45.you are backpacking alone in your 20s you can stay in hostels and it
:22:46. > :22:48.is easy to meet other travellers but in your 30s and 40s you might want
:22:49. > :22:53.to stay in hotels and it is harder to meet people and that is when a
:22:54. > :22:56.group tour situation comes onto your radar and people start researching
:22:57. > :23:00.our company. What we're finding interesting is that people do stay
:23:01. > :23:04.in touch for long periods. We have had a couple of people who have
:23:05. > :23:09.become housemates in London after meeting on one of our adventures. We
:23:10. > :23:15.have now launched these mini experiences all across London and we
:23:16. > :23:18.are about launch in New York where you can experience a Flash Pack
:23:19. > :23:23.adventure in one day, joining a Jordanian supper club for example.
:23:24. > :23:28.We are seeing customers using that as an excuse to meet each other
:23:29. > :23:32.again. Any marriages yet?! No matchmaking! Really nice to see you.
:23:33. > :23:35.In a moment we'll take a look through the business pages but first
:23:36. > :23:40.here's a quick reminder of how to get in touch with us.
:23:41. > :23:46.The business life page is where you can stay ahead with all the breaking
:23:47. > :23:50.businesses of the day keep up-to-date with the latest details
:23:51. > :23:54.with insight and analysis from the BBC's team of editors around the
:23:55. > :24:03.world. And we want to hear from you as well, get involved on our web
:24:04. > :24:11.page. And on Twitter and you can find us on Facebook. Business Live,
:24:12. > :24:11.on TV and online whenever you need to know.
:24:12. > :24:13.What other business stories has the media been
:24:14. > :24:17.Lucy MacDonald, CIO, Global Equities at Allianz Global Investors
:24:18. > :24:28.One in the Washington Post, Trump tried to save their jobs that they
:24:29. > :24:32.were quitting anyway. Two element here, what is the fact there is
:24:33. > :24:37.enough confidence in the labour market for people to want to move
:24:38. > :24:42.around but the other, the underlying theme, is this substitution of
:24:43. > :24:50.capital labour, automation, and whether anything can be done to keep
:24:51. > :24:54.these jobs in the longer term with manufacturing being a dwindling part
:24:55. > :24:57.of the economy. And the crux of this, Trump said we need
:24:58. > :25:01.manufacturing jobs and these blue-collar workers to stay in the
:25:02. > :25:06.States but what the article makes clear is that America is moving away
:25:07. > :25:11.from these for nonpolitical reasons. And it is not just America, it is
:25:12. > :25:15.everywhere where economies are developing. The other issue is that
:25:16. > :25:21.even within manufacturing, the educational level required for the
:25:22. > :25:24.workers is rising because you are getting more technology in
:25:25. > :25:30.manufacturing and software and so the kind of people you need need to
:25:31. > :25:36.be more white-collar. You also are getting more automation. It is all
:25:37. > :25:40.changing and you can cushion that to some extent but you cannot really
:25:41. > :25:47.hold it back over time. Interesting given the renegotiations happening
:25:48. > :25:49.on Nafta between the US, Canada and Mexico. Lucy, good to see you.
:25:50. > :25:56.Thank you for all your messages as well. We will be back tomorrow.
:25:57. > :26:12.Goodbye. Good morning, rather chilly start
:26:13. > :26:15.across many parts of the UK, some clear skies overnight. That
:26:16. > :26:21.translated into sunshine for many parts through today come gradually
:26:22. > :26:22.we will see some rain spreading from the West. Ahead of that,