:00:15. > :00:22.Barclays quit over the scandal. Now for the latest financial news.
:00:22. > :00:32.This is World Business Report. Here are the headlines: Another of the
:00:32. > :00:33.
:00:33. > :00:43.UK's top companies mired in scandal. And in Asia, my crime is going to
:00:43. > :00:53.
:00:53. > :00:58.buy a bankrupted Japanese company for $2 billion.
:00:58. > :01:02.Another giant in British business is nursing huge damage to his
:01:02. > :01:07.reputation this morning. Britain's leading drugs company has been
:01:07. > :01:11.found guilty of the biggest healthcare fraud case in US history.
:01:11. > :01:18.It is going to pay record fines of $3 billion after admitting it
:01:18. > :01:22.legally prone -- illegally promoted its most popular drugs. It also
:01:22. > :01:30.admitted to aggressive marketing techniques, including lavish
:01:30. > :01:34.holidays for doctors. It has broken a record it wishes it
:01:34. > :01:43.hadn't. The US Justice Department said the British drug maker had
:01:44. > :01:50.fled guilty to criminal charges. It agreed to play -- pay $3 billion.
:01:50. > :01:53.Today's settlement is unprecedented in both scope and size. It
:01:54. > :01:59.underscores this administration's firm commitment to protecting the
:01:59. > :02:05.American people and holding accountable those who commit fraud.
:02:05. > :02:14.What did they do wrong? They tried to sell an anti-depressant for
:02:14. > :02:20.adults to children. It promoted another treatment for purposes it
:02:21. > :02:29.had not been approved for. It admitted it had learned from its
:02:29. > :02:35.mistakes. They made a statement: for pharmaceutical companies
:02:35. > :02:38.aggressively promoting a growth -- drug cannot make a blockbuster.
:02:38. > :02:46.They disgrace may serve as a warning that over enthusiastic
:02:46. > :02:51.marketing comes with a risk for the companies as well as the patience.
:02:51. > :03:01.Taking a look at some of the leading stories in Asia. We cross
:03:01. > :03:01.
:03:01. > :03:07.to Singapore. We have been looking at the story
:03:07. > :03:15.of a Japanese company being bought up. This would make this company a
:03:15. > :03:21.large dealer in ships. It would become the world's second largest
:03:21. > :03:28.maker in the product. These are used in personal computers, smart
:03:28. > :03:35.phones and tablet PCs. The company had filed for bankruptcy in
:03:35. > :03:45.February. This was after being unable to pay debts of $5.8 billion.
:03:45. > :03:46.
:03:46. > :03:50.The deal would help strengthen the combined companies market position.
:03:50. > :03:55.It actually acquired its Japanese rival for a fraction of the price
:03:55. > :04:03.it would have needed to build a similar infrastructure. They say it
:04:03. > :04:10.would have cost $68 billion to build a new plant. This is a good
:04:10. > :04:19.saving for the company. They have been having massive problems due to
:04:19. > :04:24.falling prices. After winning the presidency and
:04:25. > :04:34.scoring a landslide in Parliament, Francois Hollande will have to look
:04:34. > :04:38.at the revised budget before our meeting Cabinet on Wednesday. The
:04:38. > :04:43.quote of the cancer is the government will need to find 6
:04:43. > :04:48.billion euros in extra savings. They will need to find 33 billion
:04:48. > :04:51.euros next year. Francois Hollande promised an end
:04:51. > :04:57.to austerity, say he can reduce government debt through economic
:04:57. > :05:04.growth. But the Court of accounts says that government borrowing is
:05:04. > :05:10.still on the rise. The government says they must cut the deficit by
:05:10. > :05:17.as much as 43 billion euros in the next three years. To
:05:17. > :05:24.taxes on big business are being put forward. The French economic
:05:24. > :05:32.outlook will remain very weak. This is especially if troubles in the
:05:32. > :05:36.eurozone persist. French GDP will grow by about 1% next year. Might
:05:36. > :05:41.even be too optimistic. He will have to announce the do spending
:05:41. > :05:46.cuts. The Court of accounts has warned the French Government that
:05:46. > :05:51.unless it acts urgently, it risks unnerving bond markets in
:05:51. > :05:56.international financial sectors. It could push up the cost of borrowing.
:05:56. > :05:59.The bond markets have been very tolerant of Francois Hollande.
:05:59. > :06:07.Yields on French government bonsai and trading at below the rate than
:06:07. > :06:10.they were in the first quarter of this year. Will France face any
:06:10. > :06:17.further credit rating downgrades, like the one standard and Poor's
:06:17. > :06:25.announced last January? It is like the sword of Damocles hanging over
:06:25. > :06:29.France. It is next here that everyone will be looking to see
:06:29. > :06:34.what kind of regulations will be put in place. Right now the key
:06:34. > :06:38.impetus for any move in interest rates in France is the euro crisis
:06:38. > :06:48.picture. The most immediate risk were France is that markets could
:06:48. > :06:52.
:06:52. > :06:56.lose all confidence in the eurozone. There might be light at the end of
:06:56. > :07:01.the tunnel for the world's economy. That is according to thousands of
:07:01. > :07:06.global businesses. Almost 40% want to increase investment in machinery
:07:07. > :07:15.this year. Even higher in emerging markets. There is also good news
:07:15. > :07:19.for workers. 70% of companies are planning pay rises. Despite this,
:07:19. > :07:29.expectations for profits and revenues for 2012 are down or at
:07:29. > :07:32.best flat. I am joined by the executive of the group that
:07:33. > :07:38.compiled this research. It is good to have someone on this programme
:07:38. > :07:45.who has something good to say about the global economy. You say this is
:07:45. > :07:49.about the years ahead? Absolutely. What businesses are telling us is
:07:49. > :07:54.that they want profits to be down in the to return, but making the
:07:55. > :07:57.necessary investments to be successful over the long-term.
:07:57. > :08:02.you say they are making the necessary investments, many
:08:02. > :08:08.companies we talk to say they want to do this and expand, but they are
:08:08. > :08:15.struggling. What about the people you spoke to? It varies area by
:08:15. > :08:19.area. Some companies are sitting on a lot of cash. In the US they are
:08:19. > :08:29.sitting on 1.7 trillion dollars of cash. Even China and Europe are
:08:29. > :08:34.sitting on a lot. Businesses need to access capital. It is critical.
:08:34. > :08:40.That was the concern in Italy when I was there. I imagine that is true
:08:40. > :08:43.in many southern European countries. With your research, it is the
:08:43. > :08:49.emerging markets leading the way. Is it the usual suspects that are
:08:49. > :08:53.pushing forward? Particularly China and India. They are making their
:08:53. > :08:57.investments in research and development. They want to lead with
:08:57. > :09:02.a research and development to develop their own products and
:09:02. > :09:09.opportunities. That is what has changed.
:09:09. > :09:19.We have to leave it there. Good to hear some positive news. Companies
:09:19. > :09:23.are making investments for the future.
:09:23. > :09:28.Microsoft's bought a company in a bid to take on Google in search
:09:28. > :09:33.related advertising. The $6.3 billion deal was Microsoft's
:09:33. > :09:39.figures that the time. It wiped out all of the company's profits for
:09:39. > :09:46.the last quarter. Markets are pretty perky in Asia. Showing you
:09:46. > :09:51.how things are going: one of the reasons for this, central bankers
:09:51. > :09:57.are currently poised to do something to boost economies. A lot
:09:57. > :10:03.of attention on the European Central Bank. Many predict interest
:10:03. > :10:07.rates will be cut in the eurozone. That is an encouraging story. In